Deshaun Watson will be the Cleveland Browns' starter to begin the 2026 season.
Browns head coach Todd Monken made the announcement official in a news conference on Monday, Aug. 24. Second-year quarterback Shedeur Sanders will begin the year as a backup quarterback.
"We felt over the course of training camp and the offseason that (Watson) was ahead of Shedeur," Monken said. "Shedeur's closed that gap, for sure. And that's a credit to him. We look forward to Shedeur continuing to grow as a player, but ultimately, we're about Week 1. Putting our best foot forward over the next three weeks."
Watson's job as the starter also isn't something the Browns view as temporary. There is no short leash to begin the season with Sanders waiting in the wings. Monken said that the team is "not anticipating" the starting quarterback situation to change on a week-to-week basis.
"Ultimately we expect him to play well or we wouldn't be starting him," he said.
Monken did not address the full team after the Browns determined Watson would be their starter. He told reporters that he met individually with Watson first, then Sanders after making the QB1 decision.
Watson, 30, has not started a game for the Browns since 2024. He missed the final half of that season as well as all of 2025 after rupturing, then re-rupturing, his Achilles tendon.
Sanders, 24, started seven games for Cleveland as a rookie last season. He finished the year with a 56.6% completion rate, 1,400 yards, seven touchdowns and 10 interceptions. Sanders was also a late addition to the AFC Pro Bowl roster as an alternate for players who were either injured or declined to participate.
The Browns also have two other quarterbacks on their roster outside of Watson and Sanders. They drafted Oregon product Dillon Gabriel in the third round of the 2025 NFL Draft before taking Sanders in the fifth round the same year. Cleveland also drafted Taylen Green out of Arkansas in the sixth round this year.
Gabriel played in 10 games and started six as a rookie. But the Browns' 2026 quarterback battle was clearly a two-horse race between Watson and Sanders.
Todd Monken explains decision to start Deshaun WatsonMonken pointed to the layout of the Browns' schedule to begin the season as a reason for naming Watson the starter over his younger counterpart. Cleveland plays both of its first two games on the road – at Jacksonville, then at Tampa Bay – before returning home to face the Carolina Panthers in Week 3.
"Took in the full body of work over the course of offseason to training camp to the games to joint practice, and ultimately felt like, to start the season on the road, Deshaun gave us the best chance to move the ball and score points," Monken said.
The Browns' head coach emphasized that the quarterback battle was tightly contested and that both Watson and Sanders performed well in efforts to win the starting job. Ultimately, Monken said, that made the decision more difficult to make, but Watson's ability to "score points and move the ball" pushed him into the leading role of Cleveland's offense.
Monken: Browns' QB decision not impacted by fan reaction, previous performanceMonken also said that the quarterback decision was not influenced by the negative fan response to Watson during the Browns' preseason Week 2 game against the Buffalo Bills. Though the game was at home in Cleveland, fans booed the veteran quarterback several times after he took the field.
"Nothing to do with that," Monken said. "Ultimately, the fans want us to win and put a good product on the field. That's our job as coaches, why we're hired is to put the best players on the field. Who would I be if I let someone outside the building decide who plays?"
Watson told reporters after the game that the booing felt "disrespectful" and said he believed it was unrelated to his on-field performance. Instead, he alluded to it being "more personal," seemingly referencing the sexual misconduct allegations and lawsuits he faced from more than two dozen women in 2021.
All 27 lawsuits have since been settled, withdrawn or dismissed, and Watson has maintained his innocence.
"I don't like being booed either. … On one side, I 100% understand where Deshaun is coming from," Monken said. "But ultimately, we're pros. We gotta put on a good product. We gotta play. You gotta pull your big boy pants up and let's go play."
Monken indicated that the best way for Watson and the Browns to turn around negative fan sentiment is by "playing good football." So far, the veteran quarterback's first four seasons with the Browns have been marred by injuries and poor performance. They've been a far cry from his four strong years in Houston to begin his career.
Nevertheless, Monken's faith persists.
"I have gotten no indication over the six months that I've been here that he doesn't have the ability to bounce back as a player," he said.
Monken announced that neither Watson nor Sanders will play in the Browns' preseason finale against the Patriots on Thursday, Aug. 27. So Watson won't have to face NFL fans again until Week 1 of the regular season. He won't have to face Cleveland fans at home again until Week 3.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Why did the Browns name Deshaun Watson starter? Todd Monken explains
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