Deshaun Watson could be set to lean on one member of the Cleveland Browns team following his return this week, and Peter King predicts that it’s going to have a major impact. 

In a game that will be 701 days in the making, Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson will make his return to competitive action this week as he returns from the suspension that was handed down to him after numerous allegations of sexual misconduct were levied against him.

His return will, somewhat ironically, see him return against the team that traded him away during this past offseason in the form of the Houston Texans, who received quite the haul when they sent him to Cleveland (first-round draft picks in 2022, 2023 & 2024, a 2023 third-rounder and a 2024 fourth-rounder).

The Browns took a pretty big swing when they decided to make the move for him, hoping that he would be the man to take them that little bit further as they continue to be a more competitive force than they were a few years ago when they went 1-31 in 2016 and 2017. 

And if Watson is to help them then Peter King believes that one player in particular is going to have a big role to play in all of that, tight end David Njoku.

Deshaun Watson wants all the help he can get

Writing in his Football Morning in America column, King wrote that he felt like the 26-year-old could be set to have a major impact on how the Browns go in the coming weeks as Watson gets himself acclimatised to things at First Energy Stadium:

I think the Browns are extremely fortunate they didn’t trade David Njoku, despite his 2021 ask. That tight end will be a huge piece to the puzzle if Deshaun Watson becomes a great quarterback in Cleveland.

David Njoku of the Cleveland Browns (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)

The quarterback and tight-end duo has become a crucial part of the game in recent years, most notably the likes of Tom Brady & Rob Gronkowski from their days with the New England Patriots and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers along with the Kansas City Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce, and this is certainly one that has the ability to flourish as well.

As Watson will look to ease himself into the Browns’ playbook, the ‘safety valve’ option at tight end could well be his go-to look, and Njoku is having one of the best years of his career in 2022, averaging 51.6 yards a game, which is 11.7 more than his previous career-best and just played a key role in helping the Browns upset the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in overtime on Sunday, catching 71.4% of his passes and a touchdown. 

And he’s doing that with backup Jacoby Brissett throwing him the ball, so just imagine what he’ll be able to do with Watson under centre?