Firing from the shotgun

Top-10 NFL QBs in percentage of shotgun throws.

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CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Is Brandon Weeden the right quarterback for the Browns in 2013? The new front office and coaching staff are trying to figure that out now.

They certainly will bring in another quarterback, as I hear they don't consider Colt McCoy a viable starting option. But their evaluation of Weeden is complicated by one simple fact --he was playing in the wrong system.

The West Coast offense stresses a quarterback taking a snap directly under center, and then taking three steps back followed by a throw. Or it's five steps and a longer throw.Either way, it's a quick-rhythm system.

It's also a system new to Weeden in his rookie season, a system that's out of favor in the current NFL, or at least the version used in Cleveland.

At Oklahoma State, Weeden threw out of the shotgun on nearly every pass. Profootballfocus.com said 43 percent of Weeden's passes in 2012 came from the shotgun, where he received a snap about five yards behind the center. On the surface, it's hard to know what that 43 percent indicates.

But here's the deal:

1. NFL QBs threw out of shotgun an average of 66 percent of the time.

2. Of the 39 QBs examined by Profootballfocus, only Houston's Matt Schaub (34 percent) threw a lower percentage of his passes from the shotgun than Weeden.

3. Weeden was more effective from the shotgun, with a QB rating of 79.1 with eight touchdown passes and seven interceptions. Under center, it was 67.7 with six TDs and 10 picks.

4. Weeden threw 73 more passes from under center than the shotgun, which is why these stats are meaningful. He simply is not a West Coast style quarterback.

The Browns have all this data and more. The new staff -- head coach Rob Chudzinski and offensive coordinator Norv Turner -- are far more open to the shotgun formation. Consider the following:

1. In Carolina, Chudzinski had Cam Newton in the shotgun for 79 percent of his passes, fourth-highest in the NFL.

2. In San Diego, Turner had Philip Rivers in the shotgun 77 percent of the time, eighth in the NFL.

What does all this mean? Weeden's strength is standing in the pocket and throwing deep. But the West Coast offense stresses snaps under center and quick throws. It's also very possible that Weeden's league-leading 25 passes batted down is partly due to being so often under center, where he's closer to the defensive linemen as he throws.

Can the Browns assume Weeden will improve in an offense that tends to stress throwing downfield? Yes, they can. Especially since most quarterbacks simply play better after their rookie seasons, regardless of the system.

Is that enough for the Browns to commit long range to Weeden? That's something being discussed right now. They also are asking, "If not Weeden, then who?" Do they make a big deal for Alex Smith? Would he be that much of an upgrade over Weeden? Those questions haven't been answered yet.

I generally stay away from knocking a previous coaching staff, but the data does show that the offense used by the Browns last season was not best suited to their rookie quarterback.