Preseason not enough to open or close gap between Hoyer, Manziel By Kevin Lange The Cleveland Browns’ failing attempt to win the game with a two-point conversion in the final seconds against the Washington Redskins seemed to be the least important storyline in this 24-23 Redskins preseason win Monday night on ESPN. Before unleashing the major points of discussion, this must be noted. Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III looked to be in full stride and up to standard with new head coach Jay Gruden’s newly installed offense. Griffin looked solid through the majority of the first several drives he worked, completing six-of-eight passes for 112 yards and rushing for 24. Both drives ended abruptly, the first on an aborted toss to Alfred Morris in the backfield, the second on an underthrown bullet to the sideline for an interception. But other than a couple botched plays, his presence in only a couple drives early on spoke for itself. Griffin’s back. The bigger story seems to be the quarterback issue for Cleveland. Well, for decades it’s been an “issue” but not until now is this the “bigger story.” And since when was Monday ever in the same sentence as the Browns? Thus, we have the brand new 2014 season in which brand new Browns rookie Johnny Manziel brings the hype, the ticket and jersey sales—oh, and some controversy. And we still don’t even know if the kid is a starter yet. His competition, five-year NFL quarterback Brian Hoyer (three of them under Tom Brady) seemed to have been the favorite to start Week 1 in September. Manziel was said to have been closing the gap in practices, and this, as odd as it sounds, truly didn’t open or close the gap. Hoyer had seven drives about as brief as elevator conversations and the outcomes of those drives told us of the fluctuation of the Hoyer/Manziel battle about as much as a mime could have. Through his first three drives, he’d thrown three passes. Zilch for three. He ended the night two-for-six for 16 yards with four wobbly incompletions. “Probably couldn’t have been any worse,” Hoyer openly admitted. “It’s disappointing, it’s embarrassing. We started off poorly and it never really changed after that.” Manziel went 7-for-16 for 65 yards, a touchdown pass, and rushed for 17. He had a couple glimpses of starter quality in his scoring drive, and then neutralized himself back to his original position as slightly below Hoyer on the depth chart with an ill-minded, heat-of-the-moment middle finger gesture to the Redskins’ sideline after an incomplete pass alongside a crowd of Washington players jawing who-knows-what at him. Browns head coach Mike Pettine said it “surprised” him when told that Manziel did that because he’d “kept composed all game.” It goes to show how one second of backlash can throw a night’s worth of good opinion out the window. “It does not sit well,” Pettine said, exhaling deeply as though unimpressed. “It’s disappointing. We talked about being poised, focused, and being able to maintain your poise. That’s a big part of all football players. Especially the quarterback. That’s something we’ll obviously address with him.” Despite the dismay, Manziel addressed the issue maturely and straightforward. “I felt like I did a good job of holding my composure throughout the night, and yet you have a lapse of judgment and slip up,” Manziel said. At the end of the day, it doesn’t erase the memory now engraved in Pettine’s mind as he weighs his options for the to-be-determined leader of his offense. Neither does Hoyer’s performance, for that matter.
Posted on: Tue, 19 Aug 2014 06:20:25 +0000
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