The Cleveland Browns are at a crossroads: they have to decide who will lead them at quarterback next season, and they have a few options. Sitting at the top of the list are Shedeur Sanders and Deshaun Watson, and the team hasn’t made clear who is the frontrunner. Speaking on First Take, Stephen A. Smith submitted his choice in the race for QB1.
He said that the Browns would be “wise” to pick Watson over Sanders, partly because the team can always “go to” Sanders in the future.
“I think it’s wise, because I think [Todd Monken] knows he can always go to Shedeur Sanders. He can’t let go of Deshaun Watson and then come back and then course-correct. This is the safe way to go. This is the wise way to go. I think it’s best for the organization and the city to give Deshaun Watson every last chance imaginable to justify that bag that he got. This is the last chance. I have no problem with it,” Smith said.
"I think it's best for the organization and the city to give Deshaun Watson every last chance imaginable to justify that bag that he got. This is the last chance."@stephenasmith thinks it is "wise" for Deshaun Watson to be the Browns' starting QB 👀 pic.twitter.com/NZyisZXZg9
— First Take (@FirstTake) April 30, 2026
Watson hasn’t delivered much for the Browns, and his time with the team is running out. He is about to start the last year of his monster contract with Cleveland, and it would be nice if he could bring the team something before he leaves, if he and the team decide to part ways.
When Smith suggests that this will be Watson’s last chance with the Browns, he’s not wrong. Even if he does very well in the season ahead, he likely is spending his final months in Cleveland.
Even before he got hurt, Watson wasn’t playing like the Pro-Bowl player he once was. He has a lot to prove. As for Sanders, there is a chance that he would not be comfortable playing backup behind Watson.
The Browns will need to figure out if they want to offer Watson one final chance to lead this team or if they want to hand things off to a younger, newer player like Sanders. They may try to do both, allowing Watson to start in 2026, while keeping Sanders in their back pocket for the seasons ahead. This is a complicated situation with many moving pieces and things to consider.
The Browns have to handle it very carefully, or else they could anger the fans and the players.
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