If anyone needed a reminder that it’s late June and that the NFL is on summer break, they don’t have to look any further than the recent Shedeur Sanders trade rumors. The claims that Cleveland is taking calls on the second-year QB, and could move him before the season, are drastically different than the recent reports that he was closing the gap in the quarterback competition.
The idea that Sanders went from potentially starting to being traded in the matter of a week in late June, when the team is out of the building, has "media-created story" written all over it. With not much to talk about, the machine has to feed itself.
If anyone took a step back and looked at Cleveland’s situation objectively, it would be pretty obvious that the chance of Sanders being traded soon is slim to none. Even if the young quarterback loses the QB battle to Deshaun Watson, the Browns will still have several reasons to hold on to him.
No reason will be bigger than the fact that Watson hasn’t been able to play a full season in six years. That reality should let everyone know that Sanders likely isn’t going anywhere.
Deshaun Watson isn’t reliable enough for the Browns to trade Shedeur Sanders
Sanders and Watson will reportedly enter training camp on even levels in the quarterback battle, so if the team moves Sanders, that means Cleveland is all in on Watson as the starter. The problem, though, is that Watson hasn’t shown anything that should make the Browns feel comfortable enough to move someone that head coach Todd Monken has referred to as a starting-caliber quarterback.
For starters, Watson hasn’t consistently played good football since the 2020 season, so even if he wins the starting job, he could easily be sent to the bench because of bad play. Additionally, the veteran quarterback has only played 19 total games over his four seasons in Cleveland, with multiple injuries sidelining him.
That means even if Watson is playing well, the possibility of an injury will still be something the team has to consider. Knowing what the quarterback has been through over the last half decade, it would be malpractice to not have a solid backup. If Sanders is traded, who will the Browns turn to? Dillon Gabriel? Taylen Green? Brendan Sorsby, who some are convinced is a good idea?
For a Shedeur Sanders trade to make sense for Cleveland, the team would have to get a package they can’t refuse, and that’s probably not going to happen.
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