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By Cameron Kiszla
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The Cleveland Browns are in the middle of a quarterback battle at training camp, but if a recent polling of coaches and executives is right, their choices aren't great.
Both of the top candidates, the veteran Deshaun Watson and the young Shedeur Sanders, were pilloried by the experts in The Athletic's annual Quarterback Tiers ranking.
Browns Have Two Bottom-Tier Choices
In the rankings, both Watson and Sanders were in the bottom tier, Tier 4, which Mike Sando of The Athletic defined as an "unproven player; not enough information to classify" or a "veteran who ideally would not be a full-season starter."
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Sanders likely falls into the first category and Watson into the second.
Watson is in the midst of a career freefall. Though he was in Tier 3 in 2024, he was a Tier 1 quarterback in 2020 and 2021. Shoulder surgery, a torn and re-torn Achilles tendon, and a suspension have turned one of the most promising young passers in the NFL into a afterthought.
“I don’t think he can come back,” an offensive coach told The Athletic. “You do not all of a sudden get drive and desire and processing skills. He showed he had none of that with what he put on film. He’s a [Tier] 5 at this point.”
“I don’t even know what to do with him,” a former general manager added. “It’s been so long. It’s almost like a no-grade with him. He could be anything from a 3 to a 5.”
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Watson did, however, best Sanders, who came in dead last on the list.
“He’s inaccurate at all three levels,” one executive said. “I can’t tell if he is going to get better, but there’s a huge gap between him and competent QB play.”
“I'd sleep like a baby if I got to play him every week,” a defensive coordinator said.
“He’s not an on-time player, can’t really read through the coverages, is a little bit heavy-footed,” another defensive coordinator said. “He is thicker and harder to tackle than expected, but you shouldn’t lose to him.”
While many were negative, there was some hope that Cleveland's new coach Todd Monken could help Sanders improve the same way Ben Johnson did for Caleb Williams on the Chicago Bears.
“Todd Monken is a great reset in the same way Ben Johnson was a great reset in Chicago,” an offensive coach said. “Shedeur gets a fresh start with a no-nonsense, offensive-oriented coach who did a really good job with Lamar Jackson.”
That said, Monken's new scheme could benefit Watson as well.
“Monken’s offense is a little more look over here, read the whole field, as opposed to reading the coverages,” a coach said. “That is better for Deshaun, and for Shedeur.”
As for who will get the starting job, that remains to be seen.
"Most assume Watson and Shedeur Sanders will both start at various points," Sando wrote.
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