Sanders on Deck for First Start of 2026 as Watson's Concussion Leaves Browns Waiting

It was a concussion that opened the door for Shedeur Sanders once before. It may be about to do it again. Sanders took the first-team reps at Cleveland Browns practice on Wednesday, and with every hour that passes without Deshaun Watson clearing the NFL's concussion protocol, the second-year quarterback moves closer to his first start of the 2026 season — Sunday afternoon against the New Orleans Saints. The story of Watson's injury is a strange and worrying one. He took a helmet-to-helmet hit from Pittsburgh safety Jaquan Brisker on the opening drive of last Sunday's 27-6 loss to the Steelers, was evaluated by the unaffiliated neurotrauma consultant, and was cleared to return. He finished the game, completing 27 of 39 passes for 324 yards, his second straight 300-yard performance. He showed no symptoms after the game, or on Monday morning. Then, on Monday night, the symptoms began. On Tuesday morning he told the medical staff, and by Wednesday the Browns had placed him in the protocol. Head coach Todd Monken has stopped short of naming a starter, but the direction of travel is obvious. "Shedeur will take the reps today with the 1s," Monken said on Wednesday. Watson has not practised since the injury, and under the league's five-step return-to-participation process he must get through a practice before he can play. With the Browns holding their final walkthrough on Saturday before travelling to New Orleans, Friday has become the critical day. If Watson does not return to the field by then, it will be Sanders under centre at 1pm ET on Sunday. For Sanders, the moment carries a familiar echo. As a rookie last season, he got his first start in Week 12 at Las Vegas only because then-starter Dillon Gabriel had left the previous week's game with a concussion. Sanders turned that chance into a seven-game run to end the season, going 3-4 with 1,400 yards, seven touchdowns and ten interceptions. It was not enough to win the job outright — Watson, returning from a year and a half out with an Achilles injury, was named the starter on August 24 after a summer-long competition — but it was enough to show the Browns what they had. This season Sanders has barely played, appearing in two games and completing all three of his passes for a total of two yards. He filled in for four snaps against Pittsburgh on Sunday while Watson was being evaluated. Now, at 5-3 and firmly in the playoff race, the Browns may need him for far more than four snaps. His teammates say he is ready. "I think he's ready to take that step," tight end Harold Fannin said this week. Fannin came into the league in the same 2025 draft class as Sanders, and he has watched the difference a year has made. Beyond Sunday, the start matters for Sanders' future too. The Browns have said they have no interest in trading him before the November 10 deadline, but a strong performance against the Saints would be the loudest possible statement from a quarterback who has spent a season waiting. Monken, for his part, has been clear about the pecking order when everyone is healthy: "I would assume Deshaun is still our starter when he's healthy. He's started eight games." For now, though, healthy is the question — and Shedeur Sanders is the answer the Browns are preparing.