A Pittsburgh Steelers–Cleveland Browns game has once again put the two franchises in the NFL’s disciplinary spotlight. Seven years after Myles Garrett swung a helmet at Mason Rudolph and received a lengthy suspension, a hit involving another Browns quarterback has led to league discipline—this time for Steelers safety Jaquan Brisker.
The NFL fined Brisker $17,911 for a hit on Deshaun Watson that the league classified as a blow to the quarterback’s head or neck. The incident occurred during the teams’ Week 8 matchup on November 1.
With about 13 minutes left in the first quarter, Brisker broke through on a blitz and hit Watson during the Browns’ third offensive play. Officials threw a late flag for roughing the passer, allowing Cleveland’s opening drive to continue.
Watson went to the blue medical tent after the play, and backup quarterback Shedeur Sanders briefly took his place. An Unaffiliated Neurotrauma Consultant later cleared Watson to return to the game.
Watson finished with 27 completions on 39 attempts for 324 yards, despite being sacked eight times. After the game, Brisker objected to the roughing-the-passer penalty and suggested that officials were giving quarterbacks too much protection.
“Babying the quarterback. He’s laying there crying, whatever he was doing. It is what it is,” Brisker said. “I assume I’m going to get fined because if you watch it, I’m hitting him with my chest and then I’m off to the side. But he had his binky today, so they threw it out there. It is what it is.”
The remarks added to the discussion around the hit and the penalty. Watson had another medical evaluation the following morning and was cleared after showing no symptoms. However, he began experiencing concussion symptoms later that night.
Watson reported those symptoms to the Browns’ medical staff on the morning of Tuesday, November 3. The team placed him in the NFL’s concussion protocol.
“On Tuesday morning, he reported to the medical staff that he began experiencing concussion symptoms Monday night and was immediately placed in the concussion protocol,” the Browns said in a statement.
Watson missed practice on Wednesday, November 4, and Thursday, November 5. He returned for limited individual work on Friday, November 6, but head coach Todd Monken named Sanders the starter for Week 9.
Watson completed the league’s five-step concussion protocol on Saturday, November 7. That afternoon, the NFL announced the $17,911 fine against Brisker for the Week 8 hit. Watson’s clearance, however, did not mean he would play in Cleveland’s next game.
The Browns listed Watson as inactive for their November 8 matchup against the New Orleans Saints, with Sanders starting instead. Sanders threw for 297 yards and two touchdowns, but Cleveland lost 23–22 in overtime.
Brisker had faced league discipline before. In 2023, during his second season with the Chicago Bears, he and teammate Tyrique Stevenson were both fined after a Week 3 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. Brisker received a $9,287 fine for unnecessary roughness.
Before the Week 8 incident in the 2026 season, Brisker had played 99.8% of Pittsburgh’s defensive snaps across eight games without receiving a major fine.
Watson’s absence lasted only one game. On Wednesday, November 11, Cleveland named him the starting quarterback for Week 10 against the Houston Texans, ending Sanders’ brief run as the starter.
Through eight starts in the 2026 season, Watson had helped the Browns reach a 5–3 record. He had thrown for 1,806 yards, seven touchdowns and three interceptions, with a 91.2 passer rating.
