{"id":719135,"date":"2026-01-31T13:32:14","date_gmt":"2026-01-31T13:32:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/719135\/"},"modified":"2026-01-31T13:32:14","modified_gmt":"2026-01-31T13:32:14","slug":"i-think-hes-in-contention-browns-beat-reporter-says-shedeur-sanders-could-legitimately-challenge-as-the-starter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/719135\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018I think he\u2019s in contention: Browns beat reporter says Shedeur Sanders could legitimately challenge as the starter"},"content":{"rendered":"

CLEVELAND, Ohio \u2014 The viral social media clip spread like wildfire<\/a> through Browns<\/a> Nation on Friday. New head coach Todd Monken greeted second-year quarterback Shedeur Sanders with unmistakable enthusiasm, and the football world immediately connected the dots.<\/p>\n

\u201cShedeur Sanders, as we know, is the content king, the absolute content king,\u201d said Browns beat reporter Mary Kay Cabot on the Orange and Brown Talk podcast<\/a>. \u201cAnd that is a major reason why he was added to the Pro Bowl games for Tuesday night.\u201d<\/p>\n

But beyond the social media excitement lies a far more consequential storyline: a legitimate quarterback controversy brewing in Berea.<\/p>\n

The Browns find themselves in a unique predicament. They have a $230 million quarterback in Deshaun Watson who\u2019s coming off multiple surgeries and has yet to recapture the magic that once made him a three-time Pro Bowler. Meanwhile, Shedeur Sanders \u2014 a fifth-round pick who went 3-4 as a starter last season \u2014 has shown flashes of potential that have the organization intrigued.<\/p>\n

Adding another layer to this saga is Monken\u2019s pre-existing relationship with Sanders. During the viral clip, Monken reminded Sanders that the Ravens had wanted to draft him. It was also revealed that Sanders received an offer from Georgia when Monken was offensive coordinator there.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe reality of the situation with the Cleveland Browns right now is that they have two unknowns,\u201d explained Cabot. \u201cAnd I don\u2019t even really think necessarily that we can talk about Dillon Gabriel as being in the mix for the starting job. It seems like it is really down to Deshaun Watson and Shedeur Sanders at this moment competing for the starting job.\u201d<\/p>\n

From a financial perspective, the Browns would love nothing more than for Sanders to seize the role.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sure the Cleveland Browns would love it too, if Shedeur can live up to the potential that they think he has and they can get away with starting a fifth-round quarterback who costs them pennies on the dollar over the next how-many-ever years,\u201d noted Cabot.<\/p>\n

But film analyst Lance Reisland offered a sobering reality about Watson\u2019s pure talent: \u201cIf you\u2019re going to say without injury, make no question Deshaun Watson is the most talented guy in that room. Pure passer wise, I\u2019ve watched almost every throw of Deshaun Watson since he got to Cleveland. There\u2019s a big difference when Deshaun Watson throws the ball and most others, not just the guys on Browns. Deshaun Watson can spin it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Monken\u2019s track record suggests he values mobility in his quarterbacks, which could favor Watson. A clip recently circulating from a Ravens team meeting shows Monken emphasizing that \u201cthe scramble drill is the play you\u2019re going to run the most in football\u201d and that \u201cyou can\u2019t have an explosive offense without a mobile quarterback.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ultimately, the decision may come down to health.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf he\u2019s healthy, I think Todd Monken can get something out of Deshaun Watson that most people do not believe is still there,\u201d said Cabot.<\/p>\n

One thing seems certain: unlike last season\u2019s four-way competition that produced a chaotic quarterback room, Monken is likely to streamline the process, focusing on just two candidates to build proper chemistry with receivers.<\/p>\n

Whatever the outcome, the Browns\u2019 2026 season will be defined by who wins this quarterback battle \u2014 and the viral clip of Monken and Sanders may be just the opening salvo in what promises to be Cleveland\u2019s most scrutinized position battle.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s the latest podcast:<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Listen and subscribe to the Orange and Brown Talk podcast on Apple Podcasts<\/a> and Spotify<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Football Insider newsletter free trial: Take a minute and sign up for a free trial<\/a> of our Football Insider newsletter, featuring exclusive content from cleveland.com’s Browns reporters.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"CLEVELAND, Ohio \u2014 The viral social media clip spread like wildfire through Browns Nation on Friday. New head…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":719136,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2054],"tags":[86,94863,85,54,94864,2337,7,6],"class_list":{"0":"post-719135","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-cleveland-browns","8":"tag-browns","9":"tag-cincinnati-bengals-2025-2026","10":"tag-cleveland","11":"tag-cleveland-browns","12":"tag-cleveland-browns-2025-2026","13":"tag-clevelandbrowns","14":"tag-football","15":"tag-nfl"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/719135","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=719135"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/719135\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/719136"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=719135"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=719135"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=719135"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}