Hue Jackson Says DeShone Kizer Will Draw Ben Roethlisberger Comparisons

Cleveland Browns head coach Hue Jackson believes quarterback DeShone Kizer may soon draw comparisons to one of his new peers in the AFC North. 

Appearing on WKNR 850 AM in Cleveland on Thursday, Jackson said he understands why people may be inclined to compare Kizer to Pittsburgh Steelers signal-caller Ben Roethlisberger. 

"I don't know that I've coached a guy with this kind of skill set," Jackson said (h/t Cleveland.com's Mary Kay Cabot). "But he's a big powerful man, so I know he's going to get compared to another guy on another team in our division.

"I'm not going to talk about [Roethlisberger] because he's that big and he has that kind of arm. He's very mobile. So again, I don't like to compare players, and I know people will, but he's got to come in and do what he can do and be the best version of him, and that's what we're going to allow him to do."

A mammoth 6'4", 233-pound presence, Kizer has the body type to be viewed in the same vein as the 6'5", 240-pound Roethlisberger on the surface. 

"Obviously, he has the measurables, a big, physical quarterback who can make all the throws that anybody needs to make in the National Football League," Jackson said after the draft, per Cabot. "He's intelligent. So he has the characteristics that we're looking for."

However, Kizer needs to win the Browns' starting quarterback job this summer if he wants to start proving he deserves those lofty comparisons. 

To achieve that goal, the second-round draft choice will have to stave off Cody Kessler, Kevin Hogan and Brock Osweiler in what figures to be a heated competition to take Week 1 snaps.