Brock Osweiler will take the field as the starter for the Browns’ first preseason game, but there’s plenty left to sort out.
BEREA, Ohio – Brock Osweiler will get the starting nod when the Cleveland Browns open the preseason on Thursday night.
But it’s preseason — way too early to cast anything in stone. Especially when it comes to Browns quarterbacks.
It’s still very possible that impressive second-round pick DeShone Kizer could still wind up with the top job as a rookie. And incumbent starter Cody Kessler might reclaim the job, too.
Yet for the moment it’s Osweiler, a development which in itself is significant. Talk about rising stock. Remember when the Browns obtained Osweiler from the Houston Texans in March? His presence in the trade seemed like the B-side of a Moneyball exchange. Cleveland was more excited about the second-round pick it received, and gladly absorbed Osweiler’s fat contract to get it.
Now look at him.
“This league gives you opportunities, ” Osweiler told reporters on Monday. “Sometimes you don’ t know when they are going to come. The key is making the most of that opportunity.”
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The last opportunity, with the Texans, didn’ t quite work out as Osweiler was benched on the way to the NFL’s second-lowest passer rating (72.2) of any qualified starter in 2016.
The pace of Kizer’s development could be the X-factor for Osweiler’s chance. The rookie has drawn praise for his mental game, and he’s hardly lacking physical skills. He needs to demonstrate more consistent accuracy and handle the twists that pro defenses will throw at him.
Kizer seemed to take the news in stride that Osweiler will line up first against the New Orleans Saints.
“Everything that I have been doing up until now is to try to develop and become the best quarterback I can, ” said Kizer, who started two seasons at Notre Dame. “Whenever my number is called, I will go out there and perform the way I know how to.”
Maybe Kizer will wind up as the franchise quarterback the Browns have lacked for years. Injuries forced coach Hue Jackson to start three quarterbacks last year – the fourth consecutive season the Browns started that many behind center.
The numbers can be tough to swallow. Since 2013, Cleveland has started nine different quarterbacks. Since the franchise was revived in 1999, the tally is 26.
Osweiler (or Kizer) could be on track to become No. 27. But first things first. Osweiler, who started the week looking to practice with the starters for the first time, will likely play a limited number of snaps. Kessler will be the second thrower in the rotation, followed by Kizer.
“My mindset and how I approach things isn’ t going to change, ” Osweiler said. “There was once a coach that told me, ‘Be the same guy every day.’ That is what I have always tried to do, whether I was the backup or the starter. That is what I’ m going to continue to do. Nothing is going to change, just the group I’ m working with.”
He’ d better be careful in declaring that nothing will change. When it comes to Browns quarterbacks, things always seem to change in one way or another.
Follow Jarrett Bell on Twitter @JarrettBell .
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