Josh McCown can lead team to first win Sunday
If Cleveland Browns quarterback Josh McCown is able to return to action this Sunday against the New York Jets, the Browns may be able to pick up their first win.
The Cleveland Browns may need to hold off on starting a fourth quarterback in eight games, as Josh McCown has returned to practice and could potentially play this Sunday.
This is great news, as Cody Kessler continues to sit out after suffering a concussion this past Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals.
If McCown is declared unable to go, rookie Kevin Hogan will get a start for the Browns, adding to the painfully long list of starters since 1999. But hopefully it will not get to that point.
Assuming McCown, easily one of the top-five toughest players in the league, is able to go Sunday, this Browns offense should find a sense of stability not seen since the first quarter of Week 2 against the Baltimore Ravens. The Browns put up three touchdowns in that quarter, only to struggle the rest of the game after McCown was driven straight into the ground.
That quarter was the only real high point of this entire season, as McCown will be returning to a team approaching the realm of hopelessness, as this week’s game against the Jets appears to be the last winnable game on the schedule, at least on paper.
Not all the blame can be put on all the quarterbacks who have lined up under center this year, but none of them have done much to make a major difference. McCown was the only one, but his sample size when actually healthy is too small to make a fair judgment.
But he is returning at the perfect time, as the 2-5 Jets head to town with Ryan Fitzpatrick at quarterback, who just won his job back after Geno Smith went down with a knee injury last Sunday. Fitzpatrick is known for turning the ball over, and if the defense can not allow over 250 rushing yards again, fans should actually be in for an enjoyable game.
No one on the roster is more capable of working with the young receiving corps than McCown, so expect to see the ball distributed more to the rookies, with Ricardo Louis and Rashard Higgins having big days.
The actual threat of the deep ball will help open up the run game, meaning a quarterback won’t be leading the team in rushing for a second week in a row. That is, unless the legend of Kevin Hogan makes a return in the read-option game.
Next: Will McCown make his return Sunday?
There has been no official announcement on if McCown will indeed be the starter, but all signs point to that happening. So after five tough losses featuring four players lining up at quarterback, expect things to go back to normal this Sunday. Well, as normal as a 1-7 record can be.