There's a saying in the football world that goes something like, "If you have [insert number higher than one] quarterbacks, you really have no quarterbacks." Well, the Cleveland Browns have four quarterbacks. Nobody knows which of them will get to start when the 2017 season begins, nor which will finish out the year.
Browns coach Hue Jackson said this weekend that there'll be a competition between Cody Kessler, Brock Osweiler, Kevin Hogan, and rookie DeShone Kizer. Kessler, who started eight games last season, will get the first shot at the first-team reps.
"They will all get reps," Jackson said, per Pro Football Talk. "Obviously, Cody will start this out. He deserves the opportunity to. Brock [Osweiler] is here and Kevin [Hogan] is, too, but [rookie DeShone Kizer] is going to get reps. The only way to get better is to get reps. I will find a way. I have been through this before a few times. We will get these guys reps, and he has to get some because I have to continue to evaluate him."
While he's going to give each of the quarterbacks an opportunity to work with the first team, Jackson made it pretty clear that Kessler is in the lead and that anyone who wants the job will have to snatch it away from the 2016 third-round pick.
"They have to take it from him," Jackson said. "They better take it from him because I know him -- he is not going to give it up. It will be fun. That is what competition is all about. Until someone takes something from someone and shows that they can do it at a high level play in and play out, then we have to keep going in the direction where we're traveling."
That's an interesting turn toward Kessler from Jackson, who at the NFL combine talked about wanting quarterbacks that are at least 6-foot-2. Confronted with a question about how he explains the drafting of Kessler, who is 6-foot-1, Jackson simply said, "You play with the hand that's dealt you."
