Time’s ticking in Cleveland, and it doesn’t favor patience. Not for their young quarterback, Shedeur Sanders, because the franchise is looking to correct its past mistakes. As much as Sanders represents the future, the present still has Deshaun Watson standing in the way…in whatever capacity he’s still present.
Shedeur Sanders Is Running Out of Time in Cleveland
Watson’s recovery means it won’t be straightforward for Sanders. That’s where the conversation from 92.3 The Fan took a sharper turn.
Anthony Lima and Ken Carman, joined by producer John, debated whether Sanders needs to start early in his career to ever truly be seen as a franchise quarterback.
“I think Shedeur has to start this year, or he’s not going to get the chance,” John bluntly said. But when pressed further on whether Sanders’ long-term future hinges on that opportunity, John clarified that it is not about his career ending, but about the opportunity disappearing.
If Watson starts Week 1 and struggles, asking Sanders to clean the mess won’t help his trajectory. A struggling team is still a struggling team, and that usually leads to a high draft pick and another quarterback entering the picture.
“Unless Shedeur or Deshaun lead them to a miraculous 12-win season, I would be surprised if the Browns did not pick a quarterback in 2027. And what are you going to do, not play your first-round pick?” John concluded his argument.
So, the bar is not development and growth. It has become an immediate success, given the urgency of the situation under head coach Todd Monken’s new regime. And that’s not an ideal situation for any quarterback, let alone a QB entering Year 2, especially behind an offensive line that ranked last in the league per PFSN’s Team OL Impact Metric with a 49.9 score and an F grade.
To Sanders’ credit, he did show some promise. Like, in Week 14 against the Tennessee Titans, when he threw for 364 yards, three touchdowns, and added a rushing score. That performance put him in rare company alongside Joe Burrow as one of the only rookies in the Super Bowl era to record 350-plus passing yards, three passing touchdowns, and a rushing score in a single game.
He also became the first Browns quarterback since 1950 to post 300-plus passing yards, three passing touchdowns, and a rushing score in one outing, and his four completions of 50-plus yards within his first three career starts placed him in a statistical tier matched only by Aaron Rodgers since 2000.
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But the contrast with Watson remains, no matter the inconsistency. He will forever be their $230 million bid. And the Browns bid on a Watson who once threw for 4,823 yards and 33 touchdowns in 2020. Maybe that’s why there is a belief that Watson will get a chance.
On the flip side, injuries and suspensions have limited Watson’s outings to just 19 games out of a possible 68 since his arrival, with a 9-10 record and declining efficiency. In 2024, he ranked 39th in PFSN’s QB Impact Metric with a 51.1 score, as the offense failed to cross 20 points in any of his starts before injury. So, that gives Sanders a very narrow window of opening to work with.
