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Browns coach Kevin Stefanski names Joshua Dobbs as backup QB

profilephotocropby:Suzanne Halliburton•08/24/23•

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joshua dobbs
Phil Masturzo / USA TODAY NETWORK

Joshua Dobbs, the former Tennessee star, won the competition to back up Deshaun Watson with the Cleveland Browns.

Coach Kevin Stefanski confirmed the Browns quarterback depth chart on Thursday. There was no competition for first string. That job belongs to Watson, who is ready to play his first full season since 2020.

Cleveland waived former Texas A&M standout Kellen Mond, who kicked off the preseason on the second-team offense. The Browns signed him a year ago after the Vikings cut him loose. Mond started the Browns’ first preseason game.

Rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson, the dynamic dual-threat quarterback from UCLA, earns a spot on the third team.

“I think, obviously, we’re excited about that entire room,” Stefanski said of the quarterbacks. “Just speaking to DTR, he’s coming along. He’s making great strides. We’re excited about his future. And just the focus for him and all our guys is to continue to work.

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“Going into week one, you look at your depth chart and you just want guys to continue to grow and get better because as you all know, there’s times that guys are unavailable due to injury or otherwise So, it is a constant striving to get better.”

Joshua Dobbs started two games late last season when he played for the Titans. Tennessee used him after an injury to Ryan Tannehill. He’s played for five teams, including the Steelers, which drafted him. (Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Unio / USA TODAY NETWORK)

Joshua Dobbs has played for five NFL teams since he left the Vols after earning MVP honors of the 2016 Music City Bowl. The Steelers selected him in the fourth round of the 2017 NFL Draft. He split his time last season with three teams — the Browns, Lions and Titans.

In fact, he started two games late in the season for Tennessee. It was a homecoming of sorts for the quarterback, given that he also played in Knoxville. His first career start came against the Cowboys. He completed 20 of his 39 passes for 23, with a touchdown and an interception in a 27-13 Titans loss. He also started the next game against Jacksonville with a playoff berth on the line. Dobbs played well. But near the end of the game, a sack led to a 37-yard fumble return for the winning touchdown.

The Browns signed him again back in March. But either Joshua Dobbs or Kellen Mond was going to get cut, given that the Browns liked what they saw from Thompson-Robinson.

Cleveland finishes the preseason, Saturday, with a game against the Chiefs.