Deshaun Watson and Shedeur Sanders are going to be watched more closely than at any point in their careers as the quarterbacks compete for the starting job at Cleveland Browns training camp. Every practice will be analyzed as far as who is ahead, who is falling behind, and why.
The most important opinion will be held by head coach Todd Monken and his staff, but plenty of other people will weigh in on what they observe over the next month. That includes former Browns quarterback Bernie Kosar.
The Cleveland legend recently revealed what he wants to see from the two Browns QBs, and that is proficiency in the areas they are thought to be lacking.
“I think today’s first practice is a microcosm of how astutely you guys talked about the beginning of it. Wanting to see Deshaun’s accuracy and playmaking post-snap, because his pre-snap stuff of getting to the line is actually very top-tier for July 31. Then, in reverse, with Shedeur, how he handles the pre-snap, getting to the line of scrimmage, in and out of the huddle without the procedural pre-snap penalties. Unfortunately, we’re still seeing that today,” Kosar said.
As a 10-year NFL veteran, it should be no surprise that Watson has a better handle on the terminology and intricacies of Monken’s diverse offense. However, because he has played just seven games since November 2023, Watson needs to prove that he can still handle the demands of live action and the challenges of contact.
Sanders, entering his second season, may struggle a bit with his pre-snap responsibilities, which could carry over into his playmaking ability. But once he gets a complete handle on the playbook, he could turn out to be the better choice.
Monken made it clear after a recent practice that he was not happy with the offense. He lamented the number of pre-snap penalties it had, but he said he will not abandon his emphasis on snap-count cadence and how important that is to his scheme.
This is not only the fault of the quarterbacks. It will remain a work in progress until the rebuilt offensive line becomes more established and the unit begins to jell not only with each other but with the QB as well.
It is still the very early stages of training camp, so there is plenty of time to work on these issues, but the sooner the Browns’ offense can move past the automatic things into more complicated tasks, the better off it will be.
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