Cleveland Browns 'probably' looking for a starting quarteback

It's the offseason, so that means the Browns could be changing signal callers yet again.

INDIANAPOLIS - It’s another offseason in the NFL, and that means the Cleveland Browns are in search for a starting quarterback.

At the NFL Scouting Combine, Browns head coach Mike Pettine said it’s "probably accurate" that the team is looking for a new starter to compete with Johnny Manziel.

Manziel, one of last year’s two first-round picks for the Browns, started just two games for the Browns last season. He couldn’t beat out starter Brian Hoyer for much of the season, and did little when he did get playing time.

The issue for the Browns now is that Manziel checked himself into rehab in January and Hoyer is a free agent. So when Pettine says it’s "probably accurate" the team finds a starting quarterback, that could just as easily mean bringing back Hoyer as it does drafting a quarterback.

Regarding Hoyer, Pettine said the door is still open. Hoyer played 14 games for the Browns this season, helping them get off to a 7-4 start. He finished the season with 3,326 passing yards and 12 touchdowns, but his play dropped off as the Browns struggled to a 7-9 finish.

The Browns are expected to meet with Hoyer’s agent this week, according to the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

There are perhaps more questions about Manziel as the team’s starting quarterback considering his small size in the NFL.

"You just look at the uncertainty of where he (Manziel) is and just given the small sample size we still don’t know, based on what he was going through, if he’s the answer," Pettine said. "There’s too much unknown. I’d obviously be scared if we had a game this weekend."

The solution could be finding a starting quarterback in the first round this year. The Browns currently have picks Nos. 12 and 19. That gives them more ammunition than any other team to trade up and target either Jameis Winston of Florida State or Marcus Mariota of Oregon.

"It’s a position we’re well aware of where our depth chart is and we’ll look to address it in the coming months," Pettine said.

The one good thing for the Browns, though, is that they should be well-versed in changing quarterbacks.

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