Another week, another quarterback decision looming for the Cleveland Browns.
Browns head coach Mike Pettine admitted that much Monday. As for whether a change is coming this week after Pettine stuck with incumbent Brian Hoyer last week, Pettine offered a hint but did not commit to anything.
At his usual late-afternoon Monday press conference, Pettine said he would meet with both Hoyer and rookie Johnny Manziel "in the coming hours" and wouldn't comment any further "because I haven't spoken with the players involved."
Pettine admitted it's "natural" to consider a change after Hoyer struggled for the fourth straight game Sunday. The Browns lost to the Indianapolis Colts, 25-24, in the final minute but scored just one offensive touchdown. Hoyer posted a quarterback rating of 31.7, his lowest of the season.
Last Monday, Pettine admitted talk of change was "warranted" but decided on Tuesday to stick with Hoyer and informed both players of his decision on Wednesday. Pressed about how he'll handle it this week and when word of his decision will come, Pettine said he's "not going into specifics of private meetings" and said "we'll go out there Wednesday and practice with who our starter is."
Last week, Pettine said he needed to meet with his coaching staff and general manager Ray Farmer before making a decision.
Manziel has played in three games, but his only extensive action came in two series in the fourth quarter in Buffalo Nov. 30 after Hoyer was pulled for ineffectiveness. Pettine said after the Colts game he didn't consider a quarterback change and Monday said he didn't change quarterbacks because it would be "extremely rare" to pull a quarterback whose team was leading.
"I'm not going to go back and second guess anything," Pettine said. "That's time wasted."
