There are three things certain in life: death, taxes, and the Cleveland Browns’ never-ending struggle to lock down a true franchise QB. It’s been a revolving door for over three decades, and every season somehow finds a new way to keep that storyline alive. However, this season, the competition looks pretty interesting. With Deshaun Watson back from rehab and injury after being out for more than a season, the Browns backed him over Shedeur Sanders, the apparent heir and last season’s QB1. That didn’t sit well with Deion Sanders’ son, Shilo Sanders.

On April 29, ‘thedawgspodcast’ posted a statement made by Mary Kay Cabot about the Browns’ QB1 on Instagram:

“I think they should declare him QB1 ASAP and let the first-team offense start to cook. There’s no time to waste. Sanders has about six weeks to close the gap and try to overtake the former three-time Pro Bowler. But he’s got plenty of ground to make up, and will have to dazzle the coaching staff to land atop the depth chart heading into training camp.”

Within 2 hours or so, Shilo Sanders hopped onto IG comments and threw a stray at her with a very strong choice of words:

“Go make a sandwich, Mary.”

Now, if you look at Shilo’s reaction, it might make sense.

The Sanders family has been dealing with what they feel is a biased media narrative in Cleveland. A lot of fans are even calling it the “Anybody But Shedeur” movement. To Shilo and the rest of the crew, it feels like certain reporters are going out of their way to talk up Watson’s veteran experience while downplaying everything Shedeur did when he stepped up last season.

To be fair, Mary Kay Cabot isn’t just making things up. Her report says Watson looked sharper during the voluntary minicamps and has the “inside track” to start by June. She noted that the coaching staff’s decision will be based on immediate performance rather than long-term development, which obviously favors the 9-year veteran Watson over Sanders.

For the Sanders family, this feels like a sequel to a movie they’ve already seen. Back in December, Cabot, the veteran reporter with more than 30 years of experience covering the Cleveland Browns, compared the media “circus” around Shedeur to the drama that followed Tim Tebow and Johnny Manziel, which definitely didn’t sit well with Coach Prime or his sons.

The coaching staff is trying to keep things professional, saying they won’t officially name a starter until mandatory minicamp in June, which is scheduled for June 9–12.

The race for QB1 of the Browns

The most shocking part of this whole situation is just how long Watson has been on the sidelines. He hasn’t played in a real game since October 2024 because of back-to-back Achilles injuries that required two separate surgeries.

Most of the time, when an athlete comes back from a very long injury recovery, they often feel rusty, especially at QB. However, in the 30-year-old’s case, it’s quite the opposite. Watson looked “extraordinary” and “polished” during the April 2026 minicamp drills. He’s splitting the first-team reps with Shedeur but is reportedly winning the day with quicker decision-making.

Of course, the big “what if” is Watson’s health. Even if he wins this job in June, everyone knows he’s had a rough run with major injuries lately, including that serious shoulder surgery from a few years back. And because he’s been away from the game for so long, there’s a real question about how his body will handle the physical grind of a full season. Then again, the last time Deshaun was on the field, he wasn’t quite impressive.

So, Shedeur will get his shot eventually and will likely earn at least a couple of starts. Regardless, it’s going to be a wild summer for Browns fans, but either way, this is easily the most talked-about QB competition in the entire league.