The Browns have named Johnny Manziel the starting quarterback for the rest of the season, which should have been a no-brainer since, at 2-8, the team was going nowhere fast. One correct decision from head coach Mike Pettine now forces a second, equally important one to be made.
The Browns must change their offense to suit Manziel’s skills, or else this decision will be a failure.
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The Browns have talked about Manziel needing to develop as a pocket passer, and brought up examples such as Drew Brees and Russell Wilson to illustrate how shorter quarterbacks have succeeded as pass-first players. Manziel, however, has never profiled as a traditional quarterback. Most of his Heisman excellence at Texas A&M stemmed from his running ability, and even at the pro level his highlights have often come on broken plays.
Manziel, a first round pick, may well be Cleveland’s quarterback of the future, but only if they are committed to helping him help them. If Pettine and his staff plan to run the same offense Josh McCown was running, Johnny Football may as well begin packing his bags. Manziel is at his best throwing on the run, so rollouts and bootlegs should be the norm. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing; it’s unconventional, and adds a wrinkle defensive players are not used to. He doesn’t have elite arm strength, but he’s shockingly accurate on the move, so the Browns must not stifle that.
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They must also increase the role rookie running back Duke Johnson plays in the offense. He has been involved plenty this year, but Johnson must now be the primary back. His pass-catching will help bail Manziel out of jams, and his elusiveness will be critical in the middle of the field when Manziel draws defenders out of position when they try to seal the edges.
Comments like the ones Pettine made last week, however, are worrisome.
"The realization is that he's going to have to understand where to move in the pocket to create some throwing lanes. When you study a Drew Brees, you can see that he's not a scrambler but he has great sense in the pocket as far as where to move in relation to who he's throwing to and where the potential throwing lane would be.”
It’s important that Manziel develops his pocket awareness, but it’s more important that he not be shoved into a box where he does not fit. The Broncos did this with Tim Tebow, and chugged to the playoffs with the NFL's most rugged running game in 2011 following a 1-4 start. The Browns drafted a unique player, and now must run a unique offense. Otherwise, what's the point?
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