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• Browns GM Berry refuses to make Watson commitment

  Cleveland Browns general manager Andrew Berry has refused to confirm whether Deshaun Watson will remain the franchise's starting quarterback when he returns from his Achilles injury.

  Watson endured a dismal start to the 2024 season as the Browns went 1-5 before he suffered the season-ending injury against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 7.

  They failed to score 20 points in any of their seven games with Watson starting but did so at the first time of asking without him, beating the Baltimore Ravens 29-24 with Jameis Winston standing in at quarterback two weeks ago.

  Watson's relationship with the Browns' fanbase had already become strained after more than two dozen women accused him of sexual assault and inappropriate behaviour in massage sessions. 

  He served an 11-game suspension to start the 2022 season – his first campaign with the team after being handed a five-year, $230million contract following his trade from the Houston Texans.

  "Really our focus with Deshaun, I would say for any player with a season-ending injury and a major injury, is first and foremost and to make sure that he gets healthy," Berry said on Wednesday.

  "Everything else, we'll deal with at a later moment."

  Berry added, however, that the team's issues were not all of Watson's making.

  "We haven't played well as a team and we haven't played well as a unit on offense," Berry said. 

  "I think oftentimes when you don't play well on offense, obviously your starting quarterback and your play caller will get the most criticism. 

  "But the reality of it is, offenses, it comes down to organization and synchronization. There's a lot of shared ownership across the different groups in terms of why we didn't perform."

• Commanders add coveted cornerback Lattimore ahead of NFL trade deadline

  A handful of teams made moves ahead of Tuesday's NFL trade deadline in an attempt to bolster their play-offs hopes.

  Three first-place teams - the Washington Commanders, Detroit Lions and Pittsburgh Steelers - all swung deals, and we'll find out in just over three months if any of these trades help those franchises capture a Super Bowl championship.

  The Commanders acquired perhaps the biggest name on the trade market, picking up cornerback Marshon Lattimore from the scuffling New Orleans Saints.

  The Commanders shipped a third-, fourth- and sixth-round pick to the Saints for the four-time Pro Bowler, as well as a fifth-round draft pick.

  The 28-year-old Lattimore was named 2017 AP Defensive Rookie of the Year, and though he has been slowed by injuries to his hamstring and abdomen the past few seasons, he is still considered one of the best shutdown defensive backs in the league, having not allowed a touchdown to be scored on him in coverage since 2021.

  He has 15 interceptions in his eight pro seasons, but doesn't have one in seven games this year.

  Lattimore goes from a New Orleans team that is in the midst of a seven-game losing streak and had just fired coach Dennis Allen on Monday to a Washington team that is 7-2 and is surprisingly atop the NFC East.

   

   

  Lions add pass rusher Smith in trade with Browns

  The Lions opened the final day of trading by acquiring pass rusher Za'Darius Smith from the Cleveland Browns for a fifth-round pick and a sixth-rounder in 2026. The Lions are also receiving a seventh-round pick in 2026 from the Browns.

  Detroit (7-1) had been looking to upgrade its pass rush after star defensive end Aidan Hutchinson fractured his left tibia and fibula back in Week 6, and Smith should help in that department.

  A three-time Pro Bowl selection, the 32-year-old Smith has five sacks this year and 65 sacks in 132 games over 10 pro seasons.

  The Lions are in first place in the NFC North with a 7-1 record, but have struggled to generate pressure without Hutchinson, recording just five sacks in the three games without him after registering 15 in its first five games.

   

   

  Jets send wide receiver Williams to Steelers

  The New York Jets found a suitor for Mike Williams, shipping the wide receiver to the Steelers for a fifth-round pick in the 2025 draft.

  Williams, a two-time 1,000-yard receiver, was in his first season with the Jets (3-6) after spending his first seven NFL seasons with the Los Angeles Chargers.

  He was never able to build any chemistry with Aaron Rodgers, however, and the 40-year-old quarterback called out Williams for running the wrong route on a play that Rodgers threw an interception late in a 23-20 loss to the Buffalo Bills in Week 6.

  At that point, it was clear New York was going to try to find a trade partner for the embattled wide out, especially after the Jets acquired Rodgers' old friend Davante Adams in a trade with the Las Vegas Raiders (2-7) last month.

  Williams, who has 321 career receptions for 4,972 yards and 31 touchdowns, now joins a Steelers team that has won three straight games and is atop the AFC North with a 6-2 record.

  Pittsburgh also acquired veteran pass rusher Preston Smith from the Green Bay Packers for a seventh-round draft pick.

   

   

  Rams trade cornerback White to Ravens

  The Los Angeles Rams dealt cornerback TreDavious White to the Baltimore Ravens (6-3) in exchange for a 2026 seventh-round draft pick and a seventh-rounder the following year.

  The Rams (4-4)  had given White permission to seek a trade in late October, and has been inactive in their last four games.

  The disgruntled cornerback was in his first season in Los Angeles after spending his first seven seasons with the Buffalo Bills.

  The 29-year-old is a two-time Pro Bowl selection, but has been limited to 14 games in the last three seasons due to various injuries.

  He should still be able to help a Baltimore defense that is last in the NFL against the pass, allowing an average of 280.9 passing yards per game.

   

  In moves on a smaller scale, the Cowboys (3-5) acquired wide receiver Jonathan Mingo from the Carolina Panthers (2-7), and the Cincinnati Bengals (4-5) picked up Khalil Herbert from the Chicago Bears (4-4) for depth at running back.

  One player who didn't change teams and was rumoured to be on the move was the Raiders star edge rusher Maxx Crosby.

  The Seattle Seahawks (4-5) also decided to keep wide receiver DK Metcalf , while the Panthers are sticking with No. 1 overall pick Bryce Young and the Indianapolis Colts (4-5) are keeping quarterback Anthony Richardson.

• Cowboys owner Jones says quarterback Prescott will likely be placed on injured reserve

  Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones implied that quarterback Dak Prescott will likely be placed on injured reserve, meaning he would miss a minimum of four games.

  The Cowboys announced Monday that Prescott would be side-lined with an injured hamstring, but a decision on if he would go on IR had not yet been made.

  Speaking on his weekly radio appearance on 105.3 The Fan in Dallas on Tuesday, Jones indicated the injury was worse than initially feared.

  "It's likely we'll IR him," Jones said. "We'll see how his rehab goes."

   

  Prescott, who signed a record-breaking, $240million contract hours before this season's opener, suffered the injury late in the third quarter of Sunday's 27-21 loss to the Atlanta Falcons.

  He was replaced by Cooper Rush, and the seven-year backup will get the start this Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles.

  Rush completed 13-of-25 passes for 115 yards and a touchdown against the Falcons, but couldn't rally Dallas all the way back.

  The Cowboys ended up losing their third straight game to drop to 3-5, which matches the total number of losses the team had each of the last three seasons.

  They now sit in third place in the NFC East, 3 1/2 games behind the division-leading Washington Commanders.

  Rush has found some success as a fill-in starter for the Cowboys, though, the 30-year-old hasn't been forced into the starting role since 2022.

  In six career starts for Dallas, he's gone 5-1 with 1,281 passing yards with seven touchdowns, four interceptions and an 83.6 rating.