Cleveland Browns head coach made the unpopular decision this week to name Deshaun Watson as the team’s starting quarterback in Week 1 over Shedeur Sanders. We’ve heard a variety of things, including that since the team starts off with two road games, this gives the team to chance to see if Watson will deliver in those games prior to deciding what to do in front of the home crowd in Week 3.
For this week’s Reacts poll, if I was to ask fans what they thought of Watson starting, I think it would have
been 90% or higher toward the negative. Therefore, I tried to put a spin on things by framing your mindset towards head coach Todd Monken instead. The question asked, “Does Monken naming Watson the starter impact your view of the head coach?”
65% of fans still voted that it was a dumb decision by Monken (even though the language in the graphic to the left was edited to be nicer). The remaining 35% of fans said that they respect Monken’s decision (for now).
It was a hot-button topic that lots of Browns fans weighed in on, if you go back and read the comments. Among the responses, one fan said:
I cannot answer the survey because I don’t believe it was his decision.
Spidey thinks Monken made the right call:
From all indications, the players have Watson’s back. Heck, how many were here when the trade was made?!? They don’t carry any of the grudges the fans have And they don’t care about the 2027 QB or tanking.
Therefore, put yourself in their shoes. You’ve seen both of them perform in training camp and preseason games. There’s not much difference in the results (TDs and INTs) and it certainly appears that Watson has better command in the huddle and LOS.
If I’m a player and Monken made the decision based on the media and fans booing, I’d think less of the coach. Heck, I remember thinking less of my coaches in high school if I saw them hanging out with players’ parents or other fans with an interest in seeing one player over another.
Monken has Watson on the team. The players have Watson as teammate. Those are the top two factors for Monken. And woe to the leader of men who bends to the whims of the outside world.
Half Baked Again said:
I have always wondered why we think the Ravens OC was a great hire. I mean that team lived by their defense and Lamar’s legs. They never had a working offense without Lamar. This decision tells me that the Browns are clearly tanking and I do not think Monkin will be here next year (he was set up to fail). Also, none of the QBs will be here next year.
According to FanDuel, the Browns are 225/1 odds to win the Super Bowl, heading into final roster cuts.
