Cleveland Browns Week 9 Starting QB Revealed

The mystery of who start at quarterback for Cleveland Browns in Week 9 was resolved on Friday, as head coach Todd Monken announced that 2025 fifth-round pick Shedeur Sanders will start on Sunday. The news comes after veteran starter Deshaun Watson returned to the practice field for the first time this week on Friday. 

Following the conclusion of practice, Watson was officially listed as questionable on the team's Week 9 injury report. The only other player with any sort of designation is DT Maliek Collins, who has been ruled out for Sunday's matchup with the New Orleans Saints. 

Watson unexpectedly landed in the concussion protocol on Tuesday morning after experiencing concussion-like symptoms on Monday night. The 31-year-old suffered a blow to the head just a handful of plays into the Browns matchup with the Pittsburgh Steelers, as safety Jaquan Brisker made helmet-to-helmet contact with Watson and was flagged for roughing the passer. 

Watson left the field to be checked out by an unaffiliated neurotrauma consultant for concussion-like symptoms in the blue tent, wound up being cleared a few plays later and ultimately finished the game. 

Because of the delay in his symptoms, a return in time for Sunday's game felt a bit ambitious at the time – something Monken even highlighted earlier in the week, particularly with a quarterback. As the week progressed, that proved to be true in terms of him being available to start.

That said, his return to practice on Friday kept the door open for him potentially being available in New Orleans, at the very least. Watson will have to clear the concussion protocol by Saturday though to have any shot at starting. 

Meanwhile, Collins missed all three days of practice this week due to an elbow injury and an illness, prompting him being ruled out. He suffered the elbow injury against the Steelers in Week 8 and exited the game. 

On top of the injury designations, the Browns do still have one open roster spot to fill ahead of Sunday after waiving rookie TE Carsen Ryan. With Collins sidelined, Cleveland is likely to sign veteran DT Sam Kamara to the active roster to serve as a rotational option along the D-line. 

Kamara is currently part of the practice squad, but has exhausted his three game-day roster promotions for the season, meaning, he had to be added to the 53 if the Browns want him to play moving forward.