Former Browns QB says Deshaun Watson decision wasn't Todd Monken's

Cleveland Browns fans who are furious that head coach Todd Monken named Deshaun Watson the team's Week 1 starting quarterback over Shedeur Sanders have suggested for months that the competition for the QB1 job was rigged to favor Watson because of what's left of the fully guaranteed five-year, $230M contract he received from the Browns in March 2022. 

Via a video shared on Wednesday, former Browns quarterback and current NFL analyst Robert Griffin III added more fuel to the fire related to such speculation. 

"Many" within the Browns thought Shedeur Sanders should start over Deshaun Watson?

"Sources tell me Deshaun Watson WAS NOT Todd Monken’s choice as the starter, and many in the building thought Shedeur Sanders was the right move for the team on and off the field after Watson attacked the fans," Griffin captioned a video. "Browns want Deshaun to play for his pay. The fans deserve better." 

Griffin was referencing how Watson ripped angry Cleveland fans for what he referred to as "disrespectful" conduct after he was loudly booed on multiple occasions during the club's 31-7 preseason loss to the Buffalo Bills on Aug. 22. While Sanders outperformed Watson on that particular day, Watson allegedly was the better quarterback from April through last week. 

Browns have "230 million reasons" to play Deshaun Watson over Shedeur Sanders

"There are 230 million reasons why Deshaun Watson is the starting quarterback of the Cleveland Browns," Griffin said during the video, per Cole Shelton of Heavy. "... I believe it was the ownership group and the executive group that said, 'He is gonna be our starter, and if he doesn’t do it, we’re gonna bring Shedeur in. Shedeur’s gonna play, and if Shedeur proves that he can be the guy, we won’t draft a quarterback next year. But if Shedeur doesn’t, then we’re gonna draft a quarterback next year.'" 

Back in late April, Browns executive JW Johnson III said that he and others within the organization expected that Cleveland fans would "be supportive as much as they can" if Watson was named the starter. Nevertheless, multiple reporters and analysts have disputed the theory shared by Griffin and others. 

Meanwhile, some are convinced that Browns co-owner Jimmy Haslam wants to draft Texas Longhorns star Arch Manning. Haslam and Hall of Famer Peyton Manning are alumni of the University of Tennessee. 

For now, Watson will get a chance to resurrect his career, beginning with Cleveland's Week 1 game at the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sept. 13.