One of the top storylines of the 2026 NFL preseason was the Cleveland Browns’ QB1 competition between Deshaun Watson and Shedeur Sanders.
After Watson’s incendiary comments about Browns fans, it seemed like Sanders had a chance to earn the starting job. However, Browns head coach Todd Monken shockingly opted to go with Watson, which prompted some strong reactions from the NFL world.
Jason Whitlock Reacts to Browns Starting Deshaun Watson Over Shedeur Sanders
After the Browns announced Watson as the starter, veteran analyst Jason Whitlock argued that the second-generation star has brought this on himself.
“Everybody’s talking about Deshaun Watson’s postgame interview, which was bad,” Whitlock said on his YouTube channel. “I mean, he’s taking shots. It was bad. But I saw something that I thought was even worse. Shedeur Sanders had a five-to-seven-minute sideline interview. Like, a seven-minute sideline interview during that same preseason game. Seven minutes for the backup quarterback on television.”
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Whitlock believes some of the blame falls on the media.
“He’s that much of a distraction that the television network said, ‘You know what? The game is so uninteresting and so irrelevant that hey, we’re just going to sit here and keep a camera on Shedeur Sanders, the backup quarterback, for seven straight minutes.'”
Whitlock couldn’t fully fault the Browns for choosing to go with the guy they agreed to pay $230 million.
“You’re going to get a circus regardless. So, you might as well get the circus you paid for,” he added.
One of the most popular players in the entire NFL, Sanders earned $17.7 million in group licensing income last season, shattering the previous record set by NFL legend Tom Brady (who earned $9.5 million in 2021). Sanders started just seven games last year, making that total even more impressive.
Sanders showed flashes throughout his rookie campaign, but he finished with the second-worst QB Impact Score in the NFL among eligible quarterbacks last season (behind only Tennessee Titans QB Cam Ward).
It remains to be seen whether the Browns’ choice proves to be the right one. But given the negative reaction from their fan base, the Browns risk alienating their fans by moving forward with Watson to start the season.
