Latest On Browns’ Quarterback Situation

Watson’s fully guaranteed contract ensured he would be part of the 2026 Browns, as the struggling passer would be long gone were he tied to a standard QB extension, and he beat out Shedeur Sanders to start under Monken to open the season. Considering Watson’s woeful form since arriving in Cleveland, we are almost definitely set for another Browns season featuring more than one starting QB. But which others will be around to step in?

Sanders is set to enter the season as Cleveland’s No. 2 QB, as he appeared to narrowly lose this competition. A trade could conceivably take place, but CBS Sports’ Matt Zenitz points to the second-year passer carrying tepid trade value.

Sanders’ 2025 draft experience may be the modern draft’s signature freefall, as the QB drew extensive criticism for his pre-draft approach. While a Pro Bowl honor — as a last-ditch alternate selection, a long-running Pro Bowl feature the NFL is doing away with — came Sanders’ way last season, the front office staffers Zenitz spoke with do not view him as an NFL starter (Mike Sando’s annual QB tiers analysis for The Athletic ranked Sanders 35th out of 35 starting options for 2026). The inability to beat out this version of Watson may be telling on that end.

The Browns memorably drafted Dillon Gabriel two rounds before Sanders last year. Gabriel received the first crack at the starting gig following the Browns’ Joe Flacco benching, but the undersized QB struggled. Gabriel was not in the running for the starting job this year under Monken, but he is coming off a strong preseason finale — 12-for-15, 186 yards, three touchdown passes. The six-year college arm would likely generate trade interest if the Browns dangle him, ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler notes. Otherwise, he will be positioned as Cleveland’s QB3 entering the season.

Monken said (via cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot) the team would love to keep both Gabriel and sixth-round rookie Taylen Green, but the rookie HC stopped well short of indicating that was going to happen. The Athletic’s Zac Jackson, however, predicts the Browns will carry all four QBs on their initial 53-man roster Sunday.

Finding a Gabriel trade may be the most likely way the Browns avoid this scenario, Jackson adds. The team can try to pass Green — a dual-threat talent who rushed for 2,405 yards over his final four college seasons (at Boise State and Arkansas) — through to its practice squad, but it is far from certain he would clear waivers.

As I mentioned in the most recent Trade Rumors Front Office chat, the Browns are playing the long game at quarterback. They are positioning themselves to have a great shot at nabbing a long-term quarterback in the 2027 draft. A poor record this season, and with an extra first-round pick (via the Rams) as trade ammo, the rebuilding team will be closely connected to the 2027 class.

Monken going with Watson over Sanders certainly suggests the Browns’ next long-term QB option is not yet on the roster, and while this season may be rather insignificant at the position through that lens, how the team constructs its 2026 depth chart here certainly provides near-term interest. A host of trades occur annually at this time of year, as rosters are being finalized, and this is a position group to watch as Sunday’s 5pm CT cutdown deadline approaches.