Brian Hoyer Holds the Cards in Browns' Contract Talks

In the NFL, leverage rarely falls to a player. Teams are more than happy to move on from practically any player in order to save money, save face or simply because a previous administration preferred him while the current one does not. Power, in the NFL, generally skews toward teams and ownership. Players can always be replaced.

But something curious is developing between the Cleveland Browns and free-agent quarterback Brian Hoyer, their starter for the 2014 season. Suddenly, it looks like the Browns need Hoyer more than he needs them—which would explain Hoyer's comments last week at an autograph signing session in Cleveland.

Though Hoyer, via The Cleveland Plain Dealer's Mary Kay Cabot, said that a return to the Browns is "definitely up on the top of the list," citing his love of his teammates and the coaches (who remain), he noted that "at the same point, I want to make sure I make the best decision for me at this point in my career, and my family. I'm going to take my time and make the best decision possible."

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Still, there are some questions he needs answered by the Browns before he commits to returning. At the top of the list is the context of the texting scandal surrounding general manager Ray Farmer and the abrupt resignation of former offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan.

Hoyer had this to say on Shanahan and quarterbacks coach Dowell Loggains' departures, per Cabot: "I think what happened at the end of the season speaks for itself with Kyle [Shanahan] and Dowell [Loggains]. I mean, you don't just leave a job to leave. So to say that I was unaware I think I'd be lying to you, but to the extent, I had no idea. I'm just as interested as all of you to see what happens."

On Farmer's texting to the sidelines, he said, "To read the stories and see what's going on, I'm just as interested as you guys are to see where that comes out, especially because when you read it, it has to deal with the quarterback situation and play-calling. That's something that could affect how I feel about it."

Year	Games	Starts	Win-Loss	Atts.	Comp.	Comp.%	Yds.	TD	INT	Sack	Y/A
2013	3	3	3-0	96	57	59.4%	615	5	3	6	6.4
2014	14	13	7-6	438	242	55.3%	3,326	12	13	24	7.6
Total	17	16	10-6	534	299	56.0%	3,941	17	16	30	7.4

Hoyer is coming off a two-year, $1.965 million contract that paid him $1.25 million in 2014. Though Hoyer eventually wound up on the bench in favor of rookie Johnny Manziel, he does hold a 10-6 record for the Browns. And given the state of the quarterback position, not just in Cleveland but around the NFL as a whole, he could be in line for a marked rise in salary once free agency begins in March.

That the Browns aren't the only team desperately and immediately in the market for a quarterback means Hoyer holds more cards than he would have had he faced this situation 12 months earlier. Not only is the free-agent quarterback class thin in 2015, so is the draft class.

Beyond Hoyer, the only established quarterbacks hitting the free-agent market this year are Mark Sanchez and Michael Vick. The rookie class is even more dismal—Steve Doerschuk of the Canton Repository noted last week that NFL Network draft expert Mike Mayock does not have glowing professional comparisons for rookie prospects beyond the big two, Marcus Mariota and Jameis Winston.

The Browns vowed repeatedly to "leave no stone unturned" in their hunt for a quarterback, but most of those stones this year are small or have been turned repeatedly by other teams searching for an answer at the position.

Suddenly, Hoyer becomes the team's best option—he's been there for two years, has a familiarity with the players and at least at one point had the full trust of the coaching staff, if not the front office.

Still, the situation in Cleveland is such that it may not benefit Hoyer to accept a new contract. The two sides have discussed a new deal, according to ESPN.com's Jeremy Fowler, and it's possible those talks could advance during this week's scouting combine, a traditional time for contract extensions and re-signings to be hashed out between teams and players' agents.

But Hoyer knows that there are unanswered questions in Cleveland about the direction of the offense and why exactly it had to change course from how it was structured last season. And unless he can get satisfactory answers to those questions, he won't be back with the Browns in 2015. 

Hoyer can get a shot to start for a number of teams hungry for a positive change at quarterback. He knows this, and he's said it himself, per Cabot:

"

For me, I've proven that I can win in this league as a starting quarterback... I've shown that I can be a winning quarterback in this league. Especially at this point in my career, I want to go somewhere, whether it's [Cleveland] or wherever it might be, that I'm going to be able to have a chance to be on the field.

"

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So, instead of Hoyer having to prove to the Browns that he can yet again compete for and win their starting quarterback job, the Browns have to prove to Hoyer that he's wanted and they can financially make his return worth his while. Circumstances in the NFL could make Hoyer a hot commodity, a subject of a bidding war. He doesn't need to beg for his old job back.

That is why Hoyer chose to be so candid about his misgivings regarding the changes the Browns have made, particularly on the offensive coaching side of the ball and regarding what could be a lack of faith in him because of Farmer's texts.

The last thing the Browns want right now is a free-agent quarterback saying of the team, "If it's not the best place for me to be at this point in my career, then I'm going to have to make some tough decisions." But that's the corner the Browns have painted themselves into. 

Hoyer is going to get paid, and he will have a chance to start in 2015. And whether that is in Cleveland is less up to the Browns than it is to Hoyer. Rarely does a player have the upper hand in these situations, but now the Browns' quarterback position going forward could be up to what Hoyer decides to do and not what the Browns decide to do about Hoyer.