Why Brandon Weeden Will Bring Out Best in Colt McCoy

Although it wasn't surprising to see the Cleveland Browns select Brandon Weeden at No. 22 overall in the 2012 NFL Draft, it does bring a quarterback competition to one of pro football's worst offenses.

Fortunately, whichever quarterback ends up under center has the luxury of feeding Trent Richardson the rock and utilizing his presence for play-action. This then, is where Weeden's addition comes into play regarding the ultimate potential of Colt McCoy.

The Browns did need to bring in a quarterback that could—at the very least—challenge McCoy for the starting role. To that end, here's a few looks at why Weeden brings out McCoy's A-game for Cleveland.

Competition

Take Brandon Weeden out of the equation and it's basically a foregone conclusion that Colt McCoy begins the 2012 season as the Browns' starting quarterback. The addition of Weeden, however, will now test the complete skill set of McCoy to retain his job.

No one ever improves without taking on greater challenges, so we can also look at the selection of Weeden as a win-win situation for Cleveland. On one side of the coin, McCoy will up his game and really display his true ability.

On the other side, McCoy fails to match Weeden's preseason production and the Browns begin anew under center. Either way McCoy, the Browns and their fans will have an answer under center for the 2012 season.

Thereafter is the next concern, because McCoy's development leads into his NFL future.

Development

Despite his unimpressive production, McCoy has played well for Cleveland with the lack of weaponry around him.

The Browns don't present one receiver that can consistently beat single coverage and before Richardson, the running game was inconsistent at best. Fortunately for McCoy, he has the NFL experience factor over Weeden to really develop in 2012.

Weeden obviously is good competition for McCoy, and Richardson in the backfield creates a more balanced offense. McCoy has the advantage over Weeden in taking snaps under center, so play-action becomes more dangerous.

McCoy's mobility also bodes well for Cleveland's lack of pass protection (aside from Joe Thomas). And, after throwing for over 2,500 yards with 14 touchdowns to just nine picks through the first 12 games of 2012, his decision-making is worth noting. 

We also have to remember that McCoy is only entering his third season, so there's still time to grow. Expect McCoy to enter training camp motivated to develop even more at making pre-snap reads, scanning through progressions and looking off safeties.

McCoy's starting role is on the line and proving development will potentially land him another opportunity for 2013.

Own Future

Considering that he's only turning 26 early in the season, Colt McCoy has a lot of football left in him. By that token, he's not only competing for the Browns' starting quarterback job in 2012, but potentially an evaluation for future reference.

In selecting Brandon Weeden in Round 1, Cleveland created a needed quarterback competition to see what McCoy has in the tank. Well, he already possesses a solid cognitive approach to the game and has as much toughness as any quarterback in the game.

This preseason and regular season can be related to a realistic job preview for McCoy. Regardless of how Weeden performs, McCoy must play well to keep his NFL starting hopes alive. Right now, if the Browns were to trade him he wouldn't start no matter which team tangoed with Cleveland.

A strong performance in 2012 ,however, displays continued—albeit improved—development and promise. Failing to challenge to competition of Weeden will simply but McCoy on the back-burner and no one will be interested in him for 2013.

John Rozum on Twitter.