The Brock Osweiler hype train is picking up steam again.
Browns coach Hue Jackson seemed less than thrilled after Cleveland acquired Osweiler from the Texans in March. Here were his comments at the time:
“He is. Obviously, he’s a player on our team and we’re going to treat him just like we do all of our other quarterbacks until he’s not.
“He’s a guy that’s gonna come in and compete. We haven’t had an opportunity to meet with him from a football standpoint because of the rules. But once we start our offseason program, phase one, we’ll get a chance to know him and he’ll get to know us.”
Now, Jackson appears to actually like the guy, and then some. From CBS Sports:
“Brock’s been a pleasant surprise,” Jackson said. “He’s done a good job. He works hard at it every day. He’s into it. I think he really enjoys being here. I think he’s really meshed with the other quarterbacks. He has a good feel to him.”
[…]
“Since he’s been here, he’s been outstanding,” Jackson said. “I don’t judge people by what everybody else says, I judge them by what I see. … The guy’s been outstanding in our building and that’s what’s most important.”
You wouldn’t expect a coach to trash one of his players anyway, but the difference in Jackson’s enthusiasm over the last few months indicates that his excitement regarding Osweiler could be genuine.
Zac Jackson of The Athletic also said that from what he’s seen, Osweiler has been Cleveland’s best quarterback by far. Although how much does that really mean when he’s competing with Cody Kessler and Kevin Hogan for the starting job?
Through 2 practices that I've seen (that mean nothing big picture), Brock Osweiler has been the best QB on the field. By a bunch.
— Zac Jackson (@AkronJackson) May 31, 2017
Not that he's been great. Or that any of them have made 2 good throws in a row in the little that I've seen. But that's what I've seen.
— Zac Jackson (@AkronJackson) May 31, 2017
We heard similar things about Osweiler last offseason, but he went on to have a brutal year in Houston with 15 touchdowns, 16 interceptions and less than 3,000 passing yards. It was bad enough that the Texans essentially gave him up for just a fourth-round pick so they could dump his salary and start anew at QB with Deshaun Watson.
So I, like most people, won’t buy any Osweiler hype until he actually shows us something on the field.
