Deshaun Watson Throws Two TDs as Browns Rally to Beat Panthers 21-18, Turning Boos Into Cheers

Deshaun Watson threw two touchdown passes, ran for 45 yards and led the Cleveland Browns to a 21-18 comeback win over the Carolina Panthers on Sunday, September 27, in his first regular-season home start in 23 months. The same fans who booed him in August were chanting his name by the fourth quarter.

The Browns trailed 18-13 with 4:19 left after Panthers quarterback Bryce Young hit John Metchie for an 8-yard touchdown. Watson answered with an eight-play, 65-yard drive, capped by a 14-yard touchdown pass to tight end Harold Fannin Jr. with 1:48 remaining, according to Yahoo Sports. A two-point conversion to rookie receiver Denzel Boston made it 21-18. Safety Ronnie Hickman sealed it with an interception of Young in the final seconds.

Watson finished 16-of-30 for 144 yards, two touchdowns, zero interceptions and 45 rushing yards on 11 carries, according to NBC Sports. He is now the first Browns quarterback since Baker Mayfield in 2018 to lead game-winning touchdown drives in the fourth quarter of consecutive games, per ESPN Research, cited by NBC Sports. Cleveland improved to 2-1, tied with the Steelers, Bengals and Ravens atop the AFC North.

From "Disrespectful" to Teary-Eyed

The reception marked a sharp reversal from Watson's preseason return. Booed by the home crowd during an August 22 loss to the Buffalo Bills, where he went 5-for-12 for 36 yards with an interception in his first game back from a torn Achilles, Watson called the fans' behavior "disrespectful" and "personal" afterward, according to Newsweek. He later apologized, saying his "emotions got the best of me."

The apology didn't stop the criticism. But Sunday's win appeared to. Watson told reporters, via ESPN's Daniel Oyefusi, that the crowd's energy left him "a little teary-eyed." "I put so much work to get back here, to be in this moment here," he said. "To be able to show that I can finish these drives, finish these games, and get a W to the city, and this organization."

Watson added afterward that he barely registered the boos that had followed him through most of the second half. "I was hearing the crowd, the yelling the positivity," he said, according to Fox News. "I didn't hear any of [the boos], but at the same time, I was just trying to give them something to cheer about and we got that W so that's all that matters."

The Backdrop Fans Haven't Forgotten

Watson signed a fully guaranteed $230 million contract with Cleveland in 2022 and has thrown just 19 touchdowns across four injury-shortened seasons, per Fox News. That same year, the NFL suspended him for conduct tied to allegations of sexual assault from more than two dozen female massage therapists, allegations Watson has denied and that led to numerous civil lawsuits. That history, combined with the money and the losing, is a big part of why Cleveland fans turned on him in the first place, not just the boos over his injury.

A reasonable fan who booed Watson in August would say none of that history disappeared just because he won a game in September. The frustration wasn't only about performance on the field. It was about years of a franchise-altering contract producing losing seasons while the quarterback faced serious off-field allegations he never fully answered to the fan base's satisfaction. One good fourth quarter doesn't erase that ledger, and Cleveland's cheers on Sunday reflect a fan base rewarding wins, not necessarily forgiving what came before.

Sunday's game also featured a rough first half for Cleveland, with 10 penalties for 74 yards, according to Rolling Out, and an emotional moment when former Browns running back Nick Chubb, who officially retired with the team on Friday, September 25, received a standing ovation from the crowd he once played in front of.

What's Next

Watson's season numbers now stand at 63.8% completion, 587 yards, five touchdowns and one interception, with 105 rushing yards, per NBC Sports. The Browns host the rival Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday night at Huntington Bank Field, a team that narrowly beat the Bengals on Sunday. A win there, completing a three-game stretch Cleveland was widely expected to lose, would test whether Sunday's ovation was a one-game reprieve or the start of something the fan base is actually willing to trust.