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Paul DePodesta brought his analytical strategies and expertise to the Cleveland Browns in 2016 when he was named the franchise’s Chief Strategy Officer.
DePodesta started a new chapter last week when he was named president of baseball operations for the Colorado Rockies.
He is familiar with MLB, having previously worked for the then Cleveland Indians, Oakland Athletics and New York Mets. DePodesta also spent a few seasons as the general manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers. In the midst of his return to an MLB front office, DePodesta reflected on one of the more notable moves he helped orchestrate during his tenure with the Browns — the blockbuster for Deshaun Watson.
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Cleveland Browns chief strategy officer Paul DePodesta, left, talks with managing and general partner Jimmy Haslam before a game against the Philadelphia Eagles at FirstEnergy Stadium on Aug. 21, 2022, in Cleveland. (Ken Blaze/USA TODAY Sports)
Watson has appeared in just 19 games in the three years since he signed an unprecedented, fully guaranteed $230 million contract shortly after the Houston Texans agreed to send him to Cleveland in 2022. The 32 games Watson missed were due to either suspension or injury.
BROWNS’ DESHAUN WATSON addresses critics, vows to RETURN FROM LATEST INJURY ‘MUST BE BETTER THAN BEFORE’
The decision continues to face criticism, with many seeking to assign blame to one or more of Brown’s decision makers. DePodesta offered some context, recalling the decision to trade for Watson as a collective choice.
Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson, center, poses for a portrait with general manager Andrew Berry, left, and coach Kevin Stefanski during Watson’s introductory news conference March 26, 2022, at the Browns practice facility in Berea, Ohio. (Jeff Lange/USA TODAY Network/ USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images)
“Here’s what I wanted to say, and I really believe this,” DePodesta told The Denver Post. “I believe most decisions, especially big ones like that, are organizational decisions, right? I don’t believe in the ‘King Scout’ situation where there’s one guy making every call. … The jobs are too complex, the decisions are too difficult. They affect too many different things. So I always think those kinds of collective decisions, it can be hard to agree on. [opinions] on that kind of thing. Everyone who was a part of it? We all own that. We just do, it’s part of the deal.”
Chief Strategy Officer Paul DePodesta of the Cleveland Browns walks onto the field prior to a game at FedEx Field on October 2, 2016 in Landover, Md. (Nick Cammett/Diamond Images via Getty Images)
The NFL suspended Watson for 11 games in 2022, but a shoulder injury cut the quarterback’s season short in 2023. Last October, Watson was sidelined by a ruptured Achilles tendon.
Watson again injured the same tendon in January. The latest setback has sidelined the three-time Pro Bowler for this entire season so far, but Watson pushed back against that schedule.
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“Everybody doubts me. Everybody doesn’t believe in me,” Watson said in a video posted to his Instagram account in April showing him working out. “Everybody doesn’t think I can get back to where I was. But I know, and I believe in the work I’ve put in, that I believe in myself… I know I’m going to be way better than before.”
The 30-year-old added to his comeback argument by saying he doesn’t “have much to lose.”
Watson has thrown 19 touchdowns against 12 interceptions in a Browns uniform. He finished his five-year stint with the Texans with 104 touchdowns against 36 interceptions.
The impressive numbers came over just four seasons on the football field. Watson was banned from every game of the 2021 season after a trade request, which ultimately led to a standoff between the quarterback and the team.
