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Until the season gets fully underway and the Cleveland Browns have made a quarterback decision, all you're going to hear about is this Shedeur Sanders vs. Deshaun Watson battle. It's one of the only remaining big quarterback battles going on in the NFL right now.
Both players have talent and their own positives. Sanders has youth and that second-year energy. Watson has veteran experience and something to prove.
But, can either of these guys really be the Browns' franchise quarterback for years to come? One NFL analyst doesn't think so.
Cleveland Browns have slim pickings for their quarterback position, NFL analyst says
Ben Solak of ESPN isn't impressed with the Browns' quarterback battle. In a feature out on Friday, he names the "most cursed training camp battle" the Browns quarterback.
"It is exceedingly unlikely the Browns have a good starting quarterback on their roster," he says. That's a harsh reality check. What good is a quarterback competition if neither should win?
Solak adds that the last time Watson was on the field was in 2024, where he averaged 4.03 yards per dropback that season, "942nd out of 947 quarterbacking seasons (minimum 200 dropbacks) this century." He's also coming off an Achilles injury.
As for Sanders, his 2025 rookie season had 5.55 yards per dropback, making him 755th in the same sample, which is "better, but not anything to write home about," Solak says.
Inevitably, Solak says that "Sanders might have a higher ceiling than Watson, in that he's a younger player about whom we know less." He also adds that the Browns are "financially incentivized" to keep Watson for another season, because the player carries a (pre-June 1) dead cap hit of $86 million in 2026.
It's a complicated situation. But, what's not complicated is that one of these quarterbacks has to really step it up this season to be named the franchise signal-caller of the future.
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