After a poor performance in Sunday’s loss to the Washington Redskins, the fickle football fans of Cleveland now want the head of quarterback Brandon Weeden. They are ready to write him off after just 14 games.
Some people even went as far to say that the rookie from Oklahoma State should have been benched in favor of Colt McCoy in the last home game of the season.
Think about that for a second. If the Browns coaching staff thought McCoy was better, he would start. They, after all, watch both of them everyday in practice.
Still, Weeden deserves the chance to be the starter next season for many reasons. One, he was a first round draft pick, and although he hasn’t lit it up like fellow rookies Andrew Luck, Robert Griffin III, and even third round selection Russell Wilson, he hasn’t been god awful either.
He should get a chance to put what he learned during his first year into practice.
However, the biggest reason he should get another opportunity to start is to play in a better and more creative offensive scheme than the one run by his current head coach, Pat Shurmur.
While it is true that Weeden hasn’t set the world on fire with his play this season, it looks to us that he is similar to another passer who played in Cleveland recently.
No, not Derek Anderson, who most fans compare Weeden to because both have “big arms”, but his play and demeanor remind us of McCoy.
The major complaint about McCoy last season was that he checked down a lot and didn’t take shots down the field. Weeden can throw deep, but doesn’t, mostly because the coaching staff seems reticent to do so.
Both quarterbacks looked like they were afraid to make mistakes, something that obviously has been drilled into them repeatedly by Shurmur. There is a time and place to take chances in the passing game. Protecting the football is certainly important, but being ultra conservative on offense doesn’t score points, and not scoring points leads to losses.
Statistically, Shurmur’s offense has always been a dink and dunk attack.
In his two years as the Rams’ offensive coordinator, St. Louis ranked in the bottom three in the NFL in average yards per attempt. Last year, with Shurmur serving as both head coach and coordinator, the Browns ranked 30th in the league.
This year, Cleveland ranks 23rd, mostly because of the long passes Weeden has hit on with WR Josh Gordon, as well as Sunday’s bomb to Travis Benjamin.
In addition to the quarterback, the offense doesn’t help the running backs either. Most of the formations are so tight in design that the defense doesn’t have to cover the entire field. Do you think that helps Trent Richardson and Montario Hardesty?
Both high draft picks deserve the chance to play in an attack that spreads the field a little bit before making judgments as to whether or not they can be All Pro caliber players in the NFL.
It was remarkable to watch Washington on offense because they seemed to play to reserve QB Kirk Cousins’ strengths. That’s what coaching is. Looking at the talent of your team and developing a plan which gets the most out of them.
It’s tough to say Pat Shurmur’s offense gets the best out of anyone. Seriously, what player thrives in this scheme?
No matter who the Browns’ next head coach is, and we assume the current coach will not be back in 2013, he should see what Brandon Weeden can do in a real professional offense before making a change.
There is no problem with bringing in a veteran for competition, in case the 29-year-old passer can’t thrive in any offense. Weeden still deserves a chance to play in a system that successful teams run, not as offense that doesn’t spread the field, doesn’t spread the defense, and for the most part, doesn’t score points.
JD
Cleveland Sports Perspective 