Deshaun Watson Jun 11, 2026; Berea, OH, USA; Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson (4) during minicamp at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

First-year Cleveland Browns head coach Todd Monken still has to make a decision on who Cleveland’s starting quarterback will be for this season. The job is largely viewed as a two-horse race between veteran Deshaun Watson and second-year quarterback Shedeur Sanders.

However, as the season approaches, all signs are pointing toward Watson having the edge as the battle stands. ESPN’s Dan Orlovsky went as far as to say that Watson was “clearly better.”

“After preseason Week 1, it’s not close the competition, and I’ve been pumping Shedeur to be the guy,” he said after Cleveland’s first preseason game against the Chicago Bears. “I thought Deshaun played faster, he saw it cleaner, the ball jumped off his hand a bit more.”

He added, “if you just looked at the snaps and the body of work, Deshaun was clearly better in the game,” Orlovsky added. “Even though I’ve been sitting here pounding the table to start Shedeur because it makes more sense to start Shedeur, I did not find after preseason Week 1 that it was all that close.”

About Qwame Skinner

Qwame Skinner has loved both writing and sports his entire life. In addition to his sports coverage at Comeback Media, Qwame writes novels, and his debut; The First Casualty, an adult fantasy, is out now.