It may have taken longer than he originally expected, but late Wednesday afternoon Todd Monken made the first major decision of his tenure as head coach of the Cleveland Browns.
Monken has decided that veteran Deshaun Watson will be the team’s starting quarterback, at least for Saturday’s preseason game against the Chicago Bears.
The decision ends, at least temporarily, weeks of speculation, debate, and angst over who will be in the offensive huddle for Cleveland’s first offensive possession against
the Bears.
Do not despair, though, because Shedeur Sanders will also have his turn in Chicago, as Monken said the plan is for both Watson and Sanders to play a half of football on Saturday afternoon to help further the evaluation process:
“One’s going to start this week, and one’s going to start next week, and we’re going to play them about a half each. I’d like to see a quarterback play a half and get a two-minute; we’re going to do everything we can to get a two-minute and for the half, and we’re going to try to do the exact same thing the next week.”
Given that this appears to be a genuine competition, or at least a competition to confirm what Monken already knows about who the best option is, it probably always made sense that Watson would be the pick.
It is a road game, so no fear of the home fans booing Watson, and after not playing since October of 2024, Watson needs some game action against another team.
Plus, as Monken pointed out on Wednesday, he had to pick someone to start this week:
“You have to pick somebody. I have my reasons for how it’s going to go, and it’s still a competition. We’re excited to watch guys practice today, let alone on Saturday, and then next week against Buffalo, and we’ll get a chance to see them both.
“Every week we’ll assess it. It’ll be a little more difficult with the player who doesn’t play as much this week or with the other quarterbacks, right? We’ll be able to assess the quarterback that started and how he played and when the other quarterbacks came in, and then the opposite will be next week against Buffalo.”
Since Monken waited until later in the day to make the announcement, there has been no word on how Watson and Sanders are taking the news. But both quarterbacks spoke during the media availability before today’s practice, with Watson saying he’s ready for live football:
“For me, it’s just really being able to play live football against a different opponent. I’m not worried about being hit or anything like that. That’s part of the game. But as far as me operating in a live setting without being on the practice field with coaches being on the field with you, that’s what I’m looking forward to, and just getting those reps.”
As for Sanders, he is eager to test how much improvement he has made since his rookie season:
“I like the challenge of going out there to get the ball out of my hand, so I don’t get hit. That’s the challenge for me, to be able to make the right reads, to be able to go through progressions and figure it out. Even in practice, I don’t take it lightly when I could possibly get hit, because I’m trying to improve the process and speed everything up. It’s extremely tough, but it’s definitely a challenge I look forward to every day going out there.”
The quarterback decision, at least for this week, has been made. Even though they are just practice games, it will be good to see both quarterbacks in action as Monken continues to evaluate who the best option will be when the season starts for real on September 13 in Jacksonville.
