It was another tough day in Berea as Browns coach Mike Pettine spoke to the media about the teams 5th loss in seven games in 2015, a 24-6 loss to the Rams in which his starting quarterback was beaten up badly by the Rams defense.
Josh McCown left Sunday’s game with a shoulder injury, and now the big question is will he be healthy enough to go Sunday when the Browns play host to the Arizona Cardinals, who are playing on Monday night football tonight against the Baltimore Ravens.
Pettine said flat out that if McCown is healthy enough to take the field against the Cardinals, he will.
“If our starting quarterback is physically able to play, will we play him? Yes,” Pettine said.
It’s been a day of talking about the QB spot on most of the sports talk and TV shows, as many are starting to lean towards wanting to see Johnny Manziel get time under center for the orange and brown.
McCown is 1-5 as a starter this season, losing all but the game against the Ravens even though he’s played well, even winning the AFC Offensive Player of the Week award after the overtime win in week five against Baltimore.
With that though, it might be time to see what Manziel can finally do on a full-time basis, and not just in a mop up role or playing for McCown due to injury.
While the fans may want it, Pettine isn’t of the same opinion that it’s time for a change. Many more games like yesterday and Pettine won’t have a choice on if McCown can go or not.
“You can’t have your quarterback go through a game like that,” Pettine said Monday.
“I don’t care if he is Josh’s age or if he is 23. It is not good business. You have to protect your quarterback, and a big part of that is what I have said in here a thousand times is that you have to get ahead of the sticks.”
McCown said himself Monday that he feels the team is still heading in the right direction despite the loss, and that he feels the team can get back on track against the Cardinals on Sunday at First Energy Stadium.
“I feel great about our chances of bouncing back,” McCown said.
“There’s no flinch in any of us. I think we understand things happened yesterday and the corrections that we need to make, and we’ll bounce back and move forward. I think everybody has full confidence in one another and our abilities to do that.”
There’s also the issue about Manziel having to meet with the NFL over the incident that took place in Avon a few Monday’s back between him and his girlfriend that has been widely discussed.
Pettine said Monday that it shouldn’t effect Manziel in terms of preparation for Sunday’s game in terms of practice in getting ready for Arizona.
“We will be informed of it” Pettine said of any impending meeting from the NFL. “I am sure that they are certainly mindful of what our schedule is. I am confident that we will be able to work around it.”
For now McCown is listed as ‘day-to-day’ after the rough outing against St.Louis.
No matter what anyone else wants, Pettine seems determined on staying with McCown if he can go, and fans will continue to have to wait for Manziel’s time to be under center in a situation other than for injury.
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