The Cleveland Browns are getting closer to the point where the roster they have taken through training camp will become the roster they take into the regular season.

That doesn’t necessarily mean all 53 players will come from the group currently in Cleveland.

Every year, roster cutdowns create opportunities for teams willing to churn the bottom of their roster. Players who are perfectly capable of contributing in the NFL become available because of numbers, scheme changes, younger draft picks, or simply because another team happens to be unusually deep at a position.

For the Browns, two positions should demand particular attention over the next two weeks: cornerback and tight end.

The Browns are thin at both spots, and the situation becomes even more concerning when you consider what happens if injuries hit during the regular season. That makes this year’s cutdown period particularly important.

The Browns shouldn’t simply wait until players are officially released, either. If there is someone they identify as a clear upgrade, Andrew Berry should be willing to make calls now and potentially surrender a conditional late-round pick rather than compete for that player once he becomes available.

Here are several names worth monitoring as teams work toward their final 53-man rosters.

Cornerback

Jaylon Jones, Indianapolis Colts

If there is one player on this list who immediately jumps out as a potential Browns target, it is Jaylon Jones.

Jones is only 24 years old and already has significant NFL experience, but a changing cornerback room in Indianapolis has put him in an unexpected fight for a roster spot. Recent Colts coverage has specifically identified Jones as one of the team’s more notable bubble players.

That’s exactly the type of situation Cleveland should be monitoring.

This isn’t an aging veteran hanging onto the back end of a roster. Jones is a young corner who has already demonstrated that he can play NFL snaps on the outside.

Those players don’t become available very often.

The Browns don’t necessarily need another starting cornerback. What they desperately need is more trustworthy depth behind their starters, and Jones would immediately make the room deeper while still possessing enough youth to develop into something more potentially.

If Indianapolis decides he isn’t going to make its 53, Berry should be on the phone before he ever reaches waivers.

Jakorian Bennett, Philadelphia Eagles

Philadelphia might be the first team I would call if I were looking for cornerback help.

And following the Eagles’ first preseason game, the possibility of Jakorian Bennett becoming available looks even more legitimate.

NBC Sports Philadelphia’s newest 53-man projection has Philadelphia keeping Quinyon Mitchell, Cooper DeJean, Riq Woolen, Jonathan Jones, Mac McWilliams and Kelee Ringo at cornerback.

Bennett is projected to be cut, along with Shaun Wade, Ambry Thomas and Tariq Castro-Fields, according to NBC Sports Philadelphia.

Bennett is 25 years old, athletic, and already has NFL defensive experience. More importantly for the Browns, he has experience playing outside corner rather than being limited to the slot.

This is exactly where the Browns should be looking for August value.

Philadelphia may have more NFL-caliber defensive backs than it can keep.

If Bennett is available for a conditional late-round pick before cuts, Andrew Berry should be making calls, especially considering his established relationships in Philadelphia.

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Preseason PFF grades are a trap if you take them at face value, and the Browns’ opener against the Bears is a good case study in why. The top of the offensive board is stuffed with players who are unlikely to see a regular-season snap, the defensive numbers are inflated by backups getting torched by other backups, and the two names everyone actually cares about — Shedeur Sanders and Deshaun Watson — sit in the middle of the pack rather than at the top. The value in this data isn’t the leaderboard. It’s what the leaderboard tells you once you adjust for who was actually on the field.

Start with the quarterback competition, since that’s the storyline driving every camp discussion. Watson posted a 65.5 offensive grade across a game-high 33 snaps, with his passing grade (70.4) comfortably ahead of both Sanders (58.1) and Dillon Gabriel (36.3). Watson’s performance will get a thorough breakdown in the coming day but overall he did more things at a starter level than those who came after him. Sanders, for his part, had some nice moments — a 56.8 overall grade — but he still has to defeat the bad habits that cost him any efficiency in his rookie season. Gabriel was rough in a day where he couldn’t afford to be. He’s fighting for any semblance of a spot in this battle and his 36.3 passing grade on only ten drop-backs did more to hinder his roster situation than anything else. We will break all of these dropbacks down in deep detail.

The receiver room is where the real signal lives. Gage Larvadain topping the entire offense at 78.7 on 16 pass-game snaps is a performance he needed to keep himself in the hunt to make the roster. Luke Floriea hauled in one chunk throw to keep his preseason momentum going. Denzel Boston had just one target, which ended up going for 15 yards, but you can see in his routes below where he flashed quite often.

KC Concepcion’s 77.6 is more relevant, since he’s a name the organization actually plans to develop, and pairing a strong receiving grade (69.5) with a 70.0 run-blocking mark on jet-sweep and screen-adjacent work fits exactly the Todd Monken usage pattern that’s been the through-line of camp coverage all summer. Here’s a look every route the rookie ran on Saturday.

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The Browns lost 34-10 in Chicago on Saturday, and by the fourth quarter the box score looked like man preseason games across the league as different teams have different priorities with their reps. But today we’re going to revisit one particular scheme that stood out to me and it came within a sequence worth rewinding as it gave Browns fans an actual tangible flash of what the future is going to look like for the offense. KC Concepcion is going to be good.

Concepcion opened the game with a 31-yard punt return that flipped field position for an early field goal. Two possessions later, he ran a rail route in the red zone on third down for one of his two catches on the scoring drive, then took the handoff on the very next snap. Three touches, three different roles — returner, route-runner, ball-carrier — inside of one half. Averaged 12.0 yards on those touches. Concepcion is such a pure football player that just getting him the ball in whatever variety is all that matters.

In the second quarter, the first-round rookie took a motion handoff on a fly sweep — essentially the type of sweep action this newsletter flagged as a solid part of his NFL fit back in the pre-draft profile — and turned 14 yards of horizontal width into six points, diving for the pylon and getting it confirmed on review. It was the Browns only touchdown of the day. However, lost in that outcome can be the scheme that achieved it. Let’s dig into that scheme, how it works, and why you should be excited about seeing it.

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This website has been explicit about Todd Monken’s propensity to use quick-hitting concepts and his desire to get second level defenders to have split-second decisions. What he loves to do even more is toy with his food a bit. He loves those influence traps and read option concepts with players moving opposite the lineman in front of them. All of this is to say Monken loves to bake in deception as often as he can and this concept had just that.

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The Browns’ preseason opener turned into a rout Saturday, as Cleveland fell 34-10 to the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field, with a game that started as a defensive stalemate unraveling badly in the second half.

Cleveland actually controlled the opening stretch. The Browns out-gained Chicago 120 yards to 14 through the first quarter, forcing the Bears into consecutive three-and-outs before Andre Szmyt connected from 50 yards to make it 3-0. Deshaun Watson, working with the ones as he continues his summer-long competition with Shedeur Sanders, moved the offense efficiently early, including a 15-yard completion to rookie Denzel Boston that pushed Cleveland into Chicago territory, and Dylan Sampson broke a 43-yard catch-and-run that showed the explosiveness the Browns’ backfield has flashed all camp. KC Concepcion nearly housed a punt return, popping a 31-yarder that had Soldier Field holding its breath.

The tide turned in the second quarter. Backup Bears quarterback Tyson Bagent, playing without a single Chicago offensive starter, shook off a slow start to author two scoring drives. The first came after Jamree Kromah strip-sacked Watson on fourth-and-two, and four plays later Bagent found Maurice Alexander for a 25-yard touchdown. Bagent then closed the half by marching Chicago 53 yards in five plays, setting up a 50-yard Cairo Santos field goal as time expired — a sequence that pulled the Bears level at 10-10 heading into the break, effectively erasing the Browns’ first-quarter dominance in the box score if not on paper.

The Bears won the battle further down the 90-man roster en route to 430 yards of total offense while creating two second half turnovers. Bears depth played far more consistently over the final thirty minutes which turned a tied game into a 24-point defeat, which is the more instructive story than the final score itself. A preseason opener this lopsided in the second half — after the starters and top backups had largely given way to the back of the roster — says less about the top of Cleveland’s depth chart than about the level of competition further down it — particularly on a defensive front and secondary that couldn’t get off the field against Chicago’s third and fourth stringers.

Here are your Preseason Week 1 Game Notes.

• Deshaun Watson had some moments. He still has an overall jittery feel in the pocket — as this was his first NFL action in 22 months — that hinders his ability to cycle through reads, but he delivered some downfield throws that should give some encouragement.

• Watson had four throws that stood out: his 14 yard completion on a glance to Jerry Jeudy looking to his left in a zone window, his stop route to Denzel Boston for 15 yards, and his 11 yard 3rd and 3 completion to Concepcion before the touchdown run.

• The key mark of his issues remaining stem from pocket movement and recognition issues. He ran forward off a play-action concept for just a 1-yard gain when he had multiple downfield options open and then another issue on 4th and 3 where he failed to step vertically in the pocket after missing his first read and was strip-sacked because of it. These seem like issues he will have for the foreseeable future.

• Shedeur Sanders had a few moments of meaning in the game but it felt like more of his 2025. Deliberate pacing that hinders the offenses’s process at times, downfield throws that make you believe more is there, but too many consistency issues. His best throw of the day was a 35-yard middle-of-the-field post to Luke Floriea.

• He also had to batted down passes as he lingers with his eyes on the same place and a rough interception he sailed over the middle. I don’t think Sanders did himself many favors in this game. He has to be nearly perfect the rest of the way to begin the season as the starter.

• Dillon Gabriel came into the game late into the 4th quarter and it was rough. His first drive he panicked into an ugly 2nd down sack and then his next drive he also sailed an awful throw on an in-breaker deep middle. There is no doubt he’s out of the equation at this point.

• The running game was non-existent despite effort. Quinshon Judkins ran for just nine yards on four carries and Dylan Sampson just six yards on four carries. We need to see the All-22 but it is worrisome that the Bears controlled the front that easily. Ahmani Marshall and Raheim Sanders only produced 13 yards on eight carries as well. Too many snaps where it appeared to be congested and poor attempts to get to the second level. Davon Booth popped a couple meaningless runs on the final drive to boost stats but it was ugly overall.

• Sampson’s 43 yard screen reception was the highlight for the position group. When he opens it up full throttle he can really go. Monken has to keep finding ways to get him into space this season.

• The two young rookies handled themselves very well. Boston only had one target but you can see how easily he will win in the boundary and give them a weapon they haven’t had in some time in the role. Concepcion is just such a weapon. His first punt return gave us a flash and then when they gave him the proper targets later in the 1st quarter you can see the skill-set. He can win at all levels, and is dangerous in space. He was dynamic and you should be excited about his upside.

• Floriea did the most to help his case among the receiver depth. Gage Larvadain will keep doing what he does — perform solidly — as he caught four balls for 37 yards to lead the group. It likely comes down to one of those two for the final role in the room.

• Not much from the tight ends overall. Harold Fannin Jr. only played two possessions and dropped a key 3rd down throw that would have kept a drive going. Otherwise Blake Whiteheart and Carsen Ryan both had one reception for six yards each.

• The offensive line was inconsistent and the interior depth concerns me. We didn’t get a ton of snaps from the Week 1 projected group together. It felt like Spencer Fano played well in his longer look at the left tackle role. The depth really struggled across the board and unfortunately Austin Barber had his ankle rolled up on as well. Not strong overall.

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It’s finally gameday folks, and the Cleveland Browns head to Chicago for their first preseason matchup since 2017. The Browns used to have frequent matchups with the Bears each year to close out the preseason before the NFL changed preseason structure and today they rekindle the flame. The two side got together last year late in the regular season when Chicago was well under freezing and the Bears won 31-3.

As for today, we want to see what Deshaun Watson, and eventually Shedeur Sanders, can string together today on the road in this first preseason game and we get the chance to see what the rookies can do on the NFL stage. Mix that with a defense debuting their new style and approach under Mike Rutenberg and you have plenty of reason to tune in.

It’s a rare 1PM game on the Saturday slate of the preseason so it will feel a little out of the ordinary but the Browns Film Breakdown team have all the analysis and context you need to get the most out of the Browns return to the field for the first time in what feels like forever.

Per the usual, if you are new here, inside the weekly GameDay Opening Drive you will get all the pieces of information paired with your GameDay Podcast to enhance your Sundays with this team.

So, sit back, pour some coffee, turn on the best pre-game Browns song known to man, and enjoy a fresh delivery of all your weekly crucial information from yours truly.

We might see some rain in this one but otherwise the weather looks like a delightful late summer day in Chicago. This isn’t the game last year where the teams battled through negative double digit weather. If the rain holds off it’ll be just right with a lovely breeze to keep everyone cool.

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Training Camp Comes to a Close

Brad reflects on spending nearly every open practice in Berea and explains why this camp felt noticeably different from previous years. The Browns practiced with a consistently high level of intensity, rarely taking plays off, whether in pads or shells. Every period felt competitive, with both the offense and defense feeding off one another throughout camp.

The hosts also discuss the transition from camp to preseason football and how live games will begin to answer questions that can’t be settled on the practice field.

Cornerback Depth Still Headlines the Biggest Roster Concern

While the Browns feel strong at several positions, cornerback remains the roster’s biggest question mark.

Brad and Casey discuss Cleveland adding another defensive back before traveling to Chicago and break down how the depth chart has evolved throughout camp. Trey Avery appears to have established himself as the team’s top backup outside corner. Still, the hosts believe the Browns will almost certainly continue searching for veteran help before final roster cuts.

They also discuss injuries within the room and why Cleveland doesn’t have enough proven NFL depth behind Denzel Ward and Tyson Campbell.

The 2026 Rookie Class Continues to Impress

One of the biggest themes throughout camp has been the performance of Cleveland’s rookie class.

Brad explains that Fano’s growth at left tackle deserves significant praise, especially after spending nearly every practice battling Jared Verse.

Is this class going to be better than 2025?

Todd Monken’s Identity Is Already Taking Shape

After watching Monken run practice every day, Brad shares why he has become increasingly impressed with the Browns’ first-year head coach.

The offense consistently practiced with urgency, moving quickly between drills while maximizing repetitions. Monken’s emphasis on creating a faster offensive operation—eliminating wasted time before the snap and reducing quarterback anxiety—was evident throughout camp.

Just as noticeable was the culture Monken has created, with players competing hard every day while maintaining an edge that carried throughout practice.

The Quarterback Competition Enters Its Most Important Stage

Naturally, much of the conversation centers around Cleveland’s quarterback battle.

Brad explains that Deshaun Watson clearly improved during the second half of camp after struggling early, while Shedeur Sanders continues to flash the higher long-term upside. The discussion focuses less on arm talent and more on the operation of the offense, with Sanders needing to play faster before the snap, operate more efficiently in and out of the huddle, and speed up his overall tempo.

The hosts also debate whether the upcoming joint practice and preseason games will ultimately decide the competition, agreeing that there aren’t enough practice reps remaining for either quarterback to separate significantly before live action.

Young Offensive Weapons Continue to Generate Excitement

Several young offensive playmakers continue to build momentum heading into the preseason.

Isaiah Bond’s ability to threaten defenses vertically has become increasingly apparent, while Denzel Boston continues making difficult catches and winning at every level of the field. KC Concepcion’s versatility also stands out, with both hosts believing Todd Monken will find creative ways to get the ball into his hands.

The conversation also touches on Jerry Jeudy, Tylan Wallace, and how Monken’s offensive design should create opportunities for receivers to produce after the catch.

Offensive Line Beginning to Come Together

Although there were early concerns about the offensive line, Brad believes the unit has steadily improved throughout camp.

Austin Barber has quietly strengthened his case for the swing tackle role, while Teven Jenkins’ return has stabilized the right guard position. The hosts also discuss how the running game has gradually become more efficient as the offensive line gains chemistry after working through installation.

Running Back and Wide Receiver Battles Heat Up

Several roster battles remain unresolved heading into the preseason.

Brad explains why Marshall appears to have taken control of the RB3 competition while Rocket Sanders still has work to do. At wide receiver, the competition between Cedric Tillman, Floriea and Larvadain remains one of the more intriguing battles on the roster, with each player bringing a different skill set.

Special Teams Could Be One of the Biggest Storylines This Preseason

After struggling on special teams a year ago, the Browns have placed significant emphasis on improving those units.

Brad discusses several potential return options, including KC Concepcion, Wallace, and others, while explaining why preseason games will provide the first meaningful opportunity to evaluate coverage units, returners, and the overall impact of the Browns’ special teams improvements.

Final Thoughts Before Kickoff

Before wrapping up the football discussion, Brad and Casey revisit several lingering questions surrounding the roster, including the need for additional cornerback depth, EDGE reinforcements, injury updates, and which players have the most to gain over the next three preseason games.

The show closes with some lighthearted NFL betting discussion, television recommendations, and the usual entertaining banter with the live audience before everyone turns their attention toward Saturday afternoon in Chicago.

When you spend just about every day at Browns Training Camp, some things start to take shape within offensive structure. I am going to try and relay those things over the next week and pair them with what we see from the team over the weekend in Chicago. Last week’s numbers made the case that Monken’s screen game to Zay Flowers was both a security blanket and a tool that could yield explosive plays — heavy volume, solid returns, one touchdown on 57 catches across three years. When you look at how Monken also mixed in the ground game Flowers became involved in, especially paired with the same concepts being implemented during the Browns install periods of camp, you can see how Concepcion will get the high volume needed to thrive.

Since 2023, Flowers ranks ninth among all wide receivers in rushing yards, almost entirely off jet and fly sweeps — plays where Monken hands the ball to his receiver in stride with the offensive line already turned and blockers assigned, rather than throwing him the ball into a crowd of unblocked defenders the way a screen does.

Concepcion was a frequent target of these schemes at both NC State and Texas A&M where his dynamic open field skills were on display.

Flowers has been good for chunk gains on the ground in a way he mostly wasn’t on screens, and the volume has been sustained rather than a one-year novelty. If there’s a part of Monken’s “manufactured touches” package that actually generates value rather than just target share, the sweep game is it.

The wrinkle is that Flowers never fully embraced that role as his identity. Early in his career he said plainly that he wanted the offense to get him the ball down the field more, not funnel more jet sweeps and screens his way — the sweep production was as much a function of Monken’s design as it was Flowers’s preference. Which is what makes Concepcion even more interesting and easy to see why Monken pushed for him in the most recent NFL Draft. The Browns didn’t draft a receiver who tolerates gadget touches; it drafted one whose college profile featured them as a boost to the already strong downfield profile.

As a true freshman at NC State, Concepcion carried the ball 41 times for 320 yards — 7.8 yards per carry, out of the wide receiver and hybrid positions — while also posting 71 catches and 10 touchdowns through the air. Scouts flagged him specifically for his sweep production and his effectiveness on pre-snap motion and jet-sweep handoffs, and his college usage skewed heavily to the slot, where those touches are designed from.Monken has already signaled it plans to use him that way, aiming to get the ball in his hands as often as possible — including punt returns alongside receiving work. The same manufactured-touch ecosystem Monken ran in Baltimore, applied to a player who’s been living in it since he was eighteen.

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As we’ve noted, Concepcion is a dangerous weapon wherever and however you can get him the ball and A&M didn’t really use him in the screen game enough in my opinion. He has a shiftiness when getting the ball that helps him make the first defender often miss and create that 25% more yardage beyond what the play was expected to achieve.

You can see how these schemes will mesh well with Monken’s past and how Flowers was able to take those manufactured touches and turn them into something meaningful.

Concepcion isn’t just a jet-sweep specialist forced into the league’s most trendy gadget role — my scouting report that highlight his sweep production also praise his separation ability against both man and zone coverage and his short-area suddenness as a route runner, the traits that make a dynamic receiver who can align in diverse roles more than a change-of-pace piece. The risk with a rookie who profiles this well in the manufactured-touch game is that an offense leans on it too hard in year one, using him as a joystick weapon before he’s proven he can win as a full-time route runner, the same tension that shaped how Flowers talked about his own usage two years ago. Getting easy yards in the NFL — those low-risk, high-reward types — are the hardest thing to find. They are far easier to achieve at the high school and college levels. Concepcion has the rare blend of ability as a true receiver and a gadget player who can help find those cheap yards and the Browns are treating him as such.

Monken has one proven source of created explosive value in his skill-position touches, and it isn’t only the screen game — it’s the sweep game, and the numbers back that up in a way they didn’t for the shorter passing concept. While the Browns offense cannot recrreate every piece of the Ravens success, largely missing on the heavier personnel packages this year, they do have a rookie who profiles as a more natural fit for that specific piece of the offense Monken used quite successfully in Baltimore. That matters for keeping Monken comfortable calling plays in a new organization. Whether that becomes Concepcion’s calling card or his ceiling is the more interesting question, and it’s one training camp reps showed we will see plenty of this season.

AYOs: Isaiah Bond Mic’d Up, Elgton Jenkins Interview, Joel Bitonio returns for Training Camp Insider, How to watch the Browns this weekend, Jayden Daniels vs LSU is getting strange, TNF Preseason Week 1 Analysis, Drew Allar had a nice debut against the Packers but the concepts were quite simple, Weekend NFL Preseason Schedule, Somehow Terrion Arnold has a new home in Seattle, Veteran tight end Darren Waller is off to Carolina, Thumping LB Elandon Roberts back to Pittsburgh, JJ McCarthy wants to stay put in Minnesota, Bears are really headed to Indiana, 10 Things to Watch in PS Week 1, Ranking NFL QBs by best traits, NFL RB market exploded but will it matter for the rest of the NFL

Browns Film Breakdown will return soon with more fresh content.

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The Cleveland Browns have 13 days of training camp in the books. They appeared to throttle

down the intensity a bit as they focused on specific game-script situations and even began preparing for the Chicago Bears specifically. After practice was over, Monken informed his team that Deshaun Watson would start on Saturday in Chicago, with Sanders starting preseason week two.

DNPs

• Cedric Tillman was a new absence on Day 13.

• Also not practicing Wednesday: Joe Royer, D’Angelo Ross, Myles Bryant, Michael Burton, Carson Schwesinger, Mike Hall, Parker Brailsford, Elijah Chatman, Zak Zinter, Elgton Jenkins, Dae’Quan Wright, Jack Stoll, Sam Kamara, and Kalia Davis.

• Tyron Herring began practice but left with a member of the medical staff shortly into individual drills.

Quarterback Rotation

• Shedeur Sanders took the first-team reps on Day 13, with Deshaun Watson working with the twos.

• Both quarterbacks had relatively solid days, and each made his best throw during the two-minute drill that closed practice.

• Todd Monken said before practice that he already knew who would start Saturday against Chicago and planned to inform the players after practice( Named Watson Starer of Preseason Week One ).

• Watson Compilation Day 13 via Camryn Justice

Sanders to Bond — Play of the Day

• Sanders delivered the play of the day during the final two-minute period, dropping a deep ball perfectly into the bucket for Isaiah Bond.

• Bond timed his dive perfectly and came down with an impressive catch downfield.

• The offense immediately rushed to the line and clocked the football, continuing to execute the situation following the explosive play.

• It was Sanders’ best throw of the afternoon and came during one of the most important competitive periods of practice.

• Sanders Compilation Day 13 via Camryn Justice

Isaiah Bond Trending Up

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Browns camp is pushing toward its conclusion. By definition it lasts through much of the preseason but, to me, camp is truly just the time before preseason games start to show up. The time spent alone, practicing against each other, and installing all three sides of the ball. Once these games start fans are no longer around Berea and the nature of the game feeling like the offseason has ended. Now it’s business. Today marks the final open session for the public and then the Browns will be in Chicago this weekend. Camp has basically concluded.

Todd Monken’s first run of his own version hasn’t had much drama but there are a few positions that still need sorted out in the coming weeks. I thought it would be good to visit the battle still looming and sort out where they stand and what names matter most.

Quarterback Competition

Deshaun Watson versus Shedeur Sanders isn’t really a quarterback competition in the traditional sense. It’s a referendum on whether Cleveland trusts a 30-year-old coming off two torn Achilles tendons and no live snaps since October 2024, or a 24-year-old who struggled as a rookie starter with seven touchdowns against ten interceptions. Watson entered camp as the favorite but struggled some out of the gate. Sanders closed the gap, which is a polite way of saying the door isn’t shut, but hasn’t don’t enough to convince the offensive staff he’s the clear leader. Watson, to his credit, has had a much better second week. Watson holds the edge but this competition remains open, and Monken wants that to be clear. They are labeled that way in the depth chart and Sanders will have his in-game opportunities to turn the tide. It’s hard to get a clear idea of when this one will settle but if it’s soon, it’ll be Watson. Sanders will need to convince in all three preseason games. Dillon Gabriel remains on the outside looking in.

Right Guard Competition

The offensive line has most of its shape already done but Monken illustrated where the final position battle is occurring with right guard. Due to an injury to Teven Jenkins, KT Leveston has taken advantage of his move inside and worked with the first team for much of the first week and a half of camp. Jenkins returned on Monday and still has a chance to lock down the role as others have settled around him — including rookie Spencer Fano now set to be the left tackle. Monken noted: “We’re still in that process of it. I think Teven (Jenkins) has the advantage there from experience and he’s played right guard before, so he has the advantage. At every position, we’re competing, but as of now, up front, that’s it.”

The game this weekend and joint practices with Buffalo next week are likely to settle the battle. Jenkins has to prove he can stay healthy over a longer duration — a big problem in his NFL career — so Leveston is likely to see some time this year regardless. I do think Jenkins is the better player currently so it’s likely he wins the job out of the gate.

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Deshaun Watson:

• Watson took the first-team reps on Day 12. His first 11-on-11 pass was an interception on a significant overthrow, but he settled down from there and had a good practice. A highlight of his day was a seam shot downfield to Isaiah Bond, along with several quality throws to Denzel Boston and others.

Shedeur Sanders:

• Sanders continues to take the majority of the second-team work. One trend has emerged on Watson days: when the Browns transition to 7-on-7 in the middle of practice, Dillon Gabriel has started getting some of the second-team reps. Sanders is still getting the majority of the work with that group.

Where the QB competition stands:

• Watson has stacked together several good practices after a pretty poor start to camp. Sanders hasn’t been bad, but he hasn’t been great enough to force the issue, either. Twelve practices in, it feels increasingly difficult for Sanders to win this competition through practice reps alone.

• Sanders’ tempo remains something to watch: The biggest issue continues to be the speed of his operation. His drop can look a step slow, and there are times when he holds the football too long. He threw the ball away three times today. That’s good from the standpoint of avoiding sacks and bad decisions, but some of those plays also resulted from the process simply taking too long. He has to play with more tempo.

• Preseason could be Sanders’ opportunity: I think Sanders’ best chance to change this competition comes during the preseason games and joint practices. Considering what we’ve seen from Watson in live football situations in the past, Sanders has an opportunity to show growth and potentially outperform him when things become less controlled. If he does, he can make Todd Monken’s decision much more difficult.

Run-game periods look good, although 11-on-11 is a different story:

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Every training camp produces a hype darling, and yesterday made it even more unambiguous. Denzel Boston has made at least one memorable catch in just about every Browns practice, and by the time Todd Monken confirmed he moved him to the first-team offense on August 10, the promotion read less like a surprise than a formality.

“I think Denzel has shown that when he’s in the boundary, and you get contested catches, a lot of our three-by-one stuff may go there. So, it’s like, it’s not final; we just want to see where we’re at with that mix.” — Head Coach Todd Monken

The question is whether Boston’s great camp is actually predictive of anything, and whether the specific shape of his production so far tells us something more useful than the general buzz does.

Boston beat CB Tre Avery on a contested deep fade from Shedeur Sanders. Days later he drew a defensive pass interference call on Tyson Campbell in a two-minute drill, again on a contested ball. He’s caught deep shots from both quarterbacks in the competition — Deshaun Watson on a third-and-long rep, Sanders in 7-on-7 — which matters more than it sounds like it should, since it means his role isn’t contingent on which passer wins the job. Boston has had several multi-touchdown practices, and found the end zone nearly every day. None of that is the same as production against NFL cornerbacks in games that count, but the pattern across every report is identical: this isn’t scheme-manufactured separation or a training-camp gunslinger feasting on vanilla coverage. It’s contested-catch winning, clear separation created, over and over, against the specific type of press-man and off-man zone looks he’ll see on Sundays.

That consistency is the part worth trusting, because it maps directly onto what made him a college prospect in the first place. At Washington, Boston posted 62 catches for 881 yards and 11 touchdowns as a junior on a per-target profile built around size and ball skills rather than route-running separation — a 6-foot-3, 212-pound frame with the length to box out corners the way he’s already doing to Browns defensive backs. Paired with KC Concepcion, Boston himself has framed the room’s identity in exactly the correct terms: quick, twitchy players paired with size that “makes plays above the rim,” and he clearly sees himself as the second half of that equation.

Still, Boston is competing for the same targets. A first-team rep in August is a real signal, but it isn’t a target share, and a receiver room now having real depth, means Boston’s rookie ceiling was never going to be decided by camp buzz alone but this is landmark on the journey you need to see.

Below you’ll find the latest in the BFB catalog for supporters to dig into. Click the link to become a supporter if you haven’t already, and enjoy all the latest from Browns Film Breakdown.

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• Monken Addresses Quarterback Rotation, Spencer Fano and Denzel Boston Move Up, and 2027 Depth Chart Exercise

• Weekend Quarterback Enigma, and Training Camp Week 1 Winners and Losers

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So what does a genuinely high-quality rookie year look like for him, separate from the hype? Resist the instinct to anchor on a counting-stat threshold like 800 yards or a specific catch total — in a run-emphasized, quarterback-competition offense with four other established receivers absorbing targets, raw volume is the wrong yardstick and will likely undersell him even if he’s playing well. The more honest markers are rate-based. Watch his contested-catch win rate in actual games, since that’s the skill every camp report has hammered and the one most likely to translate immediately regardless of who’s throwing him the ball.

Watch his red-zone target share and touchdown rate, since a 6-foot-3 frame that’s already drawing pass interference flags in practice should be Cleveland’s default answer inside the 10, and a rookie who becomes the primary red-zone threat on a crowded roster has done something Jeudy, Wallace, and Tillman have not. There will be specific schemes and specific routes the Browns offense will try to have Boston work but there will always be this skill and the Browns should be tapping into it often.

Boston’s camp is treated as a preview of a 70-catch season — which is what you want coming out of a rookie in these circumstances. Expectations mean something can be real and Boston is showing what that something could be. The version worth believing is narrower and more interesting: a rookie who wins contested balls at an NFL rate, creates separation at an adequate level, becomes the Browns most trusted red-zone option by midseason, and does it regardless of who’s under center. That’s a real breakout for a 39th overall pick in a crowded room. It’s also a much lower bar than the hype train is currently selling, which is exactly why it’s the one to track.

AYOs: Browns catch you up on yesterday’s practice, Colts Alec Pierce might have season in jeopardy, Bills new stadium views stink, Quinnen Williams and Cowboys reach agreement on big extension, 2027 NFL Draft Early T-25 Big Board, NFL Preseason W1 Schedule, NFL to allow coach’s designee to initiate replay challenges, Crazy story of Philly entrepreneur scamming NFL players out of $5M, NFL Camp Aug 11th live updates, NFL’s 5 Best and Worst contracts of the offseason

Browns Film Breakdown will return soon with more fresh content.

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Look, I never want to punt on a season. I am NOT doing that here. But as we toil away in a quarterback controversy many of us are tired of thinking, reading, and discussing, it might be of interest to think about what the future of an already promising depth chart might look like down the line. Projecting a depth chart 14 months before the games are played is a different exercise than projecting one in August of the season itself. Most of it is genuine guesswork — injuries, camp battles, draft class, and free-agent classes that don’t exist yet. But one part of the 2027 Browns roster is more knowable right now than almost anything on the 2026 depth chart, and it’s the position everyone assumes is the least predictable: quarterback.

Deshaun Watson’s contract mechanics are less speculative and now they’re arithmetic. The Browns restructured his deal in March 2026 specifically to set up a post-June 1 release in March 2027, spreading roughly $86 million in dead money across the 2027 and 2028 cap years rather than absorbing it in one shot. That release isn’t a possibility the front office is weighing — it’s the plan they’ve been building toward since the December 2024 restructure first converted his voidable years into real ones. Barring a genuinely transformative 2026 season, Watson will not be on Cleveland’s 2027 roster. That single fact does more to shape next year’s depth chart than any camp battle will.

What replaces him is where the guesswork starts, but it’s informed guesswork. The Browns own two first-round picks in the 2027 draft — their own selection plus the pick they acquired from the Rams in the Myles Garrett trade — giving Andrew Berry the draft capital to take a quarterback early without mortgaging the rest of the roster to do it, or to package one of those firsts to move up for a specific prospect if the 2026 season clarifies who that is. The question is whether Shedeur Sanders carries real weight into 2027 as well; if Sanders plays his way into the starting role this season, and performs very well, the more likely path is Cleveland using that draft capital on the roster around him rather than over him. However, based on the current vibes of the team with regard to Sanders, it is hard to predict 2026 ends up working out for him to keep the Browns out of the race next offseason. The quarterback room a year from now almost certainly includes a meaningful rookie, so we won’t deal in wild hypotheticals.

Below you’ll find the latest in the BFB catalog for supporters to dig into. Click the link to become a supporter if you haven’t already, and enjoy all the latest from Browns Film Breakdown.

Latest Podcasts:

• Weekend Quarterback Enigma, and Training Camp Week 1 Winners and Losers

• Training Camp Day 7 Review: Watson's Best Day, Injuries Mounting, Denzel Boston Hype, and More

• Training Camp Day 6 Review: Decision Timelines, Fano Arrives, and More

Latest Articles:

• Browns Training Camp Day 10 Brings the First Major Shift in the Browns’ Quarterback Competition

• Opening Drive 8/7: Browns Offense Still Sorting Out Personnel Preferences

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Latest Film Rooms:

• FILM ROOM: Jared Verse Run Defense Reps and Development Potential

• FILM ROOM: Jared Verse Pass Rush Counter Moves

• FILM ROOM: Jared Verse and Winning With Power

DEPTH CHART

Take is easy on 2026 as it is largely predictions, but 2027 is where you can see how the talent influx can be special if players pan out this season. The rookies, outside the quarterback, come in with time to grow and learn, and the Browns add premium picks (11 picks total) to premium positions they naturally need.

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