Browns coach Mike Pettine said he will meet with his assistant coaches tonight to discuss who will be the starting quarterback Sunday against the 49ers.
Pettine said he'd inform Duke Johnson Jr. and Austin Davis of the decision Tuesday after he holds discussions with offensive coordinator John DeFilippo and quarterbacks coach Kevin O'Connell.
"At this point, I'm not prepared to name a starting quarterback for Sunday yet," Pettine said at his Monday press conference. "I've had preliminary discussions."
Pettine lauded Davis' poise and confidence in the first start of his Browns career and ninth overall. Davis, who started eight games for the Rams as a rookie last season, led the Browns into Bengals territory on five of Cleveland's first six drives but came away with just three points on a field goal to cap the first half.
Davis completed 25-of-38 passes for 230 yards. He took three sacks, threw an interception in the first half and committed two intentional grounding penalties.
"It's tough when you just look at the final output, you see that we only scored three points," Pettine said. "I thought he had a good feel for the plan ... He made some good throws and he had some that he wished he had back."
Manziel has three starts on the season and last started Nov. 15 at Pittsburgh. Shortly thereafter, he was named the starter moving forward but was demoted for violating the coaching staff's trust.
Asked if Manziel's recent demotion would be considered among the criteria for the decision, Pettine said, "when we talk about that, we hit the reset button and throw everything on the table."
"I've talked about before when he's in the building that hasn't been an issue. I just know the nature of that quarterback room, the way they hold each other accountable and how Kevin runs it and Flip's in there a lot, too," Pettine said. "Those guys work and prepare and help each other. He was on point this week in his role."
Manziel has appeared in six games this season, completing 76-of-128 passes for 933 yards, five touchdowns and two interceptions. Browns quarterbacks have completed close to 63 percent of their passes for 3,349 yards, 18 touchdowns and seven interceptions.
Pettine reiterated Monday that, among the Browns' problems, quarterback play has not been at the top of the list.
"You guys probably get sick of hearing me saying it but quarterback play is truly a function of the guys around him," Pettine said. "Did we play exceptionally well around (Davis)? No we didn't."
