Johnny Manziel Named Starting QB for Cleveland Browns

by Anthony FalcoDecember 9, 2014, 4:49 pmNews >

It appears that Coach Mike Pettine has finally made the change from Brian Hoyer to Johnny Manziel. After Monday’s press conference, there has been rampant speculation that Pettine was leaning towards Manziel for Sunday’s division game against the Cincinnati Bengals: he stated, “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 have to improve… [Referring to the QB switch] I think it’s natural to lean the other way, given the results. I still want to make sure we do our due diligence and get a chance to talk to everybody involved with it.”

After starting the season 7-4, the Browns have lost two straight: even with the winning record, Hoyer has struggled the last five games, with one touchdown, eight interceptions and a passer rating of 57.7. So after the latest loss to the Indianapolis Colts, it is not surprising to see Pettine going back to the drawing board: with the Bengals at 8-4-1, the Browns are hoping to make one final push for the playoffs.

So according to Fox Sports’ Jay Glazer, Manziel will have his first career start Sunday. But Johnny Football has seen limited play before: with majority of his snaps coming during the Browns’ loss to the Bills two weeks ago. There the young QB replaced a struggling Hoyer and went five for eight, with 63 passing yards and a rushing touchdown: hardly ground breaking stats, but it certainly injected some needed life into the Browns’ offense.

Only time will tell if the Browns made the right decision drafting the young hot head with the 22nd pick: but it is nice to write about something other than Johnny’s off the field antics. At the same time, it does not appear that the Bengals are worried about the quarterback switch. When asked about it yesterday, Bengals Coach Marvin Lewis stated, “You gotta go defend the offense. You don’t defend the player. Particularly a midget.” He has since apologized for his comments: but it has only added fuel to the fire, creating more reasons to watch Manziel’s first start.