Overview
- Following last week’s voluntary minicamp, cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot reported Deshaun Watson holds an early edge over Shedeur Sanders, while coach Todd Monken said it is too soon to name a starter.
- Watson enters the final year of his fully guaranteed $230 million deal and is coming off two Achilles surgeries after starting only 19 games in Cleveland with 19 touchdowns and 12 interceptions.
- General manager Andrew Berry said the decision will be driven by how the quarterbacks play, and he left open the option of extending a veteran if he earns the job and performs.
- Wednesday coverage amplified local skepticism about starting Watson, with The Athletic’s Zac Jackson and Jason Lloyd arguing the move offers little long-term payoff for a team trying to build.
- Analysts have floated trade ideas involving Sanders, including a speculative move to the Steelers reported by FanSided and echoed by Heavy and the Times of India, but no talks are reported and Monken has not named a starter before OTAs.