The Cleveland Browns are still in the middle of a camp battle to straighten out who the starting quarterback will be. Head coach Todd Monken announced that the plan for the first two games is to have veteran Deshaun Watson start the first preseason game against the Chicago Bears, with rookie Shedeur Sanders getting the start in the following contest against the Buffalo Bills.
“I have my reasons for how it’s going to go, and it’s still a competition,” Monken said of his process. “We’re excited to watch guys practice today, let alone on Saturday, and then next week against Buffalo, and we’ll get a chance to see them both.
“Every week we’ll assess it. It’ll be a little bit more difficult with the player that doesn’t play as much this week or the other quarterbacks, right? We’ll be able to assess the quarterback that started and how he played and when the other quarterbacks came in, and then the opposite will be next week against Buffalo.”
For Watson’s part, he’s excited to get his first game action since rupturing his Achilles two seasons ago.
“I’m super excited,” Watson said. “All the hard work that I put in with the training staff, with my team, my personal team, to get to this stage has been tremendous for me. So, I’m super excited for those opportunities and can’t wait for it.”
However, he’s also acknowledging that he’s not the same quarterback he was in the beginning of his career.
“I’m different, man,” Watson said, via ProFootballTalk. “I think, ever since I’ve been here, early on bringing up Houston was cool, but I’m 30 now and I’ve had some injuries and things like that, so my game has definitely changed. But the mentality in how I play, and how I approach it, doesn’t change.
“So, I think the biggest thing is just going out there, playing free, and letting my instincts take over. That’s the biggest thing. Coach O’Brien (in Houston) always told me to trust my instincts, so I think that’s the biggest thing, just go out there, play free, and let the game come to you.”
It’ll be interesting to see if Watson still has enough left in the tank to stave off a hungry Sanders.
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