The Cleveland Browns faithful are not being realistic about Jacoby Brissett

Some Cleveland Browns fans really have too much faith in Jacoby Brissett.

It’s one thing to be a “pro-Cleveland Browns fan” and then there’s saying things that can only be construed as lying to yourself. There are some in the Cleveland Browns fandom that truly does believe the Browns are going to be “ok” if Jacoby Brissett is the starter for the season or even a majority of the season.

Some fans are even pointing out that Brissett in 2017 is “statistically better” than Baker Mayfield in 2021. That’s not true, but we’re not going to break that down as that’s not the point. Stats don’t equal talent, they simply explain execution. Trying to hype up a 2022 Browns team led by Brissett by saying “Brissett, four years ago, had a better year than Mayfield in 2021 means we’ll be fine!” is the ultimate “world is ending but we’ll be ok” type of denial that I would expect from some fans.

Brissett is 14-23 as a starter in the NFL, and three different times he took over a team that was built to win. He has not done well. If saying Brissett threw more touchdowns and fewer interceptions than a badly wounded Mayfield in 2021 is your baseline for hope then you really shouldn’t have any.

Mayfield was hurt and hurt badly in 2021, and the fact the coaching staff allowed him to play is truly concerning in itself. Yet, to say that Brissett is capable of that play and thus we’ll be fine, without pointing out that it was that play that cost Mayfield his job (while going 6-8 by the way) is disengenious. There’s no reason to think that if Brissett put up comparable stats to Mayfield from 2021 that this team will win. It didn’t win with Mayfield putting up those numbers, why would it win with Brissett posting numbers?

If that’s your takeaway, that the team can with Brissett playing akin to a severely injured Mayfield, then this team is screwed.

Jacoby Brissett is a short-term fix for a long-term problem with the Cleveland Browns

The Browns may be without Deshaun Watson all year, or for just a month, or for his whole career. No one knows what Judge Sue Robinson is thinking, and everyone “leaking” stuff is merely guessing. She hasn’t decided, so no one knows. That said, if Watson is out for a year or longer, Brissett is not the answer.

Why? Because no one expects Brissett to play well enough to win games. He’s simply being asked to not lose games. Eventually, that style of football fails. It’s one of the big criticisms against Lamar Jackson; that when he has to make plays while throwing the ball, he comes up short.

Brissett isn’t in Jackson’s league, and Jackson has a hard time winning games with his passing. So imagine just how hard it’s going to be for the Browns to win behind Brissett?

The team may not be an 0-17 dumpster fire, but if Brissett is your starter, winning more than six games would be a miracle. The people who want to talk about what Brissett can be don’t realize that by 30, save for the rarest of examples to the contrary, we know what a player is in. We know who Brissett is, and it’s not someone who can lead a team for 17 games and get a winning season out of it.

Sure, if you need a month of him, he may get you two wins out of four. Yet, once defenses are locked into his weaknesses, they’ll adjust and he’ll fall apart. Maybe with a better head coach that wouldn’t be the case, but we already know that Kevin Stefanski doesn’t make adjustments until it’s way too late.

So fans who actually believe the Browns can make the playoffs with Brissett as the team’s starter for the season should not be relied upon for honest, and well-thought-out takes.