The Cleveland Browns are staring down one of the most closely watched quarterback competitions in the league heading into 2026, and longtime Browns insider Mary Kay Cabot doesn’t expect it to get settled quietly.
Appearing on “The Ken Carman Show with Anthony Lima” on 92.3 The Fan, Cabot was asked point-blank what will ultimately decide who wins the starting job for Week 1. Shedeur Sanders or Deshaun Watson?
Her answer made clear that nobody, including the coaching staff, really knows yet.
No Clear Frontrunner as Browns Quarterback Race Heats Up Between Shedeur Sanders and Deshaun Watson
“It really is going to come down to who is going to give them the best chance to win,” Cabot said. She added that figuring that out won’t be easy until the action begins.
“Until the lights are on, until you’re getting sacked and hit and having to read the defenses and do all of those kinds of things, in a live game, it’s going to be really tricky.”
That uncertainty, according to Cabot, is exactly what makes this camp so fascinating.
“I think it’s going to be an incredibly, incredibly lively training camp,” she said. “I think it’s going to be a very heated battle. I think you can see that the stakes are really high.”
“It’s going to come down to who gives them the best chance to win… It’s going to be a lively training camp. It’s gonna be a very heated battle.”
📞@MaryKayCabot on the deciding factor in the Browns QB competition pic.twitter.com/Lb55dMVsnG
— 92.3 The Fan (@923TheFan) July 16, 2026
Cabot noted that both players are already putting in extra work well before padded practices begin. “These guys are already going all out in their summer break to prove that they want this job,” she said, pointing out that Watson and Sanders are each taking the competition seriously.
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Rookies report on July 23, with veterans following on July 28, and the Browns are expected to split first-team reps heavily between the two throughout camp and the preseason.
Cabot summed up what’s coming bluntly: “So it’s going to be intense. It’s going to be heated, and let the best man win.”
The competition pits two very different résumés against each other. Watson, entering the final season of his five-year, $230 million contract, is coming off a lost 2025 while recovering from a torn Achilles. He still holds an edge in experience, mobility, and quicker processing when reading defenses.
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Sanders, by contrast, is trying to build on a rocky rookie year. He threw for 1,400 yards with seven touchdowns and 10 interceptions across seven starts, completing 56.6 percent of his passes.
According to Pro Football Network’s QB Impact metric, Sanders finished the 2025 season ranking second-worst among NFL quarterbacks.
It was a less-than-ideal debut campaign. Still, analysts believe his accuracy in tight windows and ability to deliver the ball on time can flourish with better coaching and improved weapons around him.
However, Browns head coach Todd Monken might choose to rely on Watson’s experience rather than accelerating Sanders’ development.
For now, according to Cabot, there’s no front-runner locked in; only two players are fighting for the same job, with everything on the line.
