Cleveland Browns should not sign Nick Foles

The Cleveland Browns may still have an unsettled quarterback situation, but recently released Nick Foles is not the answer.

The Cleveland Browns did not do it this time. The “Only in Cleveland” moment goes to the Los Angeles Rams for releasing Nick Foles.

Apparently Foles requested the release and agreed to a reduced amount of guaranteed money in 2016 to make it happen. However, in March, Foles received a $6 million dollar roster bonus. You read that right, in March the Rams paid Foles $6 million because he was still on the roster. Even at that time, it was clear Foles would enter camp backing up Case Keenum. And they paid him $6 million anyway!

After the Rams paid Foles the roster bonus, they still released him four months later. Only in Cleveland, except this was in Los Angeles.

These are the kinds of decisions that are made when a team’s quarterback position is unsettled.

The Foles saga began when the Rams leapfrogged the Cleveland Browns in order to draft Jared Goff with the first overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft. At that point, Foles, much like Sam Bradford in Philadelphia, had a decision to make. Would he compete for a starting job this season against the number one overall pick? Or would he see the writing on the wall, real or imagined, and request a release? Foles chose to take less money in order to be released.

Foles’ lack of competitive spirit in the face of adversity is exactly why the Browns should not sign him. In fact, the Browns should run, not walk, as far away from Foles as possible.

However, there are those in the media who believe that Foles offers the Browns an upgrade over their current quarterback candidates. Sean Wagner-McCough of CBSsports.com ranks each teams from least to most likely to sign Foles. He ranks the Browns as the seventh most likely team to sign Foles:

"They’re not in a win-now mode so it doesn’t really make sense to grab a “meh” quarterback. But you can’t say Nick Foles couldn’t beat out RG3 and Cody Kessler."

Robert Griffin III and Cody Kessler both would absolutely beat out Foles.

Last season Foles had a quarterback rating of 69.0 while completing 56.4 percent of his passes and throwing seven touchdowns against 11 interceptions. At 27 years old, Foles is as finished of a product he is going to be. He is who he is.

In comparison, Griffin had an 86.9 quarterback rating while completing 68.7 percent of his passes, with four touchdowns against six interceptions in nine games in 2014. Griffin will be 26 heading into the season and the Browns are hoping that Griffin is not yet a finished product.

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Josh McCown, even at age 37, is a better option than Foles. Last season, McCown had a 93.3 quarterback rating while completing 63.7 percent of his passes, with 12 touchdowns against four interceptions. He is far ahead of Foles, even this late into his career.

Kessler’s numbers stack up well against Foles as well. At USC, Kessler had a 151.7 quarterback rating while completing 66.8 percent of his passes, with 29 touchdowns against seven interceptions. He was one of the higher-ranked quarterback prospects heading into the 2015 NFL draft, but his decision to stay at USC combined with a down year hurt his draft stock. And the Browns are happy recipients of that decision.

Although Kessler’s numbers are against NCAA opponents, they do suggest that he has the potential to be a highly accurate quarterback who can make smart decisions. The Browns need a guy who can distribute the ball, and Kessler can do that well. Yet, as a rookie, he has a lot of room to grow and improve as an NFL quarterback.

Add it all up, and there is no legitimate reason the Browns should sign Foles.

The Browns are in a rebuilding mode, looking to get younger and shed mid-level veteran contracts. Foles is the definition of a mid-level veteran who would probably sign a mid-level contract. No thanks.

He does not upgrade the quarterback room, as all three quarterback options for the Browns are better than Foles.

Next: The Browns should pass on Devin Hester

Finally, Foles lack of competitive spirit in the face of adversity is the exact opposite of what he Browns are working so hard to build.

Foles will land somewhere as a veteran backup. It just needs to be somewhere other than Cleveland.

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