Hanford Dixon Compares Shedeur Sanders to Bernie Kosar in New Interview

The second-year passer is still embroiled in a position battle for the starting job against veteran Deshaun Watson.

Aug 4, 2026; Berea, OH, USA; Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders (2) throws a pass during training camp at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

With the Cleveland Browns still struggling to find an answer at the quarterback position after months of a seemingly endless position battle between Shedeur Sanders and Deshaun Watson, one franchise legend has handed some lofty praise upon the second-year passer.

Hanford Dixon, a two-time first team All-Pro defensive back for Cleveland in the 1980s spoke up on the quarterback battle offering a huge compliment for Sanders by comparing him to none other than the club’s last true franchise quarterback, and a teammate of Dixon: Bernie Kosar.

“I see Bernie Kosar. And what I mean by that is, one thing we knew about Bernie, is that Bernie was very confident. I mean, he was a guy that believed in his ability, he knew that he could play, and knew that he could play quarterback,” said Dixon on the BIGPLAY Cleveland Show. 

“Shedeur is the same way. He’s a very confident guy. Some people call him cocky. I don’t have a problem with him being cocky...” stated Dixon, who played alongside Kosar for five years, winning AFC Central crowns in 1985-1987 and 1989, the team’s last divisional titles to date. “But I think this guy is very, very confident. He knows that he can play, he believes that he can play. He’s the type of guy at the quarterback position that a team rallies themselves around him. They’ll get behind this guy if we give him the chance to prove himself.”

The quarterback battle between Sanders and Watson made front-page news again when head coach Todd Monken decided to ignore the strict rotation between the two passers leading the starting offense at practice on Saturday, giving Sanders’ reps for the day to Watson. 

The sudden switch has many speculating that Monken may be leaning towards Watson, a notion that Dixon is not a big fan of. 

“I don’t know why we would go back to Deshaun Watson. Here’s a guy that’s been with us for years now, at least four years with this football team and he has not shown us anything. We know what he did in Houston.”

"Top Dawg" Hanford Dixon stands firmly in Shedeur Sanders' corner

Dixon, a three-time Pro Bowler during his NFL playing days, didn’t mince words when talking about the sudden change in the quarterback rotation on the weekend. 

“I’m a little bit upset about the reps thing, because as we all know, Shedeur was supposed to get so many, and Deshaun was supposed to get so many reps. And I go back to last year, when Dillon [Gabriel] was taking most of the reps away from this kid, Shedeur. I know it’s still training camp obviously, we’re trying to figure out who the guy is, who the guy is going to be.”

Since Dixon has been lobbying for Shedeur to get a fair chance for some time, the recent turn of events has the Browns legend shaking his head at how the quarterback battle has been unfolding. 

“Who knows what’s happening, what kind of pressure they're putting on Todd [Monken]. Hopefully none at all to play Watson because we all know Watson has made a lot of money. I mean we gave him $230 million and all that was pretty much guaranteed and I think this is pretty much the last year of that contract. But we still gotta find out what we have in Shedeur."

Dixon pointed to one specific factor why he thinks, given a fair shot, Shedeur Sanders can really thrive in Cleveland. 

“The reason I think he can be [our starting quarterback], after your first year, the game starts to slow down for you. I don’t care what position you play, whether it’s quarterback, cornerback, defensive lineman, offensive lineman. Whatever it is, the game starts to slow down for you and it’ll be interesting to see what this kid can do if we give him a chance. And if he can’t, that’s fine, we gotta move on, but we still have to find out.”

Maybe from a physical standpoint, Sanders and Kosar aren't really that much alike. But if in fact Dixon is right about the confidence factor, then he should by all means have some edge over Watson. After all, it's hard to believe Watson's playing with any confidence right now in practice after almost two full years of surgeries and rehab, and leading the Browns QB tracker in thrown interceptions at training camp with nine after 12 sessions versus Sanders' four, according to reports.