Browns’ Preseason Opener Suggests Todd Monken Still Doesn’t Trust Deshaun Watson

Men lie. Women lie. Numbers – specifically analytics – don't.

The score and who wins a preseason game don’t matter. Yes, the Browns have been “preseason champions” plenty of times since 1999, but how often has that translated to success during the regular season? It doesn’t – and hasn’t – clearly.

The preseason gives coaches the opportunity to answer the questions they have about their team. It gives coaches the ability to put their players in a position to evaluate them more, especially in starting competitions, while getting some live game reps against an opponent rather than the same defense the quarterback has seen throughout training camp.

In Watson’s first game since he tore his Achilles on Oct. 20, 2024 (and then again on Jan. 6, 2025), Saturday in Chicago was supposed to be a chance for Watson to try and find his groove, as he has played in just 19 regular-season games since 2020.

First-year Browns head coach Todd Monken, the team’s offensive play-caller, knew that. Yet Cleveland’s first drive ended in a three-and-out following three carries by Quinshon Judkins. Watson’s first pass didn’t come until Cleveland’s fifth offensive play of the game.

Playing the entirety of the first half, Watson completed 11-of-15 passes for 126 yards and turned the ball over due to a fumble on a strip sack, all while leading the Browns to their only 10 points of the game. He completed 8-of-9 passes for 102 yards in the first quarter, before Cleveland rotated out the starters. Forty-three of those 126 yards came on a screen pass to Dylan Sampson.

"Oh, it was awesome," Monken said of Watson’s performance. "I mean, it was so cool to watch him play. I mean, I get all of the frustration by fans, himself, but for him to come back and work like he did is an unbelievable credit to him. And then to go out there, he was having fun today, and that is so cool. And I thought he really functioned at a high level. Certainly, we don't want to be taking timeouts. We sure as heck can't take delay games, OK? But it was fun watching them play and watching us put the next step forward and see where we're at."

Simply looking at the box score, Watson seemed to have a good game. He didn’t have any touchdowns, but the box score shows that he did OK – not great, not really good, but fine. That said, Watson only attempted (and completed) two passes 10-plus yards downfield: a 14-yard completion to Jerry Jeudy and an 11-yard pass to KC Concepcion.

Watson had an average depth of target of just 3.9 yards per attempt, per PFF. Comparatively, Sanders’ ADOT was 9.9 yards. To put that in perspective, among quarterbacks who had at least 250 dropbacks in 2025, Aaron Rodgers had the lowest ADOT in the NFL at 6.6 yards.

Whether it was missed reads or progressions, or just not seeing open receivers, Watson even seemed to have less trust in himself than Monken did.

Maybe that will change in the second preseason game against the Bills, and possibly in a joint practice against Buffalo on Thursday. But one thing is clear: Monken still doesn’t have his full trust in Watson, even though he’s likely the favorite to be named the starting quarterback in the season opener./

The competition to be named the starting quarterback to begin the 2026 season for the Browns will continue, as Watson and Shedeur Sanders both have a shot to be in1 In Cleveland. That said, Watson didn't do anything – again – in Saturday's loss to the Bears in the preseason opener to prove that he deserves the job. But neither did Sanders, which has been the problem all offseason.

Monken must give the quarterbacks every opportunity to prove themselves at quarterback, especially as a passer, before making a decision to determine who will be QB1 against the Jaguars on Sept. 12.

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