For the Cleveland Browns, QB Is Only Draft Option Until They Find Their Guy

The Cleveland Browns should treat last year's 22nd overall pick, which turned into quarterback Johnny Manziel, as a sunk cost. 

The organization's search for a franchise quarterback never seems to end. This year's NFL draft could finally provide an opportunity to address the game's most important position once and for all. 

As the team prepares for the event, quarterback still remains at the forefront of the conversation. 

In their attempt to stabilize the position, the Browns signed a pair of veterans, Josh McCown and Thaddeus Lewis, during free agency.

McCown is considered a viable starting option and a calming presence in the locker room. However, he is a 35-year-old journeyman who helped lead his then-team to a 1-10 record last season and the No. 1 overall pick. 

Lewis, meanwhile, hasn't started a game since 2013 and only played in seven contests during his five seasons. 

That basically leaves Manziel as the team's best hope at long-term viability...for now.

After the season, it was clear the team was fed up with the former Heisman Trophy winner. 

"We’ve got to get a quarterback and got to get it fixed,” team owner Jimmy Haslam said January 22 at the Greater Cleveland Sports Awards, per The Chronicle-Telegram's Scott Petrak. "What I would say to our fans is, we’re going to continue to work really hard to find that quarterback who can make us a championship team."

Six days later, Manziel entered a treatment facility. 

While the owner's comments may or may not have influenced Manziel's decision, things clearly weren't kosher behind the scenes in Berea, Ohio. 

Ten weeks later, Manziel continues his treatment.

The Browns, meanwhile, have no clue what to expect of him once he emerges. Haslam, head coach Mike Pettine and general manager Ray Farmer all supported their quarterback publicly, but the organization also thoroughly vetted the position during the draft process. 

While it's completely unfair to cast Manziel aside after only seven quarters of play, the organization isn't stable enough to deal with another season of musical chairs at the quarterback position. It can make excuses for the Texas A&M product due to his current situation, but none of them provide any type of security. 

"I think about 90 percent that they have moved on (from Manziel) in their own minds except that they really don’t know who they’re going to get when Johnny leaves rehab, which has been an extended stay—a two-month stay," ESPN's Chris Mortensen said on Mike & Mike in the Morning last week (h/t The News-Herald's Jeff Schudel). "He should be getting out sometime in the first week of April if they’re satisfied that he’s ready to go out and get into society and that whatever deep-rooted problems that he had has been addressed."

It's simply not good business for the Browns to rely on Manziel at this point. Farmer must consider all of his options.  

Quarterback is still the team's most pressing need. A botched attempt to trade for Sam Bradford assured the team's futile situation.

With a pair of first-round picks and 10 overall selections, Farmer does own enough ammunition to make a bold move. 

After selecting Manziel, Brandon Weeden and Brady Quinn in the latter half of the first round over the past eight years, the Browns could do something they haven't done since they selected Tim Couch with the No. 1 overall pick in the 1999 draft: invest a top-10 pick in a quarterback prospect. 

Since the Browns own the 12th and 19th overall selections in this year's draft, the franchise would need to trade up for that to occur. Farmer and his staff are considering the possibility. 

"After burning a first-round pick in 2012 on Brandon Weeden and a first-round pick in 2014 on Johnny Manziel, the Browns are truly interested in using their two first-round picks in 2015 to move up and get (Oregon's) Marcus Mariota," ProFootballTalk.com's Mike Florio wrote, citing unnamed sources. 

The Browns must ask themselves two simple questions: 

1. Do they believe Mariota is a franchise-caliber prospect?
2. Is the Oregon quarterback rated higher than Manziel was a year ago?

If the answer is yes to both, the solution is obvious. 

With the team's current predicament, it's an even easier decision. 

“The bottom line is that Johnny Manziel’s future with the Browns has been in question," Mortensen said. "When they were putting together half of a new offensive staff, Manziel’s name barely even came up in conversation.”

Mariota might not be the next Andrew Luck, but he's clearly a top prospect at the position.

During his three seasons as the Ducks' starter, the Honolulu native threw for 10,796 yards, 105 touchdowns and only 14 interceptions. At 6'4" and 222 pounds with an above-average arm, Mariota owns prototypical NFL tools. He is also an exceptional athlete and ranked among the top-five quarterbacks in every drill at the combine. 

However, the Browns could roll the dice in hopes of Mariota sliding to them at their original draft slotting. 

"If [Mariota] doesn't go in the top six picks, he could do an Aaron Rodgers," an NFL personnel man told Yahoo Sports' Charles Robinson. 

Rodgers famously fell to the 24th overall pick before the Green Bay Packers wisely selected him. Mariota isn't expected to tumble that far if he does at all. 

The Oregon product is still in play for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who select No. 1 overall, all the way to the Philadelphia Eagles, who own the 20th overall pick with strong connections to the quarterback courtesy of head coach Chip Kelly. 

Even if Mariota isn't the team's object of affection, the Browns have spent plenty of time with multiple quarterback prospects this offseason. 

First and foremost, new Browns quarterbacks coach Kevin O'Connell previously served as a private quarterback coach and helped prepare young signal-callers for the NFL. His biggest client was Mariota, who the coach directed during his pro day.

But O'Connell also helped prepare Baylor's Bryce Petty for the draft before he accepted a position in Cleveland. 

Obviously, the quarterbacks coach already has the inside track on two prominent prospects in this year's class. Petty, though, won't require the team to spend multiple picks to acquire him via a potential trade. The Baylor gunslinger is considered a second- or third-round prospect. 

Even without spending a top-10 pick on a player like Petty, the team would add a completely different dynamic due to Petty's outstanding arm strength. No quarterback currently on the Browns roster claims an arm as explosive as the Baylor product's. This could be crucial if new offensive coordinator John DeFilippo wants a more vertical attack this fall. 

Another early-round prospect the team didn't know as well but took time getting to know was Colorado State's Garrett Grayson. 

The quarterback told 850 ESPN Cleveland he spent time with O'Connell and DeFilippo prior his pro day: 

Petty, Grayson and even UCLA's Brett Hundley aren't the same level of prospects as Mariota, yet they would signify long-range vision by the front office and provide hope to arguably the NFL's worst quarterback situation. Manziel isn't guaranteed to be part of the roster next year. A developmental prospect could quickly become a vital part of the organization's growth. 

The Browns cannot leave this year's draft without a new quarterback. Otherwise, the offseason would be considered a failure, as set forth by Haslam's January statement.

If the team eventually gets anything out of Manziel this season, it will be a bonus. Mariota is a better option, though. Almost any prospect in this year's class will bring more to the table as a rookie than Manziel did. 

Brent Sobleski covers the NFL draft for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter @brentsobleski.