The Best Quarterback in Cleveland is . . . .

The Cleveland Browns have been in the news a lot recently about who will start for their team when the season starts. Mainly for the fact that they have one of the most polarizing players in the game with Johnny "Football" Manziel. The Browns have made a decision to start Brian Hoyer over Manziel and I think that's the wrong decision on there part. They have a better option that will fill their need at the Quarterback position and are completely overlooking his talents. No not that party boy from Texas. I'm talking about the cool calm and collected Southern Boy name Connor Shaw.

That's right. Connor Shaw, un-drafted rookie out of South Carolina University. While he played in the same loaded SEC as Manziel, he was not even closely mentioned as mush as everyone else in the league. So if you don't know who he is, here's a little bit of background. He was a three year stater (played four years) for the Ol' Ballcoach and is the winningest quarterback in school history with a 27-5 record as a starter (17-0 at home). He's good just trust me.

So why should Connor start over Manziel? Easy. Feel free to look back at my previous post about who will be better Luck v. RGIII. There's a lot of the same arguments to be had. For one, he's more balanced and has better decision making skills in the pocket. Since he played in a more Pro-Style offense at USC, he wasn't allowed to zip the ball around as much as the other SEC QB's, which is why he probably didn't get as much attention within the league. In fact, in two years of play, Manziel had over 100 more attempts than Shaw. But while he didn't put up the gaudy stats, he was efficient. In four years of play he only had 16 interceptions to 56 TD's. A ratio of 3.5+ (Manziel had 22 INT's to 63 TD's. Ratio of just 2.8+)

His style also translates better to the NFL. Lets take the comparison of Luck and RGIII. Luck a balanced QB with both the passing acumen, and enough mobility to allow him to not simply rely on one skill set. RGIII on the other hand has had a tremulous time adapting to what he needs to be to become a successful NFL signal caller. Shaw has a similar skill set to Luck. He can run (ran a 4.66 40 yard dash, faster than Manziel) and he can stand in the pocket and throw the ball accurately (shown by his college statistics).

Connor has the skills and abilities to be a legitimate NFL Starter. Will he get his shot in Cleveland, probably not. Mainly for the fact that NFL GM's have such large egos, very few will admit their mistake and cut ties with a high profile first round draft pick (case in point Christian Ponder in Minnesota, Matt Leinart in Arizona and Vince Young ... Pretty much everywhere he's been. How is he still getting jobs?!) Hopefully I'm wrong, and Connor can show the NFL what he can do, and prove me right.

*Partial credit for the discovery of Connor Shaw must go to my girlfriend Kara*