Brian Hoyer is MMQB Offensive Player of the Week

Sometimes when you go to watch a movie with very little expectations you end up being surprised by how much you like it. The opposite, about a very hyped movie being disappointing, is also often true. So is it today with the Cleveland Browns and Brian Hoyer.

Very few had expectations that the Browns would win against the Saints. The Saints were expected to compete for the Super Bowl in the tough NFC but are now 0 – 2. The Browns were expected to need another year before they could compete. Hoyer was expected to hold on to the starting job for 3 games before handing over the reigns of the team to rookie Johnny Manziel.

Instead this morning Hoyer was named Offensive Player of the Week by Peter King in his weekly MMQB article (New Window):

"Offensive Player of the WeekBrian Hoyer, quarterback, Cleveland. The numbers were okay: 24 of 40, 204 yards, one touchdown, no picks, an 81.7 rating. But the significance of this win, and the two second-half drives Hoyer executed to break an awful streak of losing nine straight home openers, cannot be overstated. Particularly for a Cleveland kid who grew up wanting to play for the Browns. Down 17-16 late in the third quarter, Hoyer took the Browns 80 yards in 14 plays to give his team a 23-17 lead. Down again, 24-23, with 2:48 left in the fourth quarter, Hoyer took a crew of backup skill players another 80 yards in 14 plays, and Billy Cundiff converted the winning field goal with three seconds left. “It’s a day I’ll never forget, obviously,” Hoyer said."

Much like that movie you didn’t think would be good, the expectations on Hoyer helped him win this award. While Hoyer struggled early in the game, especially throwing off his back foot a few times, taking the Browns on 2 big drives late in the game is what a winning QB has to do. The stats aren’t the best, and somewhat surprising that Hoyer threw the ball 40 times in a close game.