The Cleveland Browns do not have many good options right now when it comes to dealing with their quarterback situation. They are heading into the 2026 season with either a monumentally overpaid quarterback who has not played in a game in almost two years or a second-year player who just had one of the worst statistical seasons in NFL history as their starting quarterback.
So, it is a good idea to look for the bright side wherever you can. First, Deshaun Watson’s salary cap albatross will start to diminish after this season, and Shedeur Sanders still has a chance to prove he can be a viable starter in this league.
Combined, that could put the Browns in at least a tenable situation going forward. But it also may be a lot to ask.
Insider Mary Kay Cabot recently revealed the best-case scenario for the Browns’ QB room, which would be Sanders emerging as a legitimate solution on an affordable contract.
“If [Shedeur Sanders] can go out there at the money that he makes right now, which is basically peanuts for a fifth-round pick, and become your starting quarterback, that would be like winning a lottery ticket for the Cleveland Browns. It would help make up for the fact that you spent $230 million on Deshaun Watson and virtually got nothing out of him. If that can happen, and you can spend your next several years building on what Shedeur can do, that would be such a bonanza for the Cleveland Browns. That would be the best-case scenario for the Cleveland Browns, is if they found a diamond in the rough in the fifth round of the draft,” Cabot said.
New head coach Todd Monken has said he will hold an open competition for the starting quarterback job. With no new contenders likely to emerge from the offseason market or the 2026 NFL Draft, that means the decision will come down to either Watson or Sanders.
With Watson sidelined for the entire 2025 campaign due to his recovery from multiple Achilles injuries, Sanders finished the season as Cleveland’s starter. Though he showed some improvement over his eight games played, his production still left a lot to be desired.
However, he is just a fifth-round pick from the 2025 NFL Draft, and as such, would be a bargain if he could somehow develop into a franchise QB, or at minimum, an adequate starter over the next couple of seasons. Yet, that also comes with some pitfalls.
As a late-round pick, Sanders’ rookie contract would end after the 2028 season. If he proves himself as an NFL starter, he likely would command a commensurate salary, perhaps even in advance of that date via an extension.
For example, Brock Purdy was a seventh-round pick of the San Francisco 49ers in the 2022 NFL Draft. Before the 2025 season, he received a five-year, $265 million contract extension.
Of course, the Browns would be beyond thrilled if Sanders can come anywhere close to Purdy’s performance, but the future savings Cabot speaks of may not be attached if it does work out that way.
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