Don't be fooled or suckered in by false hope. The Cleveland Browns will end up going with Johnny Manziel at quarterback for the 2015 season. No amount of low-quality free agent QB signings will change that. "Josh McCown is unlikely to be a difference-maker," according to Scott Kacsmar of Football Outsiders and anyone who watched actual NFL football last year.
Even though Manziel began his offseason with rehab, he will end it as the likely starter for the Browns.
That means the team absolutely has to add talent to the wide receiver position.
"Part of the problem for Cleveland is it rarely gives the quarterback a competent set of skill position players," Kacsmar wrote. "The team's best receiver, Josh Gordon, is already suspended for the entire 2015 season."
The Browns have been linked to Lousiville wide receiver DeVante Parker in the NFL draft. That would be a fantastic pick. But the Browns should also go out and sign a wide receiver in free agency as well. ESPN NFL Insider KC Joyner things that receiver should be Jeremy Maclin.
"The Browns were able to put together a fairly good vertical passing offense last year (2,078 vertical yards, ranked 10th) despite not having top-level wide receivers," Joyner wrote. "Downfield production is Maclin's specialty, as he ranked seventh in the league in vertical receiving yards last year (849). Adding him to the roster could keep Cleveland at or above its 2014 vertical production pace."
Why would Maclin want to play for the Browns who have been marred in dysfunction for all of eternity? Well, the team has around $55 million in salary cap space, according to spotrac.com, meaning it can afford (and is probably willing) to overpay Maclin by a wide margin on the open market.
With few viable alternatives, Manziel will probably be the starter in Cleveland for the foreseeable future. To at least try and make it work with him, the Browns will have to bring in pass-catching talent. Maclin may not make Manziel into Tom Brady overnight, but he'd be an upgrade over everyone else on the roster at the moment.
