NFL hits Browns QB Deshaun Watson with 3 fines for his game against Steelers

Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson is out more than $35,000 after the NFL fined him for three different incidents in Cleveland’s loss to the Steelers.

However, the one move Watson made that drew so much criticism didn’t rise to the level of a fine, the NFL said. That’s when the Browns quarterback pushed an official out of the way as the quarterback argued with another player.

The league levied two $10,927 fines for each time Watson stiff-armed a Steeler defender in the facemask. These were deemed as “unnecessary roughness.” And Monday night, both penalties limited Browns drives.

The league office also levied a fine of $13,659 for what the NFL called a “violent gesture.” And that gesture fell under the category of unsportsmanlike conduct.

NFL Network reporter Tom Pelissero shared a video clip of the gesture. Deshaun Watson and teammate David Njoku slapped hands and pretended to shoot guns into the crowd as they celebrated a touchdown. And yes, the NFL also tagged Njoku for $13,659.

Here’s the “violent gesture” that led to one of Deshaun Watson’s three fines from Monday night.

Watson and David Njoku were each fined $13,659 for the gun-themed celebration after a #Browns TD. Watson was fined $35,513 total, including two fines for unnecessary roughness. pic.twitter.com/bYgU7D3kVY

— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) September 23, 2023

NFL said Deshaun Watson’s shove of official was ‘inadvertent’

The league office already clarified that Deshaun Watson’s push of an official shouldn’t have drawn a flag. The NFL ruled it as inadvertent.

“Officials are called upon to maintain order on the field, and sometimes while performing those duties, there is inadvertent contact between players and officials,” the league said in a statement on Tuesday. “In this instance, in their judgment, the contact did not rise to the level of a foul.”

The Browns lost to the Steelers, 26-22. And no doubt, Deshaun Watson was frustrated. The Steeler defense scored two touchdowns. One was a pick six made by Alex Highsmith. That came on the Browns’ first offensive snap. Then TJ Watt picked up a fumble and returned it for a TD to put the Steelers ahead in the fourth quarter. Highsmith had sacked Watson and punched the ball out.

The Browns also lost star running back Nick Chubb to a significant knee injury. But Cleveland still was in position to win until Deshaun Watson’s late turnover. Coincidentally, Jerome Ford, who replaced Chubb, got hit with a $5281 fine by the NFL for unnecessary roughness.

Before the NFL announced the fines, Deshaun Watson said he was aware of the criticism being heaped upon him.

 “it comes with the status and the standard that people hold me to,” Watson told reporters. “I’m going to continue to work and continue to compete and just try to get better as best I can.”

The Browns play host to the Titans Sunday afternoon. Both teams are 1-1.