Deshaun Watson will start the Cleveland Browns’ preseason opener Saturday against the Chicago Bears, coach Todd Monken announced Wednesday, giving the embattled quarterback his first game action since tearing his right Achilles tendon in October 2024.
Watson sat out the entire 2025 season after undergoing a second Achilles surgery in January of that year. His appearance Saturday in Chicago will mark a return after nearly two full years away from competitive football, and it comes in the context of an open quarterback competition with rookie Shedeur Sanders.
Monken told both quarterbacks his plan after Wednesday’s practice. He will start the Browns’ second preseason game at home against the Buffalo Bills on Aug. 22. The plan calls for whichever quarterback starts Saturday to play the first half, with the other taking the third quarter.
Watson and Sanders have been splitting first-team reps throughout training camp.
Watson’s situation
Watson has had an unusual and difficult tenure in Cleveland since being acquired in a trade in March 2022. He has played only 19 games for the Browns because of an 11-game suspension and his Achilles injuries, and his production in those games has not been strong. His Total QBR since arriving in Cleveland is 33.1, which would rank last among qualifying quarterbacks if he had accumulated enough starts to be included in the statistical pool.
He described the preseason games as a great opportunity, expressing enthusiasm about the chance to compete after the rehabilitation process he went through following his second surgery. He credited his training staff and personal team for supporting him through the recovery.
Watson is 30 years old. He played at an elite level with the Houston Texans earlier in his career before his trade to Cleveland was complicated by sexual misconduct allegations that resulted in his suspension. Whether the skills that made him a top quarterback before his prolonged absence remain accessible is the central question his preseason performance will begin to answer.
Sanders’ rookie year and what’s ahead
The rookie was selected in the fifth round of the 2025 NFL draft, 144th overall, and started the final seven games of his rookie season. He went 3-4 as a starter with seven touchdowns and 10 interceptions, and his 18.9 QBR ranked among the lowest marks for any quarterback with at least 200 attempts in the modern statistical era.
Despite those numbers, the coaching staff has continued to express confidence in Sanders’ development, specifically citing improvement in his pre-snap and post-snap processing as an encouraging sign. His approach to practice has also drawn positive attention, with Sanders describing the mindset of treating every session with the same focus and intention he would bring to a game.
Both quarterbacks start with acknowledged deficiencies. Watson’s question is health and durability after two Achilles procedures. Sanders’s question is whether his decision-making will improve quickly enough for him to become a viable starting option.
What the competition looks like
The structure Monken has outlined for preseason play, with Watson taking the first game and Sanders the second, gives each quarterback a genuine opportunity in front of live opposition while also reflecting the current standing of the competition. Watson is being treated as the incumbent based on his experience and contract, while Sanders is being evaluated as the future in a way that requires meaningful playing time to assess.
The Browns‘ quarterback situation has been one of the more unsettled in the NFL for several years, and the preseason games in Chicago and at home against Buffalo will offer the first real evidence of whether either player can provide the stability the franchise has been searching for.
