Can Switch to Johnny Manziel Save Browns Coach Mike Pettine's Job?

There has been a longstanding belief that Cleveland Browns head coach Mike Pettine has an aversion to starting quarterback Johnny Manziel over Josh McCown. And, for a time, this made sense—McCown has, when healthy, been outperforming expectations, throwing 11 touchdown passes to just four interceptions, completing 65 percent of his passes and boasting a quarterback rating of 95.2.

But that aversion doesn't seem to be about just McCown's performance versus Manziel's readiness to lead Cleveland's offense.

A source inside of the Browns' organization spoke to Scout.com's Lane Adkins earlier this month and revealed that "Pettine never wanted Manziel from day one," and that "Pettine plays who he wants...[and] has made some playing decisions to spite [general manager Ray] Farmer," including "the refusal to play Manziel," despite Farmer—and team owner Jimmy Haslam—putting on the pressure.

	Atts.	Comp.	Comp.%	Yds.	YPA	TD	INT	Sacks
Week 9 (@CIN)	33	15	45.45%	168	5.70	1	0	3
Week 10 (@PIT)	45	33	73.33%	372	7.71	1	1	6

But now, Manziel has been named the starter for the remainder of the season, a response not only to the ailing McCown's lack of availability over the previous two games but also to the fact that the team currently has two wins and nothing to lose, from a personnel evaluation standpoint. 

Pettine explained that Manziel earned the nod because, "the performance against Pittsburgh I think validated for us the progress that he's made, the improvement that he's shown and that he deserves this opportunity." And it's true that Manziel showed marked improvement from his Week 9 showing against the Cincinnati Bengals to his Week 10 performance against the Steelers.

In 10 days, Manziel went from completing 15 of his 33 pass attempts for 168 yards and one touchdown, to completing 33 of 45 attempts, for 372 yards, one touchdown and an interception. Though the turnover was less-than ideal, as also were the nine points the Browns scored in the loss, the leap Manziel took could not be overlooked. At least, to the point where the "gap is very small" between McCown and Manziel.

But that gap likely shrunk thanks to pressure from Farmer and Haslam and because, with every week that passes and every loss that mounts, Pettine sees his job security slipping away. Pettine's tenure now features a 9-16 record, and he presides over a team that has been outscored 277-186 this season. He was hired to fix the Browns defense, but it's only gotten worse under his command. And he's spent nearly every moment in Cleveland at odds with the powers-that-be—powers-that-be who hold far more power than he.

George Gojkovich/Getty Images

It's a stunning admission for Pettine to suddenly feel like the difference between playing McCown or Manziel at this point "is negligible," given the months upon months that Pettine has dug in his heels about McCown's starting status, reiterating how much McCown helps them "win now." And there's little chance that Manziel's performance in a blowout loss suddenly changed his mind.

No, what changed his mind is likely knowing that acquiescing to Farmer—who seems increasingly more likely to keep his job through 2016, no matter what—and Haslam is the only way he can remain in power. He can no longer be a contrary voice when his decision-making has led to such poor results. Falling in line is his only hope. 

It's not about Manziel's success or failure over the next six games. Rather, it's about Pettine's willingness to divest himself of his stubbornness and be a team player. He's ceded control in order to stay in control. Whether this works, we'll not know until the season has wrapped. But Pettine has to do whatever it takes in the name of self-preservation, so it's not surprising that he made the switch to Manziel at this point in the year.