Holmgren Speaks… to Seattle Radio Station
October 19, 2011Stop Overreacting to Mike Holmgren’s Word Choices
October 20, 2011While We’re Waiting serves as the early morning gathering of WFNY-esque information for your viewing pleasure. Have something you think we should see? Send it to our tips email at tips@waitingfornextyear.com.
The Stew breaks down the game one pitching match-ups over the last twenty years and ranks them. Guess what? “2. 1995 — Orel Hershiser, Cleveland vs. Greg Maddux, Atlanta (141) After the strike ate the World Series in 1994, Maddux gave fans the best kind of welcome-back present, pitching a two-hit complete-game victory in a 3-2 Braves win. Hershiser gave up three runs over six innings, but struck out seven Atlanta batters.
1. 2009 — Cliff Lee, Philadelphia vs. CC Sabathia, New York (147) This game felt really special when we watched it and it turns out that it’s the best of the last 20 years. Cliff Lee struck out 10 batters and did not allow an earned run in a six-hit complete-game victory. Sabathia did his part, giving up two runs over seven. A weak four-run effort from the Yankees’ bullpen gave the Phillies a 6-1 victory and destroyed a great indicator of how good the battle of the aces really turned out to be.” [Big League Stew]
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Entitlement? I don’t think that is the problem. “Now that the Browns are 2-3 after back-to-back disappointing performances (on offense), fans are starting to question Mike Holmgren’s hire once again. Reading the various Cleveland Browns message boards on the internet, I’ve really started to become appalled by most Browns fans. Some fans have started this conspiracy that Holmgren only hired Shurmur because his uncle, Fritz, was Holmgren’s defensive coordinator in Green Bay when the Packers won the Super Bowl in ’96. Fans are even calling for Shurmur to be fired, citing his “dumfounded” expressions on the sidelines as one of the many reasons the coach should be axed.
Now, I’m a relatively young Browns fan. I remember the team right before Art Modell moved the team to Baltimore (the ’94 season specifically), but have relied on my father’s stories about how great the team use to be. The truth is the Browns haven’t tasted much success in the last 20 years or so. They’ve never reached the Super Bowl, and have a 16-20 overall record in the NFL playoffs. The Browns haven’t won a championship since 1964, and haven’t been a consistent threat to make the playoffs since the ’80s. So I ask this, where did this sense of entitlement come from Browns fans?” [Browns Gab]
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“With that said, I find I have to ask myself after Sunday’s loss to the Oakland Raiders – Is Colt McCoy regressing? Where has the accuracy and poise gone that we saw behind a supposedly less-talented and offensively archaic squad in 2010? With the exception of the Indianapolis game, McCoy has failed to consistently deliver crisp, accurate passes with the game still in question. This week there were a number of attempts well off the mark, even to his most reliable target, tight end Ben Watson.
Perhaps the most disheartening observation I had during the Raiders game was that for the first time, McCoy did not exhibit the moxie, good pocket presence, timing or elusiveness when the protection broke down that has given many fans hope. On just the second play from scrimmage McCoy failed to deliver a pass to an open Mohamed Massaquoi on the left side with pressure applied by an Oakland blitz. The young quarterback frankly looked skittish…on the second play from scrimmage? Why the happy feet all of a sudden? Passes Colt McCoy seemed to be able to complete in his sleep (namely the tight end crossing route) are suddenly behind the target, or worse.” [Campomizzi/Dawg Pound Daily]
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Um, no. Actually most fans I know thought at least 3-2 if not 4-1. “OK, Browns fans, admit it. If I came to you before the season and said the Browns would start off 2-3, you would be content with that. Most prognosticators had Cleveland as a .500 team this season, and starting 2-3 is right in that neighborhood. So why is the Dawg Pound growling so much? Well, the angst from this season isn’t about the losses. It’s about how the Browns have lost. There was the defensive gaffe in the season opener, when Cleveland wasn’t lined up and essentially gave the game-winning touchdown to the Bengals. There was the special teams slip-up this past Sunday, when the Browns weren’t prepared for a fake field goal and handed an easy touchdown to the Raiders. The unsoundness of the Browns’ play has been disturbing, especially when it’s under someone who is in his first NFL head coaching position. It’s hard to get a team to believe in a new direction when the Browns have only been able to beat two winless teams this year (the Dolphins and Colts). But the bigger problem is how the Browns have beaten themselves.” [Hensley/AFC North Blog]
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What? Really? “Marc Stein of ESPN Dallas says the Rangers wanted Nowitzki, the MVP of the NBA Finals, to repeat his effort of June 25, when he threw out the first pitch against the New York Mets. Stein says Nowitzki is a die-hard fan who has watched “every playoff game” and even attended Game 6 of the ALCS. The clincher! Check out the look on Dirk’s face in the photo from June; he’s obviously psyched. But all of the baseball owners — not just the home team — may object to who throws out first pitches in the World Series, and they don’t want to make it look like they’re crossing some kind of imaginary picket line by showcasing Nowitzki.” [Brown/Big League Stew]
9 Comments
Jamison Hensley is a bigger clown than Pat Shurmur.
wow two idiots who apparently know very little about football want to tell me what I should expect from the team I’ve invested thousands of dollars and hours in over the past 30 years? They can both get bent for all I care
2009 — Cliff Lee, Philadelphia vs. CC Sabathia, New York (147)
makes my heart hurt…
I don’t know where these “expectations” come from. I hear those morons on WKNR complaining every day about it…so quit…stop watching, never invest another dime…but the complaining does nothing! And why should it?! The day a team makes moves based on the fans, is the day i lose respect for a GM
@4 – I’m right there with you man. Were a game under .500 and the whole town is ready to pop.
I think entitlement is precisely the problem with some Browns fans. There is a strong sense among some that we deserve more say in what the team does, and that the owner, FO, coaches, and players are somehow obligated to account for themselves to us whenever we see fit. I think this stems at least in part from the fact that we lost the team in the manner we did, and so I can understand the feeling to an extent. That said, it is utterly ridiculous. Would it be nice to have our intense and steadfast support for this team after all we’ve gone through as fans pay off with a quality product and championships, or at least the prospect of championships? Absolutely. I believe that Cleveland sports fans are without question as loyal as any out there. But we are by no means “entitled” to such things, regardless of our long-endured suffering. We can criticize things and offer our opinions, but it is not our place to tell anyone how to do their jobs or to demand they answer to us.
Entitlement isn’t the problem, its being frustrated. People are tired of watching this joke of an organization year after year. They are not demanding perupetual greatness, just want to have a year or two where watching this team isn’t a chore.
This organization deserves every bit of critism it gets. It is easily the most embarassing team in the NFL the past 20 years.
“This organization deserves every bit of critism it gets. It is easily the most embarassing team in the NFL the past 20 years.”
Really?? I disagree with this statement. But I am not here to feed the trolls.
What pisses me off about “fans” is that every TWO YEARS they want to fire the coach and bring in a new FO, then piss and moan about the lack of consistancy.
Living on the west coast, i think i am more embarrassed of “fellow fans” than I am of any of our sports teams.
So, because Browns fans are more passionate than the average fans, the FO should listen? Ridiculous. I’m as sick as the rest of you about Browns fans calling for coaching changes every two years but guess what? That’s what fans do. Get somebody in there who doesn’t care what the fans say and WINS. I’m 24, the Browns have been miserable since I can remember. I think we have a right to be upset, how long do we have to wait before we see a team that is good? We get to watch the Lions be miserable for years get their stuff together. We get to watch the Bengals predicted to win 0 games this year by many, not only come in and beat us on opening day, but show steady progression each game. How long is it going to be before I can actually watch the Browns on Sundays and know that the team is legitimately competitive (don’t even bring up 07).