The Cleveland Browns might have announced the winner of their quarterback competition without explicitly saying so. By giving Deshaun Watson the first-team reps on Saturday, when Shedeur Sanders was expected to get them, head coach Todd Monken may have made his intentions clear without the benefit of a social media post or a gathering with the media.
Of course, without even a preseason game played so far, Monken faces no urgency to declare his QB1. But he could just be playing it safe in the event Watson falls on his face in the next few weeks, or if he happens to get injured at some point over the next month.
Yet, at this point in training camp, and with the developments over the weekend, analyst Ken Carman is urging Browns fans to accept reality with the QB situation and come to terms with Watson as Cleveland’s starter.
“If you want to, just name Deshaun the starter and let’s get going. I’m dead serious. I’m not the only one accepting reality here. I’m not the only one. There’s reality to real Browns fans and then there’s whatever’s going over the internet. Yeah, you know who I want to start, but I will accept the reality of a first-time head coach, knowing the nature of the business, and needing to win. If a veteran is able to get them in and out of the huddle and knows a little bit more of things, I’m willing to accept the reality,” Carman said.
"If you want to, just name Deshaun the starter and let's get going. I'm not the only one accepting reality here…"
🚨 @KenCarman to @SportsBoyTony on the QB storyline of the weekend for the #Browns and Todd Monken pic.twitter.com/tbLvX2dfqt
— 92.3 The Fan (@923TheFan) August 10, 2026
Watson seemed well on his way to earning the job before the end of minicamps, but Sanders showed enough improvement to convince Monken to keep the competition open. The second-year pro may have even taken the lead during early camp practices before this recent resurgence by the veteran.
In his first training camp since 2024, Watson is said to have made “tremendous strides,” correcting the accuracy issues and concerning interceptions that had been plaguing him. He worked with the first team on back-to-back days, and in three of the past four practices, before the Browns were off on Sunday.
If Watson is taking the first-team reps again on Monday, it will be a clear indication of where this decision is headed, even if Monken doesn’t say so. Then, it will be worth watching how the backup reps are going to be split between Sanders and Dillon Gabriel.
The Browns’ preseason opener is coming up on Saturday against the Chicago Bears, and by then, someone will have to be announced as the starter, at least for that game, and all signs point to that being Watson.
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