Cavaliers vs Hawks Game 4: What To Watch For
May 11, 2009Cavs/Hawks Game Four Open Thread
May 11, 2009
Literally, Peter King thinks the Browns are the worst team in the NFL. Do not pass go. Do not collect $200. The worst. The Browns finished number 32 in King’s latest article. Yes, Browns fans, this includes the Detroit Lions who King is predicting will win four games. So, in essence, this means that King thinks the Browns will be unable to win four games this season. Here is what King had to say.
Hey, thank me, all you Brownaholics. Two years ago in a column like this one, I wrote that Cleveland was the worst team in the league. The Browns went 10-6. This year I’m saying they’re the worst team again — and I can guarantee you they’re not going 10-6, unless Brady Quinn morphs into Tom Brady. Too many holes, too tough a division; write them down for 0-4 against the Steelers and Ravens.
Ladies and gentlemen, I believe this might be one of the dumbest predictions ever, but maybe King is right. Maybe the Browns will stutter out of the gate under the weight of a new system and so many new faces in Berea. Maybe the difficult training camp will lead to numerous season-ending injuries resulting in a whole host of losses that we could never imagine. It is all a possibility in the NFL.
Then again, think about last season. The Browns had a coach who was probably the worst head coach in the NFL. We congratulated Romeo for not losing the players and with improving his red flag challenge record. Those were backhanded compliments because he ran a soft training camp and stopped challenging plays altogether. He also committed to veterans like Willie McGinest so much that it was embarrassing even to Eric Wedge and David Dellucci. Couple that with a very difficult schedule, horrible health, depth and performances by every player who was hired to catch the football, and it is easy to see why the Browns only found four wins. Also, they didn’t have a real quarterback once they lost DA and BQ to injury.
Look, I am not saying the Browns are going to shock the world this year. I might actually like to predict something bold like that, but for the purposes of this post, I will temper my expectations to a commonly accepted level of reality. The Browns could and should win somewhere between 5-8 games this season. Vegas set the over/under at 6.5. I actually expect that number to be higher before training camp begins.
The Browns aren’t ready to compete with the top tier teams in this league, but they have improved personnel since last season. They have a coach who is without a doubt better than Romeo Crennel. They don’t have a general manager who is going to distract the team by fighting with the coach. On top of that, they have a schedule that is predicted to be much, much easier. I will be shocked (SHOCKED) if the Browns aren’t better than the Rams, Lions, Raiders, Chiefs, Bengals and possibly even the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this season. On top of that, I expect Denver to be bad, and I think the surprise plummeting star of the league will be the Miami Dolphins. Rankings are all subjective, but to think the Browns should be placed below the Lions who made history by not winning a game last season is an abomination no matter who they drafted with the first pick.
44 Comments
He also committed to veterans like Willie McGinest so much that it was embarrassing even to Eric Wedge and David Dellucci.
Nice.
The only good thing to come out of that column was seeing Brady Quinn as a lead photog next to Tom Brady on cnnsi. Of course that was meant to visually indicate the best and worst teams in the league. But when was the last time a Brownie was a visual in any type of preview story?
Look at me … typical Cleveland fan trying to make a positive our of a negative.
Pathetic. Both me and the team (s).
If you would’ve told me in 1994 after we beat the Patriots in the Wild Card that we wouldnt win a playoff game for the next 15+ years, I would’ve been shocked too.
I don’t doubt the depths that this franchise can reach.
It’s not far-fetched if you really believe that you have a bad team that didn’t improve much while the others around you did.
I agree that we have a lot of holes and have a tough division, but I would like to think that we can at least come in 31st place…
@ Scott – We’re not Detroit!
I’m not sure I see the team that you do. There is no established QB coming back, an aging RB, a finesse TE, and a WR corp that features the droppiest hands in the league.
A defense that is full of wasted draft picks, unspectacular veterans and a gaping holes in the secondary.
Good punter though.
Mangini is still unproven. I think by default he is better than Crennel. Though actually just having the players scribble plays in the dirt is better than Crennel.
Vegas says 6.5 — take the under
King is an idiot. This makes me happy because his predictions are no better than flipping a coin (I wouldn’t be surprised if he was worse than flipping a coin because he bases coin on ridiculous proclamations, dated assumptions, and faulty logic).
I look forward to Monday mornings because of KSK’s recap of King’s posts.
Why is Mangini “without a doubt” better than Romeo? I dont think Romeo made everybody get hurt last year and Braylon drop 3536573 balls. Im no Romeo lover but you cant put all of what happend on him.
I think the Rams, Chiefs, Bengals and Bucs will all be better than us this year, they all got much better imo. Denver and Miami wont be as good as they were last year, I agree. But no way are we better than either of them. Id say were better than Detroit, but that’s about it. People we didnt score an offensive touchdown in the last how many games? We lost Donte, and added some scrubs and rookies from the draft. Who knows whats gonna happen with BE. So we didnt get better in that catagory. Jamal didnt get any younger, BQ is still unproven, and DA is, well DA. On the defensive side of the ball I doubt we will be much better if at all. I dont see how we could be.
Look I know were all Browns fans here and we need something to hold onto/look forward to. And if thats what that is Ill shut up and let you guys have it. But lets be real, the Browns will be completly miserable this year.
We SHOULD have one of the best O-lines in the league. How this does not translate to at least 6 wins is beyond me.
@ Swig – exactly. King is such a babbling moron that I’m actually surprised this elicited a response at all.
And Fun with Peter King is one of the best FJM style columns anywhere on the interwebs.
Has a writer ever gone from topical and in-touch to d-baggerish and deluded faster than Pete King? I can’t think of one. His MMQB column was good for about 5 weeks then he went off the rails. (Official jump the shark moment – see the colonoscopy column).
I see this as a good sign and aside from not picking Danny Wuerfel (sic) in my fantasy draft, I will also take the Browns on the over, largely to my confidence in his George Costanza-ish instincts (i.e. always wrong).
Conspiracy theory: Since King loves pleasuring Tom Brady and the Pats, could it be possible this is Mangini hate? God I hope so. Pete King, please post your fantasy picks soon, so I can avoid them. Thanks!
PS – The Pete King photo (above) is hilarious to me. Please continue to post this throughout the year. It makes me chuckle.
Other than Joe Thomas, which offensive starter do opposing teams need to “worry about”?
How about on Defense? Shaun Rodgers and……..?
They are the worst team in the NFL. Al Lerner sold his soul and the soul of the Browns in 1995. Go Cavs.
Remember pre season last year when we thought we’d who the super bowl and king went to our training camp and said something along the lines of “contrary to what everybody including me thought, this team actually sucks”? He was dead on. Let’s wait to hear what he says after training camp when he can assess things for real. He’s the man even if you disagree with him.
All we need is Bill Simmons to pick the Browns as the worst and we can print the Super Bowl tickets now.
Mangini is without a doubt better than Romeo because Romeo was one of the worst coaches in the history of the Cleveland Browns if not the NFL. From Mo Carthon to Willie McGinest. From coin flip QB depth charts to not using Jerome Harrison. Romeo was the worst. I refuse to believe that Mangini is worse.
I typically like King, and if you read his articles, he seems to actually like the Browns and our fans. I really was shocked when he had us at 32, remembering that he went to college at Ohio U., in the same state as Cleveland. Wheres the love Pete?!?
James, its Art f****** Modell that sold the browns, not Lerner (I just hate Modell a lot).
As to everything else, I cannot imagine the browns to be as bad as last year, let alone the worst team in the NFL this year. You cant convince me that the browns are that bad when Ken Dorsey started the last 4-5 games. In those last 6 games without an offensive TD it was very evident the team was quitting, and there was no control or leader on it. I think Mangini will be able to have control (ya, I know last year he didn’t, but he had a GM that undermined him as well). Ill admit next year if they are in the top 5 draft picks again, but I think they will be better then that, and should not be picking in the top 10. The 0-4 against Pitt and Baltimore might be right though.
With the new regime and cupcake schedule, 32 out of 32 seems crazy. Things can only go up — and look at the boost that first year coaches gave so many teams last year. Love over 6.5.
We still tailgate better than anybody else. That is the important part of all of this – What happens before 1pm!
There is no way Browns are winning four games this year. I think his prediction is fairly accurate.
Doc, you cant tell me that out of Oak, Cin (twice), Jac, Buf, KC, Den, Det, GB, Chi, and Min that we don’t get four wins. I’m not saying all these games are wins, but 2 of 4 against the NFC north isn’t crazy, and at least 1 of the cincy games, and then 2 wins in the AFC West and thats 5 there. Also, Jac could be worse then last year. Did they even add any huge significant player? I would think at least 6 wins this year at a minimum.
bobby – Jax may not have added anybody huge and significant but did the Browns? Significant, maybe in Mack – but nobody huge. They did lose somebody huge in K2. saying 6 minimum is a stretch in my opinion. Buffalo is pretty decent, Chi will have an offense for once. I dont think those games are all that winnable, at least not when comparing the teams at this point. The rest of the teams are about on the same level as the Browns. If you say the Browns go .500 in those games, it’s a 4 win season.
The Browns are just severely lacking in talent and the way Mangini has handled the off-season by alienating and or trading away the few players we have with actual talent makes me seriously question the direction we’re headed in.
We have a suspect unproven quarterback (that everybody inexplicably loves) and another quarterback we basically ran out of town for no good reason because Edwards couldn’t catch the ball.
We traded away our best player on offense and are actively looking to trade away our second best player on offense.
We picked a freakin’ center with the first pick in the draft when what we needed was defensive help.
We couldn’t run the ball last year and Jamal Lewis is one year older.
What part of that mix spells 4 wins?
I would say that we win against oakland, cincinati (1), and Det. Then I think between GB, Min, and Chi we will get another win (Im thinkin GB is the most likely). Then they have KC, Den, and SD to get another win (to me, its a toss up btwn KC and Den). Then I would say we beat Jax, since we did it last year without K2 playing. So thats 6, and there can always be an upset anywhere. I know I may be a little optimistic, but really cannot see another 4 win season under Mangini.
Back to Doc: I think you contradict yourself when you say we drafted a center when D was needed, and we couldnt run. Mack should help out our running game, and I believe Cribbs and Harrison will also be used more at RB (and not just giving Cribbs direct snaps, but maybe like Leon Washington). While I agree K2 was very good, they had half their wins without him last year, so that leads me to believe he was expendable. Also, I don’t think Edwards is being traded anytime soon. I would agree with the WFNY post earlier today about that subject. Rogers is in camp and according to all reports is on board, so maybe things started bad w/ Mangini, but they sound fine now. I would also agree with your assessment on the QB situation, and I actually hope DA beats BQ, and maybe he can actually get better under new coaching. I think Edwards will be playing for a huge contract after this season and therefore be more like the 07 rather then 08.
“Hey, thank me, all you Brownaholics. Two years ago in a column like this one, I wrote that Cleveland was the worst team in the league. The Browns went 10-6. This year I’m saying they’re the worst team again — and I can guarantee you they’re not going 10-6, unless Brady Quinn morphs into Tom Brady.”
This makes no sense. Thank you for what, if you’re guaranteeing that the accidental “outcome” of your prediction 2 years ago won’t be repeated?
@#14 D – He’s the man even if you disagree with him.
Or when the facts don’t agree with him. God, how many “Favre is definitely staying retired” articles has this guy missed on. In repeated years? Lordy. Peter King was sad that Screamin’ A was let go by the WWL as now he has the worst accuracy rate for reporters on TV now.
@ Swig – KSK’s King column’s are hilarious.
This all said, I have no axe to grind here. I just hate reporters (once a fact-based profession) who try themselves as prognosticators.
Pete, go back to being used by Gus Cook for contract leverage.
Bus Cook.
Last year, the Clowns went a full 6 games without an offensive TD. They even laid a goose egg against Cincy! If they played against Detroit, we wouldn’t have had ouur first 0-16 team.
I don’t see any real offensive improvement, and defense may regress.
I think both Detroit and Cincy (both times) will beat Cleveland, and the Clowns will be 0-6 again in their division. In fact, an 0-16 Cleveland Clowns is a real possibility. A college football team might even beat them!
I can’t say that I disagree.
Peter King gave the commencement address at OU last spring. My niece was graduating. In his speech, he predicted that the Browns would go to the playoffs. Guess that was a little off…Of course, to be fair, a lot of us thought that…
GD reading these comments, total pessimistic Ohio mentatlity… so typical
how about we let the team take a regular season snap before we act so negative??
“and another quarterback we basically ran out of town for no good reason because Edwards couldn’t catch the ball.”
After this statement I will no longer read your comments. Do you even remember the Cincy game from 2007? If my dad is playing QB that day he hands off to running backs all day and the Browns win by 2 touchdowns and clinch a playoff spot. Instead, DA scores more points for the bengals than the Browns.
For no good reason? I’ve got plenty.
Who is Peter King? And why is someone writing an article about him?
I bet the over. I like the Browns @ 7-9 this year. I think the defense is improved, how could we not be? We now have seasoned vets, who may not be pro-bowlers, but they’ll get the job done and bring the young guys along. I like how our O-Line is shaping up, and if you think for one second that Braylon’s going to drop very many passes in a contract year, your crazy. Here’s my prediction for 2009: Game 1 against the Vikings, Browns 42 Vikings 14. Cleveland scores a touchdown for each of the last 6 games last year, and one to start off this season. I’m a Browns Fan. I won’t abandon hope.
“One of the dumbest predictions ever.” !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This is a perfectly reasonable prediction for a football team that is not very good led by a coach that is not very good.
I don’t agree with it, necessarily–I see maybe 5 or 6 wins–but if we’re saying that being 3-13 or whatever is in “dumbest ever” territory, we’ve really lost sight of the big picture.
All of these comments make me chuckle. Being a Browns fan it’s just too easy to make a post all about the negatives even in what is the most optimistic part of the season for us. Some points to consider:
1) The Browns 3-4 was an abomination last year. It was the softest in the league and would have allowed Ryan Leaf tear us up. Our new defensive coordinator is the spawn of Buddy Ryan, defensive mastermind of the vaunted Monsters of the Midway who once said “You can’t stop the passing game without pressure. Some teams can do it with a 3 man rush, we can’t. In fact I don’t know if we can do it with 4. If we have to send 8, we’ll send 8 but we’re not gonna let you sit back there and pick us apart.” We aren’t going to dominate but opposing QB’s free lunches in Cleveland stadium should be over.
2) Any secondary is gonna spend every Sunday picking up their jocks when you don’t pressure the QB. Our secondary has some talent. If we can pressure a few QB’s the secondary will appear much improved.
3) Other commenters referred to our schedule being easier. They are right. Denny commented that Chicago will have an offense for once. The Bears have a QB. Their receiving corps was so bad last year they cut every one of their starters. They have Matt Forte and two tight ends. The rest of their guys make Syndric Steptoe look like a pro-bowler. We play Oakland, at home, in December. We are still going to suck but we won’t be last.
4) Jamal is another year old, blah, blah, blah. Brad in ATL is right. Our O-Line improved and so should our running game. Does anyone believe that if Jamal isn’t getting it done, Harrison won’t get more reps?
5) Alex Mack. How can anyone be upset about us taking the strongest center in the draft? Our division is owned by monster nose tackles. We didn’t score a touchdown b/c our freaking QB was Ken Dorsey at the end of the season. We wouldn’t have had two injured starters if our center was taking care of business.
6) We aren’t gonna be Pittsburgh but we might be able to steal one from Baltimore if we’re lucky. Like Lou Brown said, maybe we can give ’em all a nice big sh*t burger to eat.
I am cautiously optimistic about this season. I don’t think we are going to the playoffs or even .500 but I think Mangini will right this ship.
Anybody going to Vegas anytime soon? I’d like to bet the under.
I like Jay’s and Mark’s posts. People are way too pessimistic about the browns. Many people seem to forget that we were right in many of the games, and coaching and time mismanagement ended any hope of coming back. Also, we almost pulled an upset on Baltimore if it werent for costly turnovers at the end of the game (like a INT on a screen pass). Im not going to say we have the best coach ever, but I think the Jets were pretty decently coached last year (one play that I remember was NYJ vs. Buf where Leon stood out of bounds and touched the ball making it a kickoff out of bounds. Would any brown do that last year?) and we have a lot more depth then previous years.
We would have lost to Detroit and the end of last year. That said, around 6 wins. The OL has one hole at RG. Lewis still sucks and is getting older. The D will be middle of the road which is a great improvement. All the holes on D were filled with people that can play. DeQuell was close to pro bowl last year.
I like Peter King a lot but he’s way off. Just on schedule alone, I’d be shocked if the Browns didn’t break four wins. I’m not expecting a playoff appearance or anything, but this team is undoubtedly better than last year on both coaching and personnel fronts already. And we haven’t even sniffed training camp.
I’m not a Quinn fanatic but I’d be shocked if he was any more inept or incomptent than Anderson was last year. If you would like to argue that point, cue the Browns-Redskins game from last year then come talk to me.
We didn’t have any serviceable QB or an offensive TD for the last 5-6 games of last season and still got to four wins. Idiotic prediction by King.
How is it outrageous to believe that a team that won FOUR GAMES last year and actually lost many more pieces than it gained will be worse?
[…] the “expert” talk about the unknown quantities of drafting and free agency. Still, I couldn’t help myself when Peter King came out and broke my soul by naming the Browns the worst team in the league going […]