Da Dawg pound

Foxtrol · 13-03-2019 1:53pm

gstack166 wrote: »

What do we think about what we gave up? Seems a lot to me, quite liked the potential in Peppers even though it’s been a bit rocky for him.

Don’t get me wrong Beckham is a superstar delighted he’s there but overall if it’s as it seems that Beckham wanted out & the Giants likewise & considering rumours that he wants the contract negotiated it’s a lot more (not sure money wise) than what the Raiders gave up for AB

Think you guys are crazy to question what you gave up. Would have been delighted if the 49ers had gotten him for that price but we didn’t have the right picks (#2 was just too high). The guy is going to end up in the HOF and is in his prime. I think comparing him to what the Raiders got for AB isn’t wise as he is 4 years younger and didn’t practically go on strike and have/fake a mental breakdown to drive through the move. Better comparisons are Cooper and Cooks who both went for 1st rounders and OBJ is much better than them.

He may look for a little bit of extra money/guarantees but you guys have still have a good bit of cap space and didn’t have to pay any of his signing bonus. As far as his issues with the Giants, they clearly lied to him about their plans for the team when it came to signing and they failed as a coaching staff and front office. The guy is vocal about wanting to do everything to win, something that Baker, Brady etc are lauded for. You guys are lucky to get him.

gstack166 · 13-03-2019 9:23pm

Foxtrol wrote: »

Think you guys are crazy to question what you gave up. Would have been delighted if the 49ers had gotten him for that price but we didn’t have the right picks (#2 was just too high). The guy is going to end up in the HOF and is in his prime. I think comparing him to what the Raiders got for AB isn’t wise as he is 4 years younger and didn’t practically go on strike and have/fake a mental breakdown to drive through the move. Better comparisons are Cooper and Cooks who both went for 1st rounders and OBJ is much better than them.

He may look for a little bit of extra money/guarantees but you guys have still have a good bit of cap space and didn’t have to pay any of his signing bonus. As far as his issues with the Giants, they clearly lied to him about their plans for the team when it came to signing and they failed as a coaching staff and front office. The guy is vocal about wanting to do everything to win, something that Baker, Brady etc are lauded for. You guys are lucky to get him.

Forgot about Cooper tbh & I know all what you’re saying but the Giants wanted him gone for a reason. If they were ready to challenge this year they yeah, I’d be a lot more delighted but they’re not in my opinion, there’s a good Young hungry team there & you have to wonder wil OBJ upset that?

Being college team mates & best friends with Landry eases my mind a little alright, all US sport shows essentially unuanious today (the ones that I saw, with Whitlock, Cowerd, PTI) saying he’s poisonous in the locker room. Would it of took much (if anything at all, maybe he would of fell to them at 17) to go get Metcalfe & continued building with young players a lot on rookie deals for a few seasons too?

Have to wait & see I spose, I’m delighted he’s there & that just think it’s a risk for someone who’s missed 21 games (I think) in their career.

Guffy · 13-03-2019 9:27pm

gstack166 wrote: »

. Would it of took much (if anything at all, maybe he would of fell to them at 17) to go get Metcalfe

But Metcalfe isn't good. He just athletic (in straight lines)

gstack166 · 13-03-2019 9:29pm

Guffy wrote: »

But Metcalfe isn't good. He just athletic (in straight lines)

Did you watch the combine? (I didn’t) listened to Kipers pod the week before it, I’m a few episodes behind now, he seems very keen on him? No question he’s the first WR taken off the board but did say it’s a weak class.

Guffy · 13-03-2019 9:41pm

gstack166 wrote: »

Did you watch the combine? (I didn’t) listened to Kipers pod the week before it, I’m a few episodes behind now, he seems very keen on him? No question he’s the first WR taken off the board but did say it’s a weak class.

He wasn't even the best receiver at Ole Miss

Foxtrol · 14-03-2019 12:48am

gstack166 wrote: »

Forgot about Cooper tbh & I know all what you’re saying but the Giants wanted him gone for a reason. If they were ready to challenge this year they yeah, I’d be a lot more delighted but they’re not in my opinion, there’s a good Young hungry team there & you have to wonder wil OBJ upset that?

Being college team mates & best friends with Landry eases my mind a little alright, all US sport shows essentially unuanious today (the ones that I saw, with Whitlock, Cowerd, PTI) saying he’s poisonous in the locker room. Would it of took much (if anything at all, maybe he would of fell to them at 17) to go get Metcalfe & continued building with young players a lot on rookie deals for a few seasons too?

Have to wait & see I spose, I’m delighted he’s there & that just think it’s a risk for someone who’s missed 21 games (I think) in their career.

Metcalf might have the power of a tank, the speed of a race car but the the the agility of a bus. He has huge bust potential and at the moment isn't anywhere near OBJ. Borwns mightn't challenge this year but the clock is ticking before all these early draft pick contracts will start coming due. You couldn't ask for a better tool to help Baker avoid a sophomore slump.

The majority of the US media have absolutely no consistency for why they hate him, unfortunately I think a lot of them struggle to relate and unfairly judge young black men. Yes, he's emotional but so are many of the greats that they laud. Many of them have an issue with him because they adore the Mannings (that whole family have most of the media in their pockets) and OBJ had the balls to point out Eli's poor play, which was clear to anyone with eyes.

I'll leave you with this anecdote from one of the beat reporters. I haven't seen any evidence he is half the villain that many of the media make him out to be.

https://twitter.com/KimJonesSports/status/1105946242549534721

baby and crumble · 14-03-2019 9:56am

I think OBJ wants to win. And when he sees that he's not being supported to do that, he gets frustrated - like anyone in a dead-end job (which lets face it playing at WR with Eli kinda is right now) would be. He's never missed a practice to make a point, he didn't hold out like Brown, he always put in the effort on field. I actually think this could be a great move for him, the Browns are in a great position to win and prove themselves really for the first time since they came back into the league. Getting him out of the bright lights of NYC could do wonders for him, like a lot of troubled types of players who go to GB etc. They can knuckle down with less distractions.

VillaMad · 15-03-2019 3:17pm

It's quite possible the Giants know that next year they won't be challenging and OBJ could well sulk and moan and they can't deal with that anymore and got what they could this year, rather than risking another Antonio Brown situation where they got a pittance from Oakland. I think though that is a win-win for the Browns as the personalities of Landry, Mayfield and OBJ will all drive each other on. It is certainly exciting times at Cleveland.

Rounding up the week:
Demetrious Harris (TE) signed as a free agent leaving Kansas. Seemed to suffer from drops but is a good blocking TE and replaces Darren Fells who pretty much had that job.
Eric Kush (G) provides depth on the offensive line and did feature for Chicago last year so he will fighting for a spot during the summer.
Shelton Richardson (DT) is a big get on a problem issue for the Browns. At 28, he should be in his prime.
Adarius Taylor (LB) signed from Tampa Bay. Played quite a bit last season but according to PPF, is below average.

Jabrill Peppers (SS) moves to the Giants in the trade for Odell Beckham. Poor in his first season as he struggled to know what his position was, but as last season went on, he got better and better and was one of the most improved players in the squad. Sad to see him go as he had a lot of potential and the Brown need to replace him.
Breshad Perriman (WR) turned down a new deal after the OBJ trade. Played well for the Browns but will get more snaps at Tampa Bay.
Tyrod Taylor (QB) joined the Chargers. After Mayfield replaced him, he had an out on his contract at the end of the season.

Needs for the Browns are definitely defensively now as the offense is loaded. A replacement for Peppers is needed at safety while another corner would be welcome. DT is now better with Richardson and Ogunjobi while Garrett and Vernon is a pretty good duo on the edge. I wonder whether they will draft a QB to back-up Mayfield now with Tyrod gone.

Emmanuel Ogbah and Duke Johnson are on the trade block due to signings of Vernon and Hunt.

News from the NFL today with Kareem Hunt handed an 8-game ban which means he will be available from November onwards. When he comes back, the options are scary.

VillaMad · 27-04-2019 12:39pm

Delighted to get Greedy Williams who was a surprise to fall to 46. Having Ward on one side and him on the other is fantastic work. Most big boards had him as one of the top two cornerbacks so that was a great pick and heck even here on the mock draft, he was gone at 8.

The second pick in Sione Takitaki was a bit of head-scratcher as he appeared to be a late rounder in most mock drafts, so it looks like a reach and their certainly were some good options at that pick but they do need linebacker help and obviously identified him as someone that could help out.

VillaMad · 05-06-2019 11:39am

Duke Johnson has doubled down on his request to get a trade after appearing in front of media at the start of OTA's.

With Kareem Hunt signed, Johnson knows that he won't see much action but with Hunt suspended for the first 8 games, I'm pretty sure the Browns will look to keep him as a number two to Chubb and then trade him to a RB needy team around the trade deadline which should coincide with Hunt being available.

The_Honeybadger · 05-06-2019 1:44pm

VillaMad wrote: »

Duke Johnson has doubled down on his request to get a trade after appearing in front of media at the start of OTA's.

With Kareem Hunt signed, Johnson knows that he won't see much action but with Hunt suspended for the first 8 games, I'm pretty sure the Browns will look to keep him as a number two to Chubb and then trade him to a RB needy team around the trade deadline which should coincide with Hunt being available.

Seems reasonable. He should see some action for the first 8-10 games at least because it will take Hunt time to get in to it, if Chubb gets injured in the meantime he will be RB1. Difficult to see what his issue is, and it’s easy to see why the Browns don’t want to let him go they need him, at least for now.

VillaMad · 05-06-2019 11:59pm

The_Honeybadger wrote: »

Seems reasonable. He should see some action for the first 8-10 games at least because it will take Hunt time to get in to it, if Chubb gets injured in the meantime he will be RB1. Difficult to see what his issue is, and it’s easy to see why the Browns don’t want to let him go they need him, at least for now.

From his point of view, he knows that he isn't a long-term option with the Browns and would rather go now and get a pre-season with another team rather than joining a side during the middle of season. Hopefully he doesn't go down the LaVeon Bell route and that he honours his contract.

LT Desmond Harrison has been released after he missed his flight to mini-camp. Apparently this wasn't the first time he missed some stuff and the Browns have decided to move on without him.

VillaMad · 08-08-2019 2:48pm

Duke Johnson has been traded to the Texans for a third or fourth round draft pick.

Would have liked him to have stayed until the trade deadline but obviously he knows with the emergence of Chubb and with Kareem Hunt to come into the side, that his future was away from the Browns and he has been allowed leave.

D9Male · 08-08-2019 4:06pm

Makes sense for all three parties in the deal. The compensation seems very fair.

VillaMad · 22-08-2019 4:11pm

Still a couple of weeks until the first regular season game and hopes are still very much high.

Would like to see OBJ on the field for at least one of the remaining pre-season games with Landry and Baker. The back-up running-back is a slight worry with Johnson having to be replaced while nobody seems close to Njoku's ability at TE.

The offensive line is the big worry going forward and the best we can hope for at this stage is that they can be serviceable and just do enough for Baker to get the ball out. Austin Corbett has been a disaster in training camp according to the reports and already looks like a bust which is hugely problematic for the OL. One wonders whether Dorsey will do something, especially with that conditional third pick that he got from the Texans.

Defensively, Garrett seems better than ever and it will be good to see him line-up opposite to Vernon when the time comes. There was a lack of depth at linebacker ahead of the draft but 5th rounder, Mack Wilson has been a revelation. Takitaki whilst not as impressive has been aggressive in training camp and it will be interesting to see how he gets on further down the line.

Kicking issues I'm afraid, still seem to linger. Joseph and Seibert have been horribly inconsistent.

The_Honeybadger · 22-08-2019 6:00pm

Mack Wilson could be the steal of this draft class if he continues to play like that. I was amazed he fell to the fifth round tbh.

Offensive line does look like a soft spot. Any idea why the traded Zeitler? Seemed like a strange trade at the time and even more so now

Onecoolcookie · 22-08-2019 6:48pm

The_Honeybadger wrote: »

Mack Wilson could be the steal of this draft class if he continues to play like that. I was amazed he fell to the fifth round tbh.

Offensive line does look like a soft spot. Any idea why the traded Zeitler? Seemed like a strange trade at the time and even more so now

Agree OL appears to be the glaring weakness which is a pity, if Dorsey could somehow swing a trade for Trent Williams that would be an huge upgrade over Robinson and would go a long way towards solidifying the line.

The_Honeybadger · 22-08-2019 6:53pm

Onecoolcookie wrote: »

Agree OL appears to be the glaring weakness which is a pity, if Dorsey could somehow swing a trade for Trent Williams that would be an huge upgrade over Robinson and would go a long way towards solidifying the line.

Did they not already pay Robinson $5m or something though? Replacing him now after a few months would look very bad

I’d be more worried about RT and Guard anyway. A few injuries there and it could really derail their year

Onecoolcookie · 22-08-2019 7:02pm

The_Honeybadger wrote: »

Did they not already pay Robinson $5m or something though? Replacing him now after a few months would look very bad

I’d be more worried about RT and Guard anyway. A few injuries there and it could really derail their year

Yeah he got a new one year deal but Robinson is absolutely awful IMO. He was serviceable down the stretch last season but I can see him regressing again this year and Browns should have definitely moved on in the offseason.

VillaMad · 22-08-2019 11:29pm

The_Honeybadger wrote: »

Mack Wilson could be the steal of this draft class if he continues to play like that. I was amazed he fell to the fifth round tbh.

Offensive line does look like a soft spot. Any idea why the traded Zeitler? Seemed like a strange trade at the time and even more so now

Well it was assumed that we could get Vernon opposite Garrett and just promote Corbett to the first team as Zeitler was on a big deal also. Obviously Corbett hasn't lived up to expectations as of yet and so it looks an awful trade at the minute.

Onecoolcookie wrote: »

Yeah he got a new one year deal but Robinson is absolutely awful IMO. He was serviceable down the stretch last season but I can see him regressing again this year and Browns should have definitely moved on in the offseason.

Yeah, my thoughts exactly. I thought he was used just for us to get through to the next draft and free agency but Dorsey mainly opted to stick with what we have got on the Offensive Line. Drew Forbes was drafted in the 6th round, and he has been ok in training camp, but it's hard to expect too much from a sixth rounder.

VillaMad · 30-08-2019 1:37pm

Final game of pre-season last night with a win over Detroit, so it's all about the roster cuts tomorrow.

Dorsey made his move for OL help, trading for Bills Guard, Wyatt Teller, a second-year player, giving up a fifth and a sixth next year for a seventh next year. According to Bills fans, Teller was a good but due their abundance of cover on the Offensive Line, he may well have been cut. Still for the Browns, something else was needed and he hopefully can be serviceable.

Concerns a bit over Wide Receiver depth. It was a real struggle in the last couple of pre-season games with nobody really standing out. Braxton Miller signed last week should get on the final roster.

The defensive line-men have been the big winners of pre-season with the opposition constantly pressured. Devaroe Lawrence was a revelation in the past week and Daniel Ekuale who didn't make the roster last year has also looked good and should get a place.

Kicker, Austin Seibert finally came good in the past two games, converting every opportunity and going 8/8. He surely will now get the nod ahead of Greg Joseph.

The Scottish Hammer, Jamie Gillan has been fantastic as punter and has even come up with some great tackles on opposition returns but the Browns will surely stick with the veteran Colquitt. Expect Gillan to find a spot somewhere on a NFL roster. His potential surely can't go to waste.

Onecoolcookie · 01-09-2019 8:47pm

The_Honeybadger wrote: »

Did they not already pay Robinson $5m or something though? Replacing him now after a few months would look very bad

I’d be more worried about RT and Guard anyway. A few injuries there and it could really derail their year

Haha Robinson's just been cut, I thought he was bad but not so bad the Browns would get rid this quick!

Onecoolcookie · 01-09-2019 8:58pm

Onecoolcookie wrote: »

Haha Robinson's just been cut, I thought he was bad but not so bad the Browns would get rid this quick!

Will resign apparently..... false alarm by the looks of it

VillaMad · 01-09-2019 9:22pm

Onecoolcookie wrote: »

Will resign apparently..... false alarm by the looks of it

Yeah rookie Drew Forbes got injured on Thursday night and by keeping him in the 53, they can put him in injury reserve and bring him back during the season. They cut Robinson but he doesn't go through waivers so they can bring him back tomorrow. Unusual way of doing it alright.

Panrich · 01-09-2019 9:34pm

VillaMad wrote: »

Final game of pre-season last night with a win over Detroit, so it's all about the roster cuts tomorrow.

Dorsey made his move for OL help, trading for Bills Guard, Wyatt Teller, a second-year player, giving up a fifth and a sixth next year for a seventh next year. According to Bills fans, Teller was a good but due their abundance of cover on the Offensive Line, he may well have been cut. Still for the Browns, something else was needed and he hopefully can be serviceable.

Concerns a bit over Wide Receiver depth. It was a real struggle in the last couple of pre-season games with nobody really standing out. Braxton Miller signed last week should get on the final roster.

The defensive line-men have been the big winners of pre-season with the opposition constantly pressured. Devaroe Lawrence was a revelation in the past week and Daniel Ekuale who didn't make the roster last year has also looked good and should get a place.

Kicker, Austin Seibert finally came good in the past two games, converting every opportunity and going 8/8. He surely will now get the nod ahead of Greg Joseph.

The Scottish Hammer, Jamie Gillan has been fantastic as punter and has even come up with some great tackles on opposition returns but the Browns will surely stick with the veteran Colquitt. Expect Gillan to find a spot somewhere on a NFL roster. His potential surely can't go to waste.

That was a surprise for me. I thought they would stick with Colquitt too.

Panrich · 09-09-2019 11:39am

Well that hype didn’t last long. It was a very worrying display from a coaching perspective. The penalties were inexcusable and the lack of discipline could have seen Garrett ejected as well as Robinson if he had connected with his ‘punch’

That has to fall on Kitchens and we need a good bounce back next Monday.

I see Mayfield had a wrapping on his wrist as well. He won’t last long if the OL doesn’t protect him better than this. It’s no use having threats downfield if you have less than two seconds to get the ball away before the pocket collapses.

VillaMad · 16-09-2019 5:22pm

Good opportunity for the Browns to bounce back tonight against the Jets minus Sam Darnold.

Trevor Siemian isn't a great Quarterback but he has been a starter in the NFL and as back-ups go, he is pretty good, so it will be by no means an easy game for the Browns. Hopefully what happened last week will prove to be a good thing as they can now reassess themselves and get going again. A poor performance tonight won't reflect well on Kitchens, so he will be as keen as anyone that they cut out the mistakes that they made last year and just play football.

The injury for Big Ben seems like it may make this a division between the Browns and the Ravens, but as we seen with Roethlisberger and Brees, an injury can happen at any time which could dramatically derail things and if the Browns OL continues to play like it did last week, well then Mayfield won't last long either.

phatkev · 16-09-2019 6:42pm

VillaMad wrote: »

Good opportunity for the Browns to bounce back tonight against the Jets minus Sam Darnold.

Trevor Siemian isn't a great Quarterback but he has been a starter in the NFL and as back-ups go, he is pretty good, so it will be by no means an easy game for the Browns. Hopefully what happened last week will prove to be a good thing as they can now reassess themselves and get going again. A poor performance tonight won't reflect well on Kitchens, so he will be as keen as anyone that they cut out the mistakes that they made last year and just play football.

The injury for Big Ben seems like it may make this a division between the Browns and the Ravens, but as we seen with Roethlisberger and Brees, an injury can happen at any time which could dramatically derail things and if the Browns OL continues to play like it did last week, well then Mayfield won't last long either.

The Browns really shouldnt have too much hassle beating the Jets tonight. They're without their offensive leader Darnold, their defensive leader Mosley, their first round draft pick Williams and a hole host of other players.
I'd expect Beckham/Landry to have big games against the Jets pi$$ poor CBs

VillaMad · 17-09-2019 4:44pm

So a comfortable enough win last night for the Browns albeit with still a good few issues.

Firstly the Jets were depleted by injury and pretty much any NFL team minus the Dolphins could have beaten them last night. What happened to Siemian was an awful shame. Myles Garrett was out to impress last night and although the tackles were not overly malicious, he certainly went in with force last night. Bell was terrific last night, but the Browns defense was very good for most of the game.

OBJ has two outstanding plays in an otherwise drab performance by the Browns offense. Baker just doesn't seem settled like he was last season and looked rushed and generally just off. Sometimes he looked rushed and when he had time he would overthrow. This being his second season, it was never going to be as easy and exciting as his first but with that added weapon of OBJ, many felt that the Browns offense could be one of the best in the NFL. It's still early days of course in the season and hopefully it all settles down.

Next 4 games are against sides currently 2-0, so it will show where this Browns side is and where it is going.

Onecoolcookie · 18-09-2019 7:58pm

Browns offence looks very slow to me this year - not sure what's going on. Baker takes the snap with literally one second on the play clock everytime, no hurry up at all.

Guffy · 04-11-2019 10:58am

This has to be the end of Kitchens, right? I was all for him this past off season but the offense has just looked inept all year. You have the best receiver in the NFL for breaking slant routes and it feeld like 90% of his targets are hooks. Im not ready to give up on Baker yet, i think this is all coming down to Kitchens being out of his depth.

gstack166 · 30-12-2019 12:06pm

Disappointing end to the season. Looks like Dorsey will get a stay of execution which most likely means Mike McCarthy will get the HC job.

Pains me to say it too even though this season there’s been flashes of a very competent QB I get the feeling Baker won’t make it in this league as a starter. Definitely don’t have the feeling he’s a franchise QB no more, he’ll get another crack at it next year with better coaching but seeing as though I’d expect the next HC to last longer than Dorsey if next season goes bad too, then it’s not impossible that it’s a make or break season for him next year.

In a division with Joe Borrow, Lamar Jackson, he needs to step it up next year big time. He has all the weapons, you’d expect much more improvement next year and hopefully we see the Baker we seen for the last 10 games last year and that it wasn’t a flash in the pan.

Rooting for him, but with the roster there you need to move on quickly if you dont think he’s the right guy.

Panrich · 30-12-2019 1:09pm

Dorsey will live or die on his next hire turning Baker around. He can’t survive his number 1 pick turning into a bust.
He has been damaged by the Kitchens hire and the OBJ move looks a lot less clever now too.

He’ll be looking to go with a safe pick I reckon. McCarthy looks the likely one at this stage.

gstack166 · 30-12-2019 2:21pm

https://twitter.com/marykaycabot/status/1211647909046968326?s=21

Very surprised, looks like my earlier post about Dorsey staying mightn’t next accurate. Hard to see McDaniels take that job underneath him. Maybe I’m wrong

Panrich · 30-12-2019 4:44pm

gstack166 wrote: »

https://twitter.com/marykaycabot/status/1211647909046968326?s=21

Very surprised, looks like my earlier post about Dorsey staying mightn’t next accurate. Hard to see McDaniels take that job underneath him. Maybe I’m wrong

Who knows what happens with the Patriots next. It’s hard to see them getting all the way this year and that might prompt some big decisions.
McDaniels might want a new challenge.

Panrich · 01-01-2020 12:18pm

So Dorsey is gone now too. That is a surprise but I’m ok with it. I might be in a minority on that but I think he would be a limiting factor in who would actually come as HC.

Although he brought in a lot of talent, I’m not sure that the culture was right and the discipline certainly wasn’t.

VillaMad · 06-01-2020 1:15pm

Panrich wrote: »

So Dorsey is gone now too. That is a surprise but I’m ok with it. I might be in a minority on that but I think he would be a limiting factor in who would actually come as HC.

Although he brought in a lot of talent, I’m not sure that the culture was right and the discipline certainly wasn’t.

Yeah it was pretty much a disastrous season all-round and while they were competitive for a while, once Garrett got suspended, they fell off a cliff.

In isolation, Dorsey and Kitchens going isn't a huge deal and certainly in Kitchens case, the absolute right decision, but the Haslam's have been here before many a time and the same words have been used over and over again about how they need to get it right.

Baker Mayfield had an awful year but his performances in his rookie year suggest that it would still be too quick to write him off, so he will have it all to prove next season. If they can get the O-Line fixed, I see no reason why he and the Browns by extension can't do better. I don't see major surgery needed in the off-season other than the O-Line and perhaps at linebacker so it should still be a fairly attractive job.

My only fear is that once again bringing in a new GM and coach will mean that they will have their own ideas about a winning team and get rid of a lot of players that were drafted before them and so the cycle of change would continue again.

Panrich · 06-01-2020 1:43pm

If you read the reports of what Monken was saying to opposition coaches, then it’s a miracle that we won any games at all.

Basically if Kitchens was tearing up the game plan and making it up as we went along, it helps explain how we always looked rushed and also how players were lining up wrong. Hard to QB for an inexperienced young player like Baker.

Ironically that is easy to fix with proper coaching so it should be easy to improve next seaso.

Panrich · 12-01-2020 10:57pm

So it's Stefanski and looks like Berry as GM. I had sort of warmed to Saleh over the past week and he certainly won the head to head last night but Stefanski's our guy now. If he can get a tune out of the likes of Cousins and Keenum, then he can hopefully get Baker back on track.

VillaMad · 13-01-2020 10:34am

After thinking about it, Stefanski was always likely to get it after DePodesta looked for him last year and with him still there and Dorsey now gone it was almost inevitable that Haslam would finally listen to DePodesta and hire him. McDaniels was the favourite but when I read that he wanted to change the whole operation of the Browns, the Haslam were never going to accept that.

I agree with you in that I would have preferred Saleh as I feel that although he has an brilliant defense to call for, the character and energy that they show is admirable and watching the Browns all season, it was one of many things they were missing.

Stefanski at least brings many years of experience in the NFL albeit none as a head coach but for the first time in a long while the whole organisation will be aligned by the same way of thinking. He doesn't appear to be a big ego either so unlike like season, I hope that the Browns stay quiet and work hard through the off-season.

gstack166 · 13-01-2020 8:49pm

Was listening to ESPN Cleveland radio this evening while in the gym, they had interviews with Kyle Rudolph and Adam Thielen, both couldn’t speak highly enough of Stefanski especially Rudolph, he was asked ‘ok we know all the good things about him, give us one negative about him’ Rudolph said ‘the only negative there is about him is that now I’m going to have to learn a new play book and I know already and can tell you now honestly, it won’t be anywhere near as good as Stefanski’

Rex Ryan also spoke saying he loved the hire and thinks he’s going to be the next Sean Payton. Just added in that as I think Rex has unbelievable knowledge of the game, I’d actually love to see him in as DC. Didn’t work out for him as as a head coach but on defence there isn’t much better.

VillaMad · 16-03-2020 3:15pm

Free agency is upon us despite the Coronavirus.

Lots of changes in the winter with Andrew Berry now leading a more statistical approach again similar to a few years ago. With a new GM though, changes were expected with obviously most of these players drafted or signed by Dorsey.

Christian Kirksey was released last week after an injury hit past couple of seasons. Joe Schobert was expected to be retained but the Browns have opted to let him test the market. Sad to see Joe go as he always reliable without ever being a top tier player. Morgan Burnett has been released today. He played 8 games until he torn his achilles in the infamous win over Pittsburgh and so the opted to release him.

The Browns have put a second round tender on Kareem Hunt so I would be surprised if anyone bit on that especially with the Browns having so many needs on defense, they don't need to be drafting another running-back. His off the field problems should deter anyone else anyway.

Massive needs now at Linebacker and Safety. Uncertain at what happens to Njoku who probably would have been traded if Dorsey had stayed. Tackle remains the main priority for the Browns with both sides needed to be filled. Jack Conklin will be available as a free agent and would be someone they should look get as well as draft one in the First Round, but certainly an awful lots of work needing to be done in the next wee while.

Guffy · 16-03-2020 6:27pm

VillaMad wrote: »

Free agency is upon us despite the Coronavirus.

Massive needs now at Linebacker and Safety. Uncertain at what happens to Njoku who probably would have been traded if Dorsey had stayed. Tackle remains the main priority for the Browns with both sides needed to be filled. Jack Conklin will be available as a free agent and would be someone they should look get as well as draft one in the First Round, but certainly an awful lots of work needing to be done in the next wee while.

Just signed Hooper to a fairly decent contract. Will they be shopping Njoku. He has all of the measurables to be a great TE but the penny just wont drop with blocking. Still though, i think its to early to give up on him in what's touted as the most difficult position to get in the NFL, with TE's generally taking 4 years for their break out season

gstack166 · 15-04-2020 11:12am

https://twitter.com/firsttake/status/1247225603255926786?s=21

Meant to post this a few days ago. I can agree with both Stephen A & Max on a lot of points. I actually thought Darnold was the better fit personally but to say after 2 years they made a mistake not getting him when you compare their short careers is just stupid.

Baker literally lit up Cleveland when he came on the scene, gave the fans hope. I don’t think Darnold could of had that impact starting off, now it remains to be seen if Darnold should’ve been the guy only time can judge that but I’m positive there isn’t many fans or front office men that have regrets at this moment in time.

BonnieSituation · 15-04-2020 11:24am

Can't disagree with anything you've said there.

It's a weird point to be making.

If Baker had a year 2 similar to year 1 there's no way he would state that.

And everyone knows that year 2 and its problems are not solely on Baker.

And new threads being launched today. Hopefully back to the classic look.

I'm definitely hoping they have a Buccaneers-type evolution rather than a Falcons puke fest.

The_Honeybadger · 15-04-2020 1:22pm

Jury is still out on both Mayfield and Darnold, neither have had much help from their offensive lines in recent seasons but I think the Browns have tried to sort that with the Conklin signing and presumably they’ll take a LT in the draft when they are picking at 10 and there are four very good ones available by all accounts

This is the year for Mayfield to step forward. That offence is so stacked with talent it’s crazy, once the line is fixed he can have no excuses and he will have two of the best backs in the league to hand off to and open up play action. If he can’t perform under those circumstances he never will. I think he can do it and win the division if a few things go right.

BonnieSituation · 15-04-2020 1:26pm

The_Honeybadger wrote: »

Jury is still out on both Mayfield and Darnold, neither have had much help from their offensive lines in recent seasons but I think the Browns have tried to sort that with the Conklin signing and presumably they’ll take a LT in the draft when they are picking at 10 and there are four very good ones available by all accounts

This is the year for Mayfield to step forward. That offence is so stacked with talent it’s crazy, once the line is fixed he can have no excuses and he will have two of the best backs in the league to hand off to and open up play action. If he can’t perform under those circumstances he never will. I think he can do it and win the division if a few things go right.

And I think he knows that too.

The_Honeybadger · 15-04-2020 1:35pm

BonnieSituation wrote: »

And I think he knows that too.

Their biggest issue is the Ravens standing in their way in the division. Steelers might also be better than people think if Ben is healthy and the Bengals have spent in free agency and will have Burrow. It’s a very tough division on paper.

BonnieSituation · 15-04-2020 1:39pm

Steelers can only be better given how destroyed they were last year.

The 3rd Wild Card place may be a blessing this year.

gstack166 · 15-04-2020 3:53pm

The_Honeybadger wrote: »

Their biggest issue is the Ravens standing in their way in the division. Steelers might also be better than people think if Ben is healthy and the Bengals have spent in free agency and will have Burrow. It’s a very tough division on paper.

The thing that will be the most disappointing from the Browns point of view is if we look back in 5 years and realise we have the 3rd best QB in the division. The worst scenario is if Big Ben is still around in 2 years and we have the 4th!

Da Dawg pound

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