Veteran free agent Josh McCown is watching the quarterback carousel as closely as anyone, and the teams looking for signal callers have an eye on him, too.
In an interview with SiriusXM NFL Radio on Thursday, McCown said that "four or five teams" have already reached out.
"Those are all stopping points as you see the offseason unfolds: When the draft starts, when free agency hits. Because that's when moves will take place and you know, teams will be changing their roster and re-ordering their depth chart and things like that," McCown said. "That's when I think, for me, it will be opportunistic to pick the best opportunity. We've had good conversations with four or five teams and we feel good about the opportunities that will be there so it's about finding the right one."
McCown, who was released by the Browns two weeks ago, said that if he's going to a team as a backup, he wants to "feel the team has a chance to win and they're set up to win. Those are really the kinds of things that are important to me. We feel like there are opportunities out there that meet those requirements." He also wants to be in a position where he could mentor a young quarterback that he likes.
Location (McCown is from Jacksonville, Texas) is also a factor. He has two sons -- in seventh and eighth grade -- and he said he wants to see both play in their youth football games this season.
"I'm going to take my time," he said. "Obviously, having played this long, for me right now it's being in the right situation and so as we talk to teams and have had some initial conversations, everyone is just waiting to see where the quarterback market goes. But for me, it's [about finding] the right situation. So right now, I'm going to maximize my time of being free and being with my family and as the offseason progresses, hopefully we'll find a spot we'll feel good about and we'll move forward. But right now, it's about taking our time."
McCown, 37, will be a valuable commodity this offseason. While his career might be at the point where he's an emergency starter or sage veteran backup, those positions are not taken lightly by teams breaking in rookies or looking to make a Super Bowl push. McCown handled a two-year quarterback teaching clinic in Cleveland admirably well and played hard when given the opportunity to start. A different situation could mean a different view of the quarterback.
The "four or five" teams should not be difficult to figure out, and more could come out of the woodwork as the spring progresses.
