Wolfe: Browns alternating preseason QB starters

Watson also fumbled four times in rainy New Jersey conditions, somehow losing only one. Rather nonsensically drawing some “he’s back” chatter of late, Watson was indeed back this week, but just to the miserable form he’s displayed for nearly his entire Browns tenure. Alibis abounded — the weather, losing KC Concepcion to an early concussion — but Watson just wasn’t spinning a good ball, with the rather large exception of his 29-yard touchdown strike to Denzel Boston down the left sideline in the fourth quarter. That was a single-coverage thing of beauty. But other than that, Watson’s ball was fluttering and he was not making good decisions. That included on the Browns’ final play from scrimmage, a 4th-and-11 from their own 19 where Watson bafflingly did not attempt a throw, instead pulling the ball down and losing a fumble as he ambled near the sideline. Terrible. Although this will likely be an outlier performance in terms of its ineffectiveness, today was a reminder that Watson is never going to reclaim his long-ago Texans form. That should include for Week 6 against the Ravens, where Watson will struggle for superflex relevance.

Watson made very few mistakes through the air against a solid Pittsburgh defense, although a third quarter fumble on a scramble attempt and a fourth quarter interception on tipped pass at the line of scrimmage allowed the Steelers the runway to make the game interesting late. Watson also badly missed a wide open Harold Fannin on a third down play that would have allowed the Browns to ice the game, instead giving the ball back to Aaron Rodgers with under four minutes to play while up eight points. Rodgers would work his late-game magic to knot the game at 24 before Watson drove the Browns into field goal range to set up the go-ahead kick with 10 seconds on the clock. Watson had a 20-yard carry wiped from his ledger due to penalty that would have padded his counting stats further. The two turnovers notwithstanding, Watson played a largely clean game that saw the Browns improve to 3-1, currently alone atop the AFC North, pending the outcomes of the Ravens and Bengals games Sunday. The Browns turn the page to a Week 5 meeting with the Jets, where Watson will remain a surprising high-end QB2 in fantasy circles.

Per Fowler, sources around the league say Watson could get six total starts this year. The bar is low in Cleveland. Watson has not yet thrown for 240 yards in a game and has just five passing touchdowns this year. He is a QB2 against the Steelers tonight.

The multi-score start was Watson’s second straight, though his yards per attempt fell precipitously for the second consecutive week. He’s now gone from 9.3 YPA in Week 1 to 7.9 to 4.8. Absolutely everything was underneath this afternoon, though we suppose the effort did come in a win. Watson found Harold Fannin for seven catches and a pair of scores after hitting the tight end seven total times between Weeks 1 and 2. The flip side was that Watson had just one completion longer than 20 yards, a 28-yard strike to Denzel Boston. Watson also missed a snap late after taking a big hit, but ended up returning ahead of what proved to be the game-winning field goal. Watson hasn’t been quite as bad as feared, but he’s hardly silencing the critics, including Browns fans who occasionally booed Sunday. The Steelers will be a tough short-week matchup this Thursday. Watson won’t be in the superflex mix for that one.

Watson was far more accurate than he was in Week 1’s meltdown loss to the Jaguars. He was 6.5 percent over his expected completion rate and once again hit rookie WR Denzel Boston for a long touchdown. Watson navigated the pocket well and was passably accurate on short-area throws (his 3.6 aDOT is as low as it gets for a full game’s work). His Week 2 play all but guarantees he’ll hang on to the Browns’ starting QB gig for at least a few more weeks before Shedeur Sanders or Dillon Gabriel get another shot under center. Watson will have superflex appeal in Week 3 against a gettable Carolina defense.

Schefter said it “feels like Shedeur’s time is coming” if Watson bombs in the Browns’ Week 2 matchup with the Bucs following his Week 1 collapse against Jacksonville. Sanders, in that scenario, would be under center for the Browns’ home opener against the Panthers in Week 3. Sanders, who is slightly more accurate than Watson in the short and intermediate areas, would be an upgrade for Harold Fannin and KC Concepcion. He would likely be a downgrade for downfield air yards eater Denzel Boston.

The Browns open the year with a two-game road trip before returning to Cleveland for their home opener next week. Watson was a disaster in Week 1, turning the ball over twice while throwing for 205 yards and one score. Another showing like that versus the Bucs this week and he could be sent to the bench. Shedeur Sanders would then draw the start against Carolina in Week 3. It’s unlikely the Browns offense turns things around under Sanders, but things truly cannot get worse than they are right now.

Monken had been a little more evasive on the issue in his post-game interview after Week 1’s shellacking. It appears the Browns would like to touch the hot stove at least one more time against the Buccaneers. Expectations for all Browns pass-catchers and runners can be lowered even against a middling Bucs defense. Monken added “there were some really good things on film.”

Watson added six carries for 38 yards on the ground. The Browns had a lethargic offense for the most part in Week 1, plagued by several delay-of-games and a variety of other penalties. The box score reads just one turnover for Watson, but there were many other opportunities. His interception occurred in Jaguars territory on the Browns’ first drive of the game. Watson then threw an interception that was dropped on the second drive, and fumbled twice; one was recovered by the Browns and he was just barely ruled down on the second. The Browns were finally able to score a touchdown on a 46-yard throw from Watson to rookie Denzel Boston with the game out of reach in the fourth quarter. The Browns offense with Watson at the helm is ultimately turnover-prone and lethargic but has room for fantasy production in negative game script situations. Watson is a fantasy QB3 heading into Week 2 against the Buccaneers.

Monken has stressed explosive plays as an important part of the Cleveland offense headed into the 2026 regular season. “Obviously having explosive players helps that,” Monken said. “Being able to scheme it up against certain looks and then being able to execute because your protection has to hold up when you get those opportunities. I’m confident in Deshaun and our ability to push the ball down the field, otherwise we wouldn’t be starting him.” That confidence might be misplaced considering Watson completed just 1-of-6 attempts for 20 yards and an interception on downfield passes in the preseason and was among the league’s worst deep ball passers in 2024, when he threw downfield on a career-low 27 percent of his attempts. Once an elite deep ball thrower, Watson will look to regain form coming off two torn Achilles, entering his age-30 season. Perhaps rookie WR Denzel Boston will be a boon for Watson’s downfield game in 2026.