Browns quarterback competition has clear frontrunner
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As I’ve mentioned before, NFL quarterback competitions are usually filled with manufactured drama throughout training camps. It’s fantastic fodder for us. I get it.
Cleveland’s may finally be producing an answer. Deshaun Watson increasingly looks like the Browns quarterback with the inside track on the Week 1 job.
That doesn’t mean Cleveland has officially named him the starter. It hasn’t. But the clues have started stacking up since Todd Monken moved beyond the installation portion of training camp and began evaluating which quarterback could actually operate his offense against more complicated defensive looks.
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Andrew Siciliano captured the turning point when Monken said, “Installs are over. And today and tomorrow we’ll have a better idea.”
Since then, Watson has increasingly looked like the quarterback Cleveland trusts most with the offense. That’s important because this competition was never going to be decided strictly by who throws the prettiest deep ball in practice.
Monken wants the quarterback who controls the huddle, understands protections, diagnoses coverage and gets the offense into the correct look before the snap. And that’s where Watson’s experience stands out.
Shedeur Sanders still has an opportunity to change the conversation during preseason games, and Cleveland has continued giving him meaningful work. But development and readiness aren’t the same thing. And Sanders can still be intriguing without being ready to start Week 1.
The Browns also aren’t evaluating these quarterbacks in a vacuum. They’re trying to install a new offensive identity while incorporating young starters throughout the lineup. Monken needs somebody capable of keeping all of it organized. Right now, Watson appears closer to that player.
Maybe preseason changes everything. But once Monken stopped installing and started evaluating, the competition began looking considerably less even.
And Watson appears to be the quarterback pulling ahead.
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