Firing Freddie would be Foolish, Why this is a Republic and not a Democracy

The knives are all out for Freddie Kitchens, as I predicted.  As we have seen with the impeachment, any bullcrap you repeat 400 or so times gets repeated 4,000 or so times and percieved as proven fact by everybody who doesn't pay attention.

So here we go with the 138 penalties again!  18 (or around 14% of these) were called vs the Browns in game 1, and about 33% of those were bullcrap.

Since the bye, and including the Ravens game, the Browns weren't penalized much.

OBJ's sideline rant about the referees is STILL being cited as an example of how the players don't respect Kitchens despite their own words (and Mayfield's recent head-extraction).

Freddie's playcalling is being bashed based on less than 6-8 unsuccessful plays this whole SEASON ("No more shovel passes", really!?!)

Good grief when your running back gets stuffed and you have 2nd and 9 deep in your own territory -snap-snap- a play-fake is unlikely to work and a pass is a legit option.

What is this "Duh why diddend they stigg with the runn?" crap regardless of situation or context (ie no matter what)?

Look up SECOND AND NINE (or 14) and tell me Freddie needs to hand off again every time again dammit!?!

It's just hysterical, and I see my own peeps starting to repeat this "ah say wee haing 'im" mantras (well you know most of them don't read this Blog so...)

That's right Freddie has told the Offensive Line not to pass-protect, Mayfield to rifle every pass, the defense not to tackle anybody,  Landry/OBJ to be emotional, and Kim Jung Un to do another missile test just...shut up.  Curb your irrational, sadistic, mob-driven lynching instinct.

Seriously, am I the only person on Earth who dislikes injustice and isn't eager to get some kicks and punches in on any random beat-down victim here?  Who doesn't just go with the flock?

You people should be ashamed of yourselves.  T H I N K.

The Browns are in need of refinement this offseason.  I'll get deeper into that later, but I can start with converting OBJ into a first and third-round draft-pick (or so) via trade.

Nah, shaddap!  OBJ actually wants to stick around, and after he returns from his operations should be a lethal weapon again.

I only suggest this trade because the real Baker Mayfield doesn't need an undersized "go-to" deep threat as much as he needs better offensive tackles and stuff.

DePodesta Dorsey also needs to get some of his cap-space back, and exploit that rookie salary cap for more cheap young talent on 4 or 5-year contracts.

Oops too complicated huh?  There's some mathematics in there and stuff...sorry I can't spell it all out here guys, but you are welcome to fill in the blanks (come on, you can do it!)

T H I N---ah crap nevermind

THIS JUST IN from Jeff Schudel in re the elephant in the room (Mayfield).  Freddie has that accent and is fat and easy to pick on, so he's THE target for dumbasses, but Jeff has my back here, and invites you to T H ah screw it

Spastic Solutions to Complex Problems: Spazzes are Bad Analysts. No Offense.

I saw “Club 46” with Jim Donovan and Brian Sipe, and was kinda shocked by some of what Sipe said.

Jim asked him what was the secret to those big comebacks, and Sipe said:

This was about the first year that defenses were starting to substitute nickel and dime defenses, and Sipe said that the personnel would tell him what coverages were coming.  He was allowed to call his own plays, so he just exploited predictable mismatches.

In Sipe’s favorite comeback (vs Don Shula’s Miami Dolphins), the QB said he had figured out Shula’s hand-signals, and would wait to call a play until he saw what Shula was doing with his own subsitutions.  He said that once, Shula glanced up and locked eyes with Sipe—-and immediately slammed his clipboard to the ground.  “We knew we had him”, he laughed.

So really, Brian Sipe was like Bernie Kosar.  It was his BRAIN that set him apart.  Baker Mayfield should study these guys.

Baker needs to do more, as well:  He is throwing seemingly every ball on a rope with little or no touch.  None of his vertical guys can ever just run under the ball and let it come to them.  They have to turn and fight a defender for it.

In 2018, Baker Mayfield had superb touch, timing, and accuracy.  What happened?  Is he too angry?  Is he expecting no separation by his receivers?

Well, if you keep sending guys vertical all the time, then there WILL BE NO separation because the cornerbacks are as tall as the receivers and Beckham can’t pull away while playing hurt!

No bucket passes are safe here.  It has to be to one shoulder or the other and offset by 2 or 3 feet.

As I have told you, the vertical routes on 3rd and 5 are MONKEN, not Kitchens.  But if you say “yeah but Freddie is still calling those plays” I say “err...welluhh ...yabutt...well I bet he won’t next year!”

...Yeah ok Freddie hasn’t been great but he’s calling plays AND running the team.  He should probably let Monken run around doing Coachie stuff while he keeps his nose in the clipboard and does what got him here.

Pat Kirwan et al think that Kitchens may have lost his focus. (After all, he’s calling Monken plays on third and five in actual games, right?)

I’m not trying to bash Monken here, but he’s the “air raid” Coach here, ok?  I think Freddie wasn’t confident or secure enough to overrule his more experienced and respected subordinate.  YET.

At least one other writer agrees with me on the best ways to make the Browns’ offense better going forward:

1: KEEP HUNT.  Any OC who would pay more for a number two wide receiver than a Kareem Hunt should be fired.  Nothing new for my readers here: It’s not just an ancient 2-back, but a dynamic, unpredictable, physical, big-play offense.  No need to elaborate see previous posts.

2: Improve the pace AMEN!!!  Mayfield excels in no-huddle offenses.  It lets him lock a given defensive position group on the field and exploit their inability to call complex coverages or blitzes.  He gets to (basically) call his own plays like a back yard quarterback, hammer the mismatches repeatedly, and wear those 11 defenders out.

PS this is why I have hope that Mayfield might have a Kosar or Sipelike brain—because he does so well in no-huddle offenses; he’s obviously reading everything perfectly.

I hope Freddie Kitchens is retained, because I remember him—-as the unrestricted Offensive Coordinator in 2018–running a LOT more “per capita” no-huddle blitze-offenses than the Browns have in 2019.

Where have all the no-huddles/hurry-ups gone?

Reminder: I’m talking about hurry-ups not dictated by time or score.  In MY no-huddle, runs, inside passes, and (yes) trick-plays are all on the table.  Nobody has to get out of bounds or spike the ball to kill the clock.

I expect Freddie Kitchens to see all this stuff for himself, very early in his post-season self-scouting review:

He will see that he was better pre-Monken than post-Monken, Baker was better with Landry and guys named Joe than with OBJ, and in general see that he, Rodney Kitchenfield, indeed fucked up in 2019...by LETTING OTHER PEOPLE TELL HIM WHAT TO DO.

This is why it would be a shame if Freddie Kitchens doesn’t get a second year (and the hell with Mayfield’s backstabbing there is something WRONG with that guy ok?  I will listen to OBJ, Landry, and even Njoku in re Freddie before I listen to Mayfield.)

Someday I’ll get deeper into “instability” and “mood swings” and irrationality and stuff, but long story short: Baker’s refusal to defend Freddie means little to me or any real analyst at this point.

...to think we coulda had Mahomes or Jackson I DID NOT SAY THAT NEVERMIND ok but Mahomes and Jackson aren’t deliberately controversial, don’t say “I gotta be me” and  stuff...

I’ve heard other offseason suggestions not worth mentioning:

One guy thought that replacing all the Coaches, 3 new starting offensive linemen, 2 new starting defensive linemen, a starting linebacker (to replace that bumb Schobert of course) should do the trick.

This is where I butt heads with my own family on holidays:  Some of them kinda ignore the hard cieling of the salary cap, and business 101.

Don’t get me wrong: These are all very smart people, including 2 business owners and stuff, but they can’t toe the line with me on the Browns.

G expects Freddie to get fired and thinks he should be.  He is  citing the attempted Halfback option pass from Hunt (and stuff) like the rest of the world is as proof that Freddie is an idiot.

G has never accepted me as THE expert (I’m older so I guess it’s our shared resentment of authority or something which he doesn’t get yet or something...but G is waving his rope and pitchfork and It’s all on Freddie and no he won’t get better, because I said he would.)

Bub said Freddie needed to just merely beat the Ravens (again) to preserve his job.  The Ravens have stomped every  top contender in their path, and are better now than when Freddie Kitchens’ Browns dominated them in Baltimore.

No, Bub: Not with the Browns sans Garrett, 3 of the DBs they  had in the first game...starting 2 guys who weren’t on the roster in game 1...vs THE AFC Superbowl favorite...all Freddie Kitchens has to do is to beat that team not to get fired...

And good grief listen to the BASHING!  It’s all about how close the Browns were winning!!!

Freddie should not get a second year because he almost won several games?

Pick pick pick the games he DID win don't count?

You people need to go home and sober up.  Drink some coffee.  THINK: This wasn't Freddie's fault.  Lynch Baker Mayfield instead 🖕.  Or John Dorsey.

T H I N K nevermind I give up 🖕okbye.

Kitchens' Bar Keeps Getting Higher: He was Supposed to Beat the RAVENS to Keep his Job Now!?!

Freddie Kitchens makes perhaps his final appeal not to be fired after his rookie season as Head Coach.

He openly lists his screw-ups etc vs the Ravens, but stresses his own progress over the course of the season.

The Halfback Option on third and one was NOT a screwup.  It should have worked, and turned into a big play.

I remember arguing with my peeps: They were saying you should NEVER run a trick play on 3rd and 1 (or maybe ever).

Hunt was instantly swarmed under, but I don't analyze based on results:  The Ravens defense should have been keyed to stop the run (8-man box) and feared/defended Hunt as a runner period.

A lob to Landry or a Tight End or somebody could have made a big play, and Kareem Hunt can be trusted to get back to the line of scrimmage.

My peeps saw Hunt swarmed under instantly, and decided that this was Freddie's fault.

Every great Head Coach uses occasional trick plays, especially when overmatched.

The Ravens seemed to gamble that Hunt was the guy to stop, sell out to stop him, and get 3 hats on him before he could blink.

It was NOT a bad play call.

The consecutive passes on the last Browns' series was, as Freddie admits.  He's still trying harder to outsmart everybody than he is to kick their teeth in.

OBJ's "confrontration" with Kitchens on the sideline was OBJ bitching to Freddie that the zebras had threatened to kick him out of the game if he celebrated one more time.

Browns players can no longer express emptions at all without the lynch-mob turning it into Freddie "losing the team" or the team not respecting him.

Bullshit.

Njoku was a healthy scratch again.  That was discipline.  Two good players were summarily cut.  Discipline.

While Baker Mayfield's tepid "That's not my decision" response to a question about Kitchens' future with the Browns is alarming (he did not defend Freddie), I have lost some respect for Mayfield, and can no longer defer to him, even here.

Freddie Kitchens didn't trade his stud guard away and bring in OBJ.  Trust me: Freddie is not telling him to force deep balls to this inured WR who can no longer separate at the expense of every other receiver.

Does Baker Mayfield think that a new Head Coach and offensive system will do him any favors?

I think Baker Mayfield is immensely talented and smart in most ways, but not...well it's not fair to compare him to me (blush-blush).

So much for Baker's non-endorsement of his Head Coach.  I can't trust the kid--he's got some loose screws rattling around in his head.

Anyway, firing Freddie Kitchens after one season would be stupid.  It's not like he went 0-16, like some (more experienced) Head Coaches I could mention.

Pat Kirwan keeps telling everybody who will listen:

1: A first-time Head Coach needs 2 years just to learn how to BE a Head Coach.

2: The most successful Teams have continuity in common (ie long-term Head Coaches).  The LEAST successful teams are those who fire Head Coaches every year or 2.

Kitchens has earned a second season.  Let's leave the systems in place, and see what Dorsey can do about that offensive line.

The Ravens and Browns are NOT the Same, but Freddie and Greg Might Be Similar

I'm a little embarrassed for MKC, as she says that the Browns need to support Baker Mayfield as the Ravens have supported Lamar Jackson.

She was kinda all over the map, and the 2 offenses (and quarterbacks) are very different.  

Mary Kay cites how Todd Monken is a big "air raid" guy (Jackson/Mayfield were air raid quarterbacks), but sort of brushes aside what Mayfield did with extra running backs and tight ends under Freddie Kitchens in 2018.

The Ravens retained a top-flight Offensive Line and THREE dual-threat tight ends.  They let Jackson run, and Baker can't be that kind of weapon.

She says that the "mesh" between the brilliant Monken and the stumbling, bumbling Freddie Kitchens should work out better in 2020...

Look: The Browns didn't have the offensive line to support an air raid in 2019 any more than they did in 2018.

Mywayorthehighway Todd Haley stifled Mayfield with his own version of a vertical air-raid offense in 2018.  When he was fired and Kitchens took over, well...there it is!!!

Kitchens made the most of what he had.  Mayfield had early targets, play-action, short drops, extra pass blockers sometimes, and a running game.

John Dorsey, as Mary Kay herself offers, brought in OBJ and Karrem Hunt as weapons for Baker.

1: Greg Roman built the Ravens' offense around Lamar Jackson's unique skill-set, 3 starting tight ends, Ingram and company, and an elite offensive line.

He (and Lamar) did an awesome job of turning the NFL upside down, but there is no comparison between the quarterbacks, offensive lines, or tight ends.

2: Baker Mayfield is a much more "conventional" quarterback than Lamar Jackson is.  He is a mere mortal, and can hang with Lamar if he has 2.7 seconds and a rough version of an actual pocket to throw from once in awhile.

Baker can't run those read-options, and will rarely be called on to deliberately run with the ball.

3: Freddie Kitchens (probably not Monken) has maxed out Kareem Hunt with his own unique NFL offense.  He is more like Greg Roman than the majority of you know.

The Browns need to upgrade their offensive tackles (and probably Right Guard).

Freddie has maxed out his offensive line as-is, with extra tight ends and then Hunt; screen-passes, etc LISTEN TO ME:

Freddie Kitchens (since week 8) has done a great job!  Baker Mayfield has not.  Njoku seems to have issues.  The defense has collapsed...

...Technically, you blame the Head Coach for that, but Steve Wilks is in charge there...and he lost Garrett and doesn't have Vernon, is starting 2 rookies---

Firing Freddie Kitchens, regardless of how these last 2 games go, would be idiotic.  He is a disciplinarian and a great offensive mind (you heard me right).

Yeah sorry I know this is redundant, but so is this impeachment idiocy, so...

STOP BLAMING FREDDIE KITCHENS for the 2019 Browns' Problems! THINK!!!

Elliott Kennel wrote another very good article, but wasn't perfect.

That's ok!  It would be terribly unfair to expect all these guys to be as brilliant as my humble self--let alone as whippersnappers!

As usual, Elliott is mostly right about what the Haslams need to do to make the Browns better, like get back to better cap discipline, as John Dorsey came in and spent a whole bunch of the money he inheritted from Paul DePodesta Sashi Brown on star veterans, and (ironicly partly because of his own success in the draft) is cruisin for a bruisin as he will be trying to hold onto a bevy of young talent.

Damarius Randall and Joe Schobert's Brinks trucks are backing up as I write this, and more are on the way.

Without prejudice, I would accept a first round pick (or good left tackle) and another draft pick or 2 for OBJ.  

That would eliminate significant salary and re-stock the draft assembly line.  That's one example.

Elliott kinda skips who will do this; who is already here, and in Haslam's ear, and not under John Dorsey:

Rodney DePodestafield, who delivered unto Saint Dorsey the massive war chest and draft picks he inherited in the first place.

Color this covered.

Scouting depth?  I must defer to Elliott here.  Elliott finds Dorsey's undrafteds and lower round picks less than optimal.

If you check out the Patriots and Seahawks, and even the Steelers...well whether it's scouting depth or something else, Elliott is right about those lower picks and signings.

But Elliott has joined the lynch-mob in re Freddie Kitchens (but had too much class to say "dysfunction"...thank you, man!)

Anyway, see my last post (seriously! I'm trying not to repeat myself so much).  But along with the lack of discipline and penalties crap I blew out of the water, Elliott cites player comments about Freddie.

I don't even know what Randall said, but most of the other players (including "malcontent" Jarvis Landry) defend Kitchens.

And the first Pittsburgh game, the Browns more determined to bully the Steelers than to beat them?

...well I hear Elliott here: I was irked by a Randall helmet-to-helmet hit (it was deliberate and he lied about it), and saw another one I questioned, but no, Elliott:

It was the STEELERS, and what are you saying?  Freddie encourages cheap shots? Intimidation isn't a big part of football?

Again, check my last post:  Freddie Kitchens is not the problem here, no matter which other teams hear "come get me!" from OBJ and Landry, or what Kareem Hunt says about team mates not going 110%.

I'm not predicting that Freddie won't get fired.

Just that he shouldn't get fired.

Kennel was excellent on "rethink the policy on troubled players" too, because he was really talking about Callaway and Gordon, and not Kareem Hunt.

Drugs are different.  Unapologetic racism or calling people "retards" etc are (yes) worse than Hunt losing his mind and...don't get me started he could have KILLED that woman ok?

But Kareem Hunt came straight out of "Animal Kingdom" ok?  Most of his family has police records as long as your arm!

...nevermind, but trust me he won't do anything like that again duh, and Dorsey got him dirt-cheap (definitly with DePodesta's blessing).

Elliott just says don't draft or sign repeat offenders anymore!  Addictive personalities or psychos.

Giving Gordon another chance was a free no-brainer, but drafting Callaway was a mistake...which I endorsed at the time because he was a first round talent...nevermind (Elliot 1 me 0).

Kennel also got deep into how to manage these players once you are stuck with them (ie don't count on or build around them, try to replace them, don't overpay them, etc).

Elliott and I can debate Freddie Kitchens, but Eli went off the rails as he asked "can the Haslams resist the temptation to pick a quarterback?"

He refers to this:

Jimmy Haslam was sitting there with GM Ray Farmer in the "war room" when Johnny Manziel texted Jimmy "let's wreck this league".

Jimmy (probably "in his cups" and grinning), says to Ray "let's go get this guy!"

GET THIS STRAIGHT YOU CRETINS PEOPLE:

This was NOT an ORDER!  Farmer could have told Haslam that was not a good idea, and explained why.  Farmer's job was on the line, but not how you fools think:

He wasn't afraid of getting fired because he disagreed with his boss.  He KNEW he would get fired if he drafted a bad quarterback DO YOU UNDERSTAND!?!

Farmer traded up to draft Johnny Manswell, most likely because he agreed with Haslam (he might have been partying himself btw), but he couldn't fire Haslam later so...

BAD Elliott!  In reality, Jimmy Haslam was never a "meddler".  He is allowed to participate in the draft, and to actually say things!

In that same draft, allegedly, Jerry Jones tried to draft Johnny Manswell, and his son headed him off at the pass.

Elliott Kennel is a brain, but not (yet) a great analyst.  He's exceptionally insightful, logical, rational, and (note to my parasites) original, but he's still influenced by the "herd".

Reality is reality.  The truth is the truth.  "Narratives", hyperbole, and politics are pollution, and it's very hard to get "clean" and transcend this bullshit but I digress:

Elliott: You are wrong to blame Freddie Kitchens and downright irrational to advise the Haslams not to meddle.

You cited season-long stats and ignored quarterly stats, trends, and other things, such as:

The ongoing absence of Olivier Vernon, the loss of Myles Garrett, OBJ's hernia, Njoku, the decimation of the secondary, new offensive and defensive systems, Kitchens learning on the job, and even Kitchens' harsh discipline (read Njoku, Callaway, Randall, Robinson etc) all MATTER here!

Most importantly, stop blaming Freddie for Baker Mayfield's crappy performance in 2019.  

You guys know I'm a huge Mayfield fan, but he has sucked in 2019, and (trust me) Freddie Kitchens didn't order him to be inaccurate---etc.

R E C E N T L Y, Freddie has maxed out Kareem Hunt as a recieving "weapon" for Baker...

Dammit I have to get redundant here: Freddie Kitchens obviously reads this Blog because he has done everything I said he should do (blush-blush):

Jarvis Landry's recent outburst on Freddie Kitchens (ie he was not targetted for most of the game vs the Cards) was partly because Kareem Hunt was in the slot a lot, and Mayfield under pressure looks for him.  (PS Mayfield WAS under pressure a lot, which he shouldn't have been but don't get me started on that);

(Sigh) redundancy alert:

The best Coaches adapt their offenses (find ways) to get the most talented players on the field AOAP.

Freddie Kitchens (the Offensive Coordinator) did exactly that in 2018, and has (since, in my opinion, he started overriding Todd Monken in 2019), automatically does this (which is the major reason why he should NOT be fired).

LISTEN TO ME:  

1: Find me another team in the NFL that starts 2 running backs.

2: List for me 5 better slot receivers than Kareem Hunt.  While we're at it, give me 5 better bellcow running backs.  

Kareem Hunt also runs WR and TE routes.

3: Have you seen his BLOCKING?  He excels in protection as well as a lead-blocker for Nick Chubb.

4: Hunt is a home run hitter, just like Nick Chubb.  He can take a "dink" screen pass (or a handoff) to the house, but also humiliate a SS or LB at 15-30 yards.

That's just how Rodney Kitchensfield has altered his whole offense to max out one player (is any of this sinking in yet?)

Freddie (Mister "no discipline") benched Njoku last week not because he David got screwed by a bad call (Njoku was obviously flat on his back in possession and did nothing wrong), but because Njoku barked back at him (even though Kitchens was fulla shit to pick on Njoku for...relaxing his arms after hitting the ground in control of the ball!?!)

I must say that if I was Njoku, I would have came right back at Kitchens too, and stipulate that Freddie was an asshole to jump on Njoku like that over a bullshit call.

Then Njoku (allegedly) is dropping passes in practice...

Now I am concerned about Freddie's judgement, but not his intellect, expertise,or potential:

YOU people are yammering about a "lack of discipline"!?!  

Please, you Kitchens impeachment people, decide on WHY;

No, you can't just say "I don't like him", ok?  

It hurts me to talk to you people.  I say 2+2=4, and you argue with me! 

2+2=4 has been "debunked", right?  You know, like the sky is blue sometimes and water is wet is propaganda?

.....anyhoo, firing Kitchens would be dumb.

...okbye.

Fire Freddie Kitchens! SOMEBODY Must Pay For This DUUHHHOYEE

I read an article earlier that said that the Haslams were likely to retain Freddie Kitchens, and they should.

The writer just had to say "even though they were making some of the same mistakes yesterday as they made in week 1".

Name them, dumbass!  Penalties? Shotgun/spread all vertical passes?  2:1 pass/run ratio?

Obviously none of these.  Clock management?  What is this nimrod talking about!?!  

I guess yeah, the buck stops at Kitchens, so you can blame him for the defense too, but really now:

Both their elite DE's and top passrushers are missing, and Vernon/Garrett were also excellent edge-setters and good vs the run, too.

"Good coaches overcome injuries".

Well, sorta, but Wilks can't compensate for the loss of BOTH of these guys with...Chad Thomas, Sheldon Richardson sometimes, and uhh....?

He used Takitaki a little more, blitzed more, but...

Freddie Kitchens isn't to blame for the Browns' struggles.  As I've told those with actual brains, since the bye week the Browns have been one of the least penalized teams in the NFL.

As Freddie himself points out, Nick Chubb leads the NFL in rushing, 2 receivers are at or near 1,000 yards, the defense excelled in some key categories, etc.

The elephant in the room is Baker Mayfield.  He has not played well.  He was better as a rookie, sans Hunt and OBJ.

This isn't all Baker's fault, but it's not Kitchens', either.  Trading Zeitler hurt much more than Dorsey (or I) thought it would, and Olivier Vernon helped a lot less.

I do need to point out that Vernon was injured a lot before he came here, and it's usually his ankles, so...

And Mayfield?  OBJ is a great player with guts (I saw him blocking for other guys in earnest: I now love OBJ the person and team player)...but Mayfield needed him like he needed a hole in the head.

OBJ's sports hernia has unquestionably put a dent in his performance.  Did Freddie Kitchens tell him not to get surgery?  (Sigh: the answer is NO duh).

Mayfield keeps throwing to the wrong shoulder and high to him, but then he's not getting separation, and the windows are microscopic.  Is Kitchens telling him to do that?

Now what? Was Jarvis Landry really yelling "come get me!" at the Arizona sidelines?  I'm not sure.

But I saw the "confrontation" where he was yelling at Freddie on the sidelines, and it looked like "that was interference!" to me---not a personal attack at all.

I want to give Landry a chance to speak for himself, but for the moment, I'm leaning towards his actually having yelled "come get me", and am pissed off by it.

Under Freddie Kitchens, Landry has been the Browns' top wide receiver, even since OBJ was brought in.  What the hell is HE mad about?

Not enough vertical routes?  Kareem Hunt infringing on his targets (which would be selfish)?

This Kitchens lynch-mob babbles about players talking about "lack of effort", and implying that this means that Freddie Kitchens has "lost the team".

But have YOU seen a lack of effort?  Can we give Kyler Murray and Kenyan Drake a little credit here!?!  

Classic: Murray running left, with Drake a little behind and closer to the sidelines, and 2 Browns defenders trying to stop them.  Murray feigns a vertical step, and the outside defender slows to seal him off--Murray pitches to Drake, who runs past him to the end zone.

That's not "they suck", or "lack of effort".  That's a perfect playcall, Kyler Murray, and perfect execution.  And yeah---YOU would have hit the brakes when that hot rod made his move too!!!

Too deep sorry...but anyway Baker Mayfield was one player who mentioned lack of FOCUS, but referred to himself as well as others.  I am not aware of any other players asserting a "lack of effort" in 2019.

Do you comprehend that when a guy breaks a tackle, it doesn't mean that the other guy wasn't doing his best to tackle him, right?  

You look at Chubb, Hunt, and Landry and see effort, but for many of you, it's only because they get tangible results.

You see a guy miss a shoestring tackle, or lose a ball off his fingertips, or get faked out of his shoes and somehow think they just weren't trying hard enough or...something?

Most of you never played football, or fought.  You lack insight (and imagination too).

Freddie Kitchens is NOT the problem here.

In case Jarvis Landry does want to get traded, if I were DePodesta Dorsey I would see what I could do about that!

John Dorsey wanted to make a big splash here, so he loaded up on high profile veteran free agents.  Jarvis Landry was his first big move.

He didn't give up much in the trade, but paid him a LOT in his contract extention.  Jarvis is a fiery leader and team player, and instantly became Baker Mayfield's favorite target.

Right now, however, both Landry and Beckham's salaries are highly affordable to potential trade partners, and both are in their primes.

By now, unless he is a total butthead, Dorsey groks that:

1: He needs to upgrade the offensive line.

2: Baker Mayfield doesn't need a "crutch".  Naturally a strong running game and play-action helps him a ton, but Mayfield is a "distributor" who thinks fast and should be allowed to make his own decisions amap...

(Sigh) we have seen this.  In 2018 who was Mayfield's "go-to" guy (I mean here in reality)?

Landry...but only sorta.  Behind Landry, there was Njoku, Johnson, a couple guys no longer with the team, etc., and it worked.

3: Dorsey has overspent.  He went for all the marbles early, and he lost.  He does have a shot at the Division Title/Superbowl in 2020 now, but has several "balloon payments" to make on the "not football players" he inheritted from Paul Depodesta Sashi Brown.

4: I HOPE Dorsey gets that he can trade Landry as well as OBJ and still win the AFC North in 2020: 

A: Retain Kareem Hunt (and Kitchens, of course) and preserve that souped up version of Mack/Byner that Freddie has already established.

"Souped up" isn't a throw away line here, as both these guys are proven "bell cow"s, and (my readers know) Nick Chubb is a terrific receiver already himself.

Landry might be pissed about this, but Kareem Hunt is Duke Johnson on steroids, and this "two-back" offense is not far removed from the 2019 Ravens in uniqueness and unpredictability.

Forget "B" I'm with you! Let's fire Freddie, kick Hunt to the curb, keep OBJ and Landry no matter what, then bash Haslam for firing coaches prematurely and revel in our idiohypocracy!

THIS just in: Kareem Hunt says that some unidentified teammates aren't trying hard enough.

If you've seen this guy play, you know HE gives his all, all the time.

...but I can't find a Head Coach (let alone Freddie Kitchens) anywhere in here.  Hunt was talking to his teammates.  Tomorrow morning, Kareem will wake up to find out that he hates Freddie Kitchens too!

Yeah impeach Kitchens, cuz...he's not Head Coachey enough...and I hate his accent...and Hunt and Landry hate him!

🖕okbye

Baker vs Kyler: Not Fair to Murray, but still a Great Story

Much is being made of Mayfield vs Murray, as Mary Kay Cabbott reports.  Murray was Mayfield's backup at Oklahoma, and won the Heisman right after Mayfield did (in Murray's only year as a starter.)

Like Patrick Mahomes, who took his job at Texas Tech, Mayfield colors Kyler Murray a good freind.

Baker Mayfield remains a punk in some ways, (his treatment of Hue Jackson was immature, etc), but he readily accepts and bonds with his stongest competitors.

Mayfield got to play Mahomes in college, and the 2 combined for over a thousand passing yards (Mayfield only racked up a paltry 475 or so and "lost" to Mahomes' 600 or so).

I personally like Kyler Murray and Patrick Mahomes more than Baker Mayfield due to their personalities, but will still vote against impeachment.

Anyway, Murray is actually like a souped-up Russell Wilson, but there are differences: Wilson, like Mayfield, was a 4-year starter in college, and (unlike Mayfield), was a pocket passer in a Pro-style system.

Baker Mayfield (and Murray) ran air-raid offenses in college.  

Of the 3, Kyler Murray is the most challenged (least experienced by a huge margin, with the least-talented supporting cast).  In context, this kid has been awesome in his rookiehood.

Baker Mayfield is smart.  He said he probably benefitted more from Murray than he helped his understudy as he watched him tear up the starting offense on the scout team.

Of course it's not Baker vs Kyler in a ring or an octagon or a steel cage, and Elliott Kennel's guess that J T Hassell will be used to "spy" Murray makes a ton of sense.

As you should know, I'm a huge Hassel fan, as the 5'11", 200 lb guy was a sensational LINEBACKER in college, with 3 missing fingers on one hand...then blew the combine up in all the drills too.

Anyway, Elliott expects JT to "spy" Kyler Murray in this game, and seek to neutralize him as a runner.

This makes sense.  Kyler Murray can humiliate Schobert, Wilson, or even Redwine in space...

Meanwhile, he doesn't have any deep threats, and Steve Wilks specializes in "muffling"---

Hassel can be the 5th DB.  A "spy" mirrors the QB, but a few of you don't get what that actually means:

The "spy" is 4-10 yards deep.  He goes where the quarterback goes.  If the QB runs outside, the "spy" takes away all his short and intermediate options on that side of the field (you understand that the "spy" is in zone coverage here, right?)

On any handoff, the spy is inside to stop it.  On any inside run by the QB, the spy is there to meet HIM in the hole.

Vs the Ravens, this might not work as well, but vs the Cardinals, it's a no-brainer!

Elliott Kennel is excellent, and I'm certain that he's a legit brain, and not one of the many scumbags who steal from and regurgitate my thoughts.

Ok

1: The fact that John Dorsey hasn't yet made Joe Schobert an offer doesn't mean he intends to kick him to the curb (Chill out) 

1a: Joe Schobert and Kareem Hunt play "cheap" positions, and lack leverage.  Kickass running backs and inside/middle linebackers emerge as instastuds in the lower rounds of each and every draft.

...I'll skip "1c" here: Why would Paul DePodesta John Dorsey be in a hurry to overpay these guys ahead of the 2020 draft!?!  

(sigh) Hunt and Schobert will get CHEAPER, as the 2020 draft approaches, and cheaper yet after it happens!!!  

Their agents get this, which is why they...

Nevermind impeach Kitchens/Dorsey/Mayfield blah blah grow a brain okbye