At long last, the Cleveland Browns have real hope at the quarterback position. DeShone Kizer has a long way to got before he’s consider an above average starter in the NFL, but he’s already passed his first test: winning the starting quarterback job after an impressive preseason.

Cleveland has been through the whole “quarterback of the future” thing before. There have been many pretenders, but this time it feels different. This time it is different. Kizer will be only the second Browns rookie to start behind center Week 1. Brandon Weeden was the other, but he was a 29-year-old first-year player who was basically handed the starting job as soon as he was drafted. Kizer, who will be 21 when the season begins, had to earn his spot in the starting lineup — a feat highly drafted quarterbacks like Brady Quinn and Johnny Manziel have struggled to pull off in Cleveland.

And earn it he did. Kizer’s exhibition numbers aren’t overly impressive, but numbers don’t really matter in preseason. Production is always nice, sure, but it’s the “how” that matters most. Kizer’s “how” really stood out from his exhibition performance.

First and foremost, Kizer is poised in the pocket. His eyes never drop from downfield, which is an extremely rare trait for a young quarterback to possess.

And it’s not like Kizer is oblivious to the pressure, a common flaw for young passers. He feels it coming and knows how to slide in the pocket and navigate to more space in order to get a throw off.

The Notre Dame product is a good athlete who will threaten defenses with his legs. But Kizer isn’t a scrambler, per se. He’ll actually give the play design a chance before leaving a clean pocket.

Kizer looks the part of the classic dropback, pocket passer but can turn into a new-age, dual threat guy when the time calls for it. It’s a special combination that we’ve seen in only a handful of quarterbacks over the last few years.

While Kizer’s preseason wasn’t as impressive as Dak Prescott’s in 2016, when it first became obvious that the Cowboys quarterback belonged in the NFL, the situation has been similar in that Kizer’s process has been as impressive as the final result, which is what ultimately matters, as I wrote this time last year in regard to Prescott’s preseason performance:

Even if preseason results are useless, these exhibition games are useful for evaluating individual players. The numbers a player puts up may not translate to the regular season, but the traits he puts on film, more often than not, do. Good technique is good technique, whether it’s done in August or December… We shouldn’t expect Prescott to throw 50 touchdowns and complete 80% of his passes in the regular season, but we can expect that poise, accuracy and decision-making he put on display to carry over to when the games start to matter.

Kizer will be the youngest quarterback on any roster when the season starts. He’s still somewhat raw and has plenty of things to work with. But that pocket presence is a strong foundation on which to build. And in Hue Jackson, the second-round pick has the perfect coach to him help realize all off that potential.

Jackson has already promised to work through the inevitable growing pains Kizer will suffer through, which is a welcome change in Cleveland, where coaches and quarterbacks alike have been dismissed at the first few signs of trouble.

“This is not just for the moment,” Jackson said, via ESPN.com. “We’re going to get with DeShone and ride him through it all and work with him through all this. You said it, those things are going to happen. And I think we get that. I think he gets that. We’re not going to blink about it. We’re just going to correct it and keep moving forward.”

This is how young quarterbacks get better. This is how Kizer will get better. Making mistakes on the field is far more conducive to growth than being perfect on the sideline and in the classroom.

Kizer is going to make mistakes. He still stares down receivers, his accuracy is improving but needs to be more consistent and he’s still liable to make a head-scratching decision. The same can be said for just about every young quarterback who has ever stepped foot on an NFL field.

Very few young quarterbacks play with the poise and confidence Kizer did throughout training camp and the preseason, however. And it’s been a long, long time since they’ve had one in Cleveland.