With the Cleveland Browns having their mandatory minicamp earlier this week, the biggest decision for head coach Todd Monken this season is who his starting quarterback will be for the 2026 season. The decision could certainly impact the team’s odds of having a positive win-loss record during the season, but on the same note, the organization has stockpiled draft picks for the 2027 season onward, presumably to find their quarterback of the future.
In my opinion, regardless of who Monken chooses, if
the quarterback performs terribly, it’s not going to be treated as a negative reflection on him, and rather a reflection on the organization needing to cleanse themselves of the past. Nonetheless, we polled fans on when the decision to name either Deshaun Watson or Shedeur Sanders as the team’s starting quarterback should be made: after minicamp (which would be now), or sometime during training camp.
69% of fans voted that they want Monken to make the decision during training camp, which would give him a much greater amount of time to evaluate the position. I understand that sentiment, and certainly won’t disagree with it. On the same note, though, I am pretty tired as a Browns fan of seeing a quarterback competition year after year. Last year was perhaps the most frustrating of all, with the constant debates about Joe Flacco, Dillon Gabriel, and Sanders.
Monken was asked if he was disappointed to not have his quarterback named by now, like he originally aspired to have prior to training camp. Here was his response:
“I don’t see it that way. It would be if I didn’t think either one of them were capable of starting. It would feel different if I didn’t feel like their progression hadn’t gotten to this point where I think they both can start and play winning football. I’m convinced of it. And I’d say it if I didn’t. I mean, I can’t decide now because I think both have earned the opportunity to continue to compete once we put the pads on.”
Indeed — let’s see what happens once the pads are on. The team has not yet announced when tickets will be available for training camp, but we’ll keep you posted on all the dates, and will also be starting our position-by-position training camp previews soon.
The Browns are still heavy underdogs to capture the AFC North, at 22/1 compared to the other teams, according to FanDuel Sportsbook. The quarterback situation remains largely to blame for that.
