MAY 1: During a Friday appearance on 92.3 The Fan, Monken confirmed his preference would be to have a QB1 in place to start training camp. He added, though, that the split of first-team reps during the team’s remaining spring practices may not be a final indication regarding Cleveland’s approach under center with preseason contests still providing an opportunity for the depth chart to change.
APRIL 30: The 2026 regular season is still four-plus months from kicking off, but first-year Browns head coach Todd Monken wants to identify his starting quarterback by the end of the team’s June 9-11 minicamp, Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com reports. Monken still has several weeks to make his choice, but Deshaun Watson currently has the “edge” over Shedeur Sanders, according to Cabot.
This comes as a surprise after Sanders appeared to be the frontrunner three weeks ago. As a fifth-round pick last year, Sanders finished his rookie season as the Browns’ starter. Despite posting poor numbers, Sanders earned a Pro Bowl invite as an alternate. Meanwhile, Watson has not taken the field since he ruptured his Achilles on Oct. 20, 2024. The three-time Pro Bowler ruptured it again in January 2025, forcing him to miss all of last season.
The Browns made perhaps the worst trade in league history when they sent four picks (three first-rounders and a third-rounder) to the Texans for Watson in March 2022. They immediately handed Watson a fully guaranteed $230MM over five years, which has gone down as another disastrous decision.
While facing widespread sexual misconduct allegations, Watson opened his Browns tenure serving an 11-game suspension for violating the league’s personal conduct policy. Injuries have held him to just 19 starts since then. The Browns have gone 9-10 with Watson at the helm. To worsen matters, they have been forced to repeatedly restructure his bloated contract. They did so for the fourth time last month.
Although Watson’s deal will finally expire after this season, the Browns will still spread an $86.2MM dead money charge from 2027-28. Owner Jimmy Haslam, who has paid a cripplingly expensive price for almost no production from Watson, admitted last April that acquiring him was a “big swing and miss.” Over a year later, though, the Haslams (Jimmy and wife Dee) are making a behind-the-scenes push for Watson to start, Jason La Canfora of SportsBoom relays.
“Jimmy Haslam has paid this guy $180MM and he’s got nothing to show for it,” one general manager told La Canfora. “He’s trying to get blood from a stone but it’s not going to work. Watson is done.”
If Watson proves to be “done,” it could eventually lead to opportunities for Sanders and/or the rest of the Browns’ signal-callers. Dillon Gabriel and 2026 sixth-rounder Taylen Green are also in the team’s QBs room, but it does not appear they are under serious consideration for the starting gig. Rather, they are vying for a “developmental spot,” Cabot writes. It is more likely Gabriel and Green will receive third- and fourth-team work, leaving Watson and Sanders to divide the starting reps.
Monken has left the door open for Green, a 6-foot-6, 235-pound dual threat, to take the field in specialty packages (via Cabot). If the former Boise State and Arkansas starter impresses enough to earn a roster spot, Gabriel could be on his way out just a year after the Browns spent a third-rounder on him. The Browns may have trouble getting Gabriel on their practice squad, notes Cabot, who points to a trade as a possibility.
Gabriel made six underwhelming starts for the Browns after they traded Joe Flacco to the Bengals last October. He lost the job to Sanders after suffering a concussion in a Week 11 loss to the Ravens. Depending on how the next few months unfold, that may prove to be Gabriel’s last meaningful appearance with the Browns.
Articles like these always make me feel young again.
Last time ownership pushed for Deshaun Watson they got the worst pair of transactions in NFL history and a smoking crater in their ability to compete.
Don’t worry, that crater will be filled by their shiny new Government-Funded Sportsball Palace built with money stolen from the citizens of Ohio.
He has to start. They have to get him on the field and see if he can gain any semblance of confidence or ability back. If he wants to truly play, he will give it is all, if not, his career will be over because all eyes are on him and its doubtful another team will give him a chance.
Great opportunity as well for Sanders to push him and take the job for himself. The draft brought in some young talent to work with and both QBs can benefit if they can get protection up front.
Sorry, why do they “have to” do any of that?
They have already paid him, let him play and see if the new HC can motivate him? Imagine if Monken could get 7-8 wins out of him? He might be COTY! Doubtful sure, but maybe the entire team could respond?
“They have already paid him.” Yeah, he’s a sunk cost.
After all they’ve done this offseason, including what looks to be a pretty darn good draft, why turn around and throw a turd in the punch bowl??
Exactly
I would imagine its because hes the most talented QB on this roster. Whether he still has any of that talent left is a serious concern for sure, but undoubtedly he has shown he is much better than Sanders or Gabriel could ever dream of being. I think the Browns would do themselves an injustice (as far as attempting to win football games goes) by not seeing what they have left in Watson. Not that I like the guy or that the league owes him anything
Six years is an awfully long time since he showed that, and there’s been a lot of injury and time on the shelf since then.
I half wonder if the Browns want to put him out there hoping for another season-ending injury. Surely they have SOME kind of insurance on that contract…
Might as well @Oooof. They paid this guy Jeff Bezos shoe closet money for five years. And all the reports I’ve read have Watson as a clear cut starter
He’s a PR nightmare and an injury waiting to happen who hasn’t been good in six years. You could flip a pick for Spencer Rattler or someone like that and have a better starting option without the baggage if your number one concern is really having the best starting option right this minute. Let the sunk cost be sunk and keep white knuckling through it until you can finally release the guy without making your cap go Chernobyl.
His career is already over.
They don’t have to start him cause they already paid him
Falcons didn’t with Cousins
Dolphins didn’t with Tua
Cardinals didn’t with Murray
Broncos didn’t with Wilson
Seahawks didn’t with Geno
Been plenty of guys that got paid and wound up benched released or traded over the years
Just cause they’re paid doesn’t mean they’re the best option for the team going forward.
Watson isn’t leading anything….the Cleveland media drive me nuts and their push for Watson…. have they forgotten how bad he was in 2024? DTR outplayed him! Good Lord
EVERYBODY knows how bad Watson was in 2024 … the team kept him anyway. If Sanders cant beat him out of the job, what does that say about Sanders?
Even if Watson is “handed” the job, can he rise above expectations? It would help for his football future if he could. I have never been a Watson fan, even in college, where I felt he point-shaved. I think is career is over, but would love to see him prove everybody wrong, just so Browns fans can have something to be excited about, until Shedeur proves he belongs.
They kept Watson because it would be impossible for their cap for them not to.
They didnt “have to” do any of that. They could have let him go anyway. They still wanted him to start but he had the injuries. This is the same ownership that rewarded Hue Jackson for tanking games. Maybe Watson plays and gets injured again? If so, its up to Sanders to keep him there till they finally rid of him. Monken I feel, would love to try to raise the Titanic in Watson … we will see.
If they could have cut him without destroying their cap they would have.
I don’t think Brian wolf knows how the salary cap works.
Well he could probably use a couple of lessons as to how “Guaranteed Money” Works at least. Yeah they could have released him but they still would of had to pay him. Might as well keep him around even in a ‘ Break Glass in Case of Emergency” Scenario. I’ve never been a believer in the pay somebody to play for somebody else philosophy.
True … but having teammates watch you count your money while sitting on the bench and not taking hits or sacrificing isnt exactly a morale booster. Why would Haslem care? He hasnt cared since he bought the team. I hope Jackson and Flores prove it when they finally get to court in ten years.
There should be a rule or one of those Associated Press journalist guidelines that in articles about Sanders his Pro Bowl cannot be cited in discussion of his performance. He was in the Pro Bowl because it is based off a fan vote. It is no different than in 2016 when Zaza Pachulia was an NBA Allstar game starter because his home country Georgia fans stuffed the ballot.
No he was in the Pro Bowl as an injury replacement for Drake Maye…had NOTHING to do with fan voting…
Sanders replaced Maye because the Patriot QB1 was going to the Super Bowl.
Is Shedeur Sanders history’s worst Pro Bowl quarterback? Butt-fumble Sanchez might have won an accidental Pro Bowl nomination, but even he would have deserved such an honour more than Sanders?
I think the worst Pro Bowl QBs ever, were either Norm Snead or Frank Tripucka with Denver. It still boggles my mind that Tripucka’s number was retired by the Broncos? Thank God the family consented to letting Peyton Manning wear it.
He was like the 20th alternate. Sanders is nothing more than a DEI hire. He’s like Kamala Harris.
The Browns are paying DeShaun Watson already. Watson used to be one of the three most dangerous quarterbacks playing in the NFL. He’s still playing age. To get their money’s worth (impossible but worth trying), Watson must be on the field playing or in a hospital somewhere.
Watson has long wished for a simple release. Haslam isn’t giving it to him. Kudos to Haslam. Never let players or staff think they can be paid for not playing.
Aaaand so far he’s been paid for not playing.
I also believe by him “sitting” last year, the Browns recouped insurance money for him getting injured away from the team.
The only reason Watson has not been released is Watson’s guaranteed salary’s debilitating impact to the cap, if he was released.
Whats the damn difference? Bet the other players and coaches love working their butts off while he malingers before trotting to the BANK.
Watson used to be the one of the three most dangerous QB’s in the NFL? How exactly? If you were a woman maybe.
it’s the browns .. so as long as they’re paying watson .. they’ll keep running him out there .. not like anyone else in their qb room is much better .. makes sense to try and squeeze every last drop from the human toothpaste tube
The browns single-handedly messed up the salary cap. Too many mid QBs being able to make the argument (legitimately) they’re better. F the browns.
Not really. The quarterback market overall moved at a separate pace from the Watson deal. They out paid the market by so much money that even elite quarterbacks took multiple years to come close to his guarantees.
I’ve been saying this for awhile now: it would be hilarious and such a Cleveland Browns kind of thing I’d Deshaun Watson won the job, led the Browns to an 11 win season, and then became a free agent in 2027. Is there any chance the Browns would use the Franchise tag on him if that happens?
Yes, there is a chance. There’s also a chance I’ll meet Sydney Sweeney and she will fall in love with me.
Low IQ people always assume that rich people are smart…meanwhile Haslam doesn’t even understand the Sunk Cost Fallacy.
He got rich by being unethical in a system that rewards fraud.
Virtually any other owner would see a chance to finally rid himself of the headache. He thinks he can extract value from a has been and that it will be worth the PR hit. That’s dunce math.
Good luck with that.
PS- Good job letting Shedeur know he’s not the guy. That will be helpful for his fragile mentality when he’s inevitably the guy.
66TheNumberOfTheBest
Low IQ people always assume that rich people are smart…meanwhile Haslam doesn’t even understand the Sunk Cost Fallacy.
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He’s probably pretty smart. The issue with smart people is that they often have equally large egos,
I don’t see much downside to starting Watson. he’s likely better than Sanders and Gabriel. And if reverts to his 2020 form (unlikely), they might be able to dump part of his salary.
Met one of his brothers once in a cafeteria line in Knoxville when he was mayor there. Seemed like a nice, regular guy. His wife was quite impressive as a quality southern woman from Memphis, I believe.
Off topic but did Sanders decorate Pavias draft party?
(Jimmy and wife Dee) are making a behind-the-scenes push for Watson to start,
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If there is anything more fun than having the owner make FB decisions, it might be his wife pushing decisions.
I watched a podcast featuring Cleveland beat reporters in which they discussed the starting QB situation. They raised some interesting points about the QB battle. The Browns have a new coach and OC, 5 new starters on the O-line including at least 1 rookie, very young skill players including 2 rookie WRs, and an entirely new offensive system.
Expecting a very raw young QB like Sanders to be able to manage the line of scrimmage, make appropriate play checks, correct misaligned rookies, etc. might be too much to ask of him. Watson “should” be able to manage all that.
Having said that: Monken should pick the QB that he feels gives them the best chance to win. If it’s Watson, cool. Personally: I’m pulling for Sanders, but let Monken decide.
Also possible that someone has assessed Sanders’ personality & decided that he will perform better if he is under some kind, any kind of competitive pressure.