The latest consensus among ex-players and managers who I respect (and amateurs I don't) is that Johnny Manziel will fall on his face. Dick Jauron is one exception. He said "I don't know".
Part of this is the puritanical p.c. bullcrap I've ranted about, and has nothing to do with anything on the field. Jauron might be the only guy who bothered to separate the two unrelated matters.
Same old same old from the non-players: He's not big enough for the AFC North.
Neither was Brian Sipe. And I guess Doug Flutie was too small for New England...just shut up, ok?
Well I'm just bringing this up now to get it on record: I say I am right and all those real and fake experts are wrong, and Johnny Manziel will succeed.
He might not win more than one game, but he'll convert third downs, move the offense, complete many passes to many receivers, and be part of maybe 2 touchdowns per game.
I also predict that he will be blamed for not single-handedly scoring more points than his own horrific defense allows, no matter what, because that's easy.
Roger Staubach and others agree with me. Kudos to Dick Jauron for being objective and paying attention.
Browns 97, 49ers 96. Updated w/l prediction 6-10
Sunday, December 13, 2015
Friday, December 11, 2015
Latest Browns Rumors and Gossip and Inanity
Mary Kay Cabot has even Adam Shefter talking about showcasing Johnny Manziel for a trade. Larry Brown brought this to my attention.
Shefter guesses a conditional fourth round pick from Dallas.
I hope this is Mary Kay just spitballing, since unless Johnny plays worse than he has been playing, that would be idiotic.
Larry thinks that Johnny will have to win a couple games and be awesome in general to stick around. I can't imagine why.
This is a second year quarterback with about five games under his belt. No rational GM would set that high of a standard for any quarterback with Johnny's history and experience.
Talk about standards, if they expect this guy to be a monk for the rest of his life, he should ask to be traded!
If Johnny plays well with the supporting cast he has (a huge challenge), why else would they trade him for a fourth round pick? Could that be it? They're afraid that sometime in January or February he'll get caught having fun again? If so, I quite understand, since almost everybody sits at a bar occasionally, and they know how they would feel in his position.
I've been tracking Terrelle Pryor's status as well as I can, along with the coach's comments.
Brian Hartline practiced yesterday. Benjamin, Gabriel, Bowe, and Hawkins did not. Marlon Moore was limited, and I guess Jennings is there and ok. There is some hope for a couple of the other guys, but it still seems unavoidable that Terelle Pryor will be active.
What I'm afraid of is that Grover Pettinenheimer will keep him on the bench for the whole game.
Maybe not, though. And I predict that if he plays, Johnny Manziel will find him, just like he found Mike Evans in college.
Imagine yourself as a 5'10" cornerback trying to cover this guy. If you try to bump him, you'll bounce off and you won't catch up to him. You have to hang back and stay ahead of him.
He's almost uncoverable. Right now. I remember Dave Logan with the Kardiac Kids. Brian Sipe sometimes didn't even see him, but threw a high, arcing bomb to where he was supposed to be.
Logan was kind of slow, so by the time the ball reached him, he was usually surrounded by defenders.
It didn't matter. They couldn't knock him off-course, and couldn't out-reach him. He usually didn't even have to leave the ground, and got a few more yards before they could take him down.
Johnny is (in reality) two inches taller than Sipe, and has a much stronger arm. Pryor is an inch taller, twenty pounds heavier, and much, much faster than converted basketball player Dave Logan.
The combination of Barnidge and Pryor could cause some real coverage problems, something like Winslow and Edwards.
You can't put two people on both of them, and you can't trust a linebacker to cover Barnidge for more than a couple seconds.
The 49ers might well blitze over left guard, since they know that almost every single run will go to that side like always. Some of their key passrushers are injured.
If Benjamin can play, using Pryor and Hartline outside could present a real NFL-type offense, and get Johnson and or Benjamin into the slot where they'd be much more effective.
What's that Terrelle Pryor playing more than one or two plays? I must be insane, right?
Listen to me: NONE of the other quarterbacks who attempted to switch to receiver were as gifted as Terrelle Pryor, ok? I know that most of them failed.
Tim Couch's favorite target, Kevin Johnson, switched from quarterback to wr as a college sophomore, and led the Browns in receiving, and I think went over 1,000 yards.
That guy had great hands, but nowhere near the size or speed of Pryor.
Pryor knows DeFillipo's offense because he ran it. As a receiver, he will know where to go, whatever the defense does.
He's been practicing all the routes, getting at least eight times the reps he would have gotten had he been on a team. He's had months to process what he learned about hand-fighting, leverage, and dirty tricks from the coaches and other receivers.
Like Johnny, he can't yet be near his potential, but I'll bet he can play, right tf now.
Who else in the NFL is like him? Well if you said Josh Gordon, you're mostly wrong. He's around two inches taller, 10-15 lbs heavier, and much faster out of the blocks.
Calvin Johnson. And look at Megatron's biggest plays. He runs down the field, ignoring the little terrier running with him. He looks up and back. He catches the ball. Quit telling me Terrelle Pryor can't do that, or even that it matters if the defense knows it's coming.
Maybe the 49ers would think like that, and try to single cover him. Johnny and Terrelle would really like that! Decoy, huh?
If only Mike can see it. I'll bet Flip does. I'll bet he's trying to get the old blockhead to actually let him play.
Probably, the 49ers, whose lately-formidable pass rush has been dented by injuries, will blitze over left guard, since they know that if they succeed, they'll blow up any run since, as we know, that's the only side they ever run to.
That's the formula for every Browns opponent. Penetrate between center and left tackle.
But with Johnny, they have to contain him with pressure from the strong side as well. That will be an outside linebacker trying to out-quick Scwartze. But he can't get too deep and open a gap, and the DE on that side can't get out of his lane.
If it's done right, you'll see Johnny scrambling some, but mostly backwards and to his left. If he has room to his right, he can buy himself way too much time to find somebody.
Rather than keeping Crowell or Johnson in to protect (if they don't go to a slot), I hope Flip sends them to the flat behind that left outside linebacker.
IF Pryor is on the field, he should be the x receiver, usually to Johnny's left. That would put Hartline to the right. Hartline usually gets press coverage, meaning that cornerback turns to run with him. He's not worried about getting outraced.
If an inside backer is blitzing, then the other has Barnidge to worry about. The strong or shallow safety has to track Manziel himself, if not Barnidge (and let the linebacker watch Manziel AND the backs. This leaves one safety to watch everything else.)
Well I'm getting into the weeds here. The dumpoff is a good safe way to burn that type of blitze, and can be executed in one second.
From the latest injury report, only Hawkins didn't practice. Everybody else listed was limited, which might be partly precautionary.
Benjamin should play. I would put Pryor at x opposite the top cornerback, Hartline opposite vs the second best, and Benjamin in the slot, or else Johnson there out of an apparent 2-back huddle. The former dictates a nickel, the latter a base defense in which they have to put a safety on Johnson.
Most coaches being presumptive blockheads, they'll trust their number one cornerback to take care of the clueless rookie x-receiver and number two to cover Hartline. The guy they'll sweat the most about will be the slot guy, and the high safety will need to hang back in center field and mirror him.
Pryor might be contained mostly, but can take his corner deep and away from scrimmage most of the time, and if he slants can challenge the deep safety.
Here's the deal: A healthy Joe Haden type can often neutralize a much bigger and even faster receiver by anticipating the cuts he needs to make and putting himself in the way.
But not longer than about 4 seconds. One of the reasons Haden got burned so much was because quarterbacks had too much time. Several of those burns were "come-backs". All veteran (and former quarterback) receivers break off their routes and run towards the quarterback after around four seconds if the ball isn't already in the air.
This is literally impossible to cover. No human being can stop and reverse directions fast enough to keep up with a wide receiver who does the same. He always loses at least two or three steps.
Well, when Johnny does buy himself a couple more seconds, Pryor is probably the first guy he'll look for, because in four seconds he can be 35 yards downfield.
It's a little more complicated, of course. The receiver won't just keep running back to the quarterback, but once he has separation will run parallel to the quarterback if possible. This makes an accurate throw much easier, preserves the yardage, and gives the receiver a chance to run with the ball.
Two of Johnny's huge passes to Benjamin happened just this way--on scrambles. A number of Barnidge catches from every quarterback happened this way too, and a few to Hartline.
That's been frustrating. This is a timing offense in which the quarterback is supposed to throw within 2.6 seconds. This doesn't happen often enough. All the quarterbacks hold the ball too long.
If it was just the young guys, I'd blame them, but because it happened with McCown too, it's more likely the receivers not getting open, or getting knocked off their routes.
Easy to understand, since except for Hartline and Barnidge (love you man!) they're all smurfs...so...
Will Pryor get his chance?
Shefter guesses a conditional fourth round pick from Dallas.
I hope this is Mary Kay just spitballing, since unless Johnny plays worse than he has been playing, that would be idiotic.
Larry thinks that Johnny will have to win a couple games and be awesome in general to stick around. I can't imagine why.
This is a second year quarterback with about five games under his belt. No rational GM would set that high of a standard for any quarterback with Johnny's history and experience.
Talk about standards, if they expect this guy to be a monk for the rest of his life, he should ask to be traded!
If Johnny plays well with the supporting cast he has (a huge challenge), why else would they trade him for a fourth round pick? Could that be it? They're afraid that sometime in January or February he'll get caught having fun again? If so, I quite understand, since almost everybody sits at a bar occasionally, and they know how they would feel in his position.
I've been tracking Terrelle Pryor's status as well as I can, along with the coach's comments.
Brian Hartline practiced yesterday. Benjamin, Gabriel, Bowe, and Hawkins did not. Marlon Moore was limited, and I guess Jennings is there and ok. There is some hope for a couple of the other guys, but it still seems unavoidable that Terelle Pryor will be active.
What I'm afraid of is that Grover Pettinenheimer will keep him on the bench for the whole game.
Maybe not, though. And I predict that if he plays, Johnny Manziel will find him, just like he found Mike Evans in college.
Imagine yourself as a 5'10" cornerback trying to cover this guy. If you try to bump him, you'll bounce off and you won't catch up to him. You have to hang back and stay ahead of him.
He's almost uncoverable. Right now. I remember Dave Logan with the Kardiac Kids. Brian Sipe sometimes didn't even see him, but threw a high, arcing bomb to where he was supposed to be.
Logan was kind of slow, so by the time the ball reached him, he was usually surrounded by defenders.
It didn't matter. They couldn't knock him off-course, and couldn't out-reach him. He usually didn't even have to leave the ground, and got a few more yards before they could take him down.
Johnny is (in reality) two inches taller than Sipe, and has a much stronger arm. Pryor is an inch taller, twenty pounds heavier, and much, much faster than converted basketball player Dave Logan.
The combination of Barnidge and Pryor could cause some real coverage problems, something like Winslow and Edwards.
You can't put two people on both of them, and you can't trust a linebacker to cover Barnidge for more than a couple seconds.
The 49ers might well blitze over left guard, since they know that almost every single run will go to that side like always. Some of their key passrushers are injured.
If Benjamin can play, using Pryor and Hartline outside could present a real NFL-type offense, and get Johnson and or Benjamin into the slot where they'd be much more effective.
What's that Terrelle Pryor playing more than one or two plays? I must be insane, right?
Listen to me: NONE of the other quarterbacks who attempted to switch to receiver were as gifted as Terrelle Pryor, ok? I know that most of them failed.
Tim Couch's favorite target, Kevin Johnson, switched from quarterback to wr as a college sophomore, and led the Browns in receiving, and I think went over 1,000 yards.
That guy had great hands, but nowhere near the size or speed of Pryor.
Pryor knows DeFillipo's offense because he ran it. As a receiver, he will know where to go, whatever the defense does.
He's been practicing all the routes, getting at least eight times the reps he would have gotten had he been on a team. He's had months to process what he learned about hand-fighting, leverage, and dirty tricks from the coaches and other receivers.
Like Johnny, he can't yet be near his potential, but I'll bet he can play, right tf now.
Who else in the NFL is like him? Well if you said Josh Gordon, you're mostly wrong. He's around two inches taller, 10-15 lbs heavier, and much faster out of the blocks.
Calvin Johnson. And look at Megatron's biggest plays. He runs down the field, ignoring the little terrier running with him. He looks up and back. He catches the ball. Quit telling me Terrelle Pryor can't do that, or even that it matters if the defense knows it's coming.
Maybe the 49ers would think like that, and try to single cover him. Johnny and Terrelle would really like that! Decoy, huh?
If only Mike can see it. I'll bet Flip does. I'll bet he's trying to get the old blockhead to actually let him play.
Probably, the 49ers, whose lately-formidable pass rush has been dented by injuries, will blitze over left guard, since they know that if they succeed, they'll blow up any run since, as we know, that's the only side they ever run to.
That's the formula for every Browns opponent. Penetrate between center and left tackle.
But with Johnny, they have to contain him with pressure from the strong side as well. That will be an outside linebacker trying to out-quick Scwartze. But he can't get too deep and open a gap, and the DE on that side can't get out of his lane.
If it's done right, you'll see Johnny scrambling some, but mostly backwards and to his left. If he has room to his right, he can buy himself way too much time to find somebody.
Rather than keeping Crowell or Johnson in to protect (if they don't go to a slot), I hope Flip sends them to the flat behind that left outside linebacker.
IF Pryor is on the field, he should be the x receiver, usually to Johnny's left. That would put Hartline to the right. Hartline usually gets press coverage, meaning that cornerback turns to run with him. He's not worried about getting outraced.
If an inside backer is blitzing, then the other has Barnidge to worry about. The strong or shallow safety has to track Manziel himself, if not Barnidge (and let the linebacker watch Manziel AND the backs. This leaves one safety to watch everything else.)
Well I'm getting into the weeds here. The dumpoff is a good safe way to burn that type of blitze, and can be executed in one second.
From the latest injury report, only Hawkins didn't practice. Everybody else listed was limited, which might be partly precautionary.
Benjamin should play. I would put Pryor at x opposite the top cornerback, Hartline opposite vs the second best, and Benjamin in the slot, or else Johnson there out of an apparent 2-back huddle. The former dictates a nickel, the latter a base defense in which they have to put a safety on Johnson.
Most coaches being presumptive blockheads, they'll trust their number one cornerback to take care of the clueless rookie x-receiver and number two to cover Hartline. The guy they'll sweat the most about will be the slot guy, and the high safety will need to hang back in center field and mirror him.
Pryor might be contained mostly, but can take his corner deep and away from scrimmage most of the time, and if he slants can challenge the deep safety.
Here's the deal: A healthy Joe Haden type can often neutralize a much bigger and even faster receiver by anticipating the cuts he needs to make and putting himself in the way.
But not longer than about 4 seconds. One of the reasons Haden got burned so much was because quarterbacks had too much time. Several of those burns were "come-backs". All veteran (and former quarterback) receivers break off their routes and run towards the quarterback after around four seconds if the ball isn't already in the air.
This is literally impossible to cover. No human being can stop and reverse directions fast enough to keep up with a wide receiver who does the same. He always loses at least two or three steps.
Well, when Johnny does buy himself a couple more seconds, Pryor is probably the first guy he'll look for, because in four seconds he can be 35 yards downfield.
It's a little more complicated, of course. The receiver won't just keep running back to the quarterback, but once he has separation will run parallel to the quarterback if possible. This makes an accurate throw much easier, preserves the yardage, and gives the receiver a chance to run with the ball.
Two of Johnny's huge passes to Benjamin happened just this way--on scrambles. A number of Barnidge catches from every quarterback happened this way too, and a few to Hartline.
That's been frustrating. This is a timing offense in which the quarterback is supposed to throw within 2.6 seconds. This doesn't happen often enough. All the quarterbacks hold the ball too long.
If it was just the young guys, I'd blame them, but because it happened with McCown too, it's more likely the receivers not getting open, or getting knocked off their routes.
Easy to understand, since except for Hartline and Barnidge (love you man!) they're all smurfs...so...
Will Pryor get his chance?
Tuesday, December 8, 2015
Sunday is the Next Game of the Rest of the Season
Once Marty Pettine announced that Johnny Manziel would start at home vs the 49ers, I feared a draft-undermining victory.
But there is hope. The 49ers season-long stats don't tell the story, as they just took the Chicago Bears to overtime and beat them. Blaine Gabbert isn't Colin Kaepernick, nor is he the same guy he was last season. (I don't know how many of you grasp this, but believe it or not, young quarterbacks tend to improve...just sayin...)
Fantasy gurus are pointing to Shaun Draugn as a cheap sleeper because the Browns run defense is so bad, but I need to point out: Draughn wouldn't make the Bengals roster.
And upon further review, now that I've sifted through the opinionated and prejudiced disinformation, Austin Davis played a hell of a game vs a top contender last Sunday, and warrants further consideration as a starter. And if you disagree with that, you're not thinking clearly.
However, Johnny did what he did to the Steelers, presents more upside, and needs this chance to prove himself.
Whether he's the better player right now or not, however, his teammates know that he might just represent a new era for this team.
For many of them, it could be their last chance to play in the NFL, roll the dice on the ground floor of something special, or (more commonly) to put something on tape for their next contract...whoever pays it.
Brian Hartline's comments on the psychology of some of the veterans weren't lost on me. They're playing for nothing, and the fear of an injury nags them.
But look at Brian himself. Do you see any quit in him?
Still, Grover Pettine would be wise to play the first and second year players more during these last 4 games. These are the guys who will fight hard to the bitter end, because they're still trying to prove they shouldn't be cut in training camp next year, and that they belong in the NFL.
Let Dansby, Whitner, Starks, D Bryant, Hartline, and even that 30 year old cornerback park it more so the young guys can make their bones.
But I doubt that Grover Pettinenheimer will see it that way.
Anyway, there's an undeniable sense of excitement with Johnny Manziel, and it will infect the whole team.
I know Josh McCown, and he'll be egging it on. I absolutely love that guy, and they need to keep him around for as long as they can (even if it means his next contract as a position coach). This guy checks his ego at the door. This guy wants everybody around him to succeed. And he'll be in Johnny's ear all the time (and know when to back off, too).
I smell a Browns victory this Sunday. I'm doing all I can. I've started making Johnny my starter in my 25 cent Draftkings tournaments, and using Duke and Travis too. I can't bring myself to actually bet against the Browns, but THEY should find my little stabs at money sufficient to make sure at least 2 of those guys fail miserably.
I've avoided Gary Barnidge so far, so he might go for 150 yards. The Browns might even win anyway, but I've done what I could.
Look, I can't cover everything! I couldn't take the defense! I just couldn't! So here's how I think it might go, based on my fantasy picks:
Barnidge collects 8 catches for 130 yards and no touchdowns. Manziel throws for 220 yards and no touchdowns and gets sacked 4 times. Benjamin is completely shut down. The defense scores 2 touchdowns. Special teams scores a third.
THEM.
Seriously, trying to think with my brain here and ignore THEM, I believe Manziel is a good almost-sleeper pick in this specific game.
Manziel and Benjamin are a lethal combination, and I can't believe that Duke Johnson won't be used more in this game. I didn't take Barnidge, but that's only because I found other tight ends with big upsides much cheaper.
The x-factors are numerous: Crowell (or maybe just the blocking) has improved lately. There's an outside chance that Marty Pettinegrove will let Terrelle "just fake a cut and go for the the end zone" Pryor in for one or two plays...even obvious ones...though I doubt it...
Anyway, I've put my quarters on Johnny, Travis, and Duke to get THEM to intercede, but really, maybe a win wouldn't be so bad.
Because if Johnny Manziel wins this one, and maybe even upsets another team in the meatgrinder on deck, wouldn't that answer the quarterback question? Would the Browns NEED the first overall pick? (But like I said, there's Connor Shaw, the guy ahead of him, and another guy anyway...Some cretin predicted a weak qb crop, but that's idiocy--the Browns could draft 3-5 and STILL get a stud qb.)
Yeah, I confess: I like Johnny. I didn't at first. Then I wasn't sure. Then I was hopeful. Then he threw for 370 yards vs the Steelers. Now I think we got our franchise guy. And an excellent insurance policy in Austin Davis, and Josh McCown through retirement if they have the brains to do it.
You heard me! That includes YOU, Black Cloud! Manziel looks like our franchise qb to me and I don't CARE if he likes to party!
Black Cloud, you know as well as me political correctness is bullshit. His going to rehab now looks like a mistake, because now he's not allowed to be human any more!!!
In today's NFL, Kenny Stabler would never have had a chance. We might never have heard of Brett Favre. And a WHOLE BUNCH OF other superstars we haven't heard about yet, for that matter it's bullshit.
Note to other readers: Black Cloud is a permabasher. He is very intelligent, but doesn't have Browns OCD like me, but I guess he's read my blogs and deemed me an apologist or something because I try to leave the bashing to everybody else (since that's well-covered) and focus on the positive stuff (which is almost completely ignored).
So he's prone to dismiss anything positive coming from me, including about Johnny Manziel...no matter what.
Sorry: Anyway I'll come all the way out of the closet here:
I believe that the Manziel-led Browns WILL not only beat the 49ers, but also upset another contending team for a 2-2 record in the final 4 games of this season.
This could (but might not) save Mike Pettine's job. But it WILL show that Johnny Manziel is for real, and could save Ray Farmer as well.
Again, for the fifth time, I repeat: Austin Davis is NOT a bumb! Josh McCown has been a stud. And I color Manziel as more a Wilson than a Brees, but I'll take that.
So there is my neck stuck out. I don't feel much fear, though: What could Russell Wilson do with Gordon and Pryor?
But there is hope. The 49ers season-long stats don't tell the story, as they just took the Chicago Bears to overtime and beat them. Blaine Gabbert isn't Colin Kaepernick, nor is he the same guy he was last season. (I don't know how many of you grasp this, but believe it or not, young quarterbacks tend to improve...just sayin...)
Fantasy gurus are pointing to Shaun Draugn as a cheap sleeper because the Browns run defense is so bad, but I need to point out: Draughn wouldn't make the Bengals roster.
And upon further review, now that I've sifted through the opinionated and prejudiced disinformation, Austin Davis played a hell of a game vs a top contender last Sunday, and warrants further consideration as a starter. And if you disagree with that, you're not thinking clearly.
However, Johnny did what he did to the Steelers, presents more upside, and needs this chance to prove himself.
Whether he's the better player right now or not, however, his teammates know that he might just represent a new era for this team.
For many of them, it could be their last chance to play in the NFL, roll the dice on the ground floor of something special, or (more commonly) to put something on tape for their next contract...whoever pays it.
Brian Hartline's comments on the psychology of some of the veterans weren't lost on me. They're playing for nothing, and the fear of an injury nags them.
But look at Brian himself. Do you see any quit in him?
Still, Grover Pettine would be wise to play the first and second year players more during these last 4 games. These are the guys who will fight hard to the bitter end, because they're still trying to prove they shouldn't be cut in training camp next year, and that they belong in the NFL.
Let Dansby, Whitner, Starks, D Bryant, Hartline, and even that 30 year old cornerback park it more so the young guys can make their bones.
But I doubt that Grover Pettinenheimer will see it that way.
Anyway, there's an undeniable sense of excitement with Johnny Manziel, and it will infect the whole team.
I know Josh McCown, and he'll be egging it on. I absolutely love that guy, and they need to keep him around for as long as they can (even if it means his next contract as a position coach). This guy checks his ego at the door. This guy wants everybody around him to succeed. And he'll be in Johnny's ear all the time (and know when to back off, too).
I smell a Browns victory this Sunday. I'm doing all I can. I've started making Johnny my starter in my 25 cent Draftkings tournaments, and using Duke and Travis too. I can't bring myself to actually bet against the Browns, but THEY should find my little stabs at money sufficient to make sure at least 2 of those guys fail miserably.
I've avoided Gary Barnidge so far, so he might go for 150 yards. The Browns might even win anyway, but I've done what I could.
Look, I can't cover everything! I couldn't take the defense! I just couldn't! So here's how I think it might go, based on my fantasy picks:
Barnidge collects 8 catches for 130 yards and no touchdowns. Manziel throws for 220 yards and no touchdowns and gets sacked 4 times. Benjamin is completely shut down. The defense scores 2 touchdowns. Special teams scores a third.
THEM.
Seriously, trying to think with my brain here and ignore THEM, I believe Manziel is a good almost-sleeper pick in this specific game.
Manziel and Benjamin are a lethal combination, and I can't believe that Duke Johnson won't be used more in this game. I didn't take Barnidge, but that's only because I found other tight ends with big upsides much cheaper.
The x-factors are numerous: Crowell (or maybe just the blocking) has improved lately. There's an outside chance that Marty Pettinegrove will let Terrelle "just fake a cut and go for the the end zone" Pryor in for one or two plays...even obvious ones...though I doubt it...
Anyway, I've put my quarters on Johnny, Travis, and Duke to get THEM to intercede, but really, maybe a win wouldn't be so bad.
Because if Johnny Manziel wins this one, and maybe even upsets another team in the meatgrinder on deck, wouldn't that answer the quarterback question? Would the Browns NEED the first overall pick? (But like I said, there's Connor Shaw, the guy ahead of him, and another guy anyway...Some cretin predicted a weak qb crop, but that's idiocy--the Browns could draft 3-5 and STILL get a stud qb.)
Yeah, I confess: I like Johnny. I didn't at first. Then I wasn't sure. Then I was hopeful. Then he threw for 370 yards vs the Steelers. Now I think we got our franchise guy. And an excellent insurance policy in Austin Davis, and Josh McCown through retirement if they have the brains to do it.
You heard me! That includes YOU, Black Cloud! Manziel looks like our franchise qb to me and I don't CARE if he likes to party!
Black Cloud, you know as well as me political correctness is bullshit. His going to rehab now looks like a mistake, because now he's not allowed to be human any more!!!
In today's NFL, Kenny Stabler would never have had a chance. We might never have heard of Brett Favre. And a WHOLE BUNCH OF other superstars we haven't heard about yet, for that matter it's bullshit.
Note to other readers: Black Cloud is a permabasher. He is very intelligent, but doesn't have Browns OCD like me, but I guess he's read my blogs and deemed me an apologist or something because I try to leave the bashing to everybody else (since that's well-covered) and focus on the positive stuff (which is almost completely ignored).
So he's prone to dismiss anything positive coming from me, including about Johnny Manziel...no matter what.
Sorry: Anyway I'll come all the way out of the closet here:
I believe that the Manziel-led Browns WILL not only beat the 49ers, but also upset another contending team for a 2-2 record in the final 4 games of this season.
This could (but might not) save Mike Pettine's job. But it WILL show that Johnny Manziel is for real, and could save Ray Farmer as well.
Again, for the fifth time, I repeat: Austin Davis is NOT a bumb! Josh McCown has been a stud. And I color Manziel as more a Wilson than a Brees, but I'll take that.
So there is my neck stuck out. I don't feel much fear, though: What could Russell Wilson do with Gordon and Pryor?
Monday, December 7, 2015
Browns vs Bengals: What We Learned
The Browns suck.
Now that we've knocked that out, I can leave the more detailed and emotional bashing to literally everybody else.
It's weird, though. This team took the Denver Broncos to the wire, almost beat the Steelers the first time...they put up a fight.
Cincinnati has a great team, and it's no shame to lose to the Bengals. But by 30 points?
I must repeat this: Now that the Cleveland Browns are top contenders for the first overall draft pick, there is every chance that they'll upset one or two teams in order to prevent that.
As it stands, Jimmy Haslam has little choice but to fire Mike Pettine. But if the team rallies late, Mike has a chance to pull it out.
I normally wouldn't harbor any such hope, but I'm a Browns fan. Just when you start thinking that a first overall pick could be the light at the end of the tunnel...well?
Some boob at Yahoo Sports mentioned the fictitious power struggle over Manziel and decided that Mike Pettine, who hates him, won't start him the rest of the season.
Inanity and gossip aside, I'm pretty sure Adam Shefter is right: Manziel will start the rest of the season.
The Yahoo article described Austin Davis as a "terrible third string quarterback", which was ignorant.
Davis didn't have much of a chance, and the Bengals did to him what they did to Manziel in the second half a few weeks ago.
But Davis has been around a lot longer than Johnny Manziel, and now we know: He's ok. Just ok.
Johnny, barring injury, should get the last four starts. We'll get to see what he can do.
Take it in context. He is still almost a rookie. He won't be as good as he will become with more experience. He doesn't have a true number one receiver or much run support. His blockers...almost inexplicably...can't seem to give any quarterback more than 2.5 seconds to throw. His defense will have him playing from behind in must-pass situations for most of his games.
He'll probably backslide some, and revert to his instinctive and sometimes premature scrambling.
We have Josh McCown to compare him to. If he can come close to that as a raw player on the same team, we'll know: Johnny Manziel can become a franchise quarterback.
I'll also be looking for how his teammates respond to him. These guys all get paid to play, and have their own contracts and futures to play for. There's plenty of built-in motivation.
But you just can't help digging a little deeper for a guy you believe in, like, and want to stay with.
Regime change? If you were Jimmy Haslam, could you force yourself NOT to fire Mike Pettine without a big turnaround-at least close games vs elite teams? Even then, would that be enough?
I'm waiting to hear "the team has quit on him". I won't believe it, but something is very wrong.
We've heard it from real experts: Blocking scheme, overly complex defense, and (my addition) predictability in the run game.
Jimmy Johnson said it's lack of talent. Does he mean the offensive line, Whitner, Haden, Dansby, Duke, Des Bryant, Jamie Starks, Shelton, the other cornerbacks, Barnidge, Benjamin?
Is it nature or nurture? These are good players who have proven it. That's nature. Now they don't look so great. Maybe that's nurture, i.e. coaching and scheme.
Looking at the roster, the players with under two years experience include: EJ Bibbs, Ibraheim Campbell, Coons, X Cooper, Cam Erving, Hughlet (long snapper), Luke Lundy, Jamie Meder, Nate Orchard, and Danny Shelton. Desir and two more good cornerbacks belong here as well.
Campbell has already played well, Desir is growing rapidly, Gilbert showed signs of life...
The other day I heard some clown talk about Erving as if he were a bust when he did poorly at left guard. "I don't know why they even drafted that guy".
Well, in reality second-year player Joel Bitonio hasn't played much better! But he's another guy in only his second year. Anybody who plays left guard here will get swamped because that's where a defense seeks penetration to stop the run. Guess why!!!
There's a lot of upside here, if you look for it. I will add Terelle Pryor and Josh Gordon to this mix.
These two alone could turn the whole offense around in 2016.
For now, they suck. Ok. But for me, there's still lots of guys to watch, in addition to Manziel. The most interesting one is Terrelle Pryor.
His hamstring held him back while he was here, but at least according to him, he's been running routes with dedication.
I'm hoping that Mike Pettine is desperate enough to override his Hargrovian and Martonian instincts and allow him to play at least a little.
Too bad that could cause the Browns to win one or more games. It's more important to get him some reps at receiver before the season ends.
Part of the problem with the offense; and one reason the quarterbacks tend to hold the ball past their first and second reads so often, is the lack of a big wide receiver other than Brian Hartline.
A big receiver can be "covered", but still make the catch or at least prevent an interception. A West Coast quarterback can throw to a predesignated spot without necessarily seeing the receiver, because he knows that the big guy won't get knocked off his route, and will use his physical advantages to make the play.
The quarterback can't trust a Travis Benjamin like that. We've seen it a lot. If the cornerback is running with Travis, he can break it up. Benjamin needs at least one step, and a very accurate pass.
In re draft strategy, I go back and forth with guys on this: What the Atlanta Falcons gave up for Julio Jones was ridiculous. It didn't buy the Falcons so much as a playoff win, despite Matt Ryan.
Truly, Jones is awesome. But bashing the Browns for accepting their pot of gold for him isn't logical.
The Browns gave up the 6th overall pick for #27, Atlanta's second and 4th round picks in that draft, and Atlanta's first and 4th rounders in 2012.
In that draft, the Browns drafted Phil Taylor, Jabaal Sheard, and Greg Little in the first and second rounds. Taylor and Sheard were good players at first, and Sheard is doing great with the Patriots now. Nuff said about Little.
In the fourth, it was fullback Owen Marecic (a bust). Little and Marecic were from Atlanta. They were misses.
In 2012 they used Atlanta's pick on Brandon Weeden (after trading up to draft Trent Richardson third overall). Their fourth rounder wound up being James Micheal something--another miss.
After Weeden went: Riley Reiff, David DeCastro, and Dont'a Hightower. While I'm at it, Tannehill went five slots after Williams.
There was nothing wrong with this present-day trade for the rebuilding Cleveland Browns. What went wrong was Weeden, Little, and Marecic.
Who was going to throw the ball to Julio? What about the whole rest of the team?
The trade would have been lauded in retrospect if the players it yielded had been more like Sheard and Taylor.
You can certainly bash Tom Heckert (not Ray Farmer) for making bad picks, but not for making the Jones trade.
What about the coming draft? Well, the team isn't really rebuilding, despite its record. There is, believe it or not, a lot of talent here.
Some of the older guys will be leaving, probably including Mack; possibly Dansby, and there are other needs.
If Johnny Manziel impresses over the last four games, do the Browns have to draft a quarterback? If so, there are three and perhaps more they could take.
Do they need a number one receiver if both Pryor and Gordon are coming back?
So yes, maybe they could move down a little, and still get what they need...
If they make the right picks. Grossi won't like it.
I just wonder who will be making those picks.
Now that we've knocked that out, I can leave the more detailed and emotional bashing to literally everybody else.
It's weird, though. This team took the Denver Broncos to the wire, almost beat the Steelers the first time...they put up a fight.
Cincinnati has a great team, and it's no shame to lose to the Bengals. But by 30 points?
I must repeat this: Now that the Cleveland Browns are top contenders for the first overall draft pick, there is every chance that they'll upset one or two teams in order to prevent that.
As it stands, Jimmy Haslam has little choice but to fire Mike Pettine. But if the team rallies late, Mike has a chance to pull it out.
I normally wouldn't harbor any such hope, but I'm a Browns fan. Just when you start thinking that a first overall pick could be the light at the end of the tunnel...well?
Some boob at Yahoo Sports mentioned the fictitious power struggle over Manziel and decided that Mike Pettine, who hates him, won't start him the rest of the season.
Inanity and gossip aside, I'm pretty sure Adam Shefter is right: Manziel will start the rest of the season.
The Yahoo article described Austin Davis as a "terrible third string quarterback", which was ignorant.
Davis didn't have much of a chance, and the Bengals did to him what they did to Manziel in the second half a few weeks ago.
But Davis has been around a lot longer than Johnny Manziel, and now we know: He's ok. Just ok.
Johnny, barring injury, should get the last four starts. We'll get to see what he can do.
Take it in context. He is still almost a rookie. He won't be as good as he will become with more experience. He doesn't have a true number one receiver or much run support. His blockers...almost inexplicably...can't seem to give any quarterback more than 2.5 seconds to throw. His defense will have him playing from behind in must-pass situations for most of his games.
He'll probably backslide some, and revert to his instinctive and sometimes premature scrambling.
We have Josh McCown to compare him to. If he can come close to that as a raw player on the same team, we'll know: Johnny Manziel can become a franchise quarterback.
I'll also be looking for how his teammates respond to him. These guys all get paid to play, and have their own contracts and futures to play for. There's plenty of built-in motivation.
But you just can't help digging a little deeper for a guy you believe in, like, and want to stay with.
Regime change? If you were Jimmy Haslam, could you force yourself NOT to fire Mike Pettine without a big turnaround-at least close games vs elite teams? Even then, would that be enough?
I'm waiting to hear "the team has quit on him". I won't believe it, but something is very wrong.
We've heard it from real experts: Blocking scheme, overly complex defense, and (my addition) predictability in the run game.
Jimmy Johnson said it's lack of talent. Does he mean the offensive line, Whitner, Haden, Dansby, Duke, Des Bryant, Jamie Starks, Shelton, the other cornerbacks, Barnidge, Benjamin?
Is it nature or nurture? These are good players who have proven it. That's nature. Now they don't look so great. Maybe that's nurture, i.e. coaching and scheme.
Looking at the roster, the players with under two years experience include: EJ Bibbs, Ibraheim Campbell, Coons, X Cooper, Cam Erving, Hughlet (long snapper), Luke Lundy, Jamie Meder, Nate Orchard, and Danny Shelton. Desir and two more good cornerbacks belong here as well.
Campbell has already played well, Desir is growing rapidly, Gilbert showed signs of life...
The other day I heard some clown talk about Erving as if he were a bust when he did poorly at left guard. "I don't know why they even drafted that guy".
Well, in reality second-year player Joel Bitonio hasn't played much better! But he's another guy in only his second year. Anybody who plays left guard here will get swamped because that's where a defense seeks penetration to stop the run. Guess why!!!
There's a lot of upside here, if you look for it. I will add Terelle Pryor and Josh Gordon to this mix.
These two alone could turn the whole offense around in 2016.
For now, they suck. Ok. But for me, there's still lots of guys to watch, in addition to Manziel. The most interesting one is Terrelle Pryor.
His hamstring held him back while he was here, but at least according to him, he's been running routes with dedication.
I'm hoping that Mike Pettine is desperate enough to override his Hargrovian and Martonian instincts and allow him to play at least a little.
Too bad that could cause the Browns to win one or more games. It's more important to get him some reps at receiver before the season ends.
Part of the problem with the offense; and one reason the quarterbacks tend to hold the ball past their first and second reads so often, is the lack of a big wide receiver other than Brian Hartline.
A big receiver can be "covered", but still make the catch or at least prevent an interception. A West Coast quarterback can throw to a predesignated spot without necessarily seeing the receiver, because he knows that the big guy won't get knocked off his route, and will use his physical advantages to make the play.
The quarterback can't trust a Travis Benjamin like that. We've seen it a lot. If the cornerback is running with Travis, he can break it up. Benjamin needs at least one step, and a very accurate pass.
In re draft strategy, I go back and forth with guys on this: What the Atlanta Falcons gave up for Julio Jones was ridiculous. It didn't buy the Falcons so much as a playoff win, despite Matt Ryan.
Truly, Jones is awesome. But bashing the Browns for accepting their pot of gold for him isn't logical.
The Browns gave up the 6th overall pick for #27, Atlanta's second and 4th round picks in that draft, and Atlanta's first and 4th rounders in 2012.
In that draft, the Browns drafted Phil Taylor, Jabaal Sheard, and Greg Little in the first and second rounds. Taylor and Sheard were good players at first, and Sheard is doing great with the Patriots now. Nuff said about Little.
In the fourth, it was fullback Owen Marecic (a bust). Little and Marecic were from Atlanta. They were misses.
In 2012 they used Atlanta's pick on Brandon Weeden (after trading up to draft Trent Richardson third overall). Their fourth rounder wound up being James Micheal something--another miss.
After Weeden went: Riley Reiff, David DeCastro, and Dont'a Hightower. While I'm at it, Tannehill went five slots after Williams.
There was nothing wrong with this present-day trade for the rebuilding Cleveland Browns. What went wrong was Weeden, Little, and Marecic.
Who was going to throw the ball to Julio? What about the whole rest of the team?
The trade would have been lauded in retrospect if the players it yielded had been more like Sheard and Taylor.
You can certainly bash Tom Heckert (not Ray Farmer) for making bad picks, but not for making the Jones trade.
What about the coming draft? Well, the team isn't really rebuilding, despite its record. There is, believe it or not, a lot of talent here.
Some of the older guys will be leaving, probably including Mack; possibly Dansby, and there are other needs.
If Johnny Manziel impresses over the last four games, do the Browns have to draft a quarterback? If so, there are three and perhaps more they could take.
Do they need a number one receiver if both Pryor and Gordon are coming back?
So yes, maybe they could move down a little, and still get what they need...
If they make the right picks. Grossi won't like it.
I just wonder who will be making those picks.
Saturday, December 5, 2015
Reasons Why the Browns Might Beat the Bengals
1: It doesn't matter.
2: A win would cost the Browns position in the draft.
3: It's a mismatch on paper. It looks impossible. Once it doesn't matter anymore and does more harm than good, the Browns surprise everybody.
I have to mention this: A Bengals Beat writer (link not included--you're welcome) talked about the Bengals game plan vs the Browns.
Dismissing Austin Davis as a backup is understandable, but this ass-hat is just plain incompetent:
He thinks the decisive, accurate, quick-releasing Davis is the same kind of quarterback as the statuesque deep-bombing Nick Roles.
He's sure the Bengals can stop the waterbug Duke Johnson because they shut down the brutal Gurley.
He completely ignored Johnson as a receiver, and the fact that Todd Gurley has fallen off the map because the Rams can't pass the ball, so defenses are all over their backfield, and the fact that the Browns defense has improved vs the run (the Ravens don't count but the Steelers sure do!)
Here I am on Blogspot.com writing for crickets, and they pay clueless people like this to write paper-thin crap like that.
There is no justice.
2: A win would cost the Browns position in the draft.
3: It's a mismatch on paper. It looks impossible. Once it doesn't matter anymore and does more harm than good, the Browns surprise everybody.
I have to mention this: A Bengals Beat writer (link not included--you're welcome) talked about the Bengals game plan vs the Browns.
Dismissing Austin Davis as a backup is understandable, but this ass-hat is just plain incompetent:
He thinks the decisive, accurate, quick-releasing Davis is the same kind of quarterback as the statuesque deep-bombing Nick Roles.
He's sure the Bengals can stop the waterbug Duke Johnson because they shut down the brutal Gurley.
He completely ignored Johnson as a receiver, and the fact that Todd Gurley has fallen off the map because the Rams can't pass the ball, so defenses are all over their backfield, and the fact that the Browns defense has improved vs the run (the Ravens don't count but the Steelers sure do!)
Here I am on Blogspot.com writing for crickets, and they pay clueless people like this to write paper-thin crap like that.
There is no justice.
Thursday, December 3, 2015
Cleveland Browns: Hope Springs Infernal
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow...
It's justified to be disgusted and furious about the Cleveland Browns. They just plain suck. You are what your record says you are.
The exact, scientific reasons for this suckdom are hard for us fans to put their finger on, which is why many of us want to fire or cut everybody.
But there are good players here (who have actually played well):
Duke Johnson, Travis Benjamin, Gary Barnidge, Josh McCown, and Johnny Manziel have all played well. None of the losses can be laid at their feet. Austin Davis could be listed, technically, too.
On defense, we can list Dansby, Whitner, Gipson...a few others. Joe Haden is too young to give up on. A few others haven't quite sucked.
So you want to fire Ray Farmer? Well, for all the recent headaches, Manziel is his, and he has turned into a good quarterback. He extended Benjamin and Barnidge. Drafted Duke Johnson. Signed Dansby and Whitner.
Joel Bitonio has played poorly this season, but dominated as a rookie in Shanahan's inside zone blocking system, and has a bright future.
Gilbert has disappointed, but every cornerback who has passed him up is a Farmer low round pick or undrafted free agent. Austin Davis, we'll have to wait and see about, but so far, so good.
Don't bash the secondary when quarterbacks have all day to throw. Don't bash the offense when the defense ranks 30th in points allowed. Don't bash the quarterbacks when all of them throw for gobs of yards and convert third downs and throw touchdowns.
It took the Ravens two return touchdowns to win a game they otherwise lost badly.
It's premature to talk about Davis vs Manziel, so I'll either be among the first, or look dumb by next Monday. It could happen. The Browns could have too many young star quarterbacks.
I remember Kelly Holcomb. His stats were atrocious compared to Austin's, with zero starts. Nobody thought he would be any good, either.
I'm almost glad the Browns lost. The most meaningful thing to come out of all this now is higher draft picks. Sorry, I can't help it.
I'm angry about the run-left-only running game, the blocking changes Flip brought in, the too-complicated pass rush, the penalties, etc.
But if Haslam fires Pettine, who would be willing to come in here and start over, and what good would it do?
I'm irked by Gilbert, but he seemed to be playing well until he got hurt.
No, I don't believe that Farmer would just squander a higher pick. It's too soon to judge any of his four first rounders yet, and he's found some good players later.
Josh Gordon will return next season, and hopefully a more polished Terrelle Pryor too. Davis could be Kelly Holcomb, and between him and Manziel they might not need a quarterback for once (not that you shouldn't consider trading one of yours and drafting one anyway).
I'll never walk away. I'll want to see how the young guys develop. How Davis and Manziel perform in this pressure cooker.
Can they find a pass rush? Will they run to the strong side? Will Pettine make helpful changes?
I watch the Browns even when they suck. Traffic accidents are interesting too.
Tony Grossi makes some telling points about the real issues with the team, and he's right: They have nothing to do with the quarterbacks.
He shouldn't have tainted it by saying that Ray Farmer doesn't think quarterbacks are any more important than other players (gross distortion borne of bias), but this is otherwise a great article.
It's justified to be disgusted and furious about the Cleveland Browns. They just plain suck. You are what your record says you are.
The exact, scientific reasons for this suckdom are hard for us fans to put their finger on, which is why many of us want to fire or cut everybody.
But there are good players here (who have actually played well):
Duke Johnson, Travis Benjamin, Gary Barnidge, Josh McCown, and Johnny Manziel have all played well. None of the losses can be laid at their feet. Austin Davis could be listed, technically, too.
On defense, we can list Dansby, Whitner, Gipson...a few others. Joe Haden is too young to give up on. A few others haven't quite sucked.
So you want to fire Ray Farmer? Well, for all the recent headaches, Manziel is his, and he has turned into a good quarterback. He extended Benjamin and Barnidge. Drafted Duke Johnson. Signed Dansby and Whitner.
Joel Bitonio has played poorly this season, but dominated as a rookie in Shanahan's inside zone blocking system, and has a bright future.
Gilbert has disappointed, but every cornerback who has passed him up is a Farmer low round pick or undrafted free agent. Austin Davis, we'll have to wait and see about, but so far, so good.
Don't bash the secondary when quarterbacks have all day to throw. Don't bash the offense when the defense ranks 30th in points allowed. Don't bash the quarterbacks when all of them throw for gobs of yards and convert third downs and throw touchdowns.
It took the Ravens two return touchdowns to win a game they otherwise lost badly.
It's premature to talk about Davis vs Manziel, so I'll either be among the first, or look dumb by next Monday. It could happen. The Browns could have too many young star quarterbacks.
I remember Kelly Holcomb. His stats were atrocious compared to Austin's, with zero starts. Nobody thought he would be any good, either.
I'm almost glad the Browns lost. The most meaningful thing to come out of all this now is higher draft picks. Sorry, I can't help it.
I'm angry about the run-left-only running game, the blocking changes Flip brought in, the too-complicated pass rush, the penalties, etc.
But if Haslam fires Pettine, who would be willing to come in here and start over, and what good would it do?
I'm irked by Gilbert, but he seemed to be playing well until he got hurt.
No, I don't believe that Farmer would just squander a higher pick. It's too soon to judge any of his four first rounders yet, and he's found some good players later.
Josh Gordon will return next season, and hopefully a more polished Terrelle Pryor too. Davis could be Kelly Holcomb, and between him and Manziel they might not need a quarterback for once (not that you shouldn't consider trading one of yours and drafting one anyway).
I'll never walk away. I'll want to see how the young guys develop. How Davis and Manziel perform in this pressure cooker.
Can they find a pass rush? Will they run to the strong side? Will Pettine make helpful changes?
I watch the Browns even when they suck. Traffic accidents are interesting too.
Tony Grossi makes some telling points about the real issues with the team, and he's right: They have nothing to do with the quarterbacks.
He shouldn't have tainted it by saying that Ray Farmer doesn't think quarterbacks are any more important than other players (gross distortion borne of bias), but this is otherwise a great article.
Wednesday, December 2, 2015
The Austin Davis File
Austin Davis, at Southern Miss on a baseball scholarship, walked onto the football team and broke Brett Farve's freshman records. Later, he broke his other records despite missing 6 games as a sophomore to injury.
As a Senior, he broke all school records-several in his second game. As a 15-point underdog in the Conference USA championship, he upset Case Keenum led Houston.
He beat Nevada in the Hawaii Bowl. He's in the Missisippi Hall of Fame and was awarded the Conerly Trophy.
His overall stats: 61.1%, 10,898 yards, 83 tds, 27 interceptions, 460 rushes for 1,375 yards and 25 touchdowns. He also caught two passes, one for a touchdown.
Why wasn't he drafted? Level of competition, questions about his arm strength, and the system in which he played.
He was cast as a West Coast quarterback, because he excelled with short and intermediate passes, and had learned to use his second and third reads during his four years.
One analyst said that his arm strength increased as he went along, but that his ability to throw deep with accuracy in the NFL was a question mark.
As a Ram in 2013, he knocked off the Seattle Seahawks. Brett Farve said he might be the next Brady or Werner. Then he crashed and burned the next week.
Not uncommon, and that was two years ago. Both starts count.
He went 3-5 with the Rams last season, which says something. Those Rams didn't have Todd Gurley. That wasn't a great team.
ear Team G Att Comp Pct Att/G Yds Avg Yds/G TD TD% Int Int% Lng 20+ 40+ Sck SckY Rate
2015 Cleveland Browns 1 10 7 70.0 10.0 77 7.7 77.0 1 10.0 0 0.0 42T 1 1 1 8 125.8
2014 St. Louis Rams 10 284 180 63.4 28.4 2,001 7.0 200.1 12 4.2 9 3.2 59T 21 4 29 179 85.1
2013 St. Louis Rams 0 -- -- -- 0.0 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 0.0
2012 St. Louis Rams 0 -- -- -- 0.0 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 0.0
TOTAL 11 294 187 63.6 26.7 2,078 7.1 188.9 13 4.4 9 3.1 59 22 5 30 187 86.5
As we saw on Monday, Davis has an NFL arm, and has had four years to prepare.
I never paid attention to him until now, but I'm glad Ray Farmer did. As usual, the third string guy was dismissed as ever becoming a viable starter by everybody else, and I never checked him out. My bad.
What we see above are some rather dry and unspectacular statistics. He completed 63+ % of his passes as a Ram, threw 12 tds and 9 picks, had a respectable yards per completion, and threw almost all of his passes under 20 yards.
Not great, but not bad either. He should be better now than he was then. How much better, who can say? And against the Bengals defense, probably playing from behind, well...I will pray for him.
We haven't scratched the surface on this guy yet. What we saw looked terrific. I don't think he'll crash and burn again this time, but don't know.
I do know that he's earned this opportunity. That's good for Mike, because he's painted himself into a corner with Johnny. He didn't dare start him again so soon after punishing him like that. The permabashers would all say it was a token punishment and Mike is soft and stuff.
McCown's injury was almost predictable. Nuff said.
I hope Austin Davis takes over and kicks butt. I believe Manziel will become a very good or great quarterback, but Davis's success would force him to work even harder. Competition is good. And now that I've checked the kid out, I can't count him out. Wouldn't it be great if, entering 2016, the Browns have too many starting quarterbacks? What's that...The Twilight Zone theme I'm hearing?
Mike wants Davis to succeed and save his job. Ray wants people to point to this guy he found that nobody else wanted.
That might have been the thinking for resigning Terrelle
Pryor.
Pryor has played too long in the NFL to qualify for a practice squad. This is one key reason nobody else signed him.
He was deemed not ready to contribute as a wide receiver (or H-Back) at this point, and he'd take up one of the 48 slots.
I normally don't buck the much more qualified pros in NFL coaching and personnel, but with Terelle Pryor, I think everybody who didn't sign him was wrong.
As it stands, he may be the emergency quarterback. Johnny is second string by default. Ray and Mike can justify holding onto Pryor this way.
I hope they also use him as a receiver. Like I said, even if he's not ready for the whole route tree yet, he can read coverage and has everybody trying to cover him outgunned in every way.
I mean, why not? What's left to lose?
Anyway, good luck Austin!
As a Senior, he broke all school records-several in his second game. As a 15-point underdog in the Conference USA championship, he upset Case Keenum led Houston.
He beat Nevada in the Hawaii Bowl. He's in the Missisippi Hall of Fame and was awarded the Conerly Trophy.
His overall stats: 61.1%, 10,898 yards, 83 tds, 27 interceptions, 460 rushes for 1,375 yards and 25 touchdowns. He also caught two passes, one for a touchdown.
Why wasn't he drafted? Level of competition, questions about his arm strength, and the system in which he played.
He was cast as a West Coast quarterback, because he excelled with short and intermediate passes, and had learned to use his second and third reads during his four years.
One analyst said that his arm strength increased as he went along, but that his ability to throw deep with accuracy in the NFL was a question mark.
As a Ram in 2013, he knocked off the Seattle Seahawks. Brett Farve said he might be the next Brady or Werner. Then he crashed and burned the next week.
Not uncommon, and that was two years ago. Both starts count.
He went 3-5 with the Rams last season, which says something. Those Rams didn't have Todd Gurley. That wasn't a great team.
ear Team G Att Comp Pct Att/G Yds Avg Yds/G TD TD% Int Int% Lng 20+ 40+ Sck SckY Rate
2015 Cleveland Browns 1 10 7 70.0 10.0 77 7.7 77.0 1 10.0 0 0.0 42T 1 1 1 8 125.8
2014 St. Louis Rams 10 284 180 63.4 28.4 2,001 7.0 200.1 12 4.2 9 3.2 59T 21 4 29 179 85.1
2013 St. Louis Rams 0 -- -- -- 0.0 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 0.0
2012 St. Louis Rams 0 -- -- -- 0.0 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 0.0
TOTAL 11 294 187 63.6 26.7 2,078 7.1 188.9 13 4.4 9 3.1 59 22 5 30 187 86.5
As we saw on Monday, Davis has an NFL arm, and has had four years to prepare.
I never paid attention to him until now, but I'm glad Ray Farmer did. As usual, the third string guy was dismissed as ever becoming a viable starter by everybody else, and I never checked him out. My bad.
What we see above are some rather dry and unspectacular statistics. He completed 63+ % of his passes as a Ram, threw 12 tds and 9 picks, had a respectable yards per completion, and threw almost all of his passes under 20 yards.
Not great, but not bad either. He should be better now than he was then. How much better, who can say? And against the Bengals defense, probably playing from behind, well...I will pray for him.
We haven't scratched the surface on this guy yet. What we saw looked terrific. I don't think he'll crash and burn again this time, but don't know.
I do know that he's earned this opportunity. That's good for Mike, because he's painted himself into a corner with Johnny. He didn't dare start him again so soon after punishing him like that. The permabashers would all say it was a token punishment and Mike is soft and stuff.
McCown's injury was almost predictable. Nuff said.
I hope Austin Davis takes over and kicks butt. I believe Manziel will become a very good or great quarterback, but Davis's success would force him to work even harder. Competition is good. And now that I've checked the kid out, I can't count him out. Wouldn't it be great if, entering 2016, the Browns have too many starting quarterbacks? What's that...The Twilight Zone theme I'm hearing?
Mike wants Davis to succeed and save his job. Ray wants people to point to this guy he found that nobody else wanted.
That might have been the thinking for resigning Terrelle
Pryor.
Pryor has played too long in the NFL to qualify for a practice squad. This is one key reason nobody else signed him.
He was deemed not ready to contribute as a wide receiver (or H-Back) at this point, and he'd take up one of the 48 slots.
I normally don't buck the much more qualified pros in NFL coaching and personnel, but with Terelle Pryor, I think everybody who didn't sign him was wrong.
As it stands, he may be the emergency quarterback. Johnny is second string by default. Ray and Mike can justify holding onto Pryor this way.
I hope they also use him as a receiver. Like I said, even if he's not ready for the whole route tree yet, he can read coverage and has everybody trying to cover him outgunned in every way.
I mean, why not? What's left to lose?
Anyway, good luck Austin!
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