The Denver Broncos added injury to insult in their Week 12 victory over the Cleveland Browns, knocking out rookie quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson with a head injury.
Concussions are circumstantial in both their severity and their impact on each individual player, which means the Browns again face serious questions about their starting quarterback — an unwanted phenomenon that became an unfortunate theme for Deshaun Watson throughout the first half of the 2023 season.
“Thompson-Robinson was diagnosed with a concussion and ruled out,” Camryn Justice of News 5 Cleveland reported on Sunday, November 26. “That is an injury that has the potential to linger and require the Browns to once again address their quarterback situation.”
Cleveland’s options to add a player under center have grown thin, but former Browns third-round draft pick Colt McCoy remains available and should be the organization’s first phone call Sunday night.
Browns Face Issue with P.J. Walker, Joe Flacco as Top 2 QBs
GettyQuarterback P.J. Walker of the Cleveland Browns.
Cleveland signed 38-year-old quarterback Joe Flacco to the practice squad on November 20 and will likely elevate him to the active roster for their Week 13 road contest against the Los Angeles Rams.
Flacco might even start in LA after Browns backup P.J. Walker was abysmal once again, this time in his role as a replacement for Thompson-Robinson. Walker finished the game against Denver 6-of-13 for 56 yards, fumbling twice and losing one of those in the process. He also took a safety against the Broncos defense.
At 7-4, the Browns are in third place in the AFC North Division but remain very much in the hunt for the playoffs. However, Flacco and Walker might legitimately contend for the title of worst 1-2 quarterback punch in the NFL — depending on whether Flacco plays in Week 13 and how he would look against the Rams.
As a result, the Browns must add another QB if it seems at all possible that Thomson-Robinson will miss real time. Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill would be a great option were he available, but he would need to negotiate his release from Tennessee to give Cleveland a chance to make that happen.
Carson Wentz signed with the aforementioned Rams in early November, rendering McCoy arguably the best free agent option remaining for Cleveland. That he has a history with the franchise is a bonus.
Colt McCoy Had Moderate Success with Cardinals Over Past 2 Seasons
GettyQuarterback Colt McCoy, formerly of the Arizona Cardinals.
The Browns selected McCoy in the third round of the 2010 NFL draft (No. 85 overall). He started 21 games in Cleveland over the next two years, earning a record of 6-15. The Browns demoted McCoy to the backup spot in 2012 before ultimately trading him to the San Francisco 49ers the following year.
McCoy has bounced around the league since, most recently playing on a two-year, $7.5 million contract with the Arizona Cardinals. He played the first season of that deal before the Cardinals released him and has earned a 3-3 record as a starter in Arizona over the previous two years.
McCoy has not taken a snap anywhere in the NFL in 2023, though he had a workout with the Minnesota Vikings in early October. The 37-year-old QB has tallied 7,975 passing yards, 34 touchdowns and 32 interceptions over the course of his professional career.
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Browns Must Reunite with $7.5 Million QB After DTR Injury