JACKSONVILLE – Team reporter Kainani Stevens each week during the 2026 regular season will speak with a media member covering the Jaguars' opponent.
Up this week:
Cleveland.com Browns reporter and host of the 'Orange and Brown Talk' podcast Ashley Bastock, who provides an update on the quarterback situation in Cleveland and previews the Week 1 matchup against the Jaguars at EverBank Stadium.
Q: Update us on the Browns' quarterback situation. Deshaun Watson was named the starter a couple of weeks ago. What are the sentiments with that? Also, going into this new season with a new head coach and so many other changes?
A: A very interesting sentiment, for sure. Watson played in the second half of the second preseason game against the Buffalo Bills and then he kind of railed against Cleveland fans a little bit after. Shedeur Sanders started that game and Watson got booed in the third quarter. In 2024, which was the last time Watson started for the Browns, he ruptured his Achilles tendon in a game against the Bengals at home. Some fans cheered when he got injured. So that had sort of been hanging over his head for the last almost two years. His sort of outburst in this recent press conference had a lot of people wondering if Watson would be the starting quarterback when Week 1 came around in Jacksonville. That's how big of a deal it was even though he had been leading the quarterback battle. Todd Monken, the Browns' new head coach, came out a few days later and said he was going to stick with Watson, the veteran. As far as Watson's reputation nationally, it does seem like Sanders has much more popularity right now. The Browns' locker room has always seemingly really enjoyed playing with Waston. So, it might not be what folks on the outside are necessarily expecting. How he handles any kind of adversity is going to be a huge storyline for however long he's the starter.
Q: What does Cleveland's offense look like now under Todd Monken? Running back Quinshon Judkins coming back from injury. What else can we expect to see in Week 1?
A: The Browns' receiving corps has been revamped. They used two of their top three draft picks to take K.C. Concepcion out of Texas A&M and Denzel Boston from Washington. Those are two different high-profiles receivers. Concepcion is someone the Browns really valued as a separator. He can do a lot. He can get involved in the run game. He makes the offense a lot more versatile. The Browns believed he was the best punt returner in the draft class. Boston is more of that red-zone threat, a traditional "X" receiver with a bigger body. Judkins was in some of that offensive rookie of the year talk before he dislocated his ankle last season. He's back and looks like he hasn't missed a step. This Browns offense under Monken totally remade the offensive line and it will be five new starters. It's going to be very different than the last time Jacksonville saw them a couple of years ago with a veteran group that had worked together for four-to-five seasons. They have a rookie left tackle in Spencer Fano. It's definitely a tall order for these guys getting organized for Week 1.
Q: Obviously a ton of changes defensively as well. Defensive end Myles Garrett was traded to the Los Angeles Rams in the offseason but defensive end Jared Verse – acquired in the Garrett trade – is no scrub. Will this be the Cleveland defense we've all known for years or something new?
A: It's interesting because the answer is yes and no. It's undeniable that it looks different without Garrett. Mike Rutenberg is the Browns' new defensive coordinator, and this is his first time in that role. He said a big part of the reason he took over is because he comes from the same kind of coaching tree that former defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz came from. It still is going to be that attack-style front, which I think is what people have grown used to seeing with the Browns defensive line over the prior three seasons. They led the league in several statistical categories last season including tackles for loss, third-down conversions allowed, total first downs allowed and fourth-down conversions. Changes are really going to come in the secondary. I expect a lot more three-safety looks. They drafted safety Emmanuel McNeil-Warren out of Toledo on the second day of the draft, so expect him to be very heavily involved. Rutenberg's bread and butter is the secondary. That might be where you see a little bit more disguise and less man coverage. That's opposed to the front, which I think is still very much attack first along that defensive line.
Q: Is there a player to watch for the Browns, someone who will need to have a good performance for the Browns to win?
A: Judkins, because in a Monken offense the run game is so, so, so important. The Browns over the years have really struggled to marry the run and the pass. Judkins being back to his true form, pre-injury, is going to help a lot. The quarterback situation sort of is what it is here in Cleveland, so I think any help on the ground is going to be greatly appreciated.
