Austin Davis will be the Browns' starting quarterback Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals at FirstEnergy Stadium, coach Mike Pettine announced Wednesday.
The start will be Davis' first since he joined the Browns in September and ninth of his NFL career. Johnny Manziel will serve as his backup.
"Austin took advantage of his opportunity on Monday night. He was prepared, played well and put us in position to win," Pettine said. "He's been great in the quarterback room all season and he has earned the right to start on Sunday. We expect him to play well."
Davis, in relief of an injured Josh McCown, made his Browns debut in Monday's loss to the Baltimore Ravens. Entering in the fourth quarter with Cleveland trailing by a touchdown, Davis completed 7-of-10 passes for 77 yards, including a 42-yard, game-tying touchdown pass to Travis Benjamin.
In eight starts and 10 overall appearances with the St. Louis Rams last season, Davis completed 180-of-284 passes for 2,001 yards, 12 touchdowns and nine interceptions.
McCown was ruled out for the season Tuesday with a broken clavicle and was placed on injured reserve Wednesday.
