QB Obsession For Browns By Media is Out of Control.

We’ve reached a new record with the Cleveland Browns in terms of the sports talk industry.

Yesterday, we heard hosts and fans discussing the 2016 NFL Draft in terms of what quarterbacks are available, even before one game of the 2015 NFL regular season has been played.

Craziness.

The media and some fans are simply obsessed with the position of quarterback, making it the end all, be all, regarding success of a pro football team.

Isn’t Atlanta’s Matt Ryan a very good NFL QB? The Falcons went 6-10 last season.

New Orleans’ Drew Brees once led the Saints to a Super Bowl title. Yet, his team went 7-9 a year ago.

On the other hand, Andy Dalton has led Cincinnati to the playoffs each of the last three years, and the Bengals went 10-5-1 in 2014.

The Houston Texans used Ryan Fitzpatrick, Ryan Mallett, and Case Keenum as quarterbacks last season, and that squad went 9-7.

Is having a good quarterback important for a football team? Of course. Does it guarantee success in the NFL? No. Does not having one doom your team to a 3-13 record? It does not.

We have even heard some talk show hosts suggest the Browns should tank the season so they can get their franchise passer in next spring in the draft. Here is a list of QBs taken in the top five picks in the draft over the last 10 years–

2014–Blake Bortles (#3 overall)
2012–Andrew Luck (#1 overall)
2012–Robert Griffin III (#2 overall)
2011–Cam Newton (#1 overall)
2010–Sam Bradford (#1 overall)
2009–Matthew Stafford (#1 overall)
2009–Mark Sanchez (#5 overall)
2008–Matt Ryan (#3 overall)
2007–JaMarcus Russell (#1 overall)
2006–Vince Young (#3 overall)
2005–Alex Smith (#1 overall)

Out of those 11 signal callers, how many would you call an elite player? Certainly, Luck qualifies, and Ryan would certainly be in our list of the top ten quarterbacks in the NFL.

And you can make an argument that Newton and Stafford should be in that group as well.

That means four out of 11, (36%) of passers drafted in the top five become very good players. Not exactly a reason to throw away a season.

Two of these guys (Russell and Young) can be considered out-and-out busts, while Smith and Sanchez would probably be placed in the “journeyman” category. Griffin and Bradford have been hampered by injuries throughout their career, and it is too early to evaluate Bortles.

What kills us is the Browns know they need to upgrade the position, but unfortunately, the NFL isn’t going to cancel the season until they do, nor does the team want put its fans through a 2-14 season either.

So, they are trying their best to minimize the amount of influence the quarterback has to the team’s success.

We have documented before that when the Browns get decent play from their QB, they can win football games. That was certainly on display last year, when Brian Hoyer led Cleveland to a 7-4 start, before he started turning the ball over on a regular basis.

We are also not claiming that Josh McCown is going to be the second coming of Johnny Unitas nor that Johnny Manziel will be the next Brees.

If the Browns get lucky, they will get average, decent play out of the position.

However, we aren’t going to obsess about not having Aaron Rodgers or Ben Roethlisburger either.

Slowly but surely, we think the Cleveland Browns are building a very good football team. Their roster is in far better shape than it was three or four years ago.

That should be the story going into this season. As Gene Hackman said in Hoosiers, “we hope you judge us on who we are, rather than who we are not”.

Browns Have Other Needs Than QB, Take Care of Them

Just think, a week from now, it will all be over.

You might think we are talking about the Cavs’ first round series against the Boston Celtics, which may be over later this afternoon.

No, we are talking about the NFL Draft and the northeastern Ohio football fan’s annual rite of passage, trying to figure out what quarterback the Browns should go after so they can start qualifying for the playoffs.

We get so absorbed into this and the perceived need for a QB, that people lose sight that you need a complete team to win the Lombardi Trophy.

What do these quarterbacks have in common: Drew Brees, Matt Ryan, Eli Manning, Colin Kaepernick, and Alex Smith.

All would probably be considered in the top half of signal callers in the game, but none of them played in the playoff after last season.

This is not to say the Browns don’t need help at the QB spot, but first, they need to see what Johnny Manziel can do, because six quarters isn’t enough evaluation time, and second, they have other needs to fill.

That’s why it is ludicrous to us to consider trading both first round picks for another rookie quarterback.

You probably will wind up with a player who can’t start in the first game of the season, but you also lose the opportunity to add two players who could.

The conversation on sports talk shows regarding getting a passer border on desperation.

In the past week, we heard hosts excited by a scout saying the basement for Heisman Trophy winner Marcus Mariota is Smith, the former first overall pick, who has turned into a serviceable player in Kansas City.

However, if that draft were held today, Smith wouldn’t be the first player chosen, because he’s not a great player.

There is also continued talk about dealing one of the Browns’ first round selections for Sam Bradford, a guy who has played seven games in the past two seasons. While we would be interested in Bradford, that kind of price is simply too high.

We realize it is the silly season.

Rumors about the Browns trading for a quarterback appear daily, because the national perception is that the franchise will do anything to get one.

And there is no question that Cleveland needs a great QB, a lot of teams do. Unfortunately, wanting Jameis Winston and Mariota to be one, doesn’t make them one.

We were asked earlier this week what we want the Browns to do this Thursday night. Our reply was to stay right where they are at #12 and #19, and pick two players who can start and help this football team in 2015.

That said, if you could move a first round pick for a proven top ten quarterback in Philip Rivers, we would consider that, because he’s proven to be quality player.

But we don’t think San Diego will move him, so it’s a moot point.

GM Ray Farmer needs to get help to defend the run, a huge weakness for the Browns in 2014, and they need a difference maker in the front seven. Someone the offense needs to account for.

And although Paul Kruger had a good season last year, Cleveland still needs a dominant pass rusher.

They also need offensive line help, a tight end, and wide receivers. Players who could help the Browns in those area will likely be there when Farmer picks on Thursday night.

Let’s hope the Browns’ front office understands this and doesn’t let their quarterback envy show.

Just be smart, not spectacular.

Fans Split on Manziel, Shouldn’t That Say Something?

A week from today, the first round of the NFL Draft will be history. What will we debate about then?

In Cleveland, it seems about half of Browns’ fans will be ga-ga if GM Ray Farmer selects Texas A & M quarterback Johnny Manziel with the fourth overall pick next Thursday, while the other half will be relieved. Doesn’t that say everything about picking the former Heisman Trophy winner?

If this were two years ago, and Andrew Luck and Robert Griffin III were possibilities for the Browns, don’t you think a majority of the team’s supporters would be on board with the choice? Of course.

The NFL talent gurus are also split on taking Manziel. He’s a huge risk, at least that’s the opinion of many of the folks who judge college players coming into the National Football League.

The main questions about the former Texas A & M quarterback are his size and his style of play, which some people consider reckless, too reckless for the NFL. Certainly, Brett Favre was considered a passer who played fast and loose with the football, and carved out a pretty successful career in professional football.

He will be enshrined in Canton some day soon.

As for the size, most of the QB’s supporters talk about New Orleans’ Drew Brees and Seattle’s Russell Wilson, who have both piloted teams to Super Bowl victories as proof shorter quarterbacks can succeed in the league.

However, neither player was selected in the first round, let alone in the top five choices. And although Wilson is a good player, and a great leader, putting him in the discussion of great quarterbacks seems to be a bit of a stretch.

When was the last time a quarterback who measured in at around six feet tall was picked in the top ten selections of the draft?

The answer: It has been 13 years since Michael Vick was selected first overall by Atlanta in 2001.

What has been the wrap on Vick throughout his career? He can’t stay on the field.

This isn’t to say that Manziel will have a similar career path as Vick, but it does explain why many pro scouts are reluctant to say he should be picked in the first five selections next Thursday.

Other bigger quarterbacks get hurt too, and Brees and Wilson have both been durable throughout their NFL careers. But the thing is, neither was a premium selection. If you are picking in the top five, you have to feel you are getting a great player who is going to start in his rookie season and be a mainstay for your team for many, many years.

As for the Browns, even though they finished 4-12 last season, they did have six players who received Pro Bowl recognition, and added two more, S Donte Whitner and LB Karlos Dansby who merited All Pro status last season.

They have to believe they are ready to win in 2014, and are they better off filling the holes they have on the offensive line, wide receiver, inside linebacker, and in the secondary with their first few picks next week than drafting a passer who seems to be risky?

Farmer and new coach Mike Pettine can look in their own division and see Andy Dalton, who has led the Bengals to three straight playoff apperances, despite not being one of the league’s best QBs. They also see the current Super Bowl champion Seahawks, who were led by a strong defense and running game in route to hoisting the Lombardi Trophy.

We still maintain that the Browns certainly need a quarterback, but in this year’s draft, there isn’t one worth picking in the top five. Add more talent, and see who is available in the second and third rounds.

You may just find another Brees or Wilson.