In life, people are taught valuable life lessons. The value of hard work is a lesson we are taught at a young age and it carries throughout the course of our daily lives. Having motivation to be the best at what you do and having competition brings the best out of you. In sports, nothing is given.
Going into next season, the Cleveland Browns will once again have questions about the quarterback room. Quarterbacks Shedeur Sanders, Deshaun Watson and Dillon Gabriel make up the current room, and as of right now, itis not good enough. It’s possible that Gabriel is going to either be traded or cut due to his play style not meshing with the offense that head coach Todd Monken wants to run. Watson, who is recovering from his Achilles injury he suffered two seasons ago, is looking for another opportunity to prove he can still play, and Sanders has to show improvement after an uninspiring rookie campaign.
The Browns would be doing a disservice to Sanders if the team doesn’t have a legitimate quarterback competition, and said competition would benefit Sanders more than anyone.
Like last year, the current crop of free agency quarterbacks that will be hitting the market is less than ideal. Quarterback Daniel Jones is likely going to be extended or receive the franchise tag from the Indianapolis Colts and Malik Willis, who will be at the top of the list of free agency quarterbacks, is going to get paid, but the question is how much. Many believe the Miami Dolphins, who have hired coaches from Willis’ Green Bay Packers days, will be his landing spot no matter what the price.
On the trade market, only a few names stand out. Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray’s contract makes moving him difficult, and Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson is an option to consider.
Bringing in someone to compete with Sanders for the starting job is the approach Cleveland should take. When it comes to names like Willis or Richardson, it shouldn’t be a problem. Willis, who was a project coming out of college benefitted from sitting a few seasons. During his tenure with the Packers, Willis showed major leaps in his game despite a small sample size. Price will not be as big a factor (competition will be), and the Browns have shown the ability to manipulate the salary cap. As for Richardson, it’s more of a low-risk, high-reward move. Richardson, who was a 4th overall pick back in 2023, was also a project coming out of college. The only issue is that Richardson has issues staying on the field due to his health.
The reality of the situation is the Browns should bring in another quarterback to compete with Sanders for the starting job. Sanders hasn’t done enough to prove he should be the starter going into minicamp. The Browns offense had issues, but Sanders didn’t show enough consistency in the latter part of this past season. If the Browns believe in Sanders to be the guy, the team should bring in outside competition for him to compete and give him an opportunity to earn the starting job. Competition should bring out the best in Sanders and allow him to earn the job over at least one worthy option.
It would be a disservice to both Sanders and the rest of the team if the team doesn’t look to improve the quarterback room. Competition brings the best out of individuals, and Sanders would benefit from competition to help improve his game.