On Monday, a day after Shedeur Sanders nearly led the Cleveland Browns to an overtime victory over the Saints in New Orleans, head coach Todd Monken delayed naming a starting quarterback for Week 10.
But Sanders will not get the green light for a second straight week. The Browns announced Wednesday that Deshaun Watson will return to the QB1 role on Sunday against his former team, the Houston Texans.
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“That was my intention,” Monken said. “I just wanted to make sure it was handled by the staff before I said it publicly. I don’t even know why I have to say it publicly, because it’s really only our business who’s going to play and who’s not going to play. But he played well enough to still deserve to be our starter.”
Watson’s “body of work” this season influenced Monken’s decision, he said.
Watson spent time in the concussion protocol last week following a first-quarter helmet-to-helmet hit he suffered during a Week 8 road loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Watson was cleared to return in that game and cleared again the following Monday morning. That said, he told the team’s medical staff last Tuesday that he had experienced concussion symptoms the night before. Watson, 31, then landed in protocol and did not practice on Wednesday or Thursday.
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Although he participated in a limited capacity last Friday and passed the concussion protocol Saturday, he was still inactive for the Saints game. This opened the door for Sanders to make his first start since the 2025 regular season finale.
Sanders, 24, connected down the field with rookie receiver KC Concepcion Jr. for a 64-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter. Later in this period, Sanders orchestrated a tie campaign to force OT.
Cleveland got the ball back 16-13 and with less than a minute left in regulation. Sanders’ 30-yard strike to Jerry Jeudy while under duress on a third-and-6 played a big role in kicker Andre Szmyt’s ability to tie the game 16-16.
The Saints marched to within a touchdown on the first drive of overtime. Sanders and the Browns responded with a touchdown of their own, as he found stiff-armed tight end Harold Fannin Jr. en route to a 39-yard score. Unfortunately for Cleveland, its subsequent 2-point attempt was no good and New Orleans held on for a 23-22 victory that dropped the Browns to 5-4 on the year.
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Sanders finished with 297 yards and two touchdowns on 19-of-31 passing. He also rushed for 28 yards, carrying the ball 10 times.
Watson, however, beat the second-year signal-caller this summer in a QB battle. Although Watson struggled early this season, he went on to lead a series of fourth-quarter comebacks and/or game-winners.
Before missing last week’s game, Watson had the Browns at 5-3. And he’s currently on pace to record his best passer rating (91.2) in a season since the 2020 campaign (112.4), his last tour on the field with the Texans, with whom he became a three-time Pro Bowler.
Watson is in his first season, returning from an Achilles injury that kept him out of the 2025 campaign.
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Sunday will mark his second game against the Texans. He first faced them in Houston in Week 13 of the 2022 season, Watson’s first with the Browns.
That day, he completed just 12 of 22 passes for 131 yards and a pick, but the Browns still won 27-14.
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