BEREA, Ohio — A late practice sequence Monday illustrated both progress and miscues in Cleveland’s quarterback competition. Shedeur Sanders, operating the No. 2 offense in a goal-line situation, held the ball too long and threw out of the back of the end zone with no time remaining, drawing the ire of coach Todd Monken. Minutes later, Sanders correctly adjusted protection against a blitz and delivered a deep touchdown pass to Gage Larvadain during a two-minute drill.
The Browns have alternated Deshaun Watson and Sanders with first-team reps every practice since training camp opened July 29, with each session featuring 7-on-7s, 11-on-11s and situational work. Monken said the first eight practices, including Thursday’s, are focused on installing the offense, adding portions of the scheme each day.
Installation started with zone runs and a short passing game and expanded to longer-developing pass concepts and gap-scheme runs once padded practices began Monday. Monken said the installation period will end Thursday, after which he plans to begin calling plays that cater to each quarterback’s strengths.
Monken emphasized that evaluation is ongoing and resisted declaring a clear frontrunner. “I think to say who’s ahead is a little extreme,” he said. He added that the coaching staff sees more in film and that the quarterbacks are part of broader roster discussions as the team continues to install the new system.
Pre-snap operation has been a particular focus. Players said Monken’s scheme places significant responsibility on the quarterback to audible or execute various cadences; through three practices Monken had incorporated 10 different cadences. That complexity has led to pre-snap infractions, which Monken views as part of the learning curve.
Sanders credited film study and practice work for improvements. “Reviewing all the film from last year and the mistakes I made, and just being able to recognize, have a better pre-snap, be able to recognize things better and post-snap, also,” he said. Monken said he has been “highly impressed” by Sanders dating back to the offseason workout program and noted continued improvement in operation and mechanics.
