Deshaun Watson didn't refuse to play a four-down game on Sunday

As the saying goes, a lie makes it halfway around the world before the truth can get out of hand. When social media is involved, mischaracterization also occurs.

At a time when the status of Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson is not as tenuous as elsewhere, the mischaracterization of a moment during Sunday's game against the Commanders is the latest bucket of food – even if the dead fish not bait for sharks, but a fight.

The video was perceived as Watson refusing to stay on the field for a four-down play. Watson walked away while his teammates stayed. Cut to coach Kevin Stefanski, who appeared upset by the turn of events. What was evident was that Stefanski was taken aback because Watson had apparently stopped driving.

Enter the truth. Who has been chasing untruths for more than 24 hours.

As Stefanski explained after the game, the Browns had too many men in the huddle, which led to the decision to kick a field goal. After a game penalty delay, the fourth and goal from the 8 became a fourth and a goal from the 13, further solidifying the decision to get three points.

There are currently plenty of valid reasons to question Cleveland's decision to hold on to Watson. His poor contract appears to have prevented the organization from making a change. But as the outside voices calling for Watson's relocation to the bench grow louder, the notion that he refused to play a four-down game should not be added to the list of tangible reasons why Jameis Winston gets the chance to change things.

When fans and the media (especially the media) see circumstances like those in the video, the fact that they defy common sense requires an effort to find out if that actually happened. Given that Stefanski is available to reporters after every game, it made sense to see what he had to say before making a judgment.

That doesn't mean coaches always tell the truth about these situations. For something as unusual as a player essentially giving up for a drive (or anything else) when his teammates are ready to move on and his coach expects him to do so, we should all expect something far clearer than a snippet, which can potentially be viewed in a way that fans the flames of extreme dysfunction before being considered a true and accurate interpretation of events.

But that doesn't mean the Browns don't have problems right now. They have plenty. But that's not one of them.