Cleveland Browns head coach Todd Monken made it official on Monday, naming veteran Deshaun Watson as the team’s Week 1 starting quarterback over second-year signal-caller Shedeur Sanders.
Watson emerged as QB1 following an intense offseason competition that stretched through the first two preseason games. However, Watson’s appointment comes on the heels of a shaky preseason showing against the Buffalo Bills, accompanied by vocal home-crowd disapproval and emotional postgame remarks.
With Cleveland opening the 2026 regular season with consecutive road games at Jacksonville and Tampa Bay, analysts view this initial stretch as a pivotal test for the veteran signal-caller.
Why Deshaun Watson Faces a ‘2-Game Audition’ in Cleveland Over Shedeur Sanders
Following the announcement, longtime Cleveland sports analyst Tony Rizzo called Watson’s starting nod a “2-game audition,” pointing to Cleveland’s schedule.
Because the Browns play on the road in Week 1 against the Jaguars and Week 2 against the Buccaneers, Watson avoids immediate home-field pressure before Cleveland returns to Huntington Bank Field in Week 3 to face the Carolina Panthers.
2 game audition. #Dawgpound
— Tony Rizzo (@TheRealTRizzo) August 24, 2026
The quarterback competition reached a boiling point during Saturday’s 31-7 preseason loss to Buffalo. Sanders started the game and completed 9 of 11 passes for 74 yards, one touchdown, and one interception across five drives.
When Watson entered the second half for his first home appearance since recovering from his 2024 Achilles injury, he struggled, completing just 5 of 12 passes for 36 yards and an interception.
Home fans greeted Watson with noticeable boos during his second-half drives. In his postgame press conference, Watson expressed frustration with the crowd’s reaction.
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“I think the whole world knows it has nothing to do about the performance,” Watson said. “It’s a little bit [more] personal than that. So I think it’s a disrespectful thing. So yeah, I mean, I’m going to keep whatever I feel with me and my family internally on how I feel about that. And yeah, just move on.”
Despite the visceral reaction from fans and media speculation, Monken defended his quarterback’s character while evaluating his performance.
“He emptied his heart a little bit, and I don’t think that says who he is,” Monken said. “I see the competitor in him. I see the every-day work he puts in, and he wants to be back. He wants to get back to where he was as best he can, and that’s hard. And again, I think the moment just got him after the game, and it can get all of us.”
On the field, Watson’s operational efficiency remains a central concern for Cleveland’s offense. Watson doesn’t yet carry a graded 2025 season on PFN’s QB Impact Metric, since a second Achilles tear kept him out of qualifying game action all year, but in 2024 he ranked as the worst quarterback in the league with an impact score of 59.9.
Sanders, by comparison, posted just a 63.0 QB Impact grade for the 2025 season — 37th out of 38 qualifying quarterbacks, well below the 75.0 mark PFSN sets as the average starter — highlighting that neither passer has established himself as a clear-cut answer heading into the opener.
If Watson stumbles during his two-game road stretch in Jacksonville and Tampa Bay, Monken could quickly pivot to Sanders before the Browns return home, making these upcoming road contests a defining window for Watson’s future in Cleveland.
