The Cleveland Browns quarterback competition is officially underway once again and this time it is a battle to see who returns to the team rather than who earns the starting spot. Currently, Johnny Manziel is the only quarterback under contract for the Browns as Brian Hoyer is set to become a free agent in the coming months. Owner Ray Farmer told the media that every option is on the table in terms of the future of the position and Hoyer certainly has strong leverage if he wants to return to Cleveland in 2015.
Hoyer led the Browns to a 7-5 record, but several weeks of struggle pushed the veteran to the bench in favor of Manziel. At that point, it seemed incredibly unlikely that Hoyer would return in 2015 as head coach Mike Pettine made it clear that Cleveland was preparing to move forward with Manziel as their quarterback over Hoyer. With an expiring contract Hoyer made it clear he only wanted to play for a team that would allow him to truly compete for the starting role. That may be the Browns more so than people think.
"Brian Hoyer did some good things for us this year, and at the end of the day his future is in his hands,'' said Farmer, via the Cleveland Plain Dealer. "He has decisions that he needs to make. If he wants to be back, that leverage is definitely in his court to make that happen. Assuming that we could agree to that deal, then that opportunity's available. If we can't come to that agreement, then he obviously would not be back. There's a lot of work to be done in that regard.''
Hoyer has hinted that he might be interested in returning to the Browns, something that would greatly factor into their draft plans. Right now, the Browns have been reportedly interested in packaging their two mid-first-round draft picks in favor of the No. overall pick for a quarterback. Farmer noted the Browns would not hesitate to take a quarterback in the first round if they felt it was the best move for the team. However, if Hoyer were to re-sign, that move would seem like a waste.
"In this business, you never say never to anything,'' Hoyer said. "Obviously, I'm from here and my wife's from here, my kids are here. It would be a great scenario for me to stay here, but you also want to be wanted back and that's not up to me. Whether it's here or somewhere else, I want to go where I put myself in the best situation at this point in my career. I don't know where that is at this moment."
