Quarterback Battles: Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns have been on the quarterback carousal for years now. Since 1999, the Cleveland Browns have had over twenty different quarterbacks start for them, significantly more than any other team. They enter the 2015 season with two intriguing options at quarterback: veteran Josh McCown & former college sensation Johnny Manziel. While one spent his offseason in a rehab facility, the other worked hard and gained the respect of his teammates. Which one will come out on top?
Cleveland Browns
Josh McCown
McCown enters training camp as the Cleveland Brown’s number one guy on the depth chart. Offensive Coordinator John DeFilippo, who worked with McCown in Oakland, say that “He’s taken command of this offense and he’s taken command of the room. The guys respect him.” Can the same be said about the other guys on the depth chart? While the 35-year old McCown certainly isn’t the long-term option in Cleveland, he has the teams support and confidence heading into the more intensive part of the offseason.
Johnny Manziel
Who knows what to expect from Johnny Manziel. He went to rehab, moved to the suburbs. Hey, he may be a Ned Flanders type of guy now. Ok, I highly doubt that, but I give the kid major credit for doing what he did. Now on the football side, I think everyone wants to see Johnny Football do what he did at College Station at the Dawg Pound. I know I do. The guy showed no comfortability in the pocket and very little accuracy. There were even rumors of the team trying to dump him, but those have all come up blank. While he does not carry the starter nametag heading into camp, a positive self-image and some football productivity may help the former first-round picks cause.
Connor Shaw
Don’t expect to see much of Shaw in 2015. While he did start a game last season for the Cleveland Browns, he finished the season with a QBR of 14.8. The former Gamecock will, barring any injuries, begin the season as the third in line guy behind McCown and Manziel.