Shedeur Sanders will start for the Browns against the Saints

Shedeur Sanders will make his first start of the 2026 season Sunday when the Cleveland Browns visit the New Orleans Saints. Coach Todd Monken announced the decision Friday with Deshaun Watson still working through the concussion protocol.

Watson returned to practice in a limited role Friday after missing Wednesday and Thursday. Monken said Watson can do individual work and routes and has been in meetings, but he still cannot take team reps. Watson is listed as questionable. Monken has not decided whether Watson would be active if he clears the protocol by Sunday.

Why Sanders gets it

Sanders took first-team reps all week while Watson was out. Monken said he liked Sanders' confidence, huddle operation and throwing. "I'm fired up to see him play, who wouldn't be?" Monken told reporters, a line Ian Rapoport and Mary Kay Cabot both carried.

Sanders, a 2025 fifth-round pick out of Colorado, started seven games as a rookie and went 3-4. He has appeared twice this season, completing all three of his passes for 2 yards. Dillon Gabriel will back him up. Cleveland is 5-3 and third in the AFC North after a 27-6 loss in Pittsburgh in which the offense managed only six points.

Kickoff is 1 p.m. ET at the Caesars Superdome.