Cavs Media Day is Here: While We’re Waiting
September 26, 2016Buckeyes remain No. 2 in both AP, Coaches polls
September 26, 2016Is it possible—as in, is it asking for too much—to be the best 0-16 team ever? Now before you get all weird on me, this thought crept into my mind late Sunday night as the Chicago Bears were getting worked by a rookie quarterback, sending their record to 0-3 under the watch of one Brian Hoyer. The issue becomes, any time Hoyer is involved, his employer is likely looking for their next quarterback. Sure, Jay Cutler is around, but let’s be honest here—he’s not exactly the future in Chicago.
But as tough as it is to go 0-16 in the NFL, of the teams that can still do it—Cleveland, Chicago, and the Jacksonville Jaguars—it’s Cleveland and Chicago who will be vying for that top spot with a quarterback in mind. Other teams on quarterback watch, despite it only being Week 3, include the 1-2 San Francisco 49ers (thanks to their Monday night win over Los Angeles), the entire AFC East save for New England, and whoever finishes last in the AFC West. Now I don’t know about you, but this is a lot of competition, and with the Philadelphia Eagles not providing the help that was assumed on Draft Day, well—we may be on our own here.
Sunday’s loss to the Miami Dolphins was bizarrely enjoyable. Watching key members of this team’s future do things at a high level is something the city of Cleveland doesn’t get to do all too often. To know that your football team was a competent kicker away from winning a game on the road—one where they were the largest underdogs in the entire NFL—says more than any final score needs to. The Bears and Niners are a mess. The Chargers are a ridiculous couple of plays away from being 3-0, but could easily go 2-13 from here. If the Browns are going to lose (yes—they’re going to lose), they may as well do it with flashes of brilliance that allow fans to finally have something to cling to on a going-forward basis.
If anything, I’d much rather be winless with a future than to be Baltimore who is the most hollow 3-0 in the league, beating two winless teams to get there.
WINNER: Cody Kessler
Cody Kessler’s afternoon could not have started any worse. He took a delay of game penalty to start the game, and then saw his first series end with a fumbled snap and a strip sack. Nevertheless, Kessler kept the Browns in the game, controlling pace, finding open receivers, and throwing an absolutely beautiful two-point conversion to Gary Barnidge.
Kessler finished his NFL debut with a solid 21-of-33 for 244 yards and a passer rating of 85.9. For a team that can ill afford to turn the ball over, that Kessler did not throw an interception was substantial. That he managed to connect with Terrelle Pryor for 25 yards and rookie Ricardo Louis for 28 more on a huge touchdown drive was all the better.
https://vine.co/v/5vQVe1J0Iwe
It could be said that Kessler, a rookie, outplayed a former first-round quarterback in Ryan Tannehill when the game was on the line. Sure, Tannehill’s numbers (319 yards, three touchdowns) may have made for a better fantasy afternoon, but it wasn’t until a failed Browns blitz allowed the Dolphins to move down the field in overtime to seal the victory. A very satisfactory (if not surprising) outing from the Browns rookie.1
WINNER: Hue Jackson
Starting the game out with a questionable motion play, and potentially ending things with a weird decision to kick the ball despite winning the overtime coin toss, Hue Jackson somehow found a way to keep this roster of players in an NFL game until its final seconds. There were many points in the game where you had to wonder if it was sustainable—the bouncing back and forth between Kessler and Terrelle Pryor, the alternating of Isaiah Crowell and Duke Johnson, the defensive backfield full of names that casual fans were unaware of—but Hue made it work.
CLE fans take heart: no matter the outcome today, what Hue is doing with team held together by glue and bandages bodes well for the future.
— Amy Trask (@AmyTrask) September 25, 2016
According to Tony Grossi, the coaching staff wanted long-time Chicago Bears kicker Robbie Gould, but his cost was higher than that of Cody Parkey. We could be talking about a 2-1 football team if not for special teams woes over the last eight days. Winning football games may not exactly be the best result for this team long-term, but the fact that there have been multiple chances at winning with this group of players speaks volumes for Hue.
Coaches are rarely a sympathetic figure in sports, but it’s tough to not feel for Hue on Monday morning given the work he put in and the result of the contest—even if the front office was likely doing cartwheels every time Parkey shanked a kick.
WINNER: Terrelle Pryor
Targeted 12 times on the afternoon, the quarterback-turned-receiver-turned-sometimes-quarterback hauled in a career-high total of 144 receiving yards. Even more impressive, Pryor is credited with securing each of the eight catchable passes and generating 7.1 yards after the catch per target — eighth-best among the 1 p.m. wide receivers according to Pro Football Focus.
As if this was not enough, the former Buckeye added four rushing attempts, 21 yards and a touchdown while successfully landing three of his five pass attempts for an additional 35 yards. Swiss Army Knife is a term that gets thrown around a lot in the NBA, but this was the consummate performance of a kid who shows what a little dedication can do when such high-end athleticism is involved.
Terrelle Pryor has 135 receiving yards and has thrown four passes. No one in NFL history has done that in one game.
— Michael David Smith (@MichaelDavSmith) September 25, 2016
A season ago, when he was actually given the chance to play, Pryor ran fly pattern after fly pattern. Even early in this season, much of the work involving the Browns’ 6-4 target was down field with Robert Griffin III launching mid-field prayers. On Sunday, however, Pryor looked like a polished veteran, taking defensive backs off the line in man coverage or finding the soft spot in the zone schemes and piling on the yards after receptions. It’s tough to not overreact to one game, but this money-pinching front office may want to consider opening up their checkbook for this kid as he’s one hell of a weapon.
https://vine.co/v/5vQ9aDa29TI
LOSER: Cody Parkey
Kicking is one of the few transferable skills in the game of football, so much so that a place kicker can join a team at any point in the week and should be able to slot right into the game plan. No knowledge of a playbook is needed. No chemistry-type items are required. You take your steps back, and then a few to the side. When the snap comes, you take your two steps and kick the football. Parkey missing three field goals is inexcusable under any circumstances. That one led to a ten-point swing midway through the game, and another was the potential game-winner with seconds left in the fourth quarter makes it that much worse.
LOSER: Sashi Brown and Paul DePodesta
It’s time to admit that you guys could not have been more wrong about Carson Wentz. You went public with this not-top-20 nonsense. Come correct. Yesterday. While you’re at it, admit you blew the Mitchell Schwartz decision as well, because…
LOSER: Austin Pasztor
It may not be totally Pasztor’s fault as it could be argued Mitchell Schwartz should be the one anchoring down the right side of the line, but Austin had himself one hell of an afternoon with three (called) holding penalties, two false starts, and several allowed hurries. One of Pasztor’s penalties pushed the Browns back to the point where Cody Parkey would clang his second field goal off the left upright, one which, based on trajectory of the ball, could have crept through had it been from five-to-ten yards closer. After seeing such solid offensive line play over the last few years, this one was a throwback back to the days of Oneil Cousins.
WINNER: Brien Boddy-Calhoun
Not minutes after I made this inquisitive Vine, the hyphenated defensive back hauled in an interception and returned it for what was the Browns’ only touchdown until the beginning of the fourth quarter. While you can easily peg Ryan Tannehill’s horrific pass as the key variable here, watch the video below that shows the scheme the Browns used to disrupt this very play.
I've been destroying Ray Horton, but this scheme was executed perfectly https://t.co/l0oULvK5Cv
— Scott @ WFNY (@WFNYScott) September 25, 2016
LOSER: Ray Horton
One play, however, does not a game make. While the Browns seemingly did well early, the pressure on Tannehill throughout the rest of the game was non-existent. While Cody Kessler’s Browns uniform was full of Miami turf, Tannehill was barely touched from kickoff to final whistle. For a team rolling with a short-handed secondary, pressuring Tannehill was a key to giving the Browns a chance to win the game. Figure that they almost did win, and a sack or two prior to the game’s final minutes could have made all the difference.
WINNER: Emmanuel Ogbah
It may be lost in all of the pass rush commiserating above, but Emmanuel Ogbah had two hits, three hurries and one batted pass on his 36 pass rush snaps. I know we’re all super bummed about the loss of Carl Nassib, but Ogbah is quietly putting up a solid rookie campaign.
LOSER: Tramon Williams
How this guy survived the Great Veteran Purge of 2016 is beyond me.
https://vine.co/v/5vPdIQ3AEQq
And now, the fans:
Winner: Parkeys travel agent
— Eric Ready (@eric_ready) September 25, 2016
losers: Browns kicker and Pastor's 50 penalties
— Varys was RIGHT (@damnSUZ) September 25, 2016
winner : Dat tank
— I'm not me. (@_NotCampbell) September 25, 2016
Winners: Pryor and free agent kickers
Losers: Moral and Austin Pasztor
— Nate (@NatedogCLE) September 25, 2016
winners TP. Losers: Browns front office. How's Wentz doing so far analytics team?
— Michael (@crobarred) September 25, 2016
loser = Browns, winner = cavs media day. I tweet this to you every year.
— Joe Butvin (@butvin) September 26, 2016
Winner: Carson Wentz
Loser: NEEEERRRDDDSSSS. pic.twitter.com/XsevMSMcZE
— Christopher. (@chrisdottcomm) September 26, 2016
- Bonus: It doesn’t appear that Kessler sustained any career-threatening injuries and the Browns, despite our pleas, will likely turn to him again for Week 4. [↩]
141 Comments
So it’s tanking. I just don’t get losing now to be better down the road when we could be better right now with a minimal outlay of money.
At least they say they want to win.
Well, we did trade Ngata to Baltimore because Romeo wanted “the pass rusher”
I agree with G_O. Seemed to have calmed Kessler’s nerves.
I don’t think it’s tanking. I think it’s building a very young team with a lot of talent, understanding that winning now is not likely to occur, though winning in the future is.
http://yoogozi.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/Jeff-Tabor-My-3-success-strategies-for-building-trust.jpg
And the other?
The Browns have been losing 11 to 13 games a year. It hasn’t worked, so the FO is deploying a “dead last” strategy to have the best draft picks available.
… it should be “my 3 successful strategies for building teflon”.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEI2UUhVEn4
hi RGB … i saw a lot of empty seats yesterday & the fans were pretty quiet for most of the game … and it was the home opener of the nice /new remodel.
I don’t know, Brother Humboldt. That’s a pretty enthusiastic slap. Sorta.
Stop beating yourself up. (Beating up yourself? Correct grammar just doesn’t sound right sometimes.) I’ve been watching you slap yourself for hours. Let it go, man. Let it go.
As is the theme of the day, I may be unfit to be president of Team Apathy
It’s performance art. I call it “Cleveland sports fan, January 1964-June 2016”
Seems that Hue gets 1.5 on the win-o-meter this week, since he’s also the primary reason Pryor is still in the NFL.
That really should be the theme of the “debate” tonight.
2016 Presidential Debate #1: Who is least unfit?
But if (and it’s a big if) it’s true that the Browns were too cheap to sign a better kicker, that has nothing to do with building a tough team or winning in the future. It’s simply a money saving decision in the now that resulted in one (maybe two) loses. What’s the advantage in that? Either it’s all about saving money or fielding a worse team in hopes of losing (or both, I guess).
It is possible to plan for the future while also maximizing your ability to win now. I don’t see the Browns doing the latter.
So tanking? Cool. Lets call it what it is then.
Am I the only one who isn’t allowed to be snarky around here?
Yes.
Come now. They didn’t sign the guy to miss FGs. They signed him to make them. Kid (very young, inexpensive, former All-Pro – the definition of Moneyball) just didn’t do it.
I’ve got the title for your memoir:
“Self-flagellation: A Cleveland Fan’s Guide to Beating Yourself into Apathy”
Mike Hart.
YES!
Sorry – you have a dry wit about you and I don’t always catch on.
Oh I liked Hart. What did you have against him?
I didn’t like his mouth. Although the “Little Brother” comment was apropos, it’s given Sparty a lifetime of bulletin board material, and that’s not the only nonsense he’s spouted out. His rub with Harbaugh is ridiculous.
He had a serious case of Short Man’s Syndrome.
the Browns took the right course … especially blowing the whole thing up & going through a total rebuild … we need multiple bodies , not just one guy.
the time to talk about this is 2018 or 2019 , after we drafted all the players from the picks they amassed.
Fair enough.
I’m willing to give Pasztor a break.
First, he’s not that good. That’s all it is.
Second, I have no doubt he was told “if your guy beats you, hold him.”
A hold penalty vs the indignity of losing yet another QB is as many games? penalty, please!
What’s with the micro aggression…how dare you?! This is a safe zone! We are here to lovingly and positively support our team. I’m calling the mods on you!
Right-o. And if, at the end of 2019, Huge Action is still coach, and we still don’t have a franchise QB, and Carson Wentz is winning divisions, conferences, and/or titles in Philly, then we can storm the ramparts.
correct !!
Please. I didn’t say they signed him to miss kicks. I’m saying they signed him to spend as little as possible, regardless of his ability to make or miss field goals. All I know: Parkey was signed to a $525,000 a year contract, the minimum for a player with one year experience. The only cheaper option would have been a rookie kicker.
Oh, and the pro-bowl alternate praise isn’t as impressive once you read about the serious groin injury he had since.
And did you read that they didn’t even watch him kick until right before the game?
“Sunday was the first day the Browns saw Parkey kick, head coach Hue Jackson said after the game. He flew to Berea but the Browns couldn’t kick him before getting on the plane and flying to Florida. Jackson said Parkey kicked for them before the game and Parkey estimated that he got 20 to 25 kicks pregame, which he called “enough.”
Moneyball isn’t: “get young and cheap talent”.
It’s: “get the most value for your buck.”
Here’s a clear situation where spending a few ten’s of thousands per game would have meant the difference between a win and a lose. To go with the cheapest option just because it’s the cheapest isn’t Moneyball or sabermetrics or anything like that. It’s simply being cheap.
That’s not what I said. But whatevs.
Can we maybe maim them or wing them with a bullet,I agree don’t kill them…but allow them to share our pain.
The only thing I have a serious issue with as far as the team goes…or at least the one that bother me would be the new kicker, if it was all about money…not saying it was for sure,but if it was, then I think it is a tank job on the part of the front office. Don’t we have the most cap room in football right now? Granted I think the coaches are doing what they can with what they have…but that does nothing when moneyball dominates the who you sign or don’t sign, or re-sign at the end of the day. In the end what moneyball actually does is maximizes owners profits…and that is all it was supposed to do at the end of the day, maximize money for owners in baseball.
The problem i see is that Shattner in his overacting seems to really like slapping himself. Performance art describes browns football well, most times it should not be shown.
Many of the highest payroll teams in MLB utilize the “moneyball” approach. It is about having a systemetic valuation and looking for inefficiencies across the landscape. It does not necessarily have to do with money itself (it is one of the variables).