Johnny Manziel Back as Cleveland Browns’ Starting Quarterback

Manziel had taken over as the starting quarterback and looked good, throwing for 372 yards and a touchdown in a Week 10 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Austin Davis started against the Bengals after Josh McCown suffered a broken collarbone in the previous game. Head coach Mike Pettine may name his starter as soon as Monday, ahead of a favorable Week 14 matchup with the 49ers.

Pettine lauded Davis’ poise and confidence in the first start of his Browns career and ninth overall. In fact, they are onto their third starting quarterback of this season, and their fifth since 2014. It was a commendable performance, but not enough for Pettine to guarantee giving him another start next week against San Francisco. Not everyone in the front office was on board with Pettine’s decision to discipline the QB.

Bengals TE Tyler Kroft secured his lone target for 17 yards in Sunday’s Week 13 win over the Browns. “I just think it is human nature when things don’t go well, I think, everyone has a tendency to bunker in and get into that mode when things aren’t going well”, Pettine said. Brian Hoyer struggled and instead of making the move to Manziel the Browns stuck with the veteran journeyman who they knew would not return for the 2015 season as their quarterback. Browns removed Manziel, a fan favorite, from the sidelines as disciplinary action.

“We have to make sure that we stay very clear headed with it. Like I said before, it goes back to an accurate assessment of what our problems are”.

Davis went 25-of-38 for 230 yards with no touchdowns and an interception against the Bengals. With four games left in this death march, why not just throw the troubled quarterback out there to generate the slightest dose of intrigue?

“This”, linebacker Paul Kruger said, “was a bad game”.

It isn’t just the 37-3 loss to the Bengals at FirstEnergy Stadium the Browns wide receiver was talking about, either.

Expect to see him show flashes of brilliance, but he has to figure out how to take care of the football before he can become a legitimate starting NFL quarterback.

After facing the 49ers, the Browns travel to Seattle and Kansas City, where Manziel will face two of the noisiest crowds in the league.