Andrew Berry unsure about Browns starting quarterback in 2026

Editor's note: Tony Grossi is a Cleveland Browns and NFL analyst for TheLandOnDemand.com and 850 ESPN Cleveland. He has covered the Browns since 1984.

Takeaways from GM Andrew Berry’s end-of-season press availability …

Shedeur Sanders never felt a commitment from the Browns in his first season even though he started more games than any of the quarterbacks (seven) and won more (three).

The commitment Sanders has been seeking didn’t come from Andrew Berry on Monday.

“I think we saw a lot of progress with Shedeur this year,” said the Browns’ top football executive and leader of the search for their next head coach. “I think that’s both mentally, physically, playing the position. He’s still very much a work in progress like many rookie quarterbacks are.

“But I think we saw some really good things in terms of his playmaking, his accuracy, his ability to extend them with his feet. And I think I’d also give him credit, as well as our offensive staff, for bringing him along in terms of his pocket management, his situational awareness and things of that nature.

“Now, that all being said, we’re going to do our work on the quarterback market.

“It’s too important of a position and it’s something that has to be solidified. I can’t sit here and tell you today whether the solution for, or the starter in 2026, is internal or external. But it’s something that we’re going to work through over the next several weeks.

“And quite honestly, the new head coach will also have a lot of input into that as well.”

By winning their last two games against Pittsburgh and Cincinnati and finishing with a 5-12 record, the Browns dropped from third to sixth in the 2026 draft order. Had they lost both, a 3-14 record would have moved the Browns to No. 1 in the draft based on strength-of-schedule tie-breaker.

With only two draft-eligible passers touted as possible franchise quarterbacks – Fernando Mendoza of Indiana and Dante Moore of Oregon – the possibility of Berry finding his quarterback answer in this year’s draft is slim.

“Honestly, it’s too early to tell,” Berry said. “I think you can think about what everyone felt like we knew about the quarterback landscape this time last year, about what we thought we knew about the draft. There’s a lot of work to be done with this entire draft class. And again, you want to do that in partnership with your new head coach as well. I wish I could give you a little bit more in that regard, but it’s a long process to get through the assessment of this year’s passers.”

The Deshaun conundrum

Deshaun Watson earned praise for rehabbing from two Achilles tendon surgeries last October and January. Now, what do the Browns intend to do with a rehabbed Watson in 2026?

“I can never predict the future, but right now we do anticipate him being on the 2026 team,” Berry said. “But we have a long way to go before we get to that point with any player.”

Watson will be due $46 million in guaranteed salary in 2026. It’s the final installment of his five-year, fully guaranteed contract. Because of past salary-to-bonus conversions, his salary cap number for 2026 is $80.7 million, and his future dead cap cost surpasses $131 million.

The Browns can lower his cap number again with another bonus conversion in 2026. That would push about $44.7 million that would be rolled into his dead cap charges to the future, which would bring his dead cap total to over $175 million after 2026.

So Watson’s contract will be felt for at least two years after he departs. Which means 2029 might be the first year they are completely clean of the Watson contract.

On to the offense

Berry invested a lot of resources in the defense last year, acquiring veterans Maliek Collins and Tyson Campbell, drafting Mason Graham and Carson Schwesinger with the fifth and 33^rd overall draft selections, and giving Anthony Wright a contract extension.

He managed to add three potential offensive mainstays in the draft – running backs Quinshon Judkins and Dylan Sampson, and tight end Harold Fannin – but knows there is plenty work to be done, specifically on the offensive line and at receiver.

“Specifically to the offense, it’s no secret that’s where we’re going to invest most of our resources this offseason,” Berry said. “I think the reality of it is a year ago, when we decided to make the pivot that we did, you also realize that you’re not going to be able to accomplish everything at once for the roster.

“The offensive line, that’s a position group that I do imagine will have a fair amount of turnover as we go into 2026. But we also do feel like it was important this year and quite honestly going into next year to give young players snaps if we’re ultimately going to build the core and foundation that we need to win perennially.

“I think there’s a lot of work that we still need to do on the offense from a personnel standpoint.”

Losing a thought partner

Berry clearly was saddened by the firing of Kevin Stefanski. He claimed, “I own the results [8-26] the past two years … I own it entirely.”

So why did he think the dismissal of Stefanski was needed?

“Ultimately, this decision is borne from the fact that we felt like we did not see enough progress in areas that were controllable – independent of certain game outcomes,” Berry said.

“I think all head coaches get evaluated on, whether it’s game strategy, going into the game, in-game decision making, certainly player development if you’re a young team. The quarterback is obviously a big part of it, but there are multiple areas, and some, quite frankly, I thought we did very well. Others, we didn’t see enough progress in.”

Looking ahead

Berry, 38, has never hired a head coach. Owner Jimmy Haslam said Berry will include members of his staff on the search, but Berry wouldn’t identify who.

“We want to make sure that we leverage the expertise of many people in our operation as we go through the process,” he said.

So, what is he looking for in his first head coach hire?

“We’ll be pretty open minded,” he said. “I think our responsibility is to search far and wide. There are good coaches out there. You know, we’ve just got to do our homework and find the right fit for us. We’ll have no pre-conceived notions as we go into the search.”

Most assume Berry will lean toward a young, offensive-minded, up-and-comer who would be agreeable to the collaborative approach that Haslam and Berry fostered over the past six years.

“I think it’s more you’re looking for maybe a specific skill-set, given where we are in our build, I think that’s fair,” Berry said. “I don’t think that archetype is singular. I don’t think that means it just has to be a young person. I don’t think that just means it has to be an offensive coach.

“The head coaching position, it’s so different than being a coordinator. And the head coach’s responsibility is to make sure that the offense is run and developed well, as opposed to necessarily having to be the person that directly does it.

“It’s not just leadership by position, but I’d say leadership more globally. Because when you hire a head coach, it’s someone who has to be able to lead your players, lead your staff, lead the organization, lead through hardship and lead through crisis. And NFL years, they’re like dog years. They’re really difficult seasons. And that’ll be at the forefront because it’s first and foremost a leadership position. And then when I say partnership, head coach/GM relationship is a lot like a marriage. And you have to work side by side and fight back to back. And I think that’s really, really important because you have to be aligned in terms of how you’re positioning the team.”