It seems everybody except the Cleveland Browns’ head coach is looking for a change at quarterback. Todd Monken is sticking with Deshaun Watson in Week 2 after his hand-picked starter put forth an awful performance in Week 1.
Monken believes what Watson is showing at practice will eventually show up during a game. But based on the evidence so far, that seems like a wish rather than a plan.
Former NFL head coach Jon Gruden recently revealed who he believes should start at QB for the Browns, and it’s not Watson, but Shedeur Sanders, with a little bit of Taylen Green mixed in.
“I’d probably start Taylen Green from Arkansas because he has a blank slate. I had Green in here in the offseason. Honestly, the man is 6-foot-6. He can run 4.35. I know he can hand the ball off and run bootlegs and create plays. But I would go with Shedeur Sanders. I would want to see what he looks like for an extended period. And I’d start giving Taylen Green some reps and let him come in and run some short yardage, run some goal line, have a package of plays where we can utilize his athleticism. We just need a change, and we need a fresh start, I think,” Gruden said.
It’s almost certain that Browns fans would prefer to see Green ahead of Watson, even if the sixth-round pick from the 2026 draft doesn’t seem close to ready for NFL action. Seen as a long-term developmental project who might be able to contribute in a small package of plays right now, Green was inactive against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday as the emergency quarterback behind Watson and Sanders.
It’s hard to believe that he could have been any worse than Watson, who threw an interception on his third pass of the season and managed just 100 yards passing in the first three quarters. He did gain 38 yards on six attempts, including some designed runs, totals that may have been much higher from Green, based on his unique explosiveness for a quarterback.
It is also telling that Monken didn’t use Sanders, even after the game was out of hand and the Jaguars turned to their backup in the fourth quarter. Granted, if Sanders had been successful in mop-up duty, it could have created an even more uncomfortable situation heading into the game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this coming Sunday.
A combo of Sanders and Green would be much more entertaining for the Browns’ fan base, and with the team projected to be out of playoff contention sooner rather than later, Gruden may be on to something here.
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