Is Shedeur Sanders playing today? Browns QB plans for preseason game vs. Bears

The Cleveland Browns are once again set to have one of the league’s most intriguing quarterback battles in 2026. Shedeur Sanders is expected to be a key part of it.

A year after entering his rookie training camp as Cleveland’s fourth-string quarterback, Sanders is battling veteran Deshaun Watson for the Browns’ starting job.

First-year Browns coach Todd Monken has consistently intimated both Watson and Sanders will get a chance to stake their respective claims to the team’s starting job. That process will begin when the Browns play their preseason opener against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Saturday, Aug. 15.

Will Sanders be playing in that preseason contest? Here’s what to know about Cleveland’s quarterback plans for the game, along with additional information about the team’s notable position battle.

OT Tytus Howard: Traded to Cleveland Browns (previous team: Houston Texans)

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OT Tytus Howard: Traded to Cleveland Browns (previous team: Houston Texans)

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CB Trent McDuffie: Traded to Los Angeles Rams (previous team: Kansas City Chiefs)

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RB David Montgomery: Traded to Houston Texans (previous team: Detroit Lions)

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WR DJ Moore: Traded to Buffalo Bills (previous team: Chicago Bears)
playing today?

Yes, Sanders is expected to play in the Browns’ Week 1 preseason game against the Bears. However, he won’t be starting the contest.

Monken tapped Watson to start Saturday’s matchup between the Browns and Bears. Watson will play the first half of the game before making way for Sanders in the third quarter.

Sanders will then have an opportunity to start the Browns’ second preseason game against the Buffalo Bills.

While Monken named Watson the team’s starter for preseason Week 1, the 60-year-old coach has been tight-lipped about whether either quarterback has an advantage in the competition.

Early in the offseason, Monken noted he “would love to have” a starting quarterback in place by training camp. However, he continued to intimate he was not yet ready to decide between Sanders and Watson whenever asked, crediting each for their performances during the team’s offseason activities.

“I just don’t see it after the way Shedeur has played and Deshaun’s played,” Monken said of naming a starter during a June 9 media availability. “They’ve both played well enough to earn the right to compete to start.”

Even so, Monken knows he will soon be tasked with deciding who will start the season as Cleveland’s top quarterback. Nonetheless, he has neither provided a timetable for his decision nor tipped his hand about his preference, save for giving Watson the first crack at starting in the preseason.

“It’s close,” Monken told USA TODAY Sports’ Jarrett Bell in an exclusive interview before a recent camp practice. “People somehow think that, like, I have some hidden agenda, or like there’s some preconceived notion.

“Is that what they think I would do? I would just split the reps if I didn’t think it was a competition? That would be really silly. If I thought one was the starter, I’d give him the ‘one’ reps.”

The Browns currently have four quarterbacks on their 90-man roster. Below is a look at the pecking order among the unit, according to the team’s unofficial depth chart.

Gabriel and Green are listed respectively as the team’s third- and fourth-string options, meaning the loser of the Watson vs. Sanders battle will slot in as the team’s backup quarterback.

Gabriel, a third-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, opened last season as Cleveland’s backup quarterback ahead of Sanders. The Oregon product led the Browns to a 1-5 record across six starts while completing 59.5% of his passes for 937 yards, seven touchdowns and two interceptions.

Meanwhile, Green was a sixth-round selection in the 2026 NFL Draft. The Arkansas product has a tantalizing combination of elite arm strength and mobility but will need to hone his accuracy to become an effective signal-caller at the NFL level.