'Self-driven' Deshaun Watson says he's not motivated by QB rankings, knows he must prove again he belongs with best

BEREA — Deshaun Watson was considered a top-five quarterback when the 2020 season ended. The lofty status fit after he was named to his third straight Pro Bowl and led the NFL in passing yards, yards per attempt and yards per completion.This year's preseason rankings of the best quarterbacks, and the conversations that accompany them, don't include Watson. Kansas City's Patrick Mahomes, Buffalo's Josh Allen, Cincinnati's Joe Burrow, the Chargers' Justin Herbert, Baltimore's Lamar Jackson, Philadelphia's Jalen Hurts, the Jets' Aaron Rodgers and Jacksonville's Trevor Lawrence are consistently mentioned before Watson is considered.Juan Thornhill was hurt when Chiefs didn't re-sign him but excited to face them in preseason finaleHe understands and insists the lack of recognition isn't a source of motivation."Not at all. I stay focused on what I got to do and control what I can control," Watson said Wednesday before training camp practice. "I missed two years of football, so I shouldn't be in those rankings, to be honest. If you're asking me, I haven't played enough football the last two years to even be up there."So I've got to go out there and prove and show what I've got to do to get back in those conversations. I've just got to lock in on what I need to lock in on and just focus on my tasks, and everything else will take care of itself."Training Camp Log, Day 17: Storms move practice inside; Grant Delpit day-to-day after leaving practice with arm injuryHe also mentioned internal motivation when asked about matching up with Burrow, Jackson and Pittsburgh's Kenny Pickett in the rugged AFC North.#Browns QB Deshaun Watson says he's self-motivated, it doesn't come from trying to keep up with other QBs in NFL. pic.twitter.com/BocKxAyhQs— Scott Petrak ct (@ScottPetrak) August 23, 2023https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"I'm self-driven," Watson said. "I want to be the best I can be for Deshaun Watson. I can't get caught up in the other guys and seeing what they're doing."This is a hard business. This is a hard job to have and it's only 32 spots out of the whole world. So I feel like everyone's elite and I got to be self-driven to be the best Deshaun Watson I can be for this team and for myself."Notes: Nick Chubb hopes more catches will make rushing easier, offense betterWatson didn't make ESPN's list of the top 100 NFL players, which included 11 quarterbacks and four Browns — defensive ends Myles Garrett and Za'Darius Smith, running back Nick Chubb and left guard Joel Bitonio. NBC's Chris Simms ranked Watson ninth among quarterbacks.He'll have the chance to improve his standing with an enhanced role in his first full season in coach Kevin Stefanski's system after being suspended for the first 11 games last year. During a TV interview last week during the game against the Eagles, Watson said Stefanski wants to run the offense through the quarterback after years of relying on running back Nick Chubb.Watson feels he's taken ownership."Most definitely. AVP and Kevin gave me the keys and they're letting me control a lot of things that we do on the field," he said, referring to coordinator Alex Van Pelt. "But that comes over time. Me understanding this offense, understanding what they want to do and what schemes that we want to do in the run game and the passing game and then just being able to build that trust and build that ownership on the field … and being that coach and player at the same time."Stefanski said Watson taking more control was a process started in April with the beginning of the offseason program and the offensive installation."Any good relationship builds trust as time goes on," Stefanski said. "He knows that he has the ultimate trust from us when he's standing there behind the center. We always talk about (how) that's the best view in the house. We trust what he sees."Watson wanted to play in the preseason finale Saturday in Kansas City, and Stefanski said he and the majority of the starters will be in the game for 20-25 snaps. Chiefs coach Andy Reid told reporters his starters could get "a little bit of time," which Stefanski said won't affect his plan.#Browns QB Deshaun Watson excited to play in preseason finale. pic.twitter.com/icwX1xAyzB— Scott Petrak ct (@ScottPetrak) August 23, 2023https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.jsIf Reid plays two-time MVP Patrick Mahomes, it'll be a matchup of quarterbacks drafted in 2017. The Chiefs traded up to No. 10 to take Mahomes, and the Texans traded with the Browns to move up to No. 12 and select Watson."He's definitely the standard for the NFL and you've just got to continue to just keep building that up, especially being in the 2017 draft class together," Watson said of Mahomes, mentioning his playmaking, leadership and work ethic. "Both of us have a lot to prove and we want to continue to just show that we're one of the top — us two — classes that have been drafted. So that's the plan."Safety Juan Thornhill spent four seasons with the Chiefs before signing with the Browns as a free agent in March. He sees a lot of similarities between Mahomes and Watson."They both compete at a high level," Thornhill said. "Deshaun, he has all the traits of a great quarterback and I'm excited to see him play this year."Watson's had plenty of good practices and moments during camp, including deep touchdowns Wednesday to receivers Amari Cooper, Elijah Moore and Donovan Peoples-Jones, but there have been clunkers, too. He was intercepted multiple times in the joint practices against the Eagles, and the second-day struggles inspired media criticism, which drew an "lol" reply from Watson on X, formerly known as Twitter."The response on there wasn't about the stats or anything like that," he said. "It's about knowing the situations. The media, you guys — no offense — but you guys just don't know what we're working on. Not every period is just a 'hey, go out there and compete.' Some periods, it's third and fourth down, so we got to take our chances. Some periods it's the end-of-game situation."I don't get involved in that. I guess you must be pretty good if you're having some type of criticism. So you always got to have those talks and negativities to keep you motivated, keep you pushing forward and keep trying to be better."The post 'Self-driven' Deshaun Watson says he's not motivated by QB rankings, knows he must prove again he belongs with best first appeared on BrownsZone with Scott Petrak.