The Cleveland Browns were expected to have a bad season before they lost their starting quarterback. Now that Robert Griffin III has been placed on IR, there has been some talk that the Browns should tank to make sure they get the top overall pick in next year’s draft.
Josh McCown is having none of that.
McCown, who has once again been thrust into a starting role in Cleveland, told PFT Live on Monday that it motivates him even more when people say the Browns should tank.
“For us to just sit back and say, ‘Yeah, this is the year that we’re gonna tank’ and all that, for a player that’s not our mindset at all and that’s not our expectation, and it fires me up when people say that,” he said. “It fires me up and makes this task even greater. We embrace the opportunity to go out there and maybe do something that people don’t think we can do.”
While even the team has to know there is virtually no chance of making the playoffs, McCown insists the veterans won’t allow the younger guys to think ahead to 2017.
“For me and the other veterans on this team, a Hall of Famer like Joe Thomas, that can’t and won’t be the mindset,” McCown said. “Our mindset is to compete and play to win football games. The rest of that is down the road, but our mindset is to compete.”
Griffin suffered a broken shoulder after taking a big hit in Week 1 (video here), and he may not play again this season despite being placed on short-term IR. McCown actually played pretty well in his eight starts last season and posted a passer rating of 93.3. If he can do that again, he just might keep the Browns from being the worst team in the NFL.
