January comes to March: Cavs vs Pistons, Behind the Box Score
March 9, 2017The Cavs and 3fficiency
March 10, 2017Happy Friday everyone! It’s a great day in Cleveland and I don’t even know what all happened just yet. It’s just after 9:00 p.m. on Thursday night and I had to get rolling writing this here WWW for you all. I generally write them sometime between four and five on Thursday afternoon depending on what the end of my workday will allow. As it turned out, I spent that time yesterday writing about the Brock Osweiler trade. Speaking of which, we’re going to talk about the Browns today, but before we get there Patreon. That’s it. That’s all I’m saying. Patreon. Thanks!
Here we go Brownies, here we go!! Woof, woof!!!!
— Joe Thomas (@joethomas73) March 9, 2017
The Browns have a great day, but not at the box office, at least anecdotally…
So, how about them Brownies? Yesterday afternoon as the dust was settling on the Brock Osweiler trade, and as the Browns were rumored to be hot after Jimmy Garoppolo, and after the team had bolstered their offensive line like no time since the days of Eric Steinbach, I asked my brother one question. “If the Browns trade for Jimmy G, are we going back on our decision to not renew our Browns tickets?” Simply stated, and without hesitation, my brother laughed and said, “No.”
That’s how bad the value proposition has become and how badly the 1-15 season stung our family’s connection to our pricey, four-seat, ten game season ticket package. Even after adding a professional football player at basically every position on the offensive line and with the thought of adding the best quarterback prospect potentially available who has also suited up in an NFL jersey before, my brother wasn’t budging. No conclusion. Just stating the facts. We might go to some games, but we’ll see if we can’t buy them for pennies on the dollar like it’s been on the secondary market for the majority of games since 1999. Even if tickets don’t bottom out like they have in the past, there’s no way we can possibly blow as much money as we did in a dreadful 2016 campaign.
So while yesterday was a good day, there’s a whole lot more to prove.
Podcasting too early can leave your podcasts dated…
I did a podcast about the Browns after the Bitonio news. Surely that would be the only thing the Browns do all day, right? Wrong. Anyway, please check out the episode.
About all these contracts…
We’ll obviously have all the real numbers soon, but in the meantime…
Tretter got 3 years and $10 million guaranteed.
New #Browns C/G J.C. Tretter gets 3 years, $16.75m, $10m guaranteed, source said.
— Adam Caplan (@caplannfl) March 9, 2017
Kenny Britt got 4 years and $32.5 million with $17 million guaranteed.
The Zeitler contract though, sounds like the bidness. Five years, $60 mil and $31.5 mil guaranteed? Whoooo boy!
The #Browns are signing guard Kevin Zeitler to a massive contract, more than $10M per year, source said.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 9, 2017
Joel Bitonio also got paid, even if not quite as drastically as Kevin Zeitler.
The #Browns extension for G Joel Bitonio is a 6-year new contract worth $51.2M in full. The total guarantee is $23.7M
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 9, 2017
And it’s not over yet. The Browns are sure to make some more moves. Other than the Britt contract which seems like one that could be *ahem* inefficient, the rest of these are nice bets if you’re going to pony up ridiculous cash. Paying money to linemen always feels like less of a risk. As Mike Lombardi said on The Ringer, these guys aren’t generally impacted and continue to tote their “lunch pails” to work. I mean, yuck, but I agree.
Last but not least, the lost millions…
I was thinking about a lot of Browns things and I stumbled upon this old Crain’s Cleveland post by Kevin Kleps talking about all the buyout money the Browns have paid out over the years. With the Osweiler contract purchase, I thought it was an interesting read.
The seven coaches were fired with a combined 18 years remaining on their contracts, which brings us to what might be the most amazing number of all. The Browns’ head coaches, prior to Hue Jackson, had one more year left on their contracts when they were fired (18) than the number of seasons they spent coaching the team (16 years and 11 games).
If you count Crennel’s remaining salary at $10 million, the seven fired coaches were owed about $55.9 million when they were told their services were no longer needed.
And meanwhile all any of us ever wanted from the Browns was a win and here they are handing out millions for people not to work. We really are dumb. 🙂
Kidding.
Have a great weekend.
181 Comments
He’ll play fast on that turf!
– Irsay flexing Crown Royal muscles
Correct.
I just wanted to update Mingo Watch.
The huddled, breathless masses yearning for more Mingo info thank you.
Two physical freaks who can’t play a lick of actual football.
Did you say parade???
https://localtvwjw.files.wordpress.com/2013/12/rizzo.jpg?quality=85&strip=all
Imagine those two in one-on-one drills. The one can’t avoid contact, the other can’t make contact.
yeah. which is why I think they will sit on horde of picks and just let Jimmy G walk to emanicaption at meet with him in 2018.
Mingo blows outside containment and T-Rich misses it and runs inside right into Mingo, knocking both players out cold.
https://68.media.tumblr.com/8f376fdb3f551bde9dfe42fcd407df7e/tumblr_njkatic3Wo1r4poono1_250.gif
Wait a sec, I think you’re on to something.
Turn Mingo into a running back, and turn Trent into a linebacker…
After a gain of 3.2 yards.
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Or long hair as Clint Frazier found out with the Yankees #buzzcut
Wow, even got the name right.
right. The flawed thinking behind the “nothing to lose” argument as it applies to the Browns: no established QB means attempting to spread intense teaching/coaching over multiple guys. No position in sports requires more coaching resources and confidence building than QB. No position requires more training camp reps for someone who needs to develop and be evaluated. The throw-young-scorpions-in-the-bottle works at RB, not QB.
To me, this is why those advocating using both #1 and #12 on QBs are idiotic. If you think someone’s the franchise guy you better devote all your resources to find out. Taking two is a hedging fearful move, and not doing justice to either guy.
Rookie long hair = Bad
Waving gun at wife = Bobblehead day.
Great question. Let’s ask an expert. Mary Kay?
Jims gonna Jim, I reckon.
Like how it works in MLB, is there any incentive for Osweiler to ask for more than the minimum? He gets the exact same dollars either way, right?
I think you just imploded our universe.
I find it very hard to believe that Osweiler at $16M requires a second round pick to give away, but at $6M, he commands a third in return. I’d be surprised if they get anything better than Day Three of 2018.
They should do it regardless what those fat cats in Washington think.
“No one is allowed to call him “cheap” any longer”
We were able to make this move because we’ve been so incredibly cheap. This is like buying your roommates a round at the bar after you’ve skipped on a couple months of rent.
until now we avoided them
hi STEVE … the “cheap” days are long gone & in the past. get ready for things to start going the other way now … enjoy.
I am certainly being optimistic there but you never know when added leverage of “when” you do things. Houston was under pressure to make that deal now so they could get in on Romo, for instance.
Agree, but somehow there are often actual contracts signed anyway (NFL). not sure why (maybe something in the language that helps lend to it?)
Why would the Browns, in the second year of a rebuild and coming off a 1-15 season, give up two first round picks for one year of a QB?
What’s also not mentioned in all this: I don’t think you can really assume Grapazinski re-signs with the Patriots after this season. Honestly, if you’re a young QB one year from FA reading how you’re worth more than the 1st and 12th picks, you’ve got to be tempted by the prospect of hitting the open market in 365 days. Especially in a world where Brock Osweiler gets $37M and teams have $100M in cap space. Which isn’t to mention that the Pats always have limited cap space plus a guy named Brady who plans to play until he’s 50.
hi MG … i’m guessing Osweiler will refuse to restructure his deal. i’m guessing we’ll have to trade him & pay a fraction / good portion of his current contract.
Why? He gets the same $$ either way and might get moved to a team that will play him more. Win-win.
Scary to think what the place would be like if the Browns were, you know, at least average.
MKC, 9/11/11 – “I think Colt McCoy will take this team to a Super Bowl within the next five years. There, I said it.”
Metrics show that offensive lineman are 72% more likely to bring a lunch pail to work.
Agreed. I think there’s room to pull some contract chicanery to flip him. But if that doesn’t happen, there’s worse things in the world than having a QB on your roster that was the hottest FA option just one year ago.
Honestly though, I think the HBT would rather save three or four million by cutting him and letting some other team sign him (which I’ve been told is how offset language works).
It’s interesting to compare McCoy’s rookie year to Kessler’s and then realize how many more Browns fans were pining for another year of McCoy.
http://www.pro-football-reference.com/play-index/pcm_finder.cgi?request=1&sum=0&player_id1_hint=Cody+Kessler&player_id1_select=Cody+Kessler&y1=2016&player_id1=KessCo00&player_id2_hint=Colt+McCoy&player_id2_select=Colt+McCoy&y2=2010&player_id2=McCoCo00
I’ve made the case that the Browns should have kept McCoy for a decade. You never stop looking for his replacement, but hell if they wouldn’t have been better off with him than many of the alternatives we’ve seen play in a Browns jersey under center.
It’s hard to understand how they’ve lost 10 million subscribers in just three years.
Indeed. “No interest in trading…” my A. Brady will play until he’s 50 and BB will coach until he’s 90. Team Undead.
This is true, but I think the point I’m trying to make is “Why the heck were we so much more excited about McCoy than we are right now about Kessler? Was it just the name and the college performances?” I’m really fascinated by year two of Kessler… so much more than any of the rookie QBs in this draft.
I think I said this last year: one thing that has impressed me has been their consistency.
Past front office talked about building through the draft, then they traded away picks to move up ten spots. These guys, they value draft picks and it shows in everything they do. Whether that’s a smart philosophy or foolish consistency, I don’t know. They definitely have a plan though.
.1 Reviewed and analyzed comment from G_O and related to same; formulated strategies regarding response thereto.
.1 Drafted comment
Prediction: Browns fans will jump into the top five of obnoxious fans bases as soon as we become even moderately respectable.
http://imoviequotes.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/4-Guardians-of-the-Galaxy-quotes.gif
McCoy is one of those “good enough to start, but not great enough to win” guys. If the future didn’t matter and you just had to pick a QB to win you a game tomorrow, where would McCoy rank? I’m guessing he’d have been in the 30-34 range for most of his career.
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C6kOrePWYAAjYHz.jpg
Alas, poor Hartman. I knew him, RGB.
(not really)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ICwHhj92WOk
I feel bad about even upticking you. Transitive property in action. I’m not big on restrictions, but no slavery related jokes in sports discussions seems like one I’d get behind.
I am upticking you, co-opting your explaining and feeling badly. I would like to hereby denounce that in no way me liking nj0’s comment which was lukewarmly liking G_O’s comment that we in any way condone slavery.
Except Schwartz…that guy should have been ball gagged and kept in Berea.
100% with you, Pat, on Kessler. Have been there from the beginning on him.