Watson Tops Sanders in Browns QB Battle After 11-of-15 Preseason Return
Updated
Updated · Andscape · Aug 17
Watson Tops Sanders in Browns QB Battle After 11-of-15 Preseason Return
3 articles · Updated · Andscape · Aug 17
Summary
Deshaun Watson opened Cleveland’s preseason QB competition by completing 11 of 15 passes and leading two scoring drives in a 34-10 loss to Chicago, his first NFL game action since 2024.
Shedeur Sanders followed with a 6-of-11, 79-yard half but ended his final series with an interception, reinforcing Watson’s early edge for the Browns’ starting job.
Watson, 30, is trying to reestablish himself after an Achilles tear, a second surgery and just 19 regular-season starts since joining Cleveland in 2022 on a fully guaranteed $230 million deal.
Sanders, 24, faces a different test: proving he is more than Deion Sanders’ son and that a 2025 fifth-round pick can become a starting-caliber NFL quarterback.
The matchup also carries broader significance as a rare high-profile NFL competition between two Black quarterbacks from different generations vying for one starting role.