The Brandon Weeden era, which comes back like a zombie on the rampage, should be done forever after Jason Campbell’s solid performance against the last unbeaten team in the NFL, the Kansas City Chiefs.
Campbell’s statistics were a very respectable 22 of 36 passing with 293 yards, two touchdowns, and most importantly, no interceptions. For those of you keeping track. Brandon Weeden was the starter, and the Browns lost. Brian Hoyer takes over, and the Browns win three in a row. Weeden got back in, and the Browns went back to losing. Although the Browns lost today, they looked miles ahead of where they did the past two weeks.
Really, the Browns won’t be losing anything by moving on from the short-lived Brandon Weeden era. At 30 years old, Weeden isn’t a young player, but he lacks experience and talent. That won’t fly for long in the NFL, and barring more injuries at the quarterback position, he won’t be seeing the field as a starting quarterback any time soon.
In reality, the most impressive part about the Browns’ offense against the Chiefs was their ability to move the ball without a running game. The entire team’s fate was put on the shoulders of Jason Campbell. He was able to rise to the occasion. Unfortunately, the rest of his team couldn’t do the same.
Still, at 3-5, the Browns aren’t completely out of the AFC North race. If the Bengals stumble, the rest of the division will all have the opportunity to play catch up. Now that the Browns once again appear to have found a quarterback worth running their offense, they may actually be set up to make a run.
Regardless of how the rest of the season shapes up, the Browns will have serious questions concerning their quarterback position. Obviously, Weeden is out, but Hoyer was exceptional in the role, and early returns are good from Jason Campbell. The Browns could spend an early draft pick on a young, unproven rookie, or they can move forward with the guys they already have. For Campbell, the rest of the season is a glorified job interview.
