Browns to Name Week 1 QB Soon as $230 Million Watson Remains Presumptive Starter
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Aug 18
Browns to Name Week 1 QB Soon as $230 Million Watson Remains Presumptive Starter
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Aug 18
Summary
Next Monday is the earliest Todd Monken could name Cleveland’s Week 1 quarterback, with Deshaun Watson still widely viewed as the favorite despite an unsettled competition.
Watson’s edge rests more on status than production: his $230 million guaranteed deal and months of team messaging have kept him atop the depth chart even after four uneven seasons.
126 passing yards in the preseason opener did little to settle the issue, as 43 came on one screen and Watson’s final three drives ended with a lost fumble and two punts.
Shedeur Sanders will start this weekend’s preseason game against Buffalo, but his own opener mixed a 35-yard strike with a fumbled snap, a batted pass and an interception.
KC Concepcion’s 72 all-purpose yards on five touches underscored Cleveland’s likely formula: lean on playmakers to prop up a quarterback room neither Watson nor Sanders has yet stabilized.