Monday, July 22, 2013

Correcting Cleveland Browns Assumptions

1:  Trent Richardson does NOT have to stay healthy/have a great year for the Browns to succeed.  The Browns have great depth at running back.  While TRich is important, he's not critical.  If he is injured, the commitee that replaces him will do fine.

2: Josh Gordon is the fastest wide reciever in the 100.  Benjamin is the fastest in the 40.

3: Weeden's periodic inaccuracy deep was due to poor mechanics as he moved around the pocket.  It was never an issue when he released the ball on time with his feet set.  These are correctable mechanical issues.

...Whether or not he corrects them isn't guaranteed.  But I'd make that bet.

4: Smelley is labelled a tight end, but his role is much more diverse.

5: The West Coast offense doesn't use a blocking fullback, and this is one of the reasons Lawrence Vickers was released.  I'm no Pat Shurmer fan, but I have a functional cerebral cortex--which I use.

6: The very young Browns in new systems don't realistically expect to contend before 2014.  They are building the team to remain good for a long time, like the Ravens, Steelers, pre-2012 Eagles, and Patriots.  Lawrence Vickers is 30.  The end.

7: Evan Moore is a Jordan Cameron who can't block.

8: 3-4 DE's only seem to grow on trees.  Hughes doesn't project to have a substantial role in that rotation.  He doesn't have the same range as the other guys, and is more a nose tackle/DT.

He's good enough to have a good chance of making the final roster, and to play on some running downs as well as be a secondary backup at DE, and maybe rotate in/out at nose, but DE is no way his best position.

9: The Browns base defense will be labelled a 3-4, but it will spend the majority of it's time in some sort of nickel or dime coverage, so it doesn't mean that much.

Mingo could well be in coverage on some of these units, along with Roberts, with both Sheard and Kruger on the line.

What they call it hardly matters.  It might even LOOK like a 3-4.  Who cares?

YOU STAND CORRECTED.

The guys on NFL Radio don't agree with local permabashers about the Browns.  Some have picked the Stoolers to end up in the basement, with the Browns ahead of them.

"Adrian", a Pittsburgh fan who always sounds drunk but isn't (might have a neurological thing there), and has moments of lucidity, immediately called in when he heard this to defend his team.

This time, Pat Kirwan and Ryan hung up on him.  They asked him about the old guys, offensive line, injuries, fading elites and why he thought the Steelers would go 12-4.  He started talking about tradition.  

That's because he had nothing else.

While I have heard Adrian do some pretty impressive and pragmatic analysis of his own team, his attitude towards division rivals has always irked me.  He dismisses the Bengals and Browns out of hand.  To him, what has always been always will be.

They hung up on him when he announced that he was about to "break down" each of the Stoolers' losses in 2012.

If only.  What if.  Like the Cleveland Browns couldn't do this.

The difference is that the Browns are YOUNGER, and being close matters, because the young guys are getting better, and the old guys aint.  Yo Adrian!  DEAL with it.

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