Sanders, Watson each get plenty of snaps with 1st team during Browns minicamp practice
BEREA, Ohio (AP) — It took six questions before coach Todd Monken was asked something he will have to answer plenty of times over the next four-plus months. In this case, it was why Shedeur Sanders took the opening snaps with the first team during the Cleveland Browns’ first voluntary minicamp practice on Tuesday with Monken in charge. The 10 NFL teams with new coaches are permitted to hold an additional voluntary minicamp this week before the draft starts on Thursday night.
“He was first man up. I knew it was coming. Didn’t know who was going to ask it, but I knew it was coming,” Monken said about the quarterback question.
Sanders and Deshaun Watson are expected to compete for the starting spot throughout offseason workouts and training camp. Watson, who missed last season after tearing his Achilles tendon twice, took first-team reps during three of the five team periods. Monken said quarterback coach Mike Bajakian came up with Tuesday’s quarterback rotation.
“The way it was going to turn out, Shedeur was going to get more reps. Some of it in pass (skeleton drills), some of it in team,” Monken said. “A couple of the team periods were slowed-down ACT, more run than they were throw.
So it was set up in a way for us to get a look at all of them. The plan was to have Shedeur have a few more reps, but to let Deshaun and Shedeur both have reps with the ones. ” Monken also noted that the rotations will change over the next two days of the minicamp as well as throughout the organized team practices in May and June.