- May 21, 2026
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Browns coach Todd Monken had a big decision to make at quarterback. In settling on Deshaun Watson over Shedeur Sanders, Monken didn't spend much time looking at Watson's past performances.
“I really, to be honest, haven’t looked at it," Monken told reporters regarding whether he studied Watson's film from past seasons. "To be honest, only from afar. When people say, 'You had to look at it,' well, not really. I looked at it from afar when I was down the road, right? In crossover film or something, but I try to take everything at face value. What I see, right?
"It doesn’t matter what the player is, I think we owe that to our players, guys that are on the roster. I want to go into it thinking every player we have is elite, and all they have to do is prove me right. That’s all they have to do. That’s what I’m going to go into it — they’re on an NFL roster, I expect them to play well, and I just want them to prove me right. And so I really haven’t really looked at that, different staff, different system. We’ll let it play out. We’ll see where it goes starting a week from now.”
Regardless of whether Monken did or didn't watch much Watson film, his performances from his time with the Texans are ancient history. It was six years ago. And while there's some value in looking for plays that he has run well in the past, the more pragmatic approach would be to ignore Watson's play from 2017 through 2020 and focus on things that will work now, with the 30-year-old version of Deshaun Watson.
“I really, to be honest, haven’t looked at it," Monken told reporters regarding whether he studied Watson's film from past seasons. "To be honest, only from afar. When people say, 'You had to look at it,' well, not really. I looked at it from afar when I was down the road, right? In crossover film or something, but I try to take everything at face value. What I see, right?
"It doesn’t matter what the player is, I think we owe that to our players, guys that are on the roster. I want to go into it thinking every player we have is elite, and all they have to do is prove me right. That’s all they have to do. That’s what I’m going to go into it — they’re on an NFL roster, I expect them to play well, and I just want them to prove me right. And so I really haven’t really looked at that, different staff, different system. We’ll let it play out. We’ll see where it goes starting a week from now.”
Regardless of whether Monken did or didn't watch much Watson film, his performances from his time with the Texans are ancient history. It was six years ago. And while there's some value in looking for plays that he has run well in the past, the more pragmatic approach would be to ignore Watson's play from 2017 through 2020 and focus on things that will work now, with the 30-year-old version of Deshaun Watson.