Browns coach Kevin Stefanski left uncertainty on Monday about whether Deshaun Watson is ready to return to practice.
Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com clarifies that although the quarterback has made “excellent progress” in his comeback from his twice ruptured Achilles, the team will not open Watson’s 21-day practice window this week.
Watson, who is on the reserve/physically unable to perform list, first must pass his medical exams before being cleared for practice, per Cabot.
He has rehabbed at the team facility and has attended quarterback meetings.
“I know he wants to play a lot of football again,” Browns quarterbacks coach Bill Musgrave said late last month. “He feels like he’s got a lot of tread left on his tires.”
Watson has played only 19 games since the start of the 2022 season, going 9-10 with 19 touchdowns and 12 interceptions.
Rookie Dillon Gabriel will make his sixth start on Sunday against the Ravens.