Cleveland Browns 2024 training camp position group preview: Quarterbacks

BEREA — Training camp is fast approaching for the Browns.

Rookies are scheduled to report on July 22, with the veterans coming in the next day. The Browns will then head to the Greenbrier in West Virginia on July 25 for the first of seven practices over nine days there before returning to Berea for the remainder of camp.

Over the next 13 days, each position on the Browns will get its own spotlight. Today, the quarterbacks take center stage.

Here's a look at the Browns quarterbacks heading into training camp.

On the Cleveland Browns roster: Quarterbacks

Deshaun Watson, Jameis Winston, Tyler Huntley, Dorian Thompson-Robinson

Projected starter: Deshaun Watson

There is no camp battle to speak of with this position. Instead, the training camp question involving the starting job concerns Watson's continued recovery from last November's shoulder surgery. By the end of June's minicamp, he was up to participating in 7-on-7 drills. There will be a ramp-up period to be dealt with during camp, but there's no worry Watson won't be the starter on Sept. 8 against the Dallas Cowboys.

One to watch: Dorian Thompson-Robinson

Thompson-Robinson was taken in the fifth round of last year's draft with the intentions of developing him into Watson's backup. He turned into just that, and eventually started three games last season in place of the injured Watson before losing his job to Joe Flacco after sustaining a concussion in Denver. His season ended in December with a hip injury that limited him during the offseason. The question will be whether or not the Browns keep Thompson-Robinson and continue to develop him as the No. 3 this season, or if it's Huntley, the free-agent signee who's started nine regular-season and one playoff game for the Baltimore Ravens.

Training camp battle to watch: Tyler Huntley vs. Dorian Thompson-Robinson

It's not so much a battle as it is — to build on the previous section — a question of what the Browns do with the No. 3 quarterback job. One could envision a scenario in which the situation they had a year ago with Joshua Dobbs is replicated with Huntley, ending when they ultimately trade him to a quarterback-needy team for a mid-to-late-round draft pick.

Impact of injuries entering training camp

Watson underwent surgery on his right shoulder to repair a broken glenoid and other structural issues on Nov. 21 in Los Angeles. He's been throwing since March. General manager Andrew Berry told the NFL Network in June that Watson was ahead of schedule in his recovery.

Thompson-Robinson, meanwhile, suffered a hip injury in late December that landed him on injured reserve for the remainder of the season. He was limited for most of the offseason, although he did start going through individual drills at the end of OTAs.

Chris Easterling can be reached at ceasterling@thebeaconjournal.com. Read more about the Browns at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/browns. Follow him on X at @ceasterlingABJ