Browns set intriguing QB plans for first two preseason games as competition heats up

Nypost · Aug 12, 2026 · 405 words · By Andrew Battifarano

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What to know about Browns set intriguing QB plans for first two preseason games as competition heats up

The Browns are using their first two preseason games to test out their quarterbacks.

Claims checked 10

Techniques found 0

Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center67%

Right33%

3 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

The Browns are using their first two preseason games to test out their quarterbacks.

Why it matters

Deshaun Watson is getting the nod on Saturday against the Bears, while Shedeur Sanders will start in preseason Week 2 against the Bills.

Common ground

Watson’s start this weekend will mark his first game action in nearly two years after he suffered a season-ending Achilles tear in Week 7 of the 2024 season.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

Follow-up questions

What concrete event or decision sits underneath the headline: Browns set intriguing QB plans for first two preseason games as competition heats up?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that after a trade of veteran Joe Flacco to the Bengals?
What should readers watch for in the next update to know whether the story is changing?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://nypost.com/2026/08/12/sports/browns-set-deshaun-watson-shedeur-sanders-p…

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 10 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 6

verified Verified By Reference 2

info Single Source 2

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Claim 1: “after a trade of veteran Joe Flacco to the Bengals”

CORROBORATED

Wikipedia and multiple web sources (Pat McAfee Show, news report) confirm Joe Flacco is now with the Cincinnati Bengals following a trade from Cleveland.

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web search NEUTRAL — Joseph Vincent Flacco is an American professional football quarterback for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Flacco

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web search NEUTRAL — TikTok video from Pat McAfee Show Clips (@patmcafeeshowofficial): “BREAKING NEWS: Joe Flacco has been traded to the Cincinnati Bengals @Cleveland Browns @Cincinnati Bengals #breakingnews #joeflacco #c…
https://www.tiktok.com/en/trending/detail/joe-flacco-traded-…

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web search NEUTRAL — Browns trade Joe Flacco to Bengals: Cincinnati acquires veteran QB from division rival in late-round pick swap.
https://news.google.com/stories/CAAqNggKIjBDQklTSGpvSmMzUnZj…

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Claim 2: “Shedeur Sanders will start in preseason Week 2 against the Bills”

CORROBORATED

Multiple independent sources (Akron Beacon Journal, MARCA) confirm Shedeur Sanders started or is scheduled to start in a preseason game against the Buffalo Bills.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2025 NFL draft was the 90th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players. The draft was held at Lambeau Field and its adjacent Titletown District in…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025_NFL_draft

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Deion Luwynn Sanders Sr. (born August 9, 1967) is an American football coach and former player who is the head football coach at the University of Colorado Boulder. Nicknamed "Prime Time" and "Coach P…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deion_Sanders

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Shilo Deion Sanders (born February 9, 2000) is an American former professional football safety. He played college football for the South Carolina Gamecocks, Jackson State Tigers and Colorado Buffaloes…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shilo_Sanders

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 3: “Watson’s start this weekend will mark his first game action in nearly two years after he suffered a season-ending Achilles tear in Week 7 of the 2024 season”

CORROBORATED

Multiple sources (MRI confirmation, theScore, and reports on Kevin Stefanski's comments) confirm Watson suffered a season-ending Achilles tear in Week 7 of the 2024 season against the Bengals.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2024 season was the Cleveland Browns' 72nd as a member of the National Football League (NFL), their 76th overall, and their fifth under the head coach/general manager tandem of Kevin Stefanski and…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2024_Cleveland_Browns_season

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Derrick Deshaun Watson (born September 14, 1995) is an American professional football quarterback for the Cleveland Browns of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Cle…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deshaun_Watson

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Deshaun Watson trade was a significant National Football League trade made on March 18, 2022, centered on sending quarterback Deshaun Watson from the Houston Texans to the Cleveland Browns. The qu…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deshaun_Watson_trade

+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 4: “Sanders finished his rookie season with 1,400 passing yards (completing 56.6 percent of his passes), seven touchdowns and 10 interceptions”

CORROBORATED

Two independent sources (AOL and Andrew Berry report) explicitly list the same statistics: 1,400 passing yards, 7 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions.

verified

Claim 5: “Deshaun Watson is getting the nod on Saturday against the Bears”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

The provided evidence confirms Deshaun Watson is a QB for the Browns, but none of the sources explicitly state he is starting this Saturday against the Bears. One source mentions he is expected to receive 'half of the quarterback evaluation' in a game against the Bills, not the Bears.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Mitchell David Trubisky ( troo-BISS-kee; born August 20, 1994) is an American professional football quarterback for the Tennessee Titans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college footba…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitchell_Trubisky

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+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 6: “an injury to Dillon Gabriel”

SINGLE SOURCE

The search results for 'Dillon Gabriel' returned a Brazilian singer, a running back (A.J. Dillon), and an ammunition company. No evidence was found regarding a quarterback named Dillon Gabriel suffering an injury with the Browns.

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web search NEUTRAL — Dominique Dillon de Byington, known by her stage name Dillon (born April 29, 1988), is a Brazilian singer-songwriter and pianist, based in Germany. [1][2] Her debut album This Silence Kills, released …
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dillon_(singer)

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web search NEUTRAL — A. J. Dillon ... Algiers Jameal William Dillon Jr. (born May 2, 1998), nicknamed " Quadzilla ", [1] is an American professional football running back for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football…
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/A._J._Dillon

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web search NEUTRAL — Dillon Precision is the premiere manufacturer of firearm ammunition reloading equipment in the USA. We sell reloaders, reloader accessories, firearm accessories and gear to retail and B2B customers.
https://www.dillonprecision.com/

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Claim 7: “Shedeur Sanders stepped in to start seven games down the stretch”

CORROBORATED

Three independent sources (Deion Sanders report, AOL/Todd Monken report, and Andrew Berry report) confirm Shedeur Sanders started the final seven games of the previous season for the Browns.

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web search NEUTRAL — Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders debuted in Week 11 last season and started the final seven games.The Browns and then-coach Kevin Stefanski selected Shedeur Sanders in the fifth round after a shocki…
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7281992/2026/05/15/deion-sh…

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web search NEUTRAL — Sanders started seven games for the Browns last season. He threw for 1,400 yards, seven touchdowns, and 10 interceptions with a 68.1 quarterback rating.
https://www.aol.com/article/todd-monken-meets-shedeur-sander…

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web search NEUTRAL — Shedeur Sanders started seven games as a rookie for the Browns.Last season, Sanders threw for 1,400 yards with seven touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He looked good in a few games and struggled in oth…
https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/article/browns-gm-andrew-berry-…

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Claim 8: “Todd Monken, who took over as head coach this year after the firing of Kevin Stefanski”

SINGLE SOURCE

While one source mentions 'HC Todd Monken' in the context of the Browns, the provided evidence does not explicitly detail the firing of Kevin Stefanski or the official transition of the head coaching role in a way that is corroborated by multiple independent sources in the provided text.

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Claim 9: “in January 2025, Watson underwent surgery after tearing the Achilles again”

CORROBORATED

Three independent web sources (Adam La Rose, NBC Universal/Max Molski, and a Cleveland announcement) confirm Watson underwent a second surgery for a re-torn Achilles in January 2025.

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+ 3 more evidence sources

verified

Claim 10: “He did not play at all last season”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

While evidence confirms he suffered a season-ending injury in Week 7 of 2024, there is no explicit confirmation that he played zero games 'last season' (which could refer to the full 2024 calendar year or the 2023 season). One source mentions he didn't play against the Patriots in a previous context, but doesn't confirm a total absence for the entire most recent season.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2024 NFL draft was the 89th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players. The draft was held at Campus Martius Park and Hart Plaza in Detroit on Apr…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2024_NFL_draft

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+ 3 more evidence sources

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.