Cleveland Browns head coach Hue Jackson says he needs to "take some time" before choosing either DeShone Kizer or Kevin Hogan as his Week 6 starting quarterback, after the former was benched in Sunday's loss. He has set Wednesday as his deadline for the decision.
Jackson still believes that his rookie Kizer can be the future of his club, though after losing 11 turnovers in five losses while failing to score a touchdown in three of those contests, he may need to take a step out of the spotlight for now.
"DeShone is going to be a tremendous football player in this league,'' said Jackson, according to Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. "I'll do what's best for the team and what's best for DeShone.''
Hogan already had to replace Kizer in three contests this season, twice for injury purposes before Sunday's outright benching. The second-year quarterback has completed 26-of-38 passes for 377 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions. Though he has yet to make a start, Hogan's quarterback rating is much improved from Kizer's, holding a 104.8 QBR while the rookie sits at 49.5.
The issue for the Browns benching Kizer for any decent length of time is that they are likely to end up with a high draft pick after starting 0-5. In what is expected to be a quarterback-heavy draft, the Browns will need to have conducted a proper evaluation of Kizer before the season ends to properly determine their draft strategy.
Either Kizer or Hogan will face the Houston Texans in Week 6 on the road.
