nfl
Browns turn to Shedeur Sanders with Deshaun Watson in concussion protocol
Sanders will make his first start of the season Sunday at New Orleans after Watson self-reported concussion symptoms. The 2025 fifth-round pick went 3-4 as a rookie with seven touchdowns and 10 interceptions.
The Cleveland Browns will start Shedeur Sanders at quarterback Sunday against the New Orleans Saints, head coach Todd Monken said Friday, with Deshaun Watson remaining in the concussion protocol, ESPN reported.
Watson self-reported concussion symptoms Tuesday morning and was placed in the protocol. He is listed as questionable. Monken has not decided whether Watson will be the backup if cleared.
Sanders took all the starting reps in practice this week. It will be his first start of the season. As a rookie in 2025, Sanders made seven starts, completing 56.6% of his passes for 1,400 yards with seven touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He went 3-4 in those starts.
“He’s very diligent and he likes to play football, has a natural confidence about him,” Monken said. “Just like any young player, they’ve got to play.”
What the coverage missed
ESPN’s report covers the injury and the depth chart. It does not dwell on what Sanders represents.
Sanders was a fifth-round pick in the 2025 draft, which is low for a quarterback who started in college. His father, Deion Sanders, coached him at Colorado and was vocal about where Shedeur should be drafted. The pre-draft coverage was louder than the draft itself. Sanders fell to the fifth round. The Browns took him.
His rookie numbers were not good. Ten interceptions in seven starts is a lot. A 56.6% completion rate is below the league average. The Browns went 3-4 with him, which is neither a disaster nor a ringing endorsement.
The Browns have a quarterback problem that goes beyond Sanders. Watson is on a fully guaranteed $230 million contract and has been injured, suspended and ineffective since arriving in Cleveland. The team traded for him and built around him. He has not delivered. Sanders is the contingency, and the contingency is being activated in Week 9 because Watson hit his head.
Dillon Gabriel, who returned from injured reserve last week, could back up Sanders. Taylen Green, a sixth-round rookie, returns to the emergency quarterback role. The Browns are carrying four quarterbacks on the active roster, which tells you what they think of their situation.
What I think
Sunday is a tryout. Watson’s contract guarantees him money, not a starting job. If Sanders plays well, the Browns have a decision to make about who starts when Watson is cleared. If Sanders plays the way he did as a rookie, the decision makes itself.
The numbers from last year are not the whole story. Sanders was a rookie on a bad team. Seven starts is a small sample. Some quarterbacks figure it out in year two. Most do not. Sunday is the first data point.
The Browns are not going to bench Watson for Sanders based on one game. Watson’s contract makes that financially painful. But if Watson continues to get hurt and Sanders continues to get chances, the organization will have to confront the gap between what they paid for and what they have. Sanders is the pressure. Watson is the question.