Yes, according to a report by longtime and respected Cleveland Browns beat reporter Mary Kay Cabot, Deshaun Watson has the inside track to earn the starting quarterback job in a three-man competition over second-year pros Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel. However, that would be a mistake.
Sanders finished his rookie season as the starter for Cleveland and should be the starter again this year. Selected in the fifth round, the Colorado product did not put up impressive numbers, completing 56.6% of his passes for 1,400 yards, seven touchdowns and 10 interceptions. The Browns finished 3-4 with Sanders under center, though, winning some games down the stretch.
While Sanders’ rookie season stats might not jump off the page, new Browns head coach Todd Monken likes the quarterback’s potential to grow.
“I think what you see is elite playmaking ability,” Monken said when asked about Sanders at the NFL Scouting Combine. “That’s in him. You’ve seen it. We’ve seen it. You saw it in college, you saw it on tape last year. Sure, there’s a ways to go, but what rookie isn’t? I mean, what first-year player doesn’t have a long way to go.”
Selected two rounds earlier in the third round last year, Gabriel completed 59.5% of his passes for 937 yards, with seven touchdown passes and two interceptions. Cleveland posted a 1-5 record with Gabriel as the starter, struggling to win games with its other rookie quarterback, making Sanders a clear superior option.
Deshaun Watson and Shedeur Sanders appear set to go head-to-head in a quarterback competition in training camp. (Photo by Nick Cammett/Getty Images)
The Browns, meanwhile, signed Watson to a $230 million guaranteed contract after a massive trade with the Houston Texans in 2022 amid off-the-field legal issues. He’s woefully underperformed, winning nine games in his first three seasons with the Browns. Suffering two Achilles tendon tears, a shoulder issue and serving an 11-game suspension, Watson played in just 19 games in his four seasons with the Browns. The last time Watson started was 2024, when he finished 1-6 as a starter with five touchdown passes in seven starts.
However, Watson is still just 30 years old and the most accomplished quarterback on the roster and the Browns owe him $46 million for the upcoming season, and he’ll count $86 million against the cap in 2027. So, it makes sense that owner Jimmy Haslam would like to get some return on his investment.
That’s why it might be an uphill battle for Sanders to get the starting job.
“Sanders would have to have full command of the offense and confidence of the team behind him to overtake Watson,” a longtime NFL scout told me. “But Watson might have worn out his welcome there, too.”
But if the Browns are serious about continuing to build on consecutive solid drafts executed by general manager Andrew Berry, here are three reasons why Sanders should be the quarterback in Week 1 for Cleveland.
Improved assets on offense led by offensive-minded HC Todd Monken
The Browns got better on offense through free agency and the draft, providing more talent on that side of the ball that should make Sanders’ job to lead the offense easier.
Cleveland took Utah offensive lineman Spencer Fano with the team’s No. 6 overall pick, who will slot in as the team’s blindside protector at left tackle. And they drafted two playmakers at receiver in Texas A&M’s KC Concepcion in the first round and Washington’s Denzel Boston in the second round. The Browns signed Los Angeles Chargers free agent Zion Johnson to play left guard and Green Bay Packers free agent Elgton Jenkins to man the center position during free agency.
Along with that, Monken provides a shift in philosophy on offense that should put him in situations where he can make quick decisions that keep him out of harm’s way. Sanders was sacked 23 times in seven games last season. Those sack numbers need to come down, which means more decisive reads and getting the ball out quickly.
Sanders is a cost-effective developmental option Browns can build around
Shedeur Sanders threw for 1,400 yards, seven touchdowns and 10 interceptions as a rookie, leading the Browns to a 3-4 record in seven starts. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
Sanders is set to make a little over $1 million in the second year of his rookie contract. Yes, the Browns have already committed significant financial capital to Watson, but that’s sunk costs at this point. Moving forward, Sanders must show he can be the long-term answer at quarterback, allowing Berry and the Browns to continue to build the team around a young developmental prospect and taking advantage of a quarterback on a rookie deal.
The San Francisco 49ers used the same strategy with Brock Purdy with similar success, as did the Seattle Seahawks during back-to-back Super Bowl runs. Both teams had plans to go with other quarterback options – Trey Lance in San Francisco and Matt Flynn in Seattle — but used later-round picks on developmental quarterbacks that blossomed into frontline starters to lead their respective teams to deep postseason runs in the earlier portions of their careers.
Browns still in place to take QB in talent-rich 2027 draft
Cleveland’s eject button out of this dizzying quarterback carousel, which now includes a fourth player in sixth-round pick in dual-threat quarterback Taylen Green, is the 2027 draft.
FOX Sports NFL Draft analyst Rob Rang has five quarterbacks selected in the first round of his first 2027 mock draft. The Browns have nine picks next year, so they could make a move for a quarterback if things don’t work out with Sanders or Watson this season.
But Cleveland also must consider that it hasn’t exactly set the world on fire drafting quarterbacks in the first round. Baker Mayfield, Brandon Weeden, Johnny Manziel, Brady Quinn and Tim Couch were all taken in the first round this century and never reached their full potential in Cleveland.
Let Sanders cook.
