Lindsay H. Jones

USA TODAY Sports

The Cleveland Browns are doing a "disservice" to Johnny Manziel by publicly announcing he's a backup, former NFL head coach Herm Edwards told USA TODAY Sports on Thursday.

Edwards said Browns officials are sending the wrong message to their team and fan base by labeling Manziel as Brian Hoyer's understudy before the quarterback competition has even begun.

"We don't know he's a backup. Who said he has to be the backup? If you draft a player to be a backup, why did you draft him?" Edwards asked. "You're drafting a guy because you think he's worthy of being drafted at that spot, but you're also drafting him because you think he can compete.

"If you're going to say, 'This guy's a backup,' — really? That doesn't make any sense to me. It just comes off bad. No one wants to hear that. If you're a fan, you're going, 'He's the backup? Why's he the backup?' "

The Browns have sold at least 3,000 season tickets since drafting Manziel with the 22nd pick of the first round last week, and his No. 2 jersey is the top seller among draft picks. But the Browns have made it clear that they intend for Manziel to begin his NFL career behind Hoyer on the depth chart. Cleveland's other quarterbacks are journeyman Tyler Thigpen, signed earlier this month, and undrafted free agent Conner Shaw.

"For me — if it's close — you start the kid. I get that you should try to sit him down like Aaron Rodgers, but that's a different situation," Edwards said, referencing the Green Bay Packers' 2005 first rounder, who sat behind Brett Favre for three years.

"I think Brian Hoyer is a good quarterback. But I think, if it's close, Johnny Manziel – you play him, and you don't worry about it."

Manziel will take his first snaps as a pro Friday in the Browns' rookie minicamp, and he'll do it in private — all part of a plan by his new team to keep Manzielmania in check for now.

The Browns have limited media access to this weekend's camp to just local reporters and only on Saturday. Those Cleveland-area journalists will be allowed only to watch the stretching period and individual drills before the practice is closed.

The only time the team is required to open practice during the offseason will be at a mandatory minicamp from June 12-14. The Browns are still working on their Manziel media plan for the rest of the spring.

It's rare for a team to limit access to just local reporters during a rookie minicamp, though it is a common practice for only local beat writers to be allowed to watch portions of practice during the regular season.

When the Denver Broncos drafted Tim Tebow in 2010, he attracted more than 50 reporters and photographers who didn't normally cover the team. Tebow, who was a backup to Kyle Orton at the time, did one media session that weekend. Last year, dozens of reporters showed up in San Diego for Manti Te'o's minicamp debut with the Chargers. Te'o did one press conference that weekend with a group that included local and national reporters but wasn't made available for interviews again until training camp.

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Follow Lindsay H. Jones on Twitter @bylindsayhjones