The Cleveland Browns gave Deshaun Watson the starting quarterback role after a battle that spanned the entire summer. That has left Shedeur Sanders in a backup role, despite him starting the final seven games of the 2025 season.
But given the production they’ve gotten from each of their options under center in recent years, the growing sentiment is that the organization could try to find its long-term franchise cornerstone in the 2027 NFL Draft.
Shedeur Sanders Might Get Replaced By the Browns
Touted as a potential first-round pick, Sanders fell all the way to the 144th pick in the draft. As a result, he fell behind both Joe Flacco and Dillon Gabriel in the depth chart. Still, he managed to find himself playing time starting in Week 11.
During his time on the field, he was far from perfect, throwing for 1,400 yards and seven touchdowns against 10 interceptions. As a result, he ranked second-to-last on PFN’s Quarterback Impact Metric.
This year, even after new head coach Todd Monken gave him the opportunity, Sanders wasn’t able to beat out Watson for the QB1 role. However, Field Yates of ESPN believes things are about to go from bad to worse for the second-generation star.
“With the third pick in our way-too-early 2027 mock draft, the Cleveland Browns select CJ Carr, quarterback of your beloved Notre Dame,” Yates revealed. “I think Notre Dame is going to be excellent this year. That secondary is unbelievably stacked.”
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In his first full season as a starter, Carr threw for 2,741 passing yards and 24 touchdowns, and added three more scores on the ground for the Fighting Irish. Still, Yates has some question marks about the youngster going into the 2026 season.
“If the Browns believed that Shedeur Sanders was their longterm QB, he’d be starting week 1,” – @FieldYates on the Browns QB room.
Field Yates has the Browns selecting CJ Carr in the new episode of ‘First Draft’ pic.twitter.com/Z5QoeJmoJg
— ESPN Cleveland (@ESPNCleveland) August 31, 2026
“If CJ Carr plays up to the level he can and the offense has plenty of talent, enough talent, may not be as talented as the defense, but they’re talented enough to be a very good offense,” Yates added. “If they win the national championship, how much more can you beef up your draft stock for CJ Carr despite just two seasons of starting in college?”
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Despite having four quarterbacks on their roster currently (including Gabriel, who’s on the IR), Yates was confident that the Browns would pick a quarterback in the 2027 NFL Draft, especially if they had a top-three pick.
“Strongly built, accurate throwing quarterback, not a dynamic athlete, but a good enough athlete, very mature young man. Give me CJ Carr number 3 to the Cleveland Browns,” Yates argued.
For him, the proof was in the pudding that the Browns had already shown.
“If the Browns believed that Shedeur Sanders was their long-term QB, he’d be starting Week 1,” Yates said. “They just would be. They’d be saying, ‘Who cares about getting Deshaun Watson reps?'”
When he received some pushback against that notion from Mel Kiper Jr., Yates argued, “Then why start Deshaun Watson? What’s the point? What’s the point of this? It’s become a circus.”
It remains to be seen if this is the direction the Browns decide to take. But if they have the third pick in the draft, like the mock suggests, then going after an enticing quarterback prospect might be their best foot forward as a franchise.
