The Cleveland Browns aren't exactly the envy of the NFL when it comes to the current state of their quarterback position.
Rumor has it that Johnny Manziel - former first-round pick and petulant party animal/man-child - thinks it would be entirely unfair for the team that drafted him to give up on him so quickly, despite his unbelievably poor play and the fact that he provided absolutely zero indication that he was ready to be a starting - let alone winning - quarterback in the NFL.
And Brian Hoyer, journeyman, leader and tough, professional, athletically-limited veteran, is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent in March.
Meaning there are a number of pieces in play - or potentially in play - for general manager Ray Farmer and the Browns at the game's most important position, but nothing that seems to even resemble a sure bet or reasonably expected winner at the moment.
Farmer said today that with the current dumpster fire of a quarterback situation he is facing - and despite Manziel's promise to be less of an entitled idiot in the future - he wouldn't hesitate for a second to use a first-round pick on a signal caller in next April's draft.
"Nope, I would not," Farmer said Tuesday during his season wrap-up news conference, according to Nate Ulrich of the Beacon Journal. "I would not hesitate to take whoever I thought could help this football team and move us forward. The goal is to win."
Unfortunately for Farmer, the Browns are slated to draft 12th and, barring a major move upward, won't be anywhere within reach of the top quarterbacks available, Oregon's Marcus Mariota and Florida State's Jameis Winston.
Farmer also admitted that, while the team still has high hopes for Manziel - who managed 18 completions on 35 attempts for 175 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions in about seven quarters of work this year - they're not counting on him to be the starting quarterback heading into next season.
"He'll be given every opportunity to contribute and compete, and he'll also have to compete against guys that could be draft choices," Farmer said of Manziel. "They could be free-agent selections. They could be [found under] any number of stones that we overturn to try to find the right guy to bring in here to improve our roster."
One of those stones may again unearth Hoyer.
"He loved Cleveland and he loved the fans, his teammates," Hoyer's agent Joe Linta said Tuesday, according to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN. "He would have no problems coming back as long as it's a fair competition."
Hoyer, who started 13 games for the Browns this season, finished with 242 completions on 438 attempts for 3,326 yards, 12 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. Not the best overall stat line, but he was also able to produce where it counts the most - the win column - leading the team to a 7-4 record and the postseason conversation.
Hoyer, along with Philly signal-caller, Mark Sanchez, will headline a crop of wholly uninspiring free agent quarterbacks.
He's a veteran and he's limited, but he also has a combination of potential upside, a pretty positive recent track record and relative youth that most of the other available guys - Michael Vick, Matt Hasselbeck, Jason Campbell - don't. Farmer and the Browns may have to make a serious financial bid - something akin to overpaying - to retain his services.
Despite a promising start to the year, Hoyer, then Manziel - much like the Browns season - ultimately faltered, leaving fans in Cleveland to spend another offseason wondering what's to become of their beleaguered franchise.
If Farmer is to return the Browns to the playoffs and the NFL's elite, he'll have to start by fixing a quarterback situation that is at the moment, frankly, a complete and utter mess.
