Brian Hoyer, QB, Browns
When: 11 a.m. Sunday against the Pittsburgh Steelers at FirstEnergy Stadium in Cleveland.
Brian Hoyer is the quarterback who isn’t letting JohnnyManziel play. Last week against the Tennessee Titans, Hoyer led the Browns to a remarkable comeback from a 28-3 deficit on the road by throwing for three touchdowns in a 29-28 win. It was the largest road comeback in NFL history. Hoyer has led the Browns to a 2-2 record, with the losses at Pittsburgh (30-27) and at home to Baltimore (23-21).
Hoyer grew up a football and baseball prep star in Cleveland. He attended Michigan State, where he had an undistinguished career, throwing nine TD passes and nine interceptions as a senior. But the New England Patriots saw something and signed him as an undrafted rookie in 2009. He was Tom Brady’s backup for three years. He received his first real opportunity to start last year for Cleveland and went 3-0 for a team that finished 4-12. But in his third start, he suffered a torn ACL and missed the remaining 11 games of the season.
Hoyer is handling Johnny Football much better than Kyle Orton dealt with Tim Tebow in 2011. Then again, there’s not nearly the public outcry to play Manziel in Cleveland as there was for Tebow in Denver. It helps that Hoyer is a Cleveland product. It also helps that he has six touchdown passes and just one interception through four games. It also shows thatManziel’s stardom isn’t nearly as dynamic as Tebow’s. Hoyer’s performance this year has limited Manziel to one incomplete pass. If nothing else, Hoyer has humbled a kid in desperate need of humbling.