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The Cleveland Browns could be setting in motion plans for Taylen Green to start as many games as possible during his rookie season, which does not bode well for Shedeur Sanders‘ future in Northeast Ohio.
Seth Walder of ESPN predicted on Sunday, September 6 that Green will start at least a quarter of the year, which means that Browns head coach Todd Monken will bench Sanders at some point in late fall/early winter even if the former fifth-round quarterback makes his way into the starting lineup eventually.
“Quarterback Taylen Green will start at least four games,” Walder wrote. “Perhaps there’s no fourth-string player with an easier path to playing time than Green, a sixth-round pick out of Arkansas. I’m bearish on [Deshaun] Watson, Sanders and [Dillon] Gabriel, so by the time the end of the season rolls around, I suspect the Browns will want to see if they have anything in Green.”
Todd Monken Suggested Taylen Green Could Take QB2 Spot From Shedeur Sanders in Week 1
Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders is expected to hang on to the backup role.
GettyCleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders.
Monken added further fuel to the Green fire on Monday while speaking with reporters, during which he acknowledged that Green has a chance to begin the regular season on the active roster and that the team will implement packages for him under center.
That would likely mean that Green is the No. 2 QB in Week 1 ahead of Sanders, as the Browns would otherwise list Green as the emergency quarterback.
“Could be,” Monken said of the possibility, per Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. “There could be a package where we have him.”
Monken added that it is also possible the Browns will carry three quarterbacks on the active roster into Week 1 against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday, September 13.
Browns Unconcerned With Fan Reaction to QB Decisions, Including Naming Deshaun Watson Week 1 Starter
Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson will be a Week 1 captain.
GettyCleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson.
To Monken’s credit, his actions have backed up his words with regards to the quarterback position in Cleveland, which represents among the most restless fanbases in the NFL and has particular disdain for Watson as the team’s starter to open the year.
That is in large part because of a widespread affinity for, and belief in, Sanders that Monken perhaps does not share. During an interview on September 2, Monken told reporters that he gave fan sentiment “zero consideration” while making the decision to start Watson over Sanders.
“Would I prefer that we would all be on the same page? Yeah, but that has nothing to do with my decision, and it can never have anything to do with my decision,” Monken explained. “My decision has got to be about what’s best for the Browns in Week 1 and all the way through the season, and as long as I’m the head coach here.”
Monken’s approach to the possibilities surrounding Green during his rookie campaign appear consistent with the coach’s perspective on choosing an opening-week starter, which means that anything could happen under center in Cleveland this season and that Sanders’ future with the franchise might be even less safe than previously thought.
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Max Dible covers the NFL, NBA and MLB for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, Chicago Bears and Cleveland Browns. He covered local and statewide news as a reporter for West Hawaii Today and served as news director for BigIslandNow.com and Pacific Media Group's family of Big Island radio stations before joining Heavy. More about Max Dible
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