RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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CLEVELAND (AP) — Todd Monken will take at least one more day before deciding if Shedeur Sanders or Deshaun Watson will be the Cleveland Browns starting quarterback on Sept. 13 in Jacksonville.
The first-year head coach said he anticipates announcing the starter on Monday. Monken also noted that Watson's comments after the Browns' 31-7 loss to the Buffalo Bills on Saturday are not expected to play a deciding factor in his final decision.
“I think Deshaun spoke from the heart. We all want to play well as a team and individually. There was no question we were all frustrated,” Monken said on Sunday. “What I am concerned about is us playing well as a team and offense. When you play well none of the other stuff matters.”
Watson played his first game at Cleveland since Week 7 of the 2024 season when he ruptured his Achilles tendon for the first time late in the second quarter of a game against Cincinnati.
He was booed repeatedly during his four second-half series among the smattering of fans remaining after the game was delayed nearly an hour because of weather and Sanders played the first half.
“It has nothing to do about the performance,” Watson said of the boos after the game. “It’s a little bit personal. I think that’s a disrespectful thing. I’m going to keep whatever I feel with me and my family internally on how I feel about that. Just move on.
“I thought being away for two years and working myself back from two Achilles injuries and putting the time in, being around the facility, being around the city, doing charity work in the city, supporting the Cleveland Browns, hanging out with fans whenever I do see them, being honest, being the type of person I know I am, and the character would help, and I guess it hasn’t."
Watson was just 5 of 12 for 36 yards and threw an interception while on the field with players at the bottom of the roster who likely will be cut in a couple of weeks.
He completed 11 of 15 for 126 yards and directed two scoring drives working with other starters and the second team during the first half of the preseason opener at Chicago.
Cleveland's two preseason games — both losses — have followed the same scripts of solid first-half play followed by struggles in the second half.
Sanders, who went 9 of 11 for 74 yards with a touchdown and interception during the first half against the Bills, was 6 of 11 for 79 yards with an interception in the second half against the Bears.
“It’s been the tale of two weeks. It’s been the same each week,” Monken said. "It just feels like we’ve played better in the first half, and then right before halftime and in the second half, collectively along with coaching, we haven’t done as well.”
Sanders completed his first eight passes against the Bills before he was picked off by Damar Hamlin on a pass he threw behind tight end Jermaine Terry.
The biggest improvement Sanders has shown in the preseason games is his ability to stand in the pocket as well as move up when he needs to. He showed plenty of patience before firing an 8-yard touchdown pass to a wide-open Luke Floriea in the back of the end zone.
“I thought he operated more smooth than the first week in terms of handling cadence. His command of the offense has grown by leaps and bounds. When we had protection, he threw the ball down the field. There was a lot there to like,” Monken said on Sunday about Sanders after reviewing the game film.
Watson has started only 19 games for Cleveland since being acquired from Houston in 2022 and signing a fully guaranteed, $230 million contract that will likely go down as perhaps one of the worst trades and contract in NFL history. He is 9-10 with the Browns with 19 touchdown passes, 12 interceptions and an 80.7 passer rating.
The Browns play their first two games on the road before hosting Carolina on Sept. 27. Week 3 is the furthest thing from Monken's mind, and he hopes that Watson was able to vent his frustrations over the past couple of years so that it won't be a distraction.
“I’m not concerned about the first home game. I’m concerned about who will give us the best chance to win the first week. We’ll get to that when we get to it,” Monken said. “I think we have to be a little careful of judging someone right after he goes out to play, feeling like he’s put in the work, and then to not perform as well as he wanted. We all want to be appreciated. He spoke from the heart, and I don’t ever blame someone that speaks from the heart. If someone were to ask if I feel like he doesn’t have confidence, I don’t see that.”
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