Injuries continue to mount in the 2023 NFL season. It is inevitable that every fantasy football manager will navigate at least some of them throughout the season. Cleveland Browns QB Deshaun Watson is dealing with a shoulder injury. What is the latest on his status, and is he likely to play against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 4?
Looking to make a trade in your fantasy league? Having trouble deciding who to start and who to sit? Check out PFN’s Free Fantasy Football Trade Analyzer and Start/Sit Optimizer to help you make the right decision!
Latest News Surrounding Deshaun Watson
There was no noticeable play on which Watson hurt his shoulder last week. Against the Titans, Watson had his best game of the season, throwing for 289 yards and two touchdowns. It was arguably his best game as a member of the Browns.
Unfortunately, Watson popped up on Wednesday’s injury report with a shoulder issue. More specifically, it’s his right shoulder, which is not what you want to see.
It’s always at least slightly concerning when a player has any sort of injury. But the nature of football is such that almost every player is banged up eventually.
MORE: Fantasy News Tracker
Wednesday practice reports aren’t overly important. If Watson missed practice entirely, there wouldn’t yet be cause for alarm.
The fact that he was practicing at all is a great sign for his availability.
Furthermore, Cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot reported optimism from Kevin Stefanski on Watson’s outlook for Sunday.
#Browns Alex Van Pelt says he expects Deshaun Watson to play vs #Ravens Sunday despite sore shoulder that he rested on Wednesday pic.twitter.com/AwhEf0daPd
— Mary Kay Cabot (@MaryKayCabot) September 28, 2023
What Does This Mean for Watson’s Fantasy Ranking?
The injury is not going to impact Watson’s spot in our PFN Consensus Rankings at all. He will either play or he doesn’t. At this point, given his limited status as Wednesday’s practice, plus Stefanski’s comments, we have every reason to believe Watson will play.
It’s not the easiest matchup for Watson against the Ravens. Plus, it’s not as if Watson has played particularly well since joining the Browns.
Ultimately, I would prefer to not start Watson this week, but it has nothing to do with his injury. I just don’t think he’s a fantasy commodity at this point. But if you are rolling with Watson as your starting QB, you should have no concerns about his health this week.