The Cleveland Browns had a rough season in 2012 and the team enters the offseason with an entire new regime, as Rob Chudzinski and Michael Lombardi are now the head coach and vice president of player personnel after the departure of team executive Mike Holmgren and coach Pat Shurmur.
With a new regime in place, the Browns may want to move on from quarterback Brandon Weeden, who was solid as a rookie, but did not prove to have the winning touch like fellow first-year players Russell Wilson, Andrew Luck and Robert Griffin III. The fact that all three of those players led their teams to the playoff is one reason why the Browns could move on from Weeden.
Although he was a first round pick last year, if the Browns look at top quarterbacks in the draft like Geno Smith, Tyler Wilson, Mike Glennon and Matt Barkley (who will not be at the combine), they could decide that one of those players is good enough to rebound the Browns next season.
Andrew Luck took his team from a 2-14 record into the playoffs, while Wilson and Griffin also improved their teams greatly record-wise. While Smith and the others are not as highly touted as those three were, there is a chance they could bring winning ways to the Browns, something that has not happened in a number of years.
The quarterbacks will be working out on Sunday and the Browns likely will be all over the big names as they do their workouts, especially Smith or Glennon. The Kansas City Chiefs have the number one pick and while there is a chance that they could select Smith, there is talk in the media that Luke Joeckel of Texas A&M could be the first pick as an offensive lineman.
Weeden showed some skills over the year, but he finished the season with 17 interceptions and 14 touchdowns and also led the league in passes knocked down at the line of scrimmage. The Browns haven't had a winning season since 2007 and the team could take a risk on one of the top quarterbacks in hopes of turning things around quickly next year.
Smith and Ryan Nassib of Syracuse have said they will throw at the combine and since Barkley will not be there, the rest of the quarterback class could grab the attention of scouts. With the Eagles and Bills likely out of the quarterback chase after bringing back their starters from last season, it could leave the Browns in a prime position to make a move.
Chudzinski has brought in a number of new coaches in defensive coordinator Ray Horton and offensive guru Norv Turner and any of the rookie quarterbacks could thrive under Turner's system. The team has a star in running back Trent Richardson and if the defense can improve a bit, there is a chance one of the rookie quarterbacks could be a star for Cleveland.
The team hasn't had much luck over the years with quarterbacks, with names like Tim Couch and Derek Anderson, but this draft offers the new regime an opportunity to bring the franchise into a new era.
