The Cleveland Browns are currently gearing up for the upcoming 2026 NFL season, having hired Todd Monken to be their new head coach this offseason. The biggest question for the Browns heading into next year is who will be the team’s starting quarterback, with Shedeur Sanders and Deshaun Watson both vying for the job.
Many suspect that Watson will ultimately get the nod considering the hefty salary the Browns have tied to him, and recently, Peter Schrager of ESPN made a report confirming that sentiment.
“They’re going to give Deshaun Watson every chance to win that job… Shedeur, he can fight, but I think it might be Watson’s job to lose,” said Schrager.
Watson missed all of last year as he rehabbed from a torn Achilles injury, a decision that one source described as “the best thing that could’ve happened to him. He wasn’t rushed back onto the field, and he had time to reflect on how he can get the best out of this year, and he’s excited,” per Daniel OyefusiJeremy Fowler of ESPN.
Watson’s reputation both on and off the field has taken major hits since his days as a rising young star for the Houston Texans, and it remains to be seen if he will be able to recapture any of his early-career magic on the heels of the torn Achilles.
JW Johnson, who manages the group that owns the Browns, gave his pitch as to why Browns fans should be in Watson’s corner this year.
“He’s got nothing to lose,” Johnson said, per ESPN Cleveland. “And if he’s our starting quarterback, I know that there are people that probably won’t be supportive, but they should need to be supportive as much as they can.”
The Browns’ season will begin in September.
The Cleveland Browns are currently gearing up for the upcoming 2026 NFL season, having hired Todd Monken to be their new head coach this offseason. The biggest question for the Browns heading into next year is who will be the team’s starting quarterback, with Shedeur Sanders and Deshaun Watson both vying for the job.
