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One of the least popular people in the state of Ohio right now is the Cleveland Browns‘ starting quarterback, Deshaun Watson, who was confirmed as the starter on Monday, Aug. 24. Watson recently addressed fans booing him during the preseason Week 2 game and called them “disrespectful” for doing so. Watson has since walked back his comments, but it was obviously too little, too late. MORE: Browns coach Todd Monken explains Deshaun Watson decision One Browns fan decided to make a statement about their frustration by using the Jim Brown statue at the team’s stadium. The fan taped a sign to the statue that ripped both Browns owner Jimmy Haslam and the veteran signal-caller. “Cleveland is done with the Haslams and their ‘fre4k’ Watson,” part of the message said, per Cleveland photojournalist Dan Stamness. MORE: Browns coach Todd Monken explains Deshaun Watson decision While we certainly understand the fan’s frustration, they shouldn’t have used the Brown statue to get their point across. Why are Browns fans mad at Deshaun Watson? There are multiple reasons. On the football side of things, Watson has an enormous contract but has played like one of the worst quarterbacks in the NFL since signing it. And that’s just when he is on the field. Watson has missed 49 of a possible 68 games with various injuries. There’s also the slew of sexual misconduct accusations against Watson that have led to nearly 30 civil lawsuits. MORE: ESPN analyst believes Browns botched Shedeur Sanders decision Browns fans don’t even want Watson on the team, let alone have him as the starter. Did Browns make the right decision? It never made sense to start Watson. The final nail in the coffin for that decision should have been his recent comments about Browns fans. The book is already written on his career, and there is nothing to gain from having him start, especially with the Browns rebuilding. If it weren’t for his enormous contract, Watson would probably be out of the league. MORE: 4 most dysfunctional NFL franchises entering 2026 season Adding to that, the Browns should be looking to get as much data on second-year quarterback Shedeur Sanders as possible. After all, at least there is still a chance he proves to be a franchise quarterback. Giving Sanders an extended look would allow Cleveland to better judge if it needs to draft a quarterback in 2027 in what is expected to be a loaded class. But, leave it to the Browns to make the wrong decision, despite everything we just mentioned. — Enjoy free coverage of the top news & trending stories with The Big Lead Newsletter —