The Land on Demand

Browns Will Try To Win In Cincinnati With Jeff Driskel, Their Fifth Qb This Season

Jeff Driskel, the first QB to start a game for both teams in the Battle of Ohio with the Bengals, can make history as the fifth quarterback to start -- and win -- a game for the Browns this season. (Cleveland Browns)

Jeff Driskel, the first QB to start a game for both teams in the Battle of Ohio with the Bengals, can make history as the fifth quarterback to start -- and win -- a game for the Browns this season. (Cleveland Browns)

Browns will try to win in Cincinnati with Jeff Driskel, their fifth QB this season

As of Wednesday, January 3, 2024

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Editor's note: Tony Grossi is a Cleveland Browns analyst for TheLandOnDemand.com and 850 ESPN Cleveland. He has covered the Browns since 1984.

Takeaways from Browns practice and interviews …

And your Browns starting quarterback for the final regular-season game in Cincinnati is …

Jeff Driskel.

Fitting, right?

In a season in which the Browns have defied the odds and won games with four starting quarterbacks, they’re going for a fifth against the Bengals in a game that has no bearing on the playoff seeding.

Driskel, 30, was signed to the 53 roster last week as insurance behind Joe Flacco and P.J. Walker as the team heads for the playoffs.

Starting him in Cincinnati was a surprise announcement made by Stefanski in his opening remarks on Wednesday.

“Jeff's a guy with the system knowledge from Arizona. It's helpful to get him out there,” Stefanski said. “P.J. Walker will be the backup. He's been great for us. He started in games and won for us, but just felt like this was the right thing to do for the team in this particular instance, to give Jeff an opportunity to show us what he's capable of as well.”

There is some historical trivia to this move.

This is the first time in Browns history they will start five different quarterbacks in a season.

They can become the first team since the 1987 Patriots to win games with five quarterbacks. In that season interrupted by a three-game players strike, the Patriots won with Steve Grogan, strike replacement players Bob Bleier and Doug Flutie, Tom Ramsey and Tony Eason. Eason was credited with the season’s final win even though he left the game in the first quarter of a scoreless game.

Driskel also becomes the first quarterback to start for both teams in the Battle of Ohio.

A sixth-round draft pick of the 49ers in 2016, Driskel wound up with the Bengals in 2018. He relieved an injured Andy Dalton in Game 12 and threw his first touchdown pass of his career, and scored his first touchdown. In Game 15, he started against the Browns in the rematch in Cleveland, and the Bengals lost, 26-18.

Stefanski would not rule out Driskel possibly heading into the playoffs as the primary backup to Flacco.

“Yeah, I’d say [it’s] fluid,” the coach said. “I’m not going to name backups for the playoffs, but definitely want to give Jeff an opportunity to get out there and see what he can do.”

Who else will not play?

Stefanski confirmed he will “rest some guys” in Cincinnati, but he wouldn’t divulge names.

“I feel like we’ve earned that opportunity with how we took care of business the previous week,” Stefanski said. “As you guys know, with roster limitations, you cannot rest everybody. So, our full intent is to go down there, play well and get a win. That’s our motivation. That’s what we plan on doing.

“I think it’s a great opportunity for some guys that haven’t had a ton of playing time to get out there. You know, throughout the course of this season, we’ve had a lot of our depth play in these games, but this is another opportunity for some guys backups and some maybe younger guys to play, and it gives us an opportunity to see them, it gives us an opportunity to see them compete.”

We won’t know the full extent of who’s not playing until it’s announced 90 minutes prior to the 1 o’clock kickoff on Sunday.

“You can’t rest everybody,” Stefanski said. “So I’m not going to go through the roster exactly who’s in, who’s out, but just know that you’ll have your inactives and then you’ll have a bunch of guys that are dressed and ready to play if necessary.

“I think it’s important for us, again, use this as an opportunity to get guys rested and healthy wherever we can. So that’s what we’re going to do at a bunch of different positions. But you still practice, you still work really hard in this building to make sure that you maintain that sharpness.”

What about Myles?

With Myles Garrett embroiled in a battle for NFL defensive player-of-the-year honors -- he trails NFL sack leaders T.J. Watt of Pittsburgh and Trey Hendrickson by three sacks – Stefanski indicated he won’t be swayed by personal goals.

“I don’t know that Myles needs to do anything more on a football field to convince anyone how important he’s been to our football team,” he said. “Said it before, I’ll say it again -- he’s the best player on the best defense in the National Football League. That counts for something. And I would say just talk to the coaches that he goes against, ask them what they think about him as a player, the type of impact he has on the game.

“So we’ll see if he plays on Sunday. But I don’t think that should be a determining factor in any way, shape or form.”

Receiver Elijah Moore returned to the practice field after suffering a concussion in the Jets game. Moore probably won't play Sunday in Cincinnati and is still in protocol. (Cleveland Browns)

 



Brownie bits

Good news on the injury front – receiver Elijah Moore (concussion) and defensive end Ogbo Okoronkwo (pectoral) returned to practice, raising hopes they might be available next week for the wild-card game. “[Okoronkwo’s] trending in the right direction. He's put in a ton of work, so it's exciting to have him back out there,” Stefanski said. On Moore, who has not been cleared from protocol, the coach said, “He's progressing well.” …

Punter Corey Bojorquez (quad) did not practice, but he said he’ll be ready and is anxious to return to the field for Sunday’s game …
The coach had no update on the availability of kicker Dustin Hopkins (hamstring) …

Cornerback Greg Newsome takes a lot of flak for over-celebrating plays by himself and his teammates, no matter the score. “Some fans hate it. Some fans say I celebrate too much, but it's whatever,” Newsome said. “That's what [defensive coordinator Jim] Schwartz loves. He loves celebrating our brother's successes, and I feel like that's one of the things about me. I love seeing my guys succeed, so I'm always going to be over there celebrating." ... 

Rodger Saffold, a 14-year veteran with experience at guard and tackle, was an interesting addition to the practice squad. Saffold made the Pro Bowl in 2022 with Buffalo, but spent the second half of the 2023 season on the Jets practice squad. He’s a native of Bedford.

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