The NFL's most entertaining training-camp storyline reached its conclusion on Wednesday morning when the Cleveland Browns named underdog hometown hero Brian Hoyer as their starting quarterback to begin the regular season against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sept. 7, relegating the irascible rascal and America's favorite bad-boy Johnny Manziel to the sideline.
At least for now.
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"He was the clear leader from the beginning," Browns coach Mike Pettine said of Hoyer in a prepared statement. "We've maintained all along that if it was close, I would prefer to go with the more experienced player. Brian has done a great job in the meeting rooms and with his teammates on the practice field and in the locker room."
The battle for Browns starting quarterback pitted two polar opposite characters against one another. Hoyer grew up in Cleveland and had an injury-shortened magical run for the Browns last season after his unremarkable NFL career seemed all but over. Manziel, the 22nd overall pick in April's NFL Draft, has been a media lightning rod -- and an electrifying player on the field -- since his freshman season at Texas A&M.
The player known as Johnny Football was widely mocked on Twitter as "Johnny Clipboard" after the Browns' announcement. But one thing is certain: Cleveland's offense will falter this year and we'll see plenty of calls for Pettine to give Manziel his starting shot. Hoyer won the training camp battle, but he hasn't won the war just yet.
Now we'll leave you with this Vine of Manziel flipping off the Washington Redskins' bench during Monday night's pre-season game.