Browns Stick With Deshaun Watson Over Sanders For Bucs Game

Watson's opener was about as bad as it gets: an interception on the fifth snap of the season, 16-of-22 for 205 yards, a fumble and 5 sacks in a 34-10 blowout loss to the Jaguars. Cleveland's QB question was supposed to be a summer storyline. Instead it walked straight into Week 2.

ProFootballTalk

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Deshaun Watson says he'll "keep smiling, regardless of who's against me or who's with me." t.co/D65yCRwBQ1

That's Watson's whole answer to the noise — keep smiling. The noise, for context, is a fifth-round rookie in Shedeur Sanders sitting one snap away, and a fanbase that watched its $230 million quarterback throw a pick before the offense even got a first down. Sanders went 144th overall in the 2025 draft and threw for 1,400 yards with 7 touchdowns against 10 interceptions after taking over as a rookie last year, so the alternative isn't some unproven mystery box — he's already started games for this team.

Todd Monken made the call anyway. Speaking to reporters, he said he anticipates Watson will be the starter against Tampa Bay, and that going back through the tape actually made him feel better, not worse, about it.

Adam Schefter

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Browns HC Todd Monken told reporters that he anticipates QB Deshaun Watson will start Sunday at Tampa Bay. Monken said "there were some really good things on film."

"There were some really good things on film," Monken said — the line doing a lot of work for a guy who just watched his quarterback get picked off before the ink dried on Week 1. It's also the same explanation Monken gave for naming Watson the Week 1 starter over Sanders in the first place, and it's worth remembering the Browns are two seasons into a fully guaranteed five-year, $230 million deal that runs through 2026 — cutting or benching Watson doesn't save Cleveland a dollar, it just changes who's holding the ball while the front office pays for it either way.

The opponent isn't neutral in all this, either. Baker Mayfield — the guy Cleveland moved on from to go get Watson in 2022 — is back in the building this week with Tampa Bay, and he made sure everyone knew the Browns are circled on his calendar.

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Baker Mayfield: Cleveland's next — we have a bad taste in our mouth, want to get it out. t.co/eke4mNeR4Z

"Cleveland's next — we have a bad taste in our mouth, want to get it out," Mayfield said, and that's not really about Watson so much as it is about Mayfield's own Bucs coming off a loss. But it adds a layer to Sunday: the quarterback Cleveland let walk lining up across from the quarterback Cleveland traded three first-round picks to acquire in his place, with the Watson-or-Sanders debate hovering over the whole thing. If Watson struggles again, the noise doesn't quiet down — it gets louder, and Sanders keeps waiting.