After the Cleveland Browns’ second preseason game, head coach Todd Monken declared Deshaun Watson won the starting quarterback competition and will start Week One, beating out Shedeur Sanders for the spot. Monken claims this decision was simply because Watson was ahead of Sanders, able to “move the ball and score points” more efficiently.
On paper, this sounds like a straightforward football decision. In reality, the Browns’ front office and Monken are prioritizing salvaging their failed investment in Watson over the fans who are fed up with the Watson era and begging to move on.
Watson was traded to Cleveland from the Houston Texans in spring of 2022, and spirits were high. He was nearing star quarterback status, and despite 22 women accusing him of sexual misconduct, the Browns took a chance on him and wrote him a massive check: Five years, $230 million guaranteed.
Since then, Watson has only appeared in 19 games. He was suspended 11 games due to his sexual misconduct settlement in 2022 and had season-ending injuries in 2023, 2024 and early 2025. Browns Owner Jimmy Haslam even publicly called the Watson trade a “big swing and miss.” After Watson missed the entire 2025 season and Shedeur Sanders showed glimmers of hope, it felt like the Watson era might finally be in the past.
Now, weeks before the 2026 season begins, we’re right back where we started.
The trade singlehandedly dug the Browns into a hole they haven’t climbed out of, between the loss of six draft picks and guaranteeing Watson $230 million. As he continues to perform at such a low level, both the front office’s choices and Watson’s attitude are indefensible.
Financially, it's not possible for the Browns to cut Watson, as they owe him $46 million for this season; however, there is a clause in Watson’s reconstructed contract basically saying, “Watson also has a base salary of $200 million in 2029 that's not guaranteed, but it becomes fully guaranteed if he's still on the roster by the third day of the league year in 2027.” If the Browns do not want to keep Watson and pay him $200 million, he has to be gone by March 13. This makes starting him even more frustrating; Watson has no future here.
The Browns gave somebody with a sordid past a chance and have continued to give him more chances despite his lack of production and toxic attitude with fans. The front office acting as if this decision would come without backlash is ignorant.
During the Browns’ 31-7 loss to the Buffalo Bills in Week Two of the preseason, Watson went 5/12 passing with 74 total yards and one interception and was booed relentlessly. During his postgame press conference, Watson still had the audacity to say, “It has nothing to do about the performance. It's a little bit personal. It's a disrespectful thing.”
Watson has two luxuries many NFL hopefuls will never experience: a seemingly infinite number of chances and a $230 million paycheck for nothing valuable performance-wise. Watson claims this is some unfair personal grudge fans hold against him, but that misses the point. Fans are ready to move on.
Shedeur Sanders appeared in eight games for the Browns last year as a rookie, and while he wasn’t incredible, he was something fun to watch on an otherwise flat team. Sanders threw for 1,400 yards, with a 56.6% completion percentage and seven total touchdowns. Sanders may not be the future, but he’s still a “young quarterback with some fun upside” and is definitely a fan favorite.
Sanders won’t guarantee immediate success, but he gives fans what Watson has taken away: hope and excitement to watch the Browns on Sundays. Sanders represents the future, while Watson represents the past.
After Watson’s disrespectful comments about fans, former NFL quarterback and ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky suggested, “Browns fans should boycott Browns games this season in the wake of this decision to start Watson.” Fans seem to agree, as the statue of Browns Hall of Famer Jim Brown was vandalized with hateful messages directed toward Watson and the Haslams. One sign notes they are a “permanent damage to the city and franchise.”
While Orlovsky’s take is harsh, he has a point. The fans don’t like Watson, yet he is wrapped up in a protective cocoon by Monken and the front office to keep his job, play badly and insult the fans.
Cleveland.com said, “the Browns don’t care what you think.” This franchise knows losing, bad coaches and bad quarterbacks – you name it. The fans want to see Sanders and move on from the Watson era, not put him back on a pedestal. The Browns have been the butt of jokes and camped at the bottom of standings since they returned to the league in 1999, and when they had a chance to not divide and alienate their fanbase again, they ignored it.
Abby Shriver is a sophomore studying journalism at Ohio University. Please note the opinions expressed in this column do not represent those of The Post. Want to talk to Abby about their column? Email/message them at as064024@ohio.edu / @abbyshriver_
