Browns coach Hue Jackson said rookie quarterback Cody Kessler has been medically cleared to return from the concussion he suffered Oct. 23 against the Cincinnati Bengals.
"He's cleared, and we'll see more of him this week," Jackson said Monday. "He needs to practice now, and we'll see where all that goes."
Jackson said he won't choose between Kessler and quarterback Josh McCown as the starting quarterback for Sunday's home game against the Dallas Cowboys until Kessler practices.
"I think it's too early to talk about those things," Jackson said when asked if he would reinsert Kessler into the starting lineup. "I think obviously Josh was the starter last week. We've got to make sure that Cody's ready to go. I know he's out of the concussion protocol, but he's got to practice football. So I'll worry about that as we kind of move through the week."
McCown started Sunday as the Browns fell to 0-8 with a 31-28 loss to the New York Jets. It was McCown's first action since he suffered a fractured left collarbone Sept. 18 in a 25-20 loss to the Baltimore Ravens.
Kessler started five games and performed well each time until he was knocked out of the loss to the Bengals in the second quarter.
McCown is 37. Kessler is 23 and a third-round pick in this year's draft.
So Jackson obviously would prefer to take a longer look at Kessler, right?
"I want to take a look at everybody," Jackson replied. "I think everybody who's healthy needs to play. My no. 1 goal is to win football games. This is not a popularity contest to me or this or that. I'm trying to win games because that's what my mission is with our players and our coaches. Win as many games as we can. I'm not trying to see this or that. It gives us an opportunity to. We've done that. But I think at the same time, the No. 1 goal is to try to win."
Jackson wouldn't specify his timetable for selecting a starting quarterback beyond saying it would happen "this week." The Browns resume practice Wednesday.
"I'm not going to tell you the day I'm making that decision, and I don't know," Jackson said. "We're going to go practice and I'm going to let Cody practice and Josh is going to practice, and then we'll figure it out from there."
Jackson also said rookie wide receiver Corey Coleman has been cleared to ramp up his participation in practice. A first-round pick, Coleman has missed the past six games after suffering a broken right hand in practice Sept. 21. He returned to practice last week on a limited basis but didn't attempt to catch passes while wearing a splint on the injured hand.
"Corey Coleman is cleared to come out and practice," Jackson said. "That's exciting to get him back. Totally looking forward to having Corey back out there. He's been around, running around a little bit in shoulder pads and those things. But he's champing at the bit to get back out there and play with his teammates, and I think that'll help us on offense."
Jackson said special-teams captain and inside linebacker Tank Carder is in the NFL's concussion protocol. He added rookie cornerback Briean Boddy-Calhoun didn't suffer a concussion in the first quarter against the Jets but was held out as a precaution.
