Signs that we are descending into the offseason

Ah, the mediocrity of non-news news.

Browns make offers to Anderson, Lewis

It draws to mind the middle-school taunt: "No sh**, Sherlock".

One of these days, maybe we'll find out WHAT the offers were.

My guess is that Lewis' deal is two years, probably more pay than the $5M he got for 2007. Not purely because he's worth it, but partially out of respect for him (all reports are that he's been a great addition to the locker room), and anticipation that in free agency some talentless team (Dolphins, Falcons, steelers) would offer him enough money so that he would agree to play for a crappy team.

Anderson's is probably a bit longer term, but a bit less money. Since they still have the fall-back of the restricted free agent thing, and since he's still more of an unknown commodity, that would seem prudent.

Just a punt returner

I missed the Jacksonville/Patriots game. I was thankful to the Jaguars for knocking off pittsburgh, but I got a bit of amusement out of this Peter King nugget:

Goat of the Week

Jacksonville WR Dennis Northcutt. New England led 21-14 early in the fourth quarter on Saturday night, but the Jags were driving relentlessly behind better-than-expected quarterback David Garrard. Northcutt ran a post between two New England defenders, and Garrard hit him perfectly at the Patriots 2-yard line. You couldn't throw the ball any better -- right on Northcutt's hands. One problem. Northcutt clearly had alligator arms on the play, fearing the big hit from the New England safety, and the ball bounced off his hands, incomplete. Instead of tying the game at 21 and giving the Patriots something too think about down the stretch, the Jags had to settle for a field goal to close within 21-17. They never caught up.

He he, some things never change. . .

Post first, read later

Trying to find more details about the Grantham story, I found this piece on the OBR, laying it very clear the rumored background to Grantham's departure. Too bad I haven't been keeping up with my OBR news.

This just highlights what a great resource the OBR is for Browns fans. If only I wasn't too cheap to pony up the cash to be a subscriber. . .

Speak of the devil

This morning I posted about how having stability at the head coach makes it easier to swallow an inevitable coordinator change. I didn't realize that such a change would be only a few hours away. But per PFT, Todd Grantham has been shown the door.

I'm not disappointed, but I am a bit surprised. I'll be curious to find out if this came from Savage or Crennel or both. I guess the writing was on the wall with everyone getting a contract extension but Todd.

Maybe we can get that old steelers coach to be our new defensive coordinator. What was his name? Coward? Something like that?

Or maybe Savage has his eye on former Ravens defensive coordinator Rex Ryan. I don't know if Ryan does the 3-4 or not, but I'm sure any former Raven would be on Savage's list.

Controversial and loving it

Going into the season I expected the end of the season to bring us a coaching controversy. But it looks like the PD is doing everything they can to foist a QB controversy on us.

I guess there isn't too much controversy about keeping Crennel, although I was surprised to see we're ready to give him an extension. One winning season does not a successful coach make. Remember Butch Davis in 2002? I don't expect Crennel to flame out like Davis, but he could come up with his own unique way to flame out.

Keeping Crennel around does have its upsides:
>> Veterans like playing for us.
>> He, along with his veterans, have really helped bring in an air of professionalism.
>> What's not to love about a fat guy with a mustache?
>> Through some trial and error, he and Savage seemed to have defined their roles pretty well.
>> I'll throw out the "s" word: he gives us stability. That is especially important given the wide latitude he gives his coordinators. No matter which team it is, replacing coordinators seems to be necessary every few years because the good ones get promoted and the bad one get fired. I'm sure the players like to know that even though there will likely be upheaval every few years, its not going to be a complete slash and burn.

Of course, its got its downsides too:
>> Every few games we get a really boneheaded move that may or may not be his fault. Bad challenges to calls, bad clock management.
>> A resistance to change. This means veterans play even when there are rookies who could take their spot. This is the flip side of the positive that veterans like playing for us.
>> He's smart enough to know when to keep his cards close to his chest, and not throw his players and staff under the bus. But lots of times he comes off sounding like an idiot in his press conferences, especially when its explaining a bad performance. I trust that he is not an idiot, and taking the heat for your players can be admirable. But it makes losses just a little bit worse.

All in all, I think the positives outweigh the negatives. This franchise is looking like it has finally turned the corner, and it being run like a professional team should be. That doesn't guarantee success on the field, but it sure makes it alot easier to attain.

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As far as the QB "controversy": What's so controversial? Sign Anderson, listen to trade offers, give Quinn a chance to beat him out.

At times like this, its a good thing Phil Savage is a humble man

Since the signing of Rob Chudzinski, the conventional wisdom has been that he was Phil Savage's pick, with Crennel essentially being told "this is your guy, hope you like him". Not that I've ever heard that Crennel protested to Chud's hiring. But it will be hard to forget that Crennel's original pick was fullback-focused (and, as well documented by Ace Davis, none-too truthful) Mo Carthon. If Crennel had had the coordinator pick to make on his own, he well could have ended up going with Jeff Davidson, whose Carolina offense was ranked 27th by Football Outsiders.

If Savage is to be given credit for getting Chud to Berea, then his selection has recently been validated by the Ravens who wanted Chud to come in to interview for their head coaching job. Fortunately for all of us, Chud turned them down, and signed an extension to stay in Cleveland. It works for Cleveland since Chud deserves alot of credit for the offense's resurgence; and it works for Chud since the Raven's coaching job has to be one of the worst positions in the NFL. Who would want to be the Raven's ostensible coach when Ray Lewis is the one calling the shots?

While Chud may be Savage's most important addition last season, his biggest addition is Joe Thomas, who has just won a back-door ticket to the Pro Bowl. Thomas has also been earning "Best Left Tackle" nods from national writers like Peter King and Len Pasquarelli. Its really hard for me to overstate how great it is to finally have an offensive line, and the whole package is really upgraded with a premier (and young!) left tackle. Now when we debate who should be at quarterback or running back, we can discuss them on their own merits rather than constantly saying "if they had protection, they could be. . .".

In one season, Phil Savage has turned around the Browns' offense. There are still pieces that will need tweaking, but even if an off-season of being planned against knocks them down a couple rungs next season, at least it won't be a bad offense. And that is all I ask for. Now about that defense. . .

Winning to lose

After a great season that was more successful than anybody's wildest dreams, I guess I shouldn't revert to the all too familiar "woe-is-me" post, but I'm a Browns fan so it is what comes naturally to me.

We won 10 games (and at least our 10 wins all came against teams that were trying to win . . .) and yet are sitting at home this January. Here is a list of the number of teams who finished either 10-6 or 9-7 and did not make the playoffs. This goes back to the 1990 season, when the 12 team playoffs were put into place.

Season	10-6	9-7
2007	1	-
2006	-	1
2005	1	4
2004	-	3
2003	1	1
2002	-	4
2001	-	1
2000	-	4
1999	-	1
1998	-	-
1997	-	1
1996	-	2
1995	-	1
1994	-	2
1993	-	1
1992	-	2
1991	2	-
1990	-	2

Offended by silliness

The 2007/8 ProBowl roster is out.

The good news: The Browns have ended their streak of shut-outs.
The bad news: There was some serious shafting going on.

I'll be the first to admit that ProBowl rosters tend to be popularity contests, and reflect past achievements and not current achievements. And furthermore, we all know how much of a team sport is, and how much of a disservice it is to pay homage to a couple guys and not the other guys who are allowing them to excel. But, it is what it is.

Braylon Edwards and Josh Cribbs will be representing the Browns. Thats fair. Cribbs by all means should be there, and its a rare example of the better player getting in over the higher-profile player (Wes Welker).

But how about Browns omissions? Kellen Winslow could beat out Gates or Gonzalez any day of the week. I would have liked to see Derek Anderson in over ben rothlisberger, not because I think he deserves it, just because it would have pissed off steelers fans so much. I also think that Lawrence Vickers probably deserves consideration, although I'll admit to not being the connoisseur of fullback play. Ditto on guard and tackle: I love what Joe Thomas and Eric Steinbach have been doing for us, but I can't speak to their comparative value.

We can complain all we want, but at least we've got guys who are there, unlike the Jacksonville Jaguars. . .

Best. Game. Ever.

Wow, what a game! This was probably the best I've ever watched. It makes me wish I was a purist.

This must be what fans who reminisce about the old days are talking about. From the first snow covered shot, I knew it was going to have the setting of an old school Browns game. I just didn't expect for it to BE an old school Browns game, but thats exactly what it was. That was power football, a game of field position and execution. I wasn't too surprised to see Jamal Lewis and the Browns Offensive Line do such a good job. But how about that defense? We looked pretty decent against the run.

So now we're tied with Pittsburgh, and the only way we miss the playoffs is if we lose out and Tennessee wins out.

And Baltimore descends to a new low in losing to Miami. What a day!

Lake Effect

The game has just started. Here in DC we've been spared any snow, but turning on the Browns game I see that not everyone has been so lucky.

THIS is a Browns - Bills game. Hellloo Cleveland!

It probably hurts our chances of winning, but its going to be a game to talk about for a long time.

Stop holding down the shift key

I present for your consideration Jerome Harrison.

In three games this year, he has 16 carries for 109 yards, yielding a 6.8 average. 11 of his runs have been successful*, giving him a 69% success rate. He also has one reception for 15 yards. 11 of his runs have come on first down, and he hasn't had any third-and-short runs, but thats more a result of his success (he keeps running for 10-15 yards on first down).

Beyond his successful stats, the kid's running has just been exciting to watch. His cutting and spinning have helped account for at least a chunk of those 109 yards.

Now, I'm not saying he's ready to be the feature back, but based on his production, I'd like to see him get more touches.

* Gaining 40% of the yards needed for a first, or 100% on third down

Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder

Others call the Browns win over the Jets ugly. It was closer than I would have liked, but I always had faith that we would pull it out.

I think some are denigrating the Browns' performance based on the assumptions that the Jets are a terrible team, and we should have won by alot more. While the Jets certainly don't look like a good team, they probably aren't as bad as their 3-10 record suggests. And considering the number of talking heads who were falling all over themselves to praise Eric Mangini last year, I have a hard time writing them off entirely. They beat the Steelers, after all, and having to face the AFC East, AFC North, and NFC East in one season is a tough call for a young team with injury problems.

The defense was terrible as usual, particularly in the two minute drill. Clearly the Jets were getting desperate, which can help explain alot of their success. We were playing with fire by kicking to Leon Washington, but the Jets recovery of that first onside kick was a matter of luck.

It will be good to go home again next week. And if there is any justice in the world, the Browns Bills game should be on TV here.

My Name is Kellen

Yeah, we got a little bit robbed. But we won on a similar call against the Jets last year. The refs almost never call a force out.

I guess the ref's standard is, it has to be indisputable that he would have come down inbounds if not for the force out. Would Kellen have come down inbounds? Probably, he had the room. But its not like its that hard to picture him coming down with a foot out of bounds. We've seen him make the amazing catches, but I don't remember seeing him pull off any of the receiver-specialty tip-toeing the line catches like I've seen from Braylon.

Oh well, what are you gonna do? The answer is, you don't turn the ball over like that. Especially against a hurting Cardinals defense. As heartening as it is to see that our talent look like its genuinely better than the competition, it doesn't mean anything towards getting to the playoffs if it doesn't come together.

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I didn't get to see the whole game, and I seemed to miss most of the big plays. So I was just purusing NFL.com's offering.
http://www.nfl.com/videos?videoId=09000d5d804ba0a9

A couple thoughts:
>> I haven't seen any frame-by-frame replays, but I can see how Bralyon wasn't down during his 62 yard catch-and-roll-and run. He was touched, then his foot hit the ground, and then he did his roll, and he may have been touched again after he bounced up, but I didn't see it clearly where he was touched while down.
>> In response to Josh Cribbs's punt fumble, the announcers proclaim you never run more than 10 yards for a fair catch. If the punt is headed straight into the back of one of your unwitting teammates, you do whatever you have to to try to get to that ball. If Josh hadn't muffed the punt, it would've been 50-50 whether it would have hit a Brown or Cardinal first. Course, it still would've been better if he had caught it.
>> The announcers during a part of the game that I saw yesterday were going crazy over a third down Warner completion to a diving receiver for an 18 yard pick-up. They seemed to miss the fact that it was actually 3rd and 22, so that reception meant absolutely NOTHING, unless you've got Warner for fantasy football.

Silver linings are cheap

I'm nothing if not irrationally optimistic. Thats why I keep this blog, and follow this team.

This loss was certainly better than the first loss of the season because we can at least point to things that they need to fix. Albeit, they're big fix jobs, but after that first loss, all I could do was throw my hands up and swear.

steelers suck

Watching the game without being able to hear it at the strip club I was at*, I had no idea that we burned two timeouts on the challenge of the Miller catch. Yeah, that was idiotic. Crennel has some 'splainin' to do. I'm not going to be defending him against the calls for his head.

But I can't get too hung up on our lack of time to tie it up at the end. I can't even get too hung up on our crappy defense letting rothlisberger look like a good quarterback. Because none of that would have mattered if our offense didn't totally roll over in the second half.

Watching all those three and outs (or the particularly demoralizing one-Jamal-Lewis-fumble and out) looked like the Browns we came to know and hate over the past few seasons. Even when they took a break from the poorly advised run plays, the passing game was full of miscommunications. Anderson's protection was adequate, but less than solid. So many passes went incomplete, and while some were due to poor throws, others were due to bad route running (and liberal interpretation of the five yard rule by the steeler secondary and their reliably-friendly officiating crew). It seemed like even when a third and long pass was clanging to the ground incomplete, even if the receiver had caught the ball he probably couldn't have made it to the first down marker.

So I lay this blame on the offense. Got a little too conservative, and a little sloppy, before the game was anywhere near done. If they would have shown some life in the second half, then the defense and poor clock management wouldn't have mattered. But they rolled over, and based on our play over that second half, we didn't deserve to win this game.

Hopefully this loss will make the players hungry. Their play during the first half, and even during the very last drives on offense and defense, should be enough to show these guys that this team can beat the steelers. If they play up to their talent, maybe they'll get their shot in the playoffs. If not, they won't get their shot until next year.

*Don't ask. Let me just say that a strip club with the lights on and no girls around looks like any other restaurant/sports bar.

Flight 80 into Midway

We are officially half-way through the regular season. In past year that "regular" qualifier would be unnecessary, but this year its still a very real possibility that we could have more than 8 games before closing down for the offseason.

So what is there to talk about? Normally, now would be a good time to start talking about which coaches should be scapegoated, which untested rookies should be given playing time in what is already a lost cause, and which positions will be most important for the draft next year.

Instead, I'm going to figure out how we got here, sitting at 5-3:

>> No major injuries. Have the football gods decided we've be retributed against enough? I don't know, and I'm knocking on wood while writing this, but so far we haven't had any major injuries, other than the carry-overs from last year, and the guys who are old enough for the injuries to be expected.
>> A stable offensive line. Hallelujah, Phil Savage!! After all the years talking about "what if", this is an amazing turn of events.
>> A competent, smart QB
>> A receiving corp that runs good routes, and makes things happen after the catch, allowing the QB to look competent and smart
>> A kick returning team that provides regular good field positions
>> A punting team that (rarely) gives up good field position.
>> An offensive coordinator who isn't afraid to play to the team's strength and throw the ball alot.
>> A defense that, while bad, still comes through with a game-saving stop or an opportunistic turnover just enough to let us win.

My biggest concern is how much talk the Browns are getting from the national pin-heads. Its a sure sign that we have some disappointment ahead of us. But hopefully we can still pull out enough games to make the end of the season exciting.

A nice Bad Situation

Pft is speculating about what will happen with Derek Anderson after the season, saying either someone will give up their first and third round draft picks for him, or we'll have to pay him alot. It ignores the third option of trading Quinn. But at this point, its too early to start talking about it. Closer to the end of the season, we should know alot more about Derek Anderson, and if he's the real deal. Then we can worry about the choices. But so far, I fail to see how any of these are bad situations. Starting Charlie Frye, now THAT'S a bad situation.

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The Colts/Pats game is already getting too much hype, and I hate to add to it. But I gotta say, I'm pretty excited. Its like a good Super Bowl, but without all the annoying fanfare, bad musical acts, and twittering about "the commercials". Its just football (and 1.5 hours of car commercials). And instead of pitting the best AFC team against the NFC's least-bad team, its really the two best teams in the league.

Being in Virginia, I'll be able to see that game. Hopefully I can get a streaming video of the Browns game on the 'puter, and I'll be set.

FYI, I have found a way to get a free video stream of Browns games online. Its not a 100% sure thing, the quality stinks, and its a couple minutes delayed, but its a million times better than nothing, and you can't beat the price. To avoid it being too widely publicized, I don't want to post the link, but if anyone wants it, just leave me a comment with your email address, or email DwayneRudd@gmail.com.

Insider Trading

20 days ago, we were a 2-3 team with an inconsistent quarterback, and a list of opponents that (at that point) ranked as the strongest schedule in the league (as ranked by Football Outsiders).

We have since beaten two winless teams and had a bye week. Our strength of schedule has dropped to 14th toughest. Derek Anderson and Braylon Edwards are the talk of the league, and playoffs are a very real possibility.

Its a fun team to watch, certainly head and shoulders above past years, and thats one of the big things I want to get out of games. But I'm still not ready to call this a 180 degree turnaround just yet. We still have alot of football to play.

One of my own goals coming into the season wasn't necessarily wins or playoffs. It was draft picks. I didn't want to see the Cowboys end up with a really high draft pick from the Brady Quinn trade. Not because I have anything against the Cowboys, Its just I get annoyed just thinking about all the talking heads constantly pointing out how expensive the trade was, and how great the Cowboys did, and how much the Browns would need it, etc. So my hopes were pretty meager: At the least, end out of the top 10 in draft picks. We should be able to check that box off with two more wins. Preferably, our draft pick will be in the second half of the round. That might take another four wins, so it is certainly within reach.

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I've read a few articles talking about how Charlie Frye will be providing the Seahawks with insider information about the Browns offense. Here is a sample of what he's telling them:

Double cover Kellen Winslow. Since the QB won't have his open target, your 4 men rushing will have at least ten seconds to break through, chase the QB around, and get a sack. If you rush 5 men, you'll be able to make him dance and fumble the ball. No, don't worry about covering Edwards or Jurevicius, the QB isn't supposed to look at those guys. Just worry about KWII, and maybe any backs that have broken off for a dump off. Anybody thats out more than 6 yards is just a decoy, he's not a real target, so don't worry about covering him.

Why I love Cleveland

Yeah great, Browns are 3-3, good offense, bad defense. With the Indians providing all the excitement I'm capable of taking in, I'm going to break my self-imposed rule that all my posts be about the Browns.

Lets face it, Cleveland is not usually the destination of choice for the rich and the famous. When Cleveland is hosting a nationally televised series against the Yankees or the Red Sox, they could probably get any number of celebrities to come into town to toss an opening pitch. But for game one against the Yankees, the playoffs were opened by none other than tribe drummer and regular guy John Adams.

Its not just that the tribe would give the nod to Adams to toss the pitch. Its everything about Adams. Yeah, he gets a little press about his drum, but he could barely even qualify as a local celebrity. He just pays for his tickets, shows up at games, and bangs his drum.

Lest ye forget

If we haven't already, most of us have probably gotten into talking about the failings of the Browns recently (especially on Defense). While its something to look at, I just want to take a step back and double emphasize an important point:

We SPANKED the RatBirds, Baby!