The Josh McCown sweepstakes are finally over and it looks like the Cleveland Browns are the big winners -- or losers, depending on your point of view. The team announced Friday that McCown has agreed to terms on a three-year deal.
The 35-year-old quarterback had also been in negotiations with the Bills.
McCown was cut by the Buccaneers two weeks ago after only one season with Tampa Bay. The 35-year-old quarterback struggled in Tampa, going 1-10 in 11 starts.
Depsite McCown's struggles in Tampa, Browns general manager Ray Farmer said his team is excited to have McCown.
"Josh is your consummate professional," Farmer said in a statement. "He's known to be a great guy in the locker room and will be great for the quarterback room. He knows how to get an entire offense on the same page and get a team to rally behind him. ... We are excited to get him and believe he will help continue to move us in the right direction and help us build the type of team that will bring winning football to Cleveland."
Here are three things to know about McCown's signing.
1. Will Josh McCown be the starter in Cleveland? It wasn't a complete surprise to see McCown sign with the Browns, but it was a surprise to see the Browns give McCown a three-year deal. The veteran quarterback will be 36 when the 2015 season kicks off and would be 38 if he sticks around for the duration of the deal.
Playing quarterback in the NFL at age 38 isn't easy; just ask Peyton Manning. The Browns likely don't expect McCown to be their starter for the next three years, but they do probably view the veteran as someone who will be a good mentor for Johnny Manziel.
For 2015, there's a good chance we'll see McCown start at least one game. If Manziel comes out of treatment and still struggles on the field, the Browns will know they have a veteran to turn to in McCown.
It also helps that McCown is familiar with new Browns offensive coordinator John DeFilippo. DeFilippo was the quarterbacks coach in Oakland in 2007 when McCown started nine games for the Raiders.
The best part of this signing for Browns fans is that if you didn't throw away your Luke McCown jersey from 2004, you can wear it this year and no one will know the difference. Yup, Josh McCown's brother Luke was a starter for the Browns in 2004. Browns fans will be hoping that Josh has slightly more success than Luke, who went 0-4 in four career starts in Cleveland.
The other good news for Josh McCown is that he'll get his name under his brother's on the jersey below.
Browns QB jersey owners @BrokawInc take vote, fans decide to keep tradition going http://t.co/VBdvKy7xuO pic.twitter.com/PBWHpmLfLe
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) February 4, 2015
We're getting close to the point where there are more names on the jersey than there are people living in Cleveland.
If McCown does win the starting job, he'll need to be better than he was in Tampa, where he threw 14 interceptions and only 11 touchdowns last season. The play below basically sums up McCown's one season with the Buccaneers.
2. What does this mean for Johnny Manziel? From a confidence standpoint, competing with Brian Hoyer for a second straight season probably wouldn't have been good for Manziel.
The Browns bringing in McCown basically puts Manziel in a win-win situation. No one knows what Manziel's mindframe will be when he gets out of treatment, but if he's ready to compete for the Browns' starting job, McCown is someone he'll have a good chance of beating out.
On the other hand, if Manziel gets out and struggles on the field, the Browns can move forward knowing they have a capable starter in McCown, a player who can also mentor Manziel, if Manziel is open to it.
When he agreed to sign Friday, McCown sounded like a guy ready to embrace any role.
"I just want to serve our team and help everybody in that locker room, do my best to help everybody in the locker room be better at their job and they're going to help me, too. It's a two-way street," McCown said. "I'm just excited about coming in and being a part of a team. Year 1 was a solid first year for Coach [Mike] Pettine, and to see the vision with what he's got going on is exciting to me. In my room, I want to be able to help those young guys and pass along my knowledge and experiences I've had and help them grow."
McCown seems like someone who's happy playing the mentor role, unlike Hoyer, who wanted no part of being anyone's mentor and only wanted to be the team's starting quarterback.
3. What does this mean for Brian Hoyer? I'll let CBS Sports NFL Insider Jason La Canfora handle this one, but McCown's signing basically means Hoyer can probably go ahead and put his house in Cleveland up for sale.
Josh McCown signing in Cleveland just the latest sign Brian Hoyer will not be back with his hometown team in 2015
— Jason La Canfora (@JasonLaCanfora) February 27, 2015
The three quarterbacks currently under contract in Cleveland are McCown, Manziel and Connor Shaw. The Browns will likely add a fourth quarterback through free agency or the draft, but there's almost a zero percent chance that quarterback will be Hoyer.
