The days of Deshaun Watson tormenting opposing defenses with his elite off-script playmaking abilities appear to be long over, but it may actually be time to defend the Cleveland Browns’ starting quarterback.
FanSided conducted a poll of 50 experts within its network to rank every active NFL quarterback into a tier (check it out, it's awesome). The site ranked everyone from Buffalo’s Josh Allen (No. 1) to Baltimore backup Joe Fagnano (No. 93).
All four of Cleveland’s quarterbacks landed well outside the top 32, or any tier resembling “you have a starting quarterback on your roster.”
But Watson ending up at No. 42 was a little harsh — especially when you consider who was ranked ahead of him.
These quarterbacks have no business being ranked ahead of Deshaun Watson entering the 2026 regular season
Marcus Mariota, Washington Commanders
- FanSided ranking: No. 38
The criticism of Watson’s play since he arrived in Cleveland has been well earned, but he’s never quit on the organization. In fact, he probably earned more respect within the building than most fans realize after working his way back from a twice-torn Achilles tendon to play for a fan base that mostly despises him.
As a member of the Atlanta Falcons back in 2022, Mariota left the team after being benched in favor of Desmond Ridder. He’s now on his fifth team with a career record that’s 10 games under .500, and he’s had one career season with a QB rating over 100 — when he played three games for the Commanders in 2024.
Watson should be comfortably ahead of Mariota in any 2026 quarterback ranking.
Jacoby Brissett, Arizona Cardinals
- FanSided ranking: No. 35
Brissett was a fun story in 2025 — at least in fantasy football — after he came on in relief of Kyler Murray and passed for over 3,300 yards and 23 touchdowns in 12 starts. He was also sacked 43 times and posted a record of 1-11 on his way to padding those stat lines.
Having Brissett on your depth chart as a veteran mentor is one thing. Paying him to be your starter, which Arizona did this offseason, is another. FanSided’s experts ranked Brissett a full tier above Watson, but these two have never been on the same plane at any point in their careers; it should be the other way around.
Michael Penix Jr., Atlanta Falcons
- FanSided ranking: No. 34
Penix is a third-year player who has only started 12 career games. Those starts have produced a whopping four wins with a completion percentage under 60.
Kevin Stefanski will try to help kickstart Penix’s pro career in Atlanta, which is objectively hilarious. Most Browns fans are already done with the Watson experience, but no serious football fan would take Penix over him right now.
Geno Smith, New York Jets
- FanSided ranking: No. 32
Smith is five years older than Watson, and he looked like it in 2025. He went 2-13 as a starter for the Las Vegas Raiders and nearly threw more interceptions (17) than touchdowns (19). He was also sacked 55 times in 15 starts.
Ranking Smith 10 spots higher than Watson is a little comical. He’s not even a quality fringe starter at this stage of his career.
Kirk Cousins, Las Vegas Raiders
- FanSided ranking: No. 29
This is about where Watson should fall, somewhere in the bottom tier of the game’s top 32 quarterbacks with a lot to prove coming off some shaky preseason showings.
Everyone loves Cousins, but he might be the most overrated player on this list. He’s 38 years old and can barely move at this point after his own Achilles injury. He has the highest floor of any quarterback mentioned so far, but he has absolutely no ceiling at this point.
Watson belongs a lot closer to FanSided’s next tier up — under “game manager.” That’s one of the main reasons why Todd Monken chose him over Shedeur Sanders to be the Week 1 starter. He doesn’t offer Sanders’ big-play ability down the field, but he should be able to keep Cleveland in the right play, protect the football, and do enough to give the team a chance each week.
We get it. Even folks outside of Cleveland are clearly done with Watson. But these poll results latched onto the offseason narratives a little too tightly.
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