The Cleveland Browns have a lot of work to do this offseason, as they have a roster full of question marks, and they still don’t have a coach. One of the biggest questions with the roster remains the quarterback position, where fifth-round rookie Shedeur Sanders had an up-and-down seven starts to close out the season and may or may not have done enough to earn himself the Week 1 starting gig in 2026.
Many fans were clamoring for Sanders to take over as the starter all year before he finally got his chance, but he showed a lot of the flaws that contributed to him falling all the way to the fifth-round during his time as the starter. With Deshaun Watson’s $80 million cap hit on the books and 2026 serving as a lackluster QB draft, this year could be Sanders’ one big shot to prove he can be a franchise quarterback, which is a reason why one insider called this a “huge” offseason for him.
During a recent appearance on the Ultimate Cleveland Sports Show, The Athletic’s Zac Jackson discussed Sanders’ offseason. He said this time will be “huge” for his development and that he has to get on the same page as the new coach and get to work.
“That’s what it comes down to for Shedeur. He’s got a huge 5-6 months ahead in terms of getting with that coach, getting in the weight room, learning from the good and the bad—because there were both. In almost every game, there was good. The Chicago one is the one exception, and there was a bad, especially at the end. You could easily say, ‘Well, he didn’t have much help,’ because he didn’t. Developmental quarterback, the Browns have him. They should continue to invest and develop him, and then what he becomes, I think, is fairly wide open,” Jackson said.
.@AkronJackson says the next 6 months will be huge for the development of Shedeur Sanders – adding they have their developmental QB, why not continue to invest.
▶️: https://t.co/DU4W8VMSxX pic.twitter.com/3umElwn86q
— Ultimate Cleveland Sports Show (@ultCLEsports) January 22, 2026
There was always a timeline where the Browns waited until 2027 to find their franchise quarterback, as that’s when it’s easier to get out from under Watson’s contract, but Sanders can change the timeline if he proves himself to be the answer. The Browns have to hold up their side of the bargain and put a better team around him to get a better idea of whether or not he can be the guy.
Cleveland has four starters on the offensive line hitting free agency, one of the worst wide receiver rooms in the league, and a rookie running back with a broken leg. It’s becoming clear that this isn’t the first head coaching job that many candidates want, but hopefully, the front office can find an innovative offensive mind to help patch this thing together.
This is the most important offseason of Sanders’ life, and we’ll see if he’s up for the challenge.
NEXT: Browns Lose Head Coaching Candidate To Division Rival
