Cleveland Browns coach Todd Monken said Monday he expects Deshaun Watson to remain the starting quarterback for Sunday's game at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Monken had sidestepped the question after the Browns' season-opening 34-10 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Monken said it would be "unfair" to blame Watson for all the offensive struggles. "I anticipate Deshaun will be our starter," Monken said. Watson finished 16-of-22 for 205 yards with a touchdown, an interception and 38 rushing yards. After watching film, Monken confirmed Watson should continue as starter.

"It's only been two weeks he's gotten all the reps. And there were some really good things on film," Monken said. "I did think that when he had time, when he understood the concepts, he didn't play tentative, that he let it rip. I'd like to see how we could build on that."

The Browns trailed 24-0 at halftime, tying their worst halftime shutout in 35 years. Watson, who turned 31 on Monday, played his first regular-season game in 693 days after Achilles injuries. Monken named Watson starter on Aug. 24 after a competition with Shedeur Sanders. Since joining the Browns in 2022 on a five-year, $230 million contract, Watson has the lowest QBR in the NFL (33.1) among 50 quarterbacks with at least 15 starts, only above Will Levis. He is 9-11 as a starter with the Browns.

"We got to play better around him," Monken said. "We got to call it better, and he's got to play better."