After being the laughing stock of the league for so many years, the Cleveland Browns showed some signs of improvement in the 2014 season.  Although they still finished last in a very competitive AFC North division, their season ended at 7-9, which is three more wins than they had in the previous season.  They achieved this without the help of Josh Gordon who was suspended for all but four games this season due to marijuana possession. Also, rookie quarterback Johnny Manziel was an absolute disaster in the small amount of time that he got into the games.  Whatever small gradual success this team is working towards is going to need a tremendous amount of work done this offseason.  Josh Gordon, who lead the league in receiving yards two years ago, is now suspended for at least another year after failing an alcohol related drug test.  Not only that, but any plan for the development of Manziel is going to have to wait because he is currently in Rehab with a supposed alcohol abuse issue.  Now Brian Hoyer, who had a great start to the year but a terrible finish, is on the cusp of being let go.  This means the Browns need a quarterback.  As of now, the Cleveland Browns are set to pick twelfth in the 2015 NFL draft.  By that time, it’s almost guaranteed that both Marcus Mariota and Jameis Winston will be off the board.  It would not surprise me in the least if they made a drastic leap for a top two pick and secure one of those quarterbacks.  However, that could backfire in a huge way.  The Browns would need to give up future first round draft picks to trade for that spot.  It’s an all in strategy of win big or go home empty handed if the player is a bust.

Personally, what I think this team will do is draft a key offensive weapon at the twelve spot.  This player will most likely be a receiver.  After they have talent to work with, they can go after a quarterback in free agency like Mark Sanchez, Jake Locker, or Ryan Mallett.  This allows them to build an offense with weapons on it and perhaps give Manziel another chance or look for a big time quarterback in the future.  In reality though, the only thing that can actually legitimately turn this team around is the draft the Cleveland Browns had in the movie “Draft Day”.  Maybe somebody should call Kevin Costner to take over as the GM.