Deshaun Watson has become one of the most talked-about topics in the NFL world ever since he shared his blunt thoughts on the Cleveland Browns fanbase during a post-game press conference after the NFL preseason week 2 game against the Buffalo Bills.
While most analysts initially believed that Watson would be the Browns’ starting quarterback after a long battle against Shedeur Sanders, the veteran player’s comments have now changed a lot of minds about the situation.
Asante Samuel Sends Clear Message on Shedeur Sanders, Deshaun Watson’s QB Battle
Now that the Browns have played two of their NFL preseason games, many analysts like Chase Daniel believe Sanders’ and Watson’s performances were very similar, adding that it doesn’t help the latter’s case that he got heavily booed while walking down the field.
However, while sharing his thoughts on the situation, two-time Super Bowl champion Asante Samuel laid out blunt expectations for the Browns’ head coach Todd Monken:
“Now the pressure is on Todd Monken to make the right decision, the right choice at quarterback. He cannot screw this up,” Samuel said. “I don’t care about the pressure, the higher-ups, or whatever anybody else wants. You are the decision-maker of that team. He needs to make the decision and the correct decision.”
“It shouldn’t be a debate anymore. It’s not debatable,” Samuel added. “Deshaun Watson is a declining player, only here due to an obligation already prearranged for him. I can almost guarantee you Taylen Green will look like a better prospect than Deshaun Watson or Dillon Gabriel. I don’t know what Todd Monken is doing waiting to put this guy in.”
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Samuel firmly believes that Sanders should be the starting quarterback for the Browns, and the team now needs to find a better backup quarterback than Watson and Gabriel.
Asante Says The Competition Is Over‼️ Shedeur Sanders Proved To Todd Monken & DeShaun Watson He Is The Starting Quarterback pic.twitter.com/mlOcmX7ehf
— Say What Needs To Be Said (@saywhatneedsto) August 23, 2026
In the Browns’ preseason Week 1 matchup, they suffered a 34-10 loss to the Chicago Bears, with Watson playing in the first half of the game and completing 11-of-15 passes for 126 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions, but was strip-sacked.
Sanders threw for 79 yards on 6-of-11 passing with one interception before Gabriel took over against the Bears.
In Week 2 against the Bills, Sanders played for the first half of the game and completed 9-of-11 passes for 74 yards, throwing one touchdown and one interception.
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On the other hand, Watson just completed 5-of-12 passes and threw for 36 yards, while also tossing an interception that sailed over Gage Larvadain’s head.
Last season, Sanders gained some experience. But during his time as the Browns’ quarterback, he tallied just 1,400 passing yards and 7 touchdowns, while giving up 10 interceptions.
As a result, the former Colorado Buffaloes star finished second-to-last on PFN’s QB Impact Metric with an impact score of 63.0.
Monken is set to name the team’s starting quarterback on Monday, and despite Samuel’s optimism regarding Sanders, Watson can still become the team’s QB1 for the Week 1 game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
It remains to be seen who the Browns’ head coach and the franchise will decide to start the season with at quarterback.
