Buried in Baltimore: Could Troy Smith Fill the Cleveland Browns' Void at QB?

With the 140th pick (fifth round) of the 2007 NFL Draft, the Cleveland Browns select, Quarterback Troy Smith, from The Ohio State University.

This was Troy Smith’s dream as he waited to hear his name called on draft day 2007.  Instead, the Cleveland native and Heisman Trophy winner from The Ohio State University watched as team after team passed on him on draft day. 

Then with that same 140th pick in the draft, the Browns selected Brandon McDonald. 

Browns fans could have been spared future agony twice in the same day if the draft went Troy’s way.

Instead, the Baltimore Ravens selected Troy Smith with the 174th pick (also in the fifth round) that day, and placed him behind Steve McNair and Kyle Boller on their Quarterback depth chart.

The 2007 season was one of disappointment for that Baltimore Ravens team, as they finished with a record of 5-11.

As the season progressed, the team realized that McNair was aging, and that Boller was NOT the answer at Quarterback.  It was during this time that Troy Smith began to shine.

In four games as QB for the Ravens in 2007, Smith compiled 452 yards passing on 76 attempts.  He threw for two touchdowns and had a passer rating of 79.5. 

These statistics, along with a stellar performance in camp, are what won Troy Smith the starting QB job for the Ravens in 2008, ahead of first-round draft pick Joe Flacco. 

His time as the starting QB for the Ravens was short-lived after he came down with a sickness that would knock him out of play for weeks.  In this time, Joe Flacco took the starting reins and has never looked back.

Since this time, Troy has been looking for a place to fit in, and not just as a wildcat quarterback.  He has proven he can make the throws, lead an offense, and be the leader that a starting quarterback can be.  But the question is where?

After formally requesting a trade from the Ravens this off-season, many people have been wondering where exactly Smith could fit in the NFL. 

I have heard rumors of Oakland, Buffalo, and now Arizona with the departure of Kurt Warner.  My suggestion: bring him to Cleveland.

This may seem like a homer call.  I will not deny that I am an Ohio State fan and a huge Troy Smith fan.  In fact, I may be a little biased when wanting Troy to come to Cleveland.  But, let’s look at the stats:

·         Quinn: 14 games, 353 attempts, 1902 yards passing, 52.1% comp, 10 TD, 9 INT, 66.8 Rating

·         Smith: 14 games, 89 attempts, 558 yards passing, 53.9%, 3 TD, 1 INT, 79.7 Rating

Troy’s 6.3 yards per attempt would actually give him over 2200 yards of passing if he had as many attempts as Quinn. 

Troy would also end up with around 12 touchdowns and four interceptions if you figure in his ratio of one touchdown every 29.6 attempts and one interception every 89 attempts.

While these numbers are not eye-popping, they do provided an instant upgrade over the lack of an arm that Quinn has to offer if Holmgren feels that he is not a fit for his offense.

I am not saying that Troy Smith is destined to be a hall of fame quarterback.  What I am saying is that his body of work, while it has not been a large amount of work, has shown to be promising. 

He just fell victim to a series of unfortunate events that led to a first-round pick performing how a first-round pick should in Baltimore.

In Cleveland, we have not had a decent quarterback since we came back in 1999.  You can view my analysis of Cleveland quarterbacks here: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/320786-off-season-job-number-one-stability-at-quarterback

Derek Anderson gave us a glimpse of what a quarterback could be in 2007.  However in 2008, he regressed to the desolate, poor excuse for a passer that Cleveland Browns fans have been accustomed to for a long time.

With Anderson’s roster bonus looming, and the probability for him being released going up by the day; the Browns need to find an answer, a possibility, even some life to compete with Brady Quinn for the starting quarterback position.

With Troy Smith being a restricted free agent and demanding a trade, what would be the harm in giving him the opportunity to win what should have been his job to compete for in 2007?

A combination of Brady Quinn, Troy Smith, and a veteran backup could provide to be a low-cost, high reward situation for the Browns for 2010. 

If the team has no intentions on addressing the quarterback position in the lack-luster class of 2010; Smith could provide the option that we need.

There’s a buried bird in Baltimore, and only Mike Holmgren has the right opportunity for him to be saved.