Huntley and DTR compete for the third QB job in the Browns' final preseason game

When it comes to NFL preseason games, two words come to mind:

“Why bother?”

On August 24, the Browns played their third and final practice game of the summer when they faced the Seahawks at Lumen Field in Seattle. The Seahawks defeated the Browns 37-33.

The only benefit of preseason games is that they allow players trying to make the bottom of the roster to show why they belong. In that sense, Dorian Thompson-Robinson and Tyler Huntley have each had good chances to be the third quarterback behind Deshaun Watson and Jameis Winston.

Thompson-Robinson connected with rookie wide receiver Jamari Thrash for a 46-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter. DTR completed 11 of 20 passes for 115 yards and the touchdown.

Huntley played the second half and responded with a six-yard touchdown throw to James Proche in the third quarter, a 12-yard touchdown pass to Michael Woods in the fourth and a 15-yard touchdown pass with eight seconds left. His best throw was a 37-yard pass to Jaelon Darden. Huntley finished the game completing 17 of 22 passes for 146 yards and three touchdown passes. Neither quarterback threw an interception.

Huntey or DTR – one of them will likely be traded before the roster is reduced to 53 at 4 p.m. on August 27th. Perhaps as early as August 25th.

When teams played four practice games, the third game usually served as a warm-up for the regular-season starters. The starters would sit out the first two games, play a half and perhaps a series in the third quarter of the third game, then get the rest of the evening off and do not play in the fourth game.

Watson hasn't taken a snap in any of the preseason games. He's not alone. Dak Prescott, starting quarterback of the Dallas Cowboys, hasn't taken a snap in any of the Cowboys' three preseason games either. The Browns host the Cowboys on September 8th for the season opener.

The list of other Browns starters who did not play in any of the preseason games is long: Amari Cooper, Jerry Jeudy, David Njoku, Joel Bitonio, Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah and Myles Garrett, to name a few.

The odd thing about regular players not playing at least one half in the preseason is that teams are practicing less than they did before the 2011 collective bargaining agreement ended two-day practices. Currently, teams practice three consecutive days in training camp and then have a mandatory day off.

Watson was eligible to play against the Seahawks. He had arm soreness during practice on August 21, but was fine by August 22. Leaving him on the bench in Seattle made sense, however, since the Browns were down to their fourth left tackle in Germain Edifi. Rookie Zak Zinter started at left guard since Bitonio did not play.

The caution proved wise when Winston was sacked for 10 yards on the Browns' first possession. Winston was uninjured and underwhelming on two possessions. He had a chance to score a touchdown on fourth-and-2 from the Seattle 12 with a thrash, but he threw the rookie too far in the end zone.

So will Watson be ready to lead the Browns in two weeks? That's all that really matters. The Browns replaced Alex Van Pelt with Ken Dorsey as offensive coordinator in an effort to get the most out of Watson in his third year in Cleveland. Watson's injury problems are behind him.

“He's had a really strong training camp, a really strong spring,” general manager Andrew Berry said on the pregame show on WEWS, the station that broadcast the game in Northeast Ohio. “I think when we look at the quarterback position or really all of our core players, we're really getting a lot of good work, good live work in training camp and then in the (two) joint practices with the Vikings.”

“We might even like those environments a little bit better (than preseason games) because it's a little bit more of a controlled environment where you can get some unidentified looks at the players, so to speak, while minimizing the risk of injury to our players. We feel good about him being able to navigate a game environment and we're excited for him to start the regular season. We think it's going to be OK.”

Berry also had a positive report on injured tackles Jedrick Wills and Jack Conklin. Both are on the physically unable to perform list and are recovering from knee surgery in 2023.

“We feel good about how this group is developing,” Berry said in the WEWS interview. “We expect some of our guys to be back in the next week or two.”

“And honestly, it was a good job for young players like Zak Zinter or Javion Cohen to maybe get some extra playing time that they wouldn't have had if we had been completely healthy throughout camp.”

Running back Nick Chubb is also on the PUP list. Any player still on the PUP list when the roster is reduced to 53 on August 27 will have to miss at least four games.