Browns GM Andrew Berry discusses acquiring competition for QBs Shedeur Sanders, Deshaun Watson

Cleveland Browns head coach Todd Monken remains on track to hold a competition for the starting quarterback job involving 2025 rookie Shedeur Sanders and veteran Deshaun Watson.

While speaking with media members at the NFL owners meetings on Sunday, Browns general manager Andrew Berry admitted that it is "wholly realistic" the team will acquire another quarterback before training camp practices get underway.

Are Browns preparing to draft a quarterback in April?

"Our lean would be if we do add someone to the quarterback room, it would be someone who’s a younger player, most likely," Berry explained, per Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. "But I can’t state that definitively because I don’t know what the next couple of weeks will hold. Anyone that we bring in at any spot on the roster, our thought is that they’re competing. They’re competing to play. They have something that we like in their skill set. And our expectation would be for them to work harder." 

The Browns reportedly "like" Ty Simpson, who has become the subject of some interesting conversations after analyst Dan Orlovsky said he thinks Simpson and not Fernando Mendoza "is the best quarterback" in the 2026 draft class. Orlovsky is seemingly on an island regarding that take, as some think there's a chance that Simpson will slide all the way to the draft's second round.

"I have spent time with Ty," Berry acknowledged. "I think that’s obvious, and we’ll continue to do so. But I think he has a bright NFL future." 

Could Browns start a rookie quarterback over Shedeur Sanders, Deshaun Watson this coming September? 

It's assumed that 2025 third-round draft pick Dillon Gabriel is Cleveland's third-choice option behind Sanders and Watson. Sanders went 3-4 across seven starts as a rookie, while Watson hasn't played in a meaningful game since he suffered a torn Achilles tendon in October 2024. 

It sounds like Monken and Berry would be open to a first-year pro entering the 2026 season as the Browns' QB1. 

"A large part of that will be, for any young player, will depend on their acclimation to the NFL and their readiness to play, and that’s really done on a case-by-case basis," Berry added about the team's quarterback competition.

In short, neither Sanders nor Watson has been promised anything about the depth chart heading into the start of springtime workouts.