CLEVELAND, OH — Fresh off of a 33-31 road win over the Baltimore Ravens, Deshaun Watson suffered a season-ending shoulder injury. Can fifth-round rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson help save the Browns season.
Thompson-Robinson or “DTR” for short, was selected 140th overall in the 2023 NFL Draft out of UCLA. A 6’2, 203-pound native out of storied Las-Vegas area powerhouse Bishop Gorman, DTR was a two-time Second-Team All Pac-12 honoree thanks to his steady and stellar play for the Bruins. In 50 career games out in Westwood, DTR was 24-24, passed for 10,695 yards, 88 touchdowns and 36 internceptions, while completing 63.3 percent of his passes.
Thanks to posessing similar skill traits to Watson in being big, athletic, with an ability to extend plays outside the pocket, the Browns traded QB2 Joshua Dobbs to the Arizona Cardinals–who has since been traded to the Minnesota Vikings, and is their current QB1 due to the season-ending injury to Kirk Cousins–while some Browns fans are currently rueing the team’s decision to deal such a promising talent in Dobbs, DTR could be just what the Browns need to continue their current playoff push and hold on to the current sixth seed in the AFC.
Hopefully, for both his and the Browns case, that his second career NFL start goe better than his first.
In his NFL debut against the AFC North-leading Baltimoore Ravens, and filing in for Watson, DTR completed 19 of 36 passes for 121 yards andd three interceptions in a 28-3 home loss. After showing some flashes of potrential in pre-season, Thompson-Robinison got a dose of regular season NFL speed and looked like a rookie against the always vaunted Ravens defense that Sunday.
Now, with Watson out for the year, and the projected QB1 going forward–unless free agent QB Joe Flacco is signed–then this current Browns team is DTR’s to lead, hopefully to the Brown’s second playoff appearence in four years.
Sunday against a visiting Steelers 6-3 team, who is also eager to continue their own playoff push, Thompson-Robinson will not only have a chance to help the Browns avenge RB1 Nick Chubb and put a majr dent in their hated archrival’s post-season hopes, but an oppurtunity for the former UCLA Bruin to shine oon his own, and emerge from under the haunted spectre of Watson’s troubled shadow.