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Listening to Cleveland Browns quarterback Brian Hoyer for the first time produces no great revelations but does reinforce the notion that perhaps for many, the Hoyer path is the best path.

Which does not mean a player should be released twice before he finds success.

It does mean, though, that there is benefit to watching and learning -- especially when it’s behind one of the NFL’s best.

Consider Brandon Weeden. The Browns' first-round draft choice in 2012 was put in the starting lineup immediately. He took over a bad team, with little talent around him. Any talent that was around him was young as well.

He did his best, then arrived as the starter in 2013. But he had to learn another system, a new coaching staff, new language and plays. He started two games, struggled and hurt his thumb.

Compare that to the experience of Hoyer, who spent three years in New England and part of a fourth in Arizona. While with the Patriots, Hoyer backed up Tom Brady, which meant he learned behind Brady. Hoyer also played for Bill Belichick. Given the opportunity to observe, he did just that -- and he absorbed.

Proof is that Hoyer is 2-0 as Cleveland's starter, combining for 590 passing yards and five touchdown passes.

“I learned how to prepare and cover all the bases,” Hoyer said in his locker room session Tuesday.

Prepare is the key. Hoyer said he lives in a bubble, going from home to work and back again. His key, he said, is being ready, which he learned in part from Brady.

“I believe in luck,” Hoyer said. “And the harder I prepare, the more luck I have.”

Luck certainly has something to do with Hoyer’s good fortune. Without an injury, he might still be watching. But when the injury occurred, Hoyer was ready.

Many of the things the Browns do offensively are similar to that of Belichick and the Patriots. To have three years' experience in that system had to help Hoyer in this one.

There’s a long way to go for Hoyer to firmly establish himself. But clearly he’s been helped by the fact that he had to be patient, and learn. And that he was willing to learn.

The Cleveland Browns remain in good standing on the injury front.

Quarterback Brandon Weeden practiced Tuesday, working with gloves on both hands in the part of practice open to the media.

Whether Weeden is the backup or No. 3 Thursday night against Buffalo will be determined by how he looks in practice, said coach Rob Chudzinski. Weeden missed the last two games -- and probably lost his starting job -- to a sprained thumb.

Brian Hoyer will make his third start, ostensibly because it’s a short week but in reality because Hoyer has played too well not to start.

Three players are not expected to play: Outside linebackers Jabaal Sheard and Quentin Groves and defensive lineman Billy Winn. Sheard (sprained knee) and Winn (quad) were not working, and Groves (ankle) was riding the proverbial stationary bike.

Winn’s absence will be minimized by the Browns' depth on the defensive front. Sheard’s absence against Cincinnati allowed first-round pick Barkevious Mingo to open eyes with a very strong first start.

Place-kicker Billy Cundiff is dealing with a thigh strain. He missed two field goals in the win over Cincinnati. Chudzinski said he would see how Cundiff kicks in practice before making any decision regarding that position.

A weekly examination of the Browns’ ESPN.com Power Ranking:

Preseason: 28 | Last week: 25 | ESPN.com Power Ranking since 2002

The Cleveland Browns are close to moving into unfamiliar territory, and they and their fans have to be thrilled about it.

The Browns moved from No. 31 in the Week 3 rankings to 20 after trading running back Trent Richardson and moving third quarterback Brian Hoyer into the starting spot. Those moves were treated as cataclysmic by many, but the result has been two consecutive wins over playoff teams in 2012 (Minnesota and Cincinnati) and an 11-spot jump in the Power Rankings.

The last time the Browns were ranked 20th was the 15th week of the 2012 season.

A win Thursday night over Buffalo might even move the Browns into the teens. That hasn’t happened since the Browns were ranked 17th in Week 2 of the 2008 season.

Joni Mitchell wrote and sang about the “Circle Game” many, many years ago.

The seasons go round and round and the painted ponies go up and down. That kind of stuff.

The idea is that sometimes life takes us in circles and journeys wind up where they began. That’s the undeniably overwhelming feeling I have as I take over as the Browns reporter for ESPN.com.

This circle began long ago in Lakewood, Ohio, and St. Ignatius (the high school of a certain Browns quarterback) and proceeded through college, grad school and too many great jobs and great events to name. In this time, it’s become evident that the ability to type is a blessing. And when somebody can list on his résumé that he’s covered Super Bowls, Wimbledon, LeBron James, the Winter Olympics in Nagano and the Cleveland Indians with Tito Francona ... he’s pretty dadgum blessed.

This particular career opportunity brings me back where one very important and enjoyable circle began, the beat I started when I returned home to the Cleveland area in 1998 -- covering and writing about the Browns. It’s the team I’ve been following and writing about in some way, shape or form for 14 years.

I’ve always believed that the topic is far more important than the writer, but those of you who have been with me on this journey the past many years know I do this with energy and honesty, but also with a sense of fun and, yes, occasional irreverence.

So don’t be expecting Joni Mitchell’s poetry.

As this circle comes round, I promise to cover the Browns with as much energy as a dumpy Irish guy can bring. It’s an honor to be in this space. It feels right, and I’ll do my best to make sure we all have a good time on the way.

The greatest football player of all-time will be honored during Thursday night’s game, as Jim Brown will be added to the Cleveland Browns Ring of Honor. It’s a recognition that didn’t happen when the Ring of Honor was established because of a public spat between Brown and Mike Holmgren. Brown now has made up and is back in the fold with owner Jimmy Haslam. The team’s official website put together a pretty nice video of Brown at the Hall of Fame, with some highlights (featuring the radio voice of Gib Shanley). One of the greatest short-yardage runs in NFL history is at the 2:28 mark.

The Browns have been the league’s doormat for so long that when the schedule is released every team in the league mentally checks off the game as “Well, this one should be a win.” Cincinnati lost. And the Bengals did not react well, using words like “embarrassing” and “shocking.” Clearly, as Butch Hobson of Bengals.com points out, some of this fallout was frustration at their play, but some came because it was a game the Bengals no doubt felt they could -- and should -- have won.

Will the Browns have a problem when Brandon Weeden returns ready to play? Or is this a case of being happy a guy wants to play? Or is it much ado about nothing? Mary Kay Cabot of the Plain Dealer went to the backup well and talked to Weeden about watching while Brian Hoyer makes his third start, even though Weeden is healthy and practicing. Said Weeden: “I’m treating it like this is still my football team.” He did add: “I’d be doing a disservice to myself and doing a disservice to this offense” if he looked at things any other way. So maybe he’s just using the old line that he always prepares to start. Whatever.

Yes, Hoyer is mentioned in the same sentence as Otto Graham in the Canton Repository. And there’s a legitimate reason for doing so. Brian Hoyer, Otto Graham, with some more interesting stuff on the history of Browns quarterbacks. Who’d have imagined it?

Haslam made another of his unscheduled public statements about the federal investigation into fraud with his trucking company’s rebate program. Haslam has always denied doing anything wrong; seven former Pilot Flying J employees have pled guilty to federal charges. Haslam talked about what he’s done to repay folks, and to make sure he and his company are “doing the right thing and making things right.” As he always does when he makes these public pronouncements, he took no questions.

A weekly examination of four hot issues from the Cleveland Browns' 17-6 win over the Cincinnati Bengals:

1. Cameron crazies. Browns quarterback Brian Hoyer may be the feel-good story in Cleveland right now, but he'll be the first to tell you the dream season he's currently experiencing wouldn't be taking shape if it wasn't for his big tight end, Jordan Cameron. In the two games Hoyer has started, Cameron has caught 16 passes and four touchdowns. During Hoyer's homecoming Sunday, his first career start in the stadium he attended games as a teenager, Cameron hauled in 10 passes and went up high and brought down a fade in the end zone. As the season continues, still possibly with Hoyer behind center, football fans across the country will learn more about Cameron. In that respect, before you know it, there might be a new kind of Cameron crazies.

2. Some good, some bad. The middle two quarters Buster Skrine played Sunday likely left some Browns fans scratching their heads and screaming at their TVs wondering if and when he might be replaced. In the fourth quarter, though, that all changed when Skrine read the high tip off a mishandled Andy Dalton pass and dived to snag the game's only interception. When the defensive back grabbed the ball out of the air with 3:43 remaining in the game, he effectively ended the contest. Even though the Bengals ended up getting the ball back one more time, they would have needed to score on that possession and another with time expiring in order to pull off a comeback. Along with the interception, Skrine had a pair of tackles and broke up three passes, including one that came on a pivotal third-quarter third down. He also had penalties for pass interference and unnecessary roughness that could have cost the Browns. Cincinnati, however, was unable to take advantage of either.

3. Efficient red zone play. Cleveland had to be encouraged by its play inside the Bengals' 20. Only once in three trips did the Browns not convert a red zone possession into a score. The lone failed red zone conversion came early in the second quarter, when kicker Billy Cundiff missed his first of two field goals. The other two drives ended in goal-to-go territory and resulted in passing touchdowns to Cameron and running back Chris Ogbonnaya.

4. Haden halts Green. Browns cornerback Joe Haden and Bengals receiver A.J. Green have been going against one another since they were in college playing in the SEC at Florida and Georgia, respectively. By now, they know each other's tendencies and nuances. In this latest matchup, though, it was Haden who got the better of Green, locking him down and making it difficult for Dalton to complete passes in Green's direction. When Haden wasn't batting away one of his two passes, he was typically right in Green's face, forcing an overthrow, or hitting him as soon as he caught the ball, limiting Green's yards after the catch. Targeted 14 times, Green caught seven passes for just 51 yards.

CLEVELAND -- When the play started, the Browns were 1 yard shy of the goal line. Cleveland quarterback Brian Hoyer was behind center, handed a direct snap.

By the time the ball left his hand on a fall-away pass, he felt like he had been magically transported halfway downfield, carried closer to the far end zone by disbelief, an exuberant, boyish joy and an overwhelming sense of relief.

At that instant, he and the other 71,000 people inside FirstEnergy Stadium could tell: Hoyer, the hometown kid, was about to be 2-0 as the starting quarterback for the team he grew up cheering.

"I was a little embarrassed," Hoyer later said, joking about his fall-away. "By the time he caught it, I was at the 40-yard line because he was so wide open."

The player who hauled in Hoyer's late fourth-quarter touchdown pass was running back Chris Ogbonnaya, and when he easily crossed the goal line for the 1-yard score with 4:54 remaining, a brash message was sent to the rest of the AFC North and reluctantly received. The Browns, it said, are the division doormat no more. Even without Trent Richardson, they are very much in this race and plan to make life difficult for those teams, like the Bengals, who so many had hitched their hopes to in the preseason.

As the calendar quickly turns to Week 5 -- Cleveland has a short turnaround after Sunday's 17-6 win over Cincinnati with a Thursday night game against Buffalo -- Browns fans are now similarly hitching their hopes onto Hoyer.

The North Olmstead, Ohio, native was impressive in his home debut, compiling a 103.9 passer rating and throwing for 269 yards and two touchdowns. After the first quarter alone, a period that saw him complete all of his first eight passes, Hoyer posted a 147.9 passer rating.

"He did a great job," Browns coach Rob Chudzinski said. "We were a little bit too hyped up early on, I'd say. Guys settled in. He settled in and made some good decisions with throws and made good plays. Certainly he's been the spark that I had hoped for."

Chudzinski decided to go with Hoyer two games ago after starter Brandon Weeden had difficulty leading the offense through the first two games. Weeden also got injured in that stretch, making the decision to stick with Hoyer even easier. Part of the decision was to simply shake things up, another part was to see how change might affect the team.

The decision, so far, has paid great dividends.

If it will for a third straight week is anyone's guess at this point. Chudzinski told reporters after the game he still wanted to evaluate game film Monday and determine whether he'll be sticking with Hoyer, going with Weeden or progressing in a whole different direction at quarterback.

One week after helping beat Minnesota late on the road, Hoyer routinely put the Browns in position to score against their in-state rival Sunday afternoon. Even though the Bengals had multiple chances to make the game closer, they probably should have lost by much more. A pair of missed Billy Cundiff field goals took points away from the Browns, and a couple of failed third-down conversions that led to them took away Cleveland scoring chances. Cleveland's 17 total points very easily could been 23 or 24 or 28.

"They've [the offensive players] definitely improved as the season has gone on," Chudzinski said. "The thing that I like about these guys is any time you challenge them or talk about the things we need to improve on, they respond. It's great when you have a group of guys that feel that way and respond that way."

Hoyer's homecoming was aided in large part by tight end Jordan Cameron's 10-catch, one-touchdown effort. It was the second time this season Cameron had nine or more receptions, and it followed up his six-catch performance in Hoyer's debut last week.

"He's taking advantage of the opportunities in front of him," Cameron said of Hoyer. "It's good to see that, especially because he is from this area. He talked about it being a dream to play in front of these fans and get a win against another Ohio team. It's a big day for him and I'm really happy for him."