Shedeur Sanders #12 of the Cleveland Browns
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Shedeur Sanders #12 of the Cleveland Browns
He can do it. In the first message we’ve gotten from new Cleveland Browns offensive coordinator Travis Switzer, who was brought over from Baltimore with new head coach Todd Monken, on the quarterbacks currently on the team’s roster, one thing stood out: Incumbent QB Shedeur Sanders is good enough to run the offense Switzer and Monken will be installing.
That does not mean Sanders will keep the job in 2026, of course, nor does it mean the Browns won’t look elsewhere for a new starter or, at least, some more competition. But it does signal that the coaching staff would at least be comfortable if the Browns opened the season with Sanders under center.
Shedeur Sanders Is ‘Mobile Enough’ to Start
The prime concern about Sanders being linked up with the Browns in an offense that could look like the one the Ravens ran under Monken, when he was the offensive coordinator there, is that Sanders is nowhere near as mobile as Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson–who is, arguably, the most mobile quarterback in league history.
But Switzer, in his first meeting with Browns media, said that replicating Jackson is not the mission. Creating an offense that gets the most out of the quarterback’s talent is. Certainly, it helps to be mobile, and while Sanders is not a tuck-and-run type of QB, he has a talent for escape.
“He is certainly mobile enough,” Switzer said. “We’ve seen him get out of trouble, we’ve seen him make plays. He’s certainly mobile enough to do everything we would want him to do. Last year, we had Cooper Rush on the roster as well.
“That goes back to what I was saying earlier—it’s about the way the system is built from Day One so you are able to go down these other avenues to highlight what he can do. That’s something coach says all the time, like, ‘Hey what can he do?’”
Browns Likely to Add Another QB
Switzer did not tip the Browns’ hand on their choice of quarterbacks, of course, and the plan in Cleveland probably won’t take shape for another week, when free agency begins in earnest and it’s revealed whether the Browns will land a likely starter (Malik Willis or Kyler Murray) or simply add another body (Tyler Huntley or Anthony Richardson) to the mix.
But Switzer talked up all three of the Browns current passers, including Deshaun Watson and Dillon Gabriel. They’re all dented cans, of course. Watson is coming back from two Achilles tendon surgeries and will not have played in almost two year when the 2026 season begins. Gabriel showed himself to be a light-armed placeholder in his seven starts last season.
And Sanders showed promise but was rated No. 38 out of 38 quarterbacks at Pro Football Focus for 2025.
Browns ‘Excited’ About Shedeur Sanders, Other QBs
Credit Switzer, though, for having his commitment to backing the Browns passers on Wednesday.
“I am excited about the guys we have here,” he said. “Monk said this when he first got here—you don’t take a job if you’re not excited about the quarterbacks that are in the building. And it’s more than one. We’re excited about Dillon, we’re excited about Deshaun. Any time you have a guy who has had the success he has had, he has got to be part of the equation when we talk about competing for that job.
“Shedeur, what he was able to show last year. He’s still young, he has a lot of growth that he can still achieve, especially, year 1 to Year 2. He only started, what, six or seven games last year? So, yeah, I think there is a lot to be excited about in that room.”