Cleveland Browns’ veteran quarterback Deshaun Watson entered spring as the top option to start games. But as the team wrapped up its training camps, second-year QB Shedeur Sanders had already left his mark. For now, new head coach Todd Monken has already decided to give both of them an equal opportunity to prove themselves.

But Sanders is planning to dominate — whatever that definition would be in Berea after last season — just like his rookie season. And when his supporter and former NFL player Chad Johnson was asked about how long that would take, he had a simple answer:

“I told you that and that’s exactly how it’s going to be,” Chad ‘Ochocinco’ Johnson said in a recent episode of Nightcap. “For those there in the chat, that love football, whether you’re a Cleveland Browns fan or not, Deshaun Watson is a starting quarterback for the Cleveland Browns. The job that Deshaun Watson is gonna get, Uncle Joe, it is his job to lose. He has six weeks. I guarantee you.

“I’m calling it right now, Uncle Joe. He has six weeks to make sure that team is playing above or better than whatever the expectations may be for that team and that quarterback. If he’s not, Shedeur Sanders will fall in line as the backup and be the starter for the remainder of the season.”

Well, last season, the then-head coach Kevin Stefanski had to put Sanders in after Dillon Gabriel had to go under concussion protocol in Week 11 against the Baltimore Ravens. With no first-team practice whatsoever, the fifth-rounder showed off his arm strength, pocket presence, and accuracy. That was when the Browns’ offensive line was one of the worst in the league. Things have certainly changed this season. But that’s where Watson’s job as the primary QB could hang in the balance.

You see, General Manager Andrew Berry played all his cards right to erect an o-line that has enough potential. While that should help Watson, you cannot ignore that he has not played since the middle of the 2024 season. And that gap could be the deal-breaker. It was already visible in their practices.

Watson appeared healthy after long streaks of injuries, but he could not perform well through the OTAs. The Athletic reported that he lacked consistency and threw too often into traffic. He did occasionally flash his trademark arm strength downfield, but his sessions were marred by errant throws and a troubling tendency to force the ball into heavy traffic.

But the veteran is not worried about his absence from the action. In fact, he believes it’s only an advantage.

“It’s been great,” Watson said earlier this month. “Especially being off the field for the last year and a half, two years. Anytime you get the opportunity to go out there and just compete and just cut it loose has been awesome.

“So, I think the biggest thing for me is just being out there, going out there and just reacting, cutting it loose. Don’t get too worried about making mistakes. That’s part of the game, part of this period where we’re in. So again, I’m having fun. I’m enjoying the guys. I’m enjoying the locker room. I’m hanging out with them outside the building. It’s been a good nine weeks, for sure.”

If the o-line was what it was last year, Watson probably wouldn’t have lasted long. Fortunately, that’s changed. Yet, the numbers from the Browns’ practice sessions are revealing. The veteran quarterback completed 90 out of 133 passes, made 13 touchdowns, and had three interceptions. Meanwhile, Sanders completed 79 out of 113 passes, made five touchdowns, and got intercepted thrice. 

It’s worth noting that Sanders was the first quarterback up with the starters on the first day of the mandatory camp. And he showed significant improvement since the last season. Monken probably made that choice considering Sanders was the favorite to start this season by the end of 2025.

Meanwhile, Watson started on the second day with the first team. Monken was certainly happy with how the QB room looked. But he is yet to make a final decision on the starting QB. According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, the Browns quarterback competition might go on till the preseason games. 

“Shedeur Sanders has bridged the gap, at least somewhat. I still believe Deshaun Watson is in a good position,” Fowler updated on the QB battle in Berea earlier this week.

Following the conclusion of OTAs and mandatory minicamp, the pressure on Watson has reached an all-time high. He was supposed to be the franchise’s long-awaited answer to a troubling QB room, but ever since he arrived in Cleveland, Watson has been riddled with injuries and legal troubles.

He served an 11-game suspension in 2022 for violating the NFL’s personal conduct policy. In 2023, he suffered a rotator cuff strain and a fractured glenoid. This ended his season after six games. In 2024, an Achilles injury ended his season after seven games. And he missed the entire 2025 season after he re-aggravated the Achilles injury. Judging from that, Joe Johnson claimed that Sanders might take less than six weeks to take over control of the field. 

“If they doing bad, I think most of the time, Unc, I could be wrong, you’d be better suited to answer that, when it comes to a quarterback and you got somebody over your shoulder, if you’re not playing well, I thought maybe it would be the six-week mark,” Chad Johnson responded. “Because you don’t wanna lose too much of the season where you still have a chance to compete. At least play for something.”

In the end, things will mainly depend on when the Browns have their Bye Week. The brass can then analyze how the team has done so far and how things can improve further, or make a decision against whoever is the starting QB at that point. For now, Watson also has advocates to defend him, including Joe Thomas, who placed a bet on Watson to start more games this season. 

While the offseason chatter continues to swell, the Browns still have mandatory training camp on the horizon in late July. The front office and coaching staff will need to see how both players perform under increased physical pressure and full-padded practices before making a definitive decision for Week 1.

Until then, Watson clings to his starting designation, and Sanders is already in Las Vegas working out at UNLV. He will certainly remain waiting in the wings as an immediate, high-upside backup ready to strike.