Despite checkered NFL past, Brandon Weeden just might keep Cowboys afloat
The Cleveland Browns won five games in Brandon Weeden's lone year as a full-time NFL starter, though his position coach during that 2012 season can rattle off other times the then-rookie gave them a chance.
"The Dallas game in overtime. And in Indianapolis, he threw a touchdown pass that got dropped. And he had another touchdown pass get dropped against Baltimore at the end of the game," former Browns quarterbacks coach Mark Whipple told Paste BN Sports on Tuesday.
"He can make those throws and in pressure situations. That was why I always believed in the kid. If he gets hit in the pocket, he's not going to flinch. And he can deliver a firm, catchable ball."
Hours before the Dallas Cowboys, Weeden's current team, added another veteran quarterback option Tuesday by acquiring Matt Cassel from the Buffalo Bills, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones expressed similar confidence about Weeden in a radio interview, telling KRLD-FM in Dallas that Weeden is "a thing of beauty on throwing the football. … Frankly, you won't see a more gifted passer."
That may seem wildly overoptimistic about a player with 27 touchdown passes, 28 interceptions and a 73.4 passer rating in 29 NFL games. In 21 starts, Weeden's record is 5-16. But any evaluation of his chances for keeping the Cowboys afloat in place of Tony Romo, who landed on short-term injured reserve Tuesday and will miss at least seven games with a broken collarbone, requires explanation of how Weeden ended up in this spot.
A former minor league baseball player, Weeden entered the NFL as a 28-year-old rookie. The Browns drafted him 22nd overall three years ago, though they'd hoped to get wideout Kendall Wright with that selection and intended to take Weeden in Round 2. When the Tennessee Titans picked Wright ahead of them, the Browns pounced on Weeden rather than risk losing him, too. Along with that draft's No. 3 overall pick, running back Trent Richardson, and receiver Josh Gordon, a supplemental pick, a tortured franchise felt it had an offensive nucleus for years to come. With the elevated expectations that come with being a first-round pick, Weeden was named starter before his preseason debut.
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But despite a three-game winning streak late in the 2012 season — Cleveland's first since 2009 — the team ended the year with three consecutive losses. New owner Jimmy Haslam cleaned house, replacing retiring president Mike Holmgren, coach Pat Shurmur and general manager Tom Heckert with Joe Banner, Rob Chudzinski and Michael Lombardi, who in his role as NFL Network analyst had called the drafting of Weeden a "panicked disaster."
"I think (Weeden) got caught up a little bit because we all got fired, and then he got a new system," said Whipple, who's now head coach at the University of Massachusetts.
Weeden's thumb injury in Week 2 of the 2013 season started a cycle of changes. Richardson was traded to the Indianapolis Colts. The Browns went 4-12, and Haslam fired Chudzinski and Lombardi. Banner stepped down. Amidst the chaos, a backhanded Weeden pass that was intercepted by the Detroit Lions had become a symbol of his tenure. Fans had turned, and Weeden's confidence may have waned. His agent, Sean Howard, asked for Weeden's release.
The Cincinnati Bengals and Baltimore Ravens called about Weeden after he cleared waivers, Howard said, but they took a two-year, $1.24 million offer from Dallas, where veteran backup Kyle Orton was mulling retirement. Weeden's only start last season was a 28-17 loss to the blitz-heavy Arizona Cardinals, who intercepted him twice and didn't give up a touchdown on defense until there was 1:08 to go. The deep passing game was ineffective. His numbers (18-of-33 for 183 yards) were padded by that final drive.
But Jones echoed his coaches in the radio interview by saying Weeden has progressed substantially. His perfect performance in relief of Romo — 7-for-7 for 73 yards, including a 42-yard touchdown on a slant to wide-open Terrance Williams just before getting creamed by a blitzer — in last weekend's victory over the Philadelphia Eagles seems to back that up.
This is the first time Weeden has been in one system for consecutive years dating to his days at Oklahoma State, which lost coordinator Dana Holgorsen to West Virginia between Weeden's two seasons as starter there. Weeden, who will be 32 next month, gets more reps than most backups, thanks to Romo sitting out Wednesday practices.
It's not ideal to step in with all-pro receiver Dez Bryant sidelined by a foot injury and the running game searching for an identity entering Sunday's game against the Atlanta Falcons. But the offensive line is one of the NFL's best, tight end Jason Witten is reliable, Williams has ability and the defense has been rock solid and will soon get reinforcements when suspended Greg Hardy and Rolando McClain return in October. Not perfect, but it beats Cleveland, which has used four quarterbacks since Weeden left and is waiting out Gordon's latest drug suspension.
Cassel, the 33-year-old journeyman, will need time to pick up the offense. Weeden's chance to give the Cowboys a chance starts now.
"We texted yesterday. I'm really happy for him," Whipple said.
"I think he showed what he can do in the Philly game with the numbers. He can make all the throws. He's a talented guy and a really good person. I think he'll do fine."
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Follow Tom Pelissero on Twitter @TomPelissero
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