NFL Draft 2011: Could Cam Newton Become the New Face of the Cleveland Browns?

Calm down all you Colt McCoy fans, there's still a good month until the upcoming 2011 NFL Draft. For know though, let the draft speculation officially begin.

Every NFL fan knows the Cleveland Browns haven't exactly been one of the NFL's best teams since their return to the league in 1999. Their main reason for a lack of success: finding a quarterback.

The Browns though may have finally ended their quarterback search when they drafted former NCAA Quarterback of the Year Colt McCoy in the third round of last year's draft.

McCoy had an average start to his Browns career this past season. In eight starts, the former Texas Longhorns star completed 135 of his 222 passes for 1,576 yards, threw six touchdowns while giving up nine interceptions.

Average numbers for a rookie, but are they good enough to be called a future franchise quarterback?

Enter former Auburn quarterback and 2010 Heisman Trophy winner Cam Newton, who may end up changing all that. Projected to fall anywhere in the top 10 of the upcoming NFL Draft, Newton has caught the attention of many teams after winning the BCS National Championship last year.

Cleveland currently holds the No. 6 pick overall in the first round. Would the Browns make a run at the former BCS champion if he falls to them?

The heat and pressure of a draft room can do wonders to any NFL organization, but they could play an even bigger role to Browns team president Mike Holmgren in this position. It has been reported that the longtime Seattle Seahawks coach is the one who pushed the drafting of McCoy the most last year, after he fell to Cleveland early in the third round.

Holmgren has already made it known that the Browns will in fact take another quarterback again in this year's draft. When they will draft one nobody is for sure.

If Newton is there at No. 6, it would be hard for Holmgren and the Browns not to at least think about drafting the 21 year old quarterback, who not only threw for 30 touchdowns last season, but ran for 20 more. He's a guy who could make an impact early, and could become a staple in brown and orange for years to come.

Sure, every NFL team have had their fair share of draft busts of the past few years, many of them former quarterbacks who were drafted in the top 10. David Carr, Joey Harrington, Alex Smith, JaMarcus Russell and of course Tim Couch are just a few of them.

For every quarterback bust though, there are some who live up to the full expectation of a first round draft pick. Current NFL quarterbacks Eli Manning, Michael Vick, Phillip Rivers, Matt Ryan and Mark Sanchez were all drafted in the top 10 and have all made a name for themselves throughout the league.

Which category will Newton fall in when it's all said and done?

That remains to be seen, but one thing is for sure, if Carolina, Buffalo and Cincinnati all pass on the best quarterback in this years draft class, the coach's determination may come out in Holmgren once again, as he will be at a crossroads as to which quarterback he really wants to lead Cleveland to their potential first Super Bowl Championship.

As of today, McCoy is the starting quarterback of the Cleveland Browns, but that could all change April 28 on Draft Day.