Deshaun Watson is sending a message about his recovery after re-rupturing his Achilles in January.
In a new video posted Tuesday on Instagram, the Browns quarterback is seen training hard while in a medical boot at the team’s CrossCountry Mortgage Campus in Cleveland.
Decked out in Browns gear, Watson performed various exercises and stretches while also expanding on his mindset as the new league year begins.
“At the end of the day, I gotta understand too, my name, my presence is bigger than what people actually see,” said Watson, who signed a fully guaranteed five-year, $230 million contract with Cleveland in 2022.
“For me, I want it to be genuine because everything that I lived about, I’ve always been genuinely. I’ve always just dreamed about serving others, just bringing grit or energy around folks. I’m a big energy person.”
Watson, 29, added he’s learned not to take things personally by those who don’t understand him.
“In a sense, you can’t take it personal, I kinda learned that. But I think naturally we kind of do that as humans — trying to take other people’s opinions as personal. It goes back to, people don’t understand me, they don’t know so, So when they don’t know or understand something they try and speak on it,” he said in a voiceover.
Watson’s 2025 season is up in the air after the former Texans star underwent a second Achilles surgery in January after re-rupturing the tendon.
He first suffered a season-ending right Achilles tear in Week 7 of the 2024 season.
The Browns acquired Kenny Pickett in a trade with the Eagles last week and hosted free agent Russell Wilson for a visit.
Watson informed the Browns he re-injured his Achilles during an exit physical as part of the team’s season-ending process.
“Watson’s recovery time and return to play status is uncertain, and he will likely miss significant time during the 2025 season,” the Browns said in January while confirming Watson’s MRI results.
The Pro Bowl quarterback’s fiancée, rapper and model Jilly Anais, was excited to see him training again.
“There go My Fiancé!!!!!!” Anais wrote in the comments.
The couple, who celebrated five years together last July, announced their engagement Sunday in a joint post on Instagram.
Watson has thrown for 3,365 yards, 19 touchdowns and 12 interceptions across three seasons and 19 starts with the Brown. He holds a 9-10 record.
Watson was suspended the first 11 games of the 2022 season, delaying his Browns debut, due to allegations of sexual misconduct by roughly two dozen massage therapists against the quarterback, which were first made public in March 2021.
Anais stood by Watson, who’s maintained his innocence, since then.