Brian Duker has seen enough on tape to know Deshaun Watson looks awfully familiar.
As the Jets get ready to meet the Browns on Sunday, New York’s defensive coordinator said Watson is showing the kind of quarterbacking that once defined his best stretch in Houston. That matters because the version the Jets are preparing for is not the one plenty of people dismissed when Cleveland handed him the starting job for the 2026 season.
Through four games, Watson has helped push the Browns to a 3-1 start, and Duker said the film shows a quarterback operating with the same traits that made him a three-time Pro Bowler with the Texans.
“I can’t speak on the past, but I did play him when he was in Houston, and that’s kind of what I’m seeing on tape right now,” Duker told the media on Thursday. “That’s the familiarity I have of seeing him doing a good job in the drop-back pass game, and he still has the athleticism, so it gives him a dual-threat, and he’s throwing the ball well. I think he’s doing a very good job.”
Watson’s resurgence has been one of the biggest reasons Cleveland is riding a three-game win streak. Under first-year head coach Todd Monken, who previously helped Lamar Jackson win an MVP with the Ravens, Watson has settled in at his best level since arriving on the five-year, $230 million fully guaranteed contract.
The numbers back it up. Among 26 qualified quarterbacks this season, with a minimum of 100 dropbacks, Watson ranks sixth in completion rate at 69.6% and eighth in passer rating at 101.2.
In Other News...
Jets Mock Draft Outlook Just Revived A Familiar Quarterback Hope
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One recent mock draft revived that conversation in a big way by linking Notre Dame quarterback C.J. Carr to New York as a possible franchise fix. Carr has played well in college, and the projection has the Jets eyeing him as a long-term solution if they do end up in position to strike early. The appeal is obvious for a team that has spent years chasing certainty at the games most important spot, even if the real intrigue is in how the quarterback board could unfold before the Jets are finally on the clock. [Read more 🡒]
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Smith has handled man looks well enough to keep the Jets in games, ranking near the top in success rate and completion percentage against those coverages. But the pressure point is hard to miss: he has also been taking sacks in those situations, and if that trend continues against a Browns defense built to challenge quarterbacks that way, it could shape the outcome of a crucial matchup for New York. [Read more 🡒]
Jets Face Growing Questions Over Adonai Mitchell Injury Handling
Adonai Mitchell has already missed the last two weeks with an undisclosed finger injury, and his absence is starting to raise more than routine availability questions for the Jets. The third-year receiver was ruled out for the upcoming game, and he has not practiced recently, leaving the team to manage a situation that has lingered without much clarity while the offense waits for another healthy option at receiver.
What has made the injury even more of a talking point is the uncertainty around its severity and the lack of any injured reserve move despite Mitchell missing multiple games. Reports have suggested the finger may be broken and could require surgery, but Aaron Glenn has pushed back on that line of thinking, leaving the Jets with a gap between the public explanation and the broader speculation around how serious this really is. [Read more 🡒]