The Cleveland Browns are not ready to name Deshaun Watson their starting quarterback, but head coach Todd Monken delivered an emphatic review of his preseason debut.
Watson completed 11 of 15 passes for 126 yards in Cleveland’s 34-10 loss to the Chicago Bears. He led the Browns on both of their scoring drives and finished with a 98.2 passer rating in his first game action since October 2024.
“It was awesome — so cool to watch him play,” Monken said. “I get all of the frustration — fans, himself. But for him to come back and work as he did is an unbelievable credit to him. He was having fun today and that is so cool. I thought he really functioned at a high level.”
Watson did not produce a touchdown pass, but he helped Cleveland build an early 10-0 lead. The Browns capped their opening possession with a 50-yard field goal from Andre Szmyt before putting together an 81-yard touchdown drive that ended with rookie KC Concepcion scoring on a 14-yard run.
Deshaun Watson Still Has Problems to Clean Up
Watson’s performance was far from flawless. He lost a fumble after being sacked on fourth down and struggled when Monken finally got the two-minute situation he wanted before halftime. Watson took a sack that was erased by a penalty, scrambled for a short gain and then threw consecutive incompletions.
Cleveland also had to burn timeouts due to operational issues, an area Monken identified as needing improvement.
“We don’t want to be taking timeouts and taking delay of games,” Monken said. “But it was fun watching him play and watching us put the next step forward to see where we are at.”
The uneven finish took some of the shine off Watson’s return, but the outing still represented a significant step. He had not appeared in a game in nearly two years after rupturing his Achilles and suffering a setback during his recovery. Watson has split first-team work with Sanders throughout training camp, with neither quarterback creating the separation Monken has been seeking.
Against Chicago, Watson provided the most efficient performance of Cleveland’s three quarterbacks. But he was also the only passer to work with the rest of Cleveland’s starters. His longest completion was a 43-yard screen pass to Dylan Sampson.
Browns Holding Off on Starting Quarterback Decision
Despite the praise, Monken made it clear that Watson’s showing was not enough for him to make a decision. The Browns will stick to the script that have discussed, with Sanders drawing the start next week. Watson will play the third quarter — as Sanders did against the Bears — with Gabriel coming in for the fourth quarter
“I’m not ready to say it yet,” Monken said when asked about naming a starter. “Plan was always to get through the Bills game, switch up who was going to start, who was going to play in the second half, then go from there. Monday is going to be important. Even the meeting rooms are going to be important, listening to the players talk about what they saw and how they feel.”
Sanders flashed his ability against Chicago but also threw an interception on an overthrow and failed to lead the Browns to any points during the third quarter.
Gabriel threw another interception in the fourth quarter. Monken acknowledged that the overall performance was not good enough, even if there were encouraging moments.
“There’s a lot to clean up — coaching and play,” Monken said. “Frustrating at certain levels and can’t turn the ball over three times. There were some things operationally that I know we can clean up. I thought at moments we threw the ball well.”
After facing the Bills, the Browns should be near a decision on their starting quarterback. They’ll close out their preseason slate on August 27 against the New England Patriots.
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