Browns name DeShone Kizer starting quarterback for Week 8
The Cleveland Browns are sticking with DeShone Kizer.
The team announced on Twitter on Wednesday morning that Kizer, who has been benched by coach Hue Jackson twice this season, will nonetheless start against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday in London.
Kizer, a 21-year-old rookie, was replaced by Cody Kessler in the third quarter of last week's loss to the Tennessee Titans after completing 12-of-20 passes for 114 yards and two interceptions. He was also benched earlier in the season in favor of Kevin Hogan.
After Sunday's game, Kizer fielded questions about video footage obtained by a local TV station showing the rookie at a downtown Cleveland bar early Saturday morning.
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"When you become the centerpiece of a distraction for a week, it definitely is very frustrating on my part," Kizer told ESPN on Monday. "That is not who I am. My mother wouldn't be proud of this. That is pretty much the biggest takeaway is do whatever you can to make sure that you are not a distraction."
Jackson said Tuesday that he believed Kizer would grow from his recent struggles on the field but he, and the rest of Cleveland's quarterbacks, need to do a better job protecting the ball.
"We have to do it much better, and I think we all know that the majority of the ones that are critical are in the scoring zone, and we have a chance to score the ball,” Jackson told reporters. “Not only are you not getting opportunities to score points, but you are giving the ball to the other team where they now have an opportunity to score points. It is a double-whammy for us."
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