The Cleveland Browns’ quarterback competition between Deshaun Watson and Shedeur Sanders appears to be nearing its conclusion after Cleveland’s preseason game against the Buffalo Bills on Saturday. While Thursday’s joint practice with Buffalo, and the aforementioned game, should be big data points for the QB battle, many people believe the Browns have already decided on Watson as their starter.
That may be the case, but anybody who has watched Cleveland in recent years knows it’s fair to assume multiple quarterbacks will play this season. If Watson is ultimately named the Week 1 starter, Sanders will likely still see the field at some point due to injury or poor play from the veteran quarterback.
There’s also another reason Sanders may see the field, and that reason is what Browns head coach Todd Monken seemingly likes most about the young quarterback’s game. Monken has repeatedly raved about Sanders’ “elite play-making ability,” and if he truly feels the second-year QB is an elite playmaker, it’s going to be hard to keep him off the field for long.
Todd Monken makes it no secret how much he loves Shedeur Sanders’ elite play-making ability
From the moment Monken was hired as head coach of the Browns, he made it clear that he was impressed by Sanders’ elite play making as a rookie last season. As the head coach has gotten more time to coach Sanders and see him work all offseason, he has since praised that specific trait of the young quarterback many more times.
On Wednesday, that praise reached another level. During Monken’s pre-practice media availability, the head coach was asked about how he works with quarterbacks on their internal clocks, so that they’re playing fast but not rushing. That question led to Monken saying Sanders’ name alongside NFL legends Ben Roethlisberger and Lamar Jackson.
"The time clock of when to get rid of the ball for each player is different," Monken said. "Guys that want to extend plays and want to make plays, and believe in their ability to make plays, are going to hold it longer, be it Lamar (Jackson), be it Ben Roethlisberger, be it Shedeur (Sanders), because they are elite playmakers. You’ve seen it. Now, where that sweet spot is, I don’t know, and the only way to get better at it is to have the consequences of it…turnovers, holding the ball too long, you’ve got to have that offset. With Lamar, the benefit outweighs the wrapping on the number of times he ends up taking a sack, because he makes so many plays. Ben Roethlisberger was the same way. I believe Shedeur has that in him."
It’s important to note that none of the Browns’ QBs were mentioned by name in the question, so Monken decided himself to compare Sanders to these all-time great quarterbacks. It’s also worth noting that Sanders was the only Cleveland quarterback he brought up in this answer. That speaks to how highly he thinks of the young QB’s play-making ability.
This comes a day after Monken said on The Todd Monken Show that games are the best evaluator, because Cleveland has quarterbacks who he thinks “do a nice job of extending plays in their own unique way.”
Monken briefly pointed to Watson’s athleticism, and quickly acknowledged Dillon Gabriel’s ability to escape, while elaborating, “Shedeur has a certain calmness about him. Sure he may take a sack every now and then that you don’t want, but he’s gonna jack that damn thing up down the field 20 yards or 30 yards, you’re gonna get a big play.”
The fact that Monken has made it a habit to praise Sanders’ big-play ability is a sign that it’ll be hard to keep him off the field.
Browns’ offense will need Shedeur Sanders’ big-play ability
Everyone understands that explosive plays are a necessity for productive offenses in the NFL; the league is just too hard for offenses to consistently nickel-and-dime their way down the field. Everyone also knows that big plays are a fixture of Shedeur Sanders’ game.
The quarterback made that clear during his first NFL start, delivering a show-stopping 52-yard throw to Isaiah Bond. The long completion was Cleveland’s first pass over 50 yards in 15 games, and Sanders did it in the first quarter of his first start.
He reminded everyone of his penchant for explosive plays during the Browns’ first preseason game of 2026. After a first half where Deshaun Watson went 11-of-15 without completing a pass of 10+ air yards, Sanders’ first attempt traveled 13 yards from the line of scrimmage, before the receiver caught the ball and turned up field to make it a 24-yard gain.
Three plays later, the second-year quarterback connected with Luke Floriea on a 35-yard bomb, refreshing everyone’s memory that things are different when he’s in the game.
Obviously, there’s more to being a quarterback than making big plays, and Sanders is working to improve all the other facets. That’s why he said his favorite play from Saturday was a check down to running back Ahmani Marshall that went for four yards. Sanders is in pursuit of the perfect balance between going for the big play and living to fight another down.
While that’s a thin line that quarterbacks are always teetering, Sanders is the only quarterback in Cleveland who has proven he’s willing to push the ball down the field, and can do so with success. Considering Monken’s clear appreciation for that skill, it’s hard to imagine Shedeur Sanders won’t get an opportunity, at some point, to make plays with the Browns’ exciting weapons.
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