Browns To Conduct Open QB Competition; Outside Options In Play

The Deshaun Watson contract is in its final year. Because of the numerous restructures the Browns have made on the disastrous fully guaranteed deal, it is widely expected to remain on Cleveland’s payroll in 2026. Because of the void years-driven restructures, Cleveland is positioned to carry considerable dead money from the deal in 2027.

Jimmy Haslam admitted the 2022 trade/extension sequence was a mistake, but because of how costly it would be for the Browns to release Watson this year, he remains on the roster. This is the closest thing the NFL has seen to a bloated MLB-like contract clogging a team’s payroll, and other teams will use the deal as evidence they do not need to authorize fully guaranteed long-term accords. But Watson may not be done as a Browns player yet.

Todd Monken confirmed the embattled QB will be part of an open competition for the 2026 job. While Shedeur Sanders finished the 2025 campaign as Cleveland’s starter, Monken did not commit to him in his first year on the job.

“I don’t know why it wouldn’t be an open competition,” Monken said (via Fox Sports’ Ralph Vacchiano) at the Combine. “And I don’t mean that harshly, but I don’t think there’s enough on film over the last couple of years one way or the other to say, ‘Boy, we have a starter at quarterback’ yet.

“… I think any time that you have a player that, at one time, has exhibited the skillset at an elite level, I think you’re always going to give them the benefit of the doubt that somehow we might be able to get that out of him again.”

Watson’s woeful performance has called many to label the Browns’ 2022 trade, when factoring in the contract component, as the worst in NFL history. While the Broncos managed to escape their Russell Wilson albatross contract and reach back-to-back playoff brackets despite the record-setting dead money number, the Browns cannot do the same with Watson. If they cut the nine-year veteran this offseason, it would bring $131.16MM in dead money. Even spread over two years, that is untenable. So, the Browns essentially have no choice but to see if the former Texans Pro Bowler can make an impact in an age-31 season.

Watson’s 33.1 cumulative QBR since the 2022 season ranks as the worst among qualified options in this span, per ESPN.com’s Daniel Oyefusi. He is tied to an $80.72MM cap number. The Browns will once again, per Oyefusi, restructure the deal. That will mean a lower 2026 cap number but more dead money once Watson is off the roster in 2027.

This contract undoubtedly influenced the Browns’ coaching search, with a few names — Jesse Minter, Mike McDaniel and Grant Udinski — dropping out of the running. Monken’s job will be tougher for two years as a result, but for now, the new Cleveland HC will at least include the 30-year-old QB in a competition along with Sanders and Dillon Gabriel.

It would be a surprise if Watson won the job, though the Browns do not have a good avenue to an upgrade. Fernando Mendoza is widely expected to go first overall to the Raiders, and this draft class features a gulf between Mendoza and the field at QB. GM Andrew Berry said the Browns would look for an outside starter, rather than limiting the competition to a Sanders-Gabriel-Watson derby, but said it is “to be determined” when asked if the Browns have a realistic path to adding a viable veteran.

The Browns, who have been linked to Malik Willis and Alabama’s Ty Simpson thus far this offseason, are projected to hold barely $3MM in cap space. They also do not have any of their 2025 O-line starters under contract. The team chose Gabriel two rounds before trading up for Sanders, calling many to wonder how invested Berry and then-HC Kevin Stefanski were in the two-year Colorado starter. Gabriel will not be ruled out of the competition.

“He may be forgotten externally, but he’s not forgotten to us,” Berry said, via Oyefusi. “Look, Dillon, he’s working. He’s going to handle everything that’s within his control, and we love all of our players and our home roster. Dillon’s a guy that has a bright future in this league.”

Sanders usurping Gabriel last season may precede the Browns adding a starter-level option in free agency or via trade or selecting a developmental option in the draft. Gabriel should be considered a trade candidate, per The Athletic’s Zac Jackson, who expects the Browns to deal the diminutive quarterback this offseason.

The Browns traded two QBs (Kenny Pickett, Joe Flacco) after having both in camp last year, but they may not have room for both Sanders and Gabriel on the roster — with Watson’s contract keeping him in place — if another QB is added this spring.

Further exposing Pro Bowl accolades as a modern measure of success, Sanders received an invite after throwing 7 TD passes and 10 INTs in eight games (seven starts). Sanders completed just 56.6% of his passes, though he went 3-4 as a starter. Gabriel played in front of Sanders throughout training camp and received the first crack following the Flacco trade. He finished with a 7-2 TD-INT ratio and completed 59.5% of his throws (Sanders, though, fared better in yards per attempt — 6.6 to 5.1 — than his rookie teammate).

Watson, who suffered two Achilles tears since October 2024, did return to practice late last season but was never activated. He will be expected to participate in the Browns’ offseason program, where Monken and Co. will evaluate the latest Cleveland QB competition.