Shedeur Sanders boost in QB battle as Browns rookie hypes immediate ‘connection’

The Cleveland Browns ensured they bolstered their offense with their 2026 NFL Draft picks.

Entering Thursday’s first round, the Browns were in possession of the No. 6 and No. 24 overall picks.

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However, they traded down to No. 9 overall with the Kansas City Chiefs offering the 74th and 148th selection in return – a trade which was graded an A- by ESPN’s Seth Walder.

With the No. 9 pick, the Browns opted for offensive lineman Spencer Fano out of Utah as they seek to boost their O-line.

Who will be behind them as QB1 is still undecided, with Shedeur Sanders, Deshaun Watson and Dillon Gabriel all currently battling against each other to be new head coach Todd Monken’s starter.

When they got on the clock at No. 24, KC Concepcion was still on the board and the Browns brass jumped at the opportunity to land a top wide receiver.

Now he gets to play with Sanders in the NFL.

“I actually got, kind of like, a story. When I had entered the transfer portal after my sophomore season, I had actually went down to Colorado and met Shedeur,” Concepcion told the media on Friday.

“He’s a great guy, a great leader. I just cannot wait to build that relationship, build that connection with him.”

Concepcion’s collegiate career started at North Carolina State, where he had 1,299 receiving yards and 16 touchdowns in two seasons.

In 2025, though, he transferred to Texas A&M where in 13 games he had 61 receptions for 919 yards and nine touchdowns.

Add to his receiving production, Concepcion was also widely regarded as the draft’s top punt returner.

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Sanders not a lock for QB1

Despite Sanders starting the final seven games of the 2025 regular season, in which he had a 3-4 record, the young signal caller is not guaranteed to start in 2026.

That’s because Watson – who the Browns gave a $230 million guaranteed contract to back in 2019 – is officially fit and firing again, and is bidding to claim back his starting spot.

However, Sanders is believed to be the frontrunner, with that narrative having been handed a boost after Monken gave him the majority of the first-team reps under center during minicamp last week.

“He was first man up,” Monken said Tuesday afternoon. “The way it was going to turn out, Shedeur was going to get more reps, some of it in [seven on seven] some of it in [11 on 11].

“Team periods were slowed down [and] set up in a way for us to get a look at all of them.”

Having thrown for 1,400 yards and seven touchdowns in 2025, which saw him named a Pro Bowl replacement, 22-year-old Sanders has acknowledged that he has to earn his role.

“That’s not up to me [who starts],” Sanders said. “I go out there every day and focus on what I can control.

“If I focus on something I can’t control, then I’ll be living the wrong way.”

The Browns added Denzel Boston in the second round meaning whoever is under center will have two new weapons to throw to.

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