Johnny Football era with Browns is imminent
BEREA, Ohio — The switch at quarterback for the Browns appears inevitable this week.
Johnny Football may be about to take over Cleveland’s offence.
After Brian Hoyer played poorly again in Sunday’s loss to Indianapolis, Browns coach Mike Pettine seemed to be on the verge of giving rookie Johnny Manziel his first NFL start against Cincinnati.
“I think it’s natural to lean the other way, given the results,” Pettine said Monday. “I still want to make sure we do our due diligence and talk to everybody involved.”
Pettine was unclear on if he had already decided to make the change and promote Manziel, the high-profile backup who came off the bench and replaced a struggling Hoyer in the fourth quarter two weeks ago in Buffalo. Pettine, who stuck with Hoyer last week because he had the Browns in the playoff mix, said he wants to meet with his coaching staff and general manager Ray Farmer before telling both quarterbacks and announcing who will face the Bengals.
Pettine said the offensive problems in Sunday’s game were deeper than the quarterback, but he called the Browns’ passing attack “sub-standard.” Pettine cited dropped passes, receivers running wrong routes and execution as factors but that Hoyer has to play better.
“There are clearly some throws that he missed, but I think it was also exaggerated by how poorly we were in the pass game around him,” Pettine said. “We always say it, ‘A quarterback is only as good as his supporting cast.’ When the guys around him play well, Brian will play well. It’s rare that there’s a quarterback that can transcend his supporting cast.
“We’re in a results business. We’ve lost two in a row. We all know what the numbers have been in the pass game. For us to be successful, they need to improve.”
The Browns (7-6) blew a 14-point lead in the third quarter when Hoyer and Cleveland’s offence failed to get a first down in three straight series.
Pettine said Manziel would “absolutely” be ready if called upon to make his first start. Pettine said nothing is giving him pause to go with the first-round pick.
Hoyer’s free fall has been striking. He has thrown just one touchdown pass and eight interceptions in the past four games.
“It’s crazy how fast things change,” said Hoyer. “I feel like four or five weeks ago we’re talking about contract talks and now we’re talking about if I’m even going to be staying here. It’s the furthest thing from my mind right now.”