On Saturday August 24th, 2024, at 10 PM eastern time, the Cleveland Browns took the field in Seattle Washington to play the Seattle Seahawks in the 2024 preseason finale.  Starters from both teams were expected to play at the start of the game. Cleveland Browns starting quarterback Deshaun Watson was ruled out to play in this game. And this was for a good reason.

The left tackle that started this game was Germain Ifedi, he is the Cleveland Browns fifth option at offensive tackle. Starting left tackle Jed Wills and swing tackle Jack Conklin are expected to activated from the PUP list on Monday. Deshaun Watson has been practicing all training camp. He did rest from team drills on Wednesday as a precaution from a sore arm. But he was a full participant in Thursday’s practice. Having Watson play in a meaningless game behind a 5th string left tackle makes no sense. The risk of injury to your $230 million dollar franchise quarterback is too great. The overall health of the team is top priority for the Cleveland Browns.

There was a long list of Cleveland Browns starters that didn’t play in the final preseason game. A handful of starters on both offense and defense played. Some play on both sides of the ball was encouraging. Even though the Browns lost the game, there was positive plays to take away from this game. The only concern is running back D’onta Foreman with a rib injury. He is believed to be ok for the opener against Dallas. Also, the Browns are expected to get a group of players coming off the PUP (physically unable to perform) list early this week. That will be welcomed relief for the Browns to start the season.

On September 8th, 2024, the Cleveland Browns will host the Dallas Cowboys in the 2024 season opener. That is less than two weeks away. This final tune up before the season went well for the Browns. And even more so because they stayed healthy.