Deshaun Watson has found himself in a heated battle with Shedeur Sanders for the Cleveland Browns’ Week 1 starting quarterback job in 2026. It’s not ideal for this franchise to be hosting yet another quarterback competition after last offseason’s messy four-man battle, but new head coach Todd Monken has no choice and is now tasked with making the best decision to put his team in a position to compete.
The Browns can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel of this awful contract, and Watson has a chance to prove himself one final time after not having played good football in over five years. He is clearly putting in the work to come back healthy and better than ever from his torn Achilles, and one insider has a theory about what exactly could be motivating him in his quest to win back QB1 duties.
During a recent episode of Ultimate Cleveland Sports Show, Jason Lloyd spoke about how Watson is working tirelessly because he knows it’s his last chance to prove himself as a starter in the NFL.
“I think that he’s looking at this like this is his last chance. He throws a lot in the summer. We’ve seen all the Instagram videos. By coming here to the facility, now you’re around the coaches and it’s more internal now,” said Lloyd.
It was surprising initially to hear from ownership this offseason that the team wanted to give Watson another shot, which was a hard pivot from previous comments Jimmy Haslam made calling the Watson trade a swing and a miss. It’s fair for him to want to finally see some return on investment after so many years of him being a sunk cost, and this truly is the last chance for both the Browns and Watson.
Perhaps this is all a path for the Browns to try to get out of the contract a little bit earlier and showcase him for a few games to set up a trade, just like they did last offseason with Joe Flacco. It will be easier to pivot from Watson to Sanders than the other way around, so it’s easier to see Watson winning the job when looking at the bigger picture.
Browns fans better buckle up because this isn’t going to get resolved until at least training camp.
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