The Facts: McCown, the Browns' incumbent starting quarterback, has been expendable since the team signed Griffin last month to a two-year, $15 million deal as a presumptive bridge starter. But the case for the Browns keeping McCown might have been strengthened when they passed on a chance to select one of the two top-rated quarterbacks in the April 28-30 draft by trading down from the second overall pick to the eighth in a blockbuster deal with the Eagles. "I don't know. I don't know what's going to happen," McCown said when asked whether he senses the trade could allow him to stick around. "It's a great opportunity, especially playing this position, to focus, to have mental toughness and just go, 'I'm not going worry about that. I'm just going to focus on what I've got to do today and go and work hard.'?"

Diehards Line: As Beacon Journal staffer Nate Ulrich reminded readers, McCown, 36, performed much better last season than his 1-7 record suggests. He completed 63.7 percent of his passes with 12 touchdowns, four interceptions and a rating of 93.3. So it’s not unrealistic to think other teams would be interested in him, especially because franchises are almost always seeking quarterbacks. McCown was asked whether seeing news about former Browns QB Brian Hoyer taking free-agent visits this week makes him wonder which teams would want him. "I try not to think about it other than when the questions are asked,” he replied. “... If that happens, we’ll cross that bridge when it gets there." In the meantime, he'll continue to serve as a mentor to Griffin and the other QBs on the roster.