The Cleveland Browns’ quarterback competition is officially underway and a familiar, but somewhat surprising, name has already emerged over his opponent. Veteran Deshaun Watson reportedly has the inside track at the starting job after outplaying second-year quarterback Shedeur Sanders during voluntary minicamp, according to the Cleveland.com.
Watson reportedly impressed during Day 1 of minicamp, showing the ability to diagnose plays pre-snap and then make quick decisions. He performed well enough to earn more starting snaps throughout the day, which was unexpected. The Browns reportedly wanted Sanders to get more reps with the first team, but changed course based on Watson’s performance. Though Sanders’ ultimately did get more snaps in 11-on-11 drills, Watson earned more as the day went on.
But that changed on the second day of minicamp, per Cleveland.com, when Watson came out with the starters and took most of the reps.
That development comes after Watson missed the entire 2025 NFL season while recovering from an Achilles injury that he sustained in 2024. With Watson sidelined, the Browns initially turned to veteran Joe Flacco before handing over the reigns to Sanders and Dillon Gabriel.
Neither Gabriel nor Sanders showed enough to win the starting job in 2026. Despite getting a start before Sanders last season, Gabriel did not receive first-team reps in minicamp. Sanders, meanwhile, showed some potential, but still finished with a 7-10 touchdown to interception ratio. Despite that, he was selected to take part in the Pro Bowl.
After starring with the Houston Texans early in his career, Watson has not been the same player in Cleveland. In four seasons with the Texans, Watson tossed 104 touchdowns and 36 interceptions in 54 games. He posted a 67.8 percent completion percentage with the franchise.
His numbers have severely regressed with the Browns. In three seasons, Watson has thrown 19 touchdowns against 12 interceptions in 19 games. He’s completed 61.2 percent of his passes during his injury-riddled time with the Browns.
During his tenure in Cleveland, Watson has been subject to heavy scrutiny from fans. Prior to the trade, Watson was accused of sexual misconduct by multiple women. Despite those allegations, the Browns not only agreed to trade for Watson, but handed him an unprecedented, fully-guaranteed, five-year, $230 million contract. Watson is entering the final year of that deal in 2026.
While Watson appears to have the early edge in the competition, Sanders still has time to overtake the veteran. New Browns head coach Todd Monken reportedly wants to wait until the end of minicamp in June to name a starter, per Cleveland.com.
Time, however, may wind up benefitting Watson more than Sanders. Despite Watson’s poor numbers in Cleveland, he’s used to learning new offensive systems. That’s something new to Sanders at the NFL level, and could be a reason why Watson looked sharper on the first few days of minicamp.
Whoever wins the competition will have their work cut out for them. The Browns finished just 5-12 last season, ranking 31st in points scored.
But things are looking up in Cleveland. In an attempt to get the offense back on track, the team spent its first three picks on offensive players in the 2026 NFL Draft. One of those players was an offensive lineman and the other two were receivers, which should make whoever wins the starting job much happier and — hypothetically — more successful in 2026.