Deshaun Watson’s latest week in the spotlight came with a price tag.
The Cleveland Browns quarterback was fined $14,926 by the NFL for unsportsmanlike conduct after cameras caught him and teammate Quinshon Judkins pretending to smoke during last Thursday’s game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Judkins was also fined, with the league docking him $14,397 for his part in the celebration. The NFL labeled the sequence an illegal celebration and a vulgar act.
It happened right after a touchdown, and Prime Video cameras picked up the moment before the penalties were handed down ahead of Cleveland’s Week 5 matchup with the New York Jets. As of now, neither Watson nor Judkins has said whether they will appeal.
The fine arrives during a strong stretch for Watson on the field. He entered the 2026 season with pressure to prove himself, and he has started to settle in within head coach Todd Monken’s system. Through four games, Watson has completed 69.6% of his passes for 855 yards, six touchdowns, and two interceptions.
That play has helped push Cleveland to a 3-1 start, and it has also put Watson’s future back into view. According to Cleveland.com reporter Mary Kay Cabot, the Browns could consider re-signing him if his production keeps trending in the right direction.
For Watson, that makes Sunday against the New York Jets another important chance to keep the momentum going. The fine is a distraction, but his run of solid play has given Cleveland plenty to like as the season gets moving.
In Other News...
Todd Monken Just Hit A Nerve With Browns Fans Over Minkah Fitzpatrick
Todd Monkens latest comments landed in a part of Cleveland that still hasnt cooled off. The Browns first-time head coach was asked about the high helmet-to-helmet hit Minkah Fitzpatrick delivered on rookie KC Concepcion during the recent game against the New York Jets, and Monken called it a bang-bang play while saying Fitzpatrick is not a dirty player. It was the kind of measured answer coaches usually give in the moment, but in this case it immediately stirred up plenty of frustration from Browns fans already primed to see the play through a different lens.
Fitzpatrick was not ejected, though he is expected to be fined for the illegal contact, and that only sharpened the reaction around Monkens defense of him. For Cleveland supporters, the issue is not just the hit itself but the memory attached to the player delivering it, which made the coachs choice of words feel especially touchy in the aftermath. In a rivalry that already carries enough baggage, this was a reminder that even a routine postgame explanation can turn into its own storyline. [Read more 🡒]
Ben Roethlisberger Just Handed Browns Fans The Perfect Reminder
Ben Roethlisberger found a way to stir the pot again, even if it was in jest. On a recent podcast, the former Steelers quarterback made a joking comment that suggested he had never lost to the Browns, a line that immediately invites a fact-check in Cleveland, where the franchise has beaten Pittsburgh multiple times and owns a more recent playoff win than its old rival.
For Browns fans, the bigger takeaway might be the reminder that Pittsburghs long-standing mystique has been chipped away more than once in this matchup. Cleveland has won five straight home games against the Steelers, and Roethlisbergers uncertainty about labeling any team a true contender entering Week 5 only adds to the feeling that the AFC Norths old assumptions no longer hold up the way they used to. [Read more 🡒]
Todd Monken Is Changing The Browns Conversation Faster Than Anyone Expected
Todd Monken arrived in Cleveland with plenty of questions attached to his first season as an NFL head coach, but the Browns have done a fast job of changing the conversation. At 3-1, the early results have quieted a lot of the initial criticism, and Monkens call to start Deshaun Watson has looked a lot more defensible with the team winning behind it.
The bigger surprise is how quickly Monkens profile has risen beyond the building. Some sportsbooks already have him showing up among the top candidates for the 2026 NFL Coach of the Year award, a sign that his impact is being noticed well outside Cleveland. For a team that spent the offseason under a microscope, the bigger question now is how long this momentum can keep rewriting the expectations around Monken and the Browns. [Read more 🡒]