BEREA — Browns general manager Andrew Berry provided a bit of clarity about where quarterback Deshaun Watson stands in his recovery from November shoulder surgery.
"We have a regular cadence, regular checkpoints," Berry said Thursday. "This week, Deshaun was throwing up to 40 yards. He's in a pretty good spot. Again, I don't want to put ... the cart in front of the horse ... But he's progressing as appropriate.
"We're really, really pleased with the work that he's put in and really pleased with how the shoulder's responding. But we're still in the middle of a rehab process, so we know that it can take different left and right turns, but we're pretty optimistic in terms of what we've seen so far."
Berry spoke two days after Watson himself spoke during the first week of the Browns' voluntary offseason program. During that availability, Watson was asked multiple times about the progress he's making in his rehab from the surgery, which occurred on Nov. 21.
Watson was short on specifics during his availability, speaking more in generalities. That included how far he was throwing the ball now, a month into his throwing program, as well as a timetable for his return.
"The plan is to come back whenever they feel like, and I feel like, we're on the same page that we're ready, so there's not a timeline or a date that we have that this is when I'm going to be 100%," Watson said Tuesday. "It is just kind of how the process — it can be sooner than later, it can be later than sooner. So I think he's just really, depending on how each landmark we hit and how fast we can get it and how my shoulder's reacting."
The most specific Watson has been on a timeframe came two weeks ago during a brief conversation with reporters at the opening of his restaurant. That's when he said he'll "be ready by Week 1."
Berry was asked specifically if that was a sentiment shared by the team as well. He hedged a bit in his response.
"We feel really good about it," Berry said. "I'm not going to make any predictions, just because you just never know. But that's certainly our expectation."
Next week's draft will be another reminder for Berry and the Browns of how much they've invested in Watson already since acquiring him two years ago. They'll be without a first-round pick for the third consecutive draft, having sent those to the Houston Texans as part of the deal.
The return the Browns have received on that investment has been 12 combined starts over the last two seasons, with 2,217 combined yards, 14 touchdowns and nine interceptions. They've also had a mountain of questions, with the shoulder being the latest one.
Watson battled what was termed a rotator cuff strain early last season after he took a shot to his shoulder in a Week 3 win over the Tennessee Titans . The injury led him to miss three starts in October, and he left a Week 7 game at the Indianapolis Colts in the first quarter.
The injury that eventually led Watson to be shut down for the season and undergo surgery was a broken glenoid that was discovered after a Week 10 win at the Baltimore Ravens . However, on Tuesday, he threw some doubt on if the injury actually happened in that game or in the weeks prior when he mentioned "it was possible."
Berry wouldn't go down that rabbit hole on Thursday.
"Yeah, I think I addressed this in the fall and probably at the end of the season as well," Berry said. "So nothing's really changed since then."
Chris Easterling can be reached at ceasterling@thebeaconjournal.com. Read more about the Browns at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/browns. Follow him on X at @ceasterlingABJ
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Browns GM Andrew Berry: Deshaun Watson 'throwing up to 40 yards'
