Legendary tight end Shannon Sharpe, at one point during the offseason, actually bought into the narrative surrounding the Cleveland Browns‘ second-year quarterback Shedeur Sanders. Since Sanders outperformed veteran quarterback Deshaun Watson on multiple fronts, Sharpe thought it was Shedeur’s job to lose. Then head coach Todd Monken named Watson his starting QB, handed Sanders the backup job, and everything came crashing down.

On the latest edition of the Nightcap podcast, Sharpe, Chad Johnson, and Joe Johnson discussed all the starting jobs declared ahead of the regular season kickoff, and the conversation turned to the Browns’ quarterback room. After pushing back against the narrative of a quarterback competition that was painted in Cleveland, Sharpe dropped a sharp reality check for the Dawg Pound.

“We hope that there was a chance that Shedeur really got a realistic chance of starting, but that would never materialize,” Sharpe said. “There was no chance that Shedeur was ever – Shedeur could have – if he threw 200 passes in the preseason, he could have gone 195 for 200 for 2,000 yards and 40 touchdowns, and he wasn’t starting. No, there was nothing. There was nothing Shedeur Sanders could have done.”

Deshaun Watson seemed to have the edge in the QB1 battle from the beginning of the offseason. He was the more experienced quarterback, and Sanders clearly needed some more time to improve. But boy, did he give Watson a tough fight. In the spring, Monken even believed the Browns had two starting-level quarterbacks.

Sanders was 15-of-22 for 153 yards and one touchdown in the two preseason games he played, while Watson was 16-of-27 for 162 yards with no scores. Watson even sparked controversy by taking some offence at how fans booed him in his return at Huntington Bank Field. And yet, Watson was named the starting quarterback.

“Ultimately we expect him to play well or we wouldn’t be starting him,” Monken said.

Now, the Dawg Pound may have already anticipated another lost year judging by their ticket sales. After Deshaun got the starting job over Shedeur, home game ticket prices dropped to at least half their original value. Meanwhile, back on Nightcap, Chad Johnson has declared that the Dawg Pound might not have to remain disappointed for long – Watson has a short window to prove himself.

“Them first two games is pivotal for Deshaun Watson. It’s pivotal,” Johnson said. “They on the road the first two games and they coming home with the third game. Boy, if you ain’t one and one, of if you ain’t two and O, it’s going to be a change made. I guarantee you.”

Watson will be on the road for two straight weeks against the Jaguars and the Buccaneers before they come home to host Carolina and Pittsburgh. Watson, in an apology he issued to the fanbase after being named the starter, has promised them some success.

“Moving forward, I just wanna make sure that I can give the city something to think about in the first two games,” Watson said. “And when we come back home, that we have something to cheer about, and we can celebrate and go do what we wanna do. And that’s achieve the ultimate goal and go win and be a champion.”

That’s a bold promise, and if that doesn’t come true, all the Dawg Pound will think about is how Watson pushed a younger quarterback with a higher ceiling out of the picture. For Shannon Sharpe & Co., that’s the most disappointing part.

Now, if Watson suffers another injury or underperforms, Shedeur Sanders could dethrone him as QB1. Even last season, it took all the starters to either be injured or traded for Sanders to start. If a similar situation arises this year, we at least know that Shedeur is better prepared for it. Whether that ends up happening or not depends solely on what Watson brings to the game in his first NFL start since he tore his Achilles in 2024.