jrb12711

Well fellas, it’s that time of year where the weather gets nice here in south Florida and the browns unfortunately suck. I’ll still be here posting now and then but won’t be focused on the brownies as much (barring a miracle run). I hope everyone has a happy holiday season. We’re expecting our 2nd kiddo late next month so gearing up! Just a reminder this is more than a game. Had a great time with my old man yesterday- hard to say how many more times we will get to do this. God bless!

To be honest, it really is cruel how half the stadium swelters in the sun. Forget “home field advantage” it really ruins the fan experience for literally half the stadium. It’s a well known mistake to buy tickets in the sun

I hope everyone realizes the dolphins have had 8+ guys in the box 85% on the downs today.

I hope no one bought the kool aid on woods. Our scheme is not in the same hemisphere as the dolphins today. Having a great time watching this train wreck though

The only thing I'm hopeful about is that the defense just played with more intensity and it showed. Couple with the fact that JOK, Ward, Winovich, and Njoku (maybe) come back and the talent around the ball gets significantly better. I'll be at the Dolphins game Sunday-looks like a tropical system is coming through Thursday-Friday and it should be a glorious afternoon of South Florida weather.

As a 30 something parent of kids, a lot of folks in our group did stuff over the weekend. I still went out with my kiddo, but it was markedly less than last year. Top that with people having concerns about safety and I'm left with several hundred pieces of candy. The future of trick or treating may very well be fading away. On a side note, boy it's nice to talk about mundane crap and enjoying a Browns easy win. I'm not sure what vodoo magic Cleveland has against Cincy, but they just have their dang number lately. Even getting the odd breaks of shooter McPherson kissing kicks, etc.

If the Browns lose to the Bungholes, I'm fine getting whatever value we can for Kareem and see what Ford/Johnson can do int hat same role. Stefanski said Ford should be back after the bye week. Sucks to say but a loss to Cincy essentially puts a wrap on this season. Amassing draft capital where possible just makes logical sense.

Indeed, very well said. It's of course apparent that the Browns have made terrible, terrible decisions over the past 20+ years. There's a lot to be said about the organization's failures being a direct result of the lack of developing and drafting talent, namely at the QB position. But what you're (and I'm) saying here isn't some tin foil hat conspiracy. Depressed organizations in depressed cities (Detroit, Cleveland, Jacksonville, etc) aren't going to be on the poster of the global brand the NFL and Roger wants. In a game of inches, every call counts and the Browns will never get those without turning the tide. That comes with drafting a likeable, franchise QB (see Burrow, Josh Allen) in similar markets where the league has reason to support. We've made a bed where this won't be the case for the next several years. Just sucks.

I mean that's still not what I'm saying man. As I mentioned, I don't think there's some grand conspiracy of refs getting money rained down on them while the owners suck the blood of the youth. I just feel, strongly, the NFL has incentives to give certain teams favorable calls for the growth of the sport. I don't think this is unique to the NFL-all sports have this issue to a point. But there's no sport like the NFL where one call going against a team can be the difference in a win or a loss. In this regard, I can believe strongly that there is an unspoken, unstated reality that certain markets, certain teams, and certain players get the benefit of that. Let me ask you this honestly-in both cases late (the OPI and false start) were the other way around, do you really believe those get called on the Ravens? I'm sorry, I just don't. At the very minimum, that false start penalty goes the other way. I have never, ever, seen that called that way. We got a witness a false start call miss so bad that a referee got fired outright-the first time that has ever happened and directly led to a TD. The other fact of the matter is the Browns are a bottom 5-6 franchise in terms of revenue in all facets of the sport. I know that may be upsetting to hear, but the Packers and others mentioned are significantly more brand names of the league (Arizona aside). To put the cherry on top of the shit sundae, we sold the farm to make the face of this league a sexual predator in a contract that clearly angered the rest of the league. You can say what you want, but that shit just adds up to an organization the NFL doesn't want to be prominent. The Browns have sucked for decades due to failures to draft talent and secure good leadership, 100%. Again, I don't think this shit is rigged but that doesn't mean the stuff I said isn't untrue.

Nah, I don't think so. I never thought in a million years I'd agree with this man, but it's just factual. To be sure, I don't think the NFL is outright rigged and that Goddell is giving blood money to refs while the owners watch. But (and I typed a whole thing in the other thread) I absolutely believe there's an unspoken understanding that more marketable teams get close calls, and less marketable teams don't. The reason crooks like Haslam don't care is because of revenue sharing-win or lose the NFL brand making more money makes them more money. As the NFL continues to grow globally there's 0% chance the NFL wants the Cleveland Browns to be 'good' enough to warrant them being prime time. The only option the Browns had to change that narrative was to get a super marketable guy (like Joe Burrow) behind center and that could not be farther from the reality for the next 5-6 years. So I ABSOLUTELY believe this can be true. Jacoby gets hits a little late in the head and neck area and the flag gets picked up-why? And the false start is something in decades of watching this sport I've never, ever heard or seen. There's a reason for that.

I've been watching football for a very long time. In all that time, I can assure you I've NEVER heard the shit Gene "protect the refs" was trying to spout about why that was a false start and not encroachment. Even if what he's saying is a rule, when would refs EVER call that shit a false start as opposed to much more obvious, and much more impactful, offsides? I don't wanna hear "well that play didn't make the game"-fuck yes it did. The Browns should have (and would have) gone for it with a 4th and short 1 with arguably the best short yardage unit in the NFL. The whole game changes but of course it doesn't go our way. I've never thought the NFL is outright rigged, but it's very obvious to me in the last 3-4 years there's a secret rule that close calls favor the more marketable team. As they go into Europe, Canada, and South America the face of the league can't be the Browns. How on earth can you explain Brissett getting hit in helmet, a flag gets thrown, and gets picked up? It's absolute

That is so fucking dumb of an explanation I want to drive to New York and boycott in front of the league office. The mother fucker jumped into the neutral zone and caused our guy to move. When have you EVER heard a false start based on what that jackass just said?

The browns need to have the courage to demand an investigation into this game. That’s a win or lose call there that was objectively wrong. The refs have been so mind numbingly one sided today how can you not say this shit is rigged?

As much it sucks watching the GOAT kicker is just jaw dropping. To be that automatic is just incredible.

Stefanski is refusing to give up on these long developing plays because one works. Hey dumbass punish the blitz.

It’s crap like that where I have a very hard time believing refs don’t play favorites. A QB gets hit in the head and the flag gets thrown and it gets picked up? That’s truly unbelievable

There was nobody within 20 yards of that punt rerun- how does that happen?

And I get all that, for sure. But it isn't just regression in talent areas. It's guys like Denzel Ward saying "ain't my fault" on Twitter, or JJ3 saying the team has "commitment issues". It's Joel Bitonio coming out and essentially saying guys (on defense) aren't spending enough time looking at film and putting out effort: https://www.news5cleveland.com/sports/browns/always-more-you-can-do-browns-address-concerns-of-commitment-issues-within-team This is why I'm saying strongly that coaching has to change at the defensive level. Woods lost this defense and it's showing on the field.

A couple of things- If we're going to say in 2021 that the Browns had a cupcake schedule that perhaps artificially inflated the stats, the same can be said this year too. We've played two teams (Steelers and Panthers) in the bottom 4 of total offense, three teams (Jets, Falcons, Pats) smack in the middle or bottom half, and one good offense in the Chargers. And yet here we are essentially the worst defense in football. Hence my overall vibe that this unit has regressed. As has also been noted, outside of Herbert the Browns haven't played one team with their long-term franchise guy under center (unless Zappe goes the TB12 route). That's just alarming to say the least. I totally agree on Phillips-no business being on the field. I also agree on Stef, for sure. Look, to say it simply these guys are just playing flat out there. It seems like there's no energy and 6 weeks into the season there's still miscommunication, role assignment confusion, and integrity issues. Those, to me, fall flat on the coach. You can't regress that badly with many of the same guys out of thin air.

I read that a few minutes after I posted my previous comment-that sums it up perfectly. Our defensive talent overall may have regressed slightly, but the result has fallen of a cliff. How do you not point the finger at coaching?

Speaking on more broad terms, I think my concern is that guys we've seen play decent ball have seemningly regressed at an alarming rate. I get lost in the shuffle (with near 2 kids and a FT job i'm far from the days of digging into stuff) with the data of the game, that's for sure. It's very obvious your points are true-Garrett being a monster on the edge means nothing if the QB can step up into a clean pocket. That happened so much Sunday it was mind numbing. But man, it just feels like dudes like Newsome, JOK, Delpit etc have regressed or fallen into something that's made them play bad football. Is it really that these guys are being figured out? Walker being the communicator hurting that much? Or what I tend to think that these dudes from a scheme perspective are being set up to fail. Delpit on that late end around TD wasn't even in the same hemisphere. I just have a very hard time thinking this team with a lot of the same guys just got this alarmingly worse.

Let's face it- Billy B. completely dominates this franchise in terms of coaching decisions. IDK if he plays with a chip on his shoulder given the past, but you watched a guy playing chess while the other was playing Uno. JB is regressing to the mean of a backup QB. Call him Fitzpatrick, Nick Foles, etc- great option for a 3-4 game stretch but obvious backup. I'm not suggesting this was some great mystery and I really hope he wants to stay next year in that role. Despite the failings today across the board, the defense of this team is the glaring problem. As I said previously, guys who have some good film look completely lost, disinterested, or otherwise bad. Garrett is getting doubled team at a rate egregiously higher than any other player in the NFL. I don't know the defensive staff from a hole in the wall, but it can't be worse than it is now. Kev needs to make an aggressive change-they have now allowed the most points in the NFL by 12. I'd understand if this was a plucky group of fill-ins, but we have multiple 1st and 2nd talents across the field. It's inexcusable. Me too man-stayed through the onside kick miss (which was still BS, but oh well) and switched to Dad mode. Hotel Transylvania was actually pretty good.

There was absolutely no angle that showed he touched that ball 100%. Did he? Almost assuredly. But that’s a call that 100% stands the other way around, you can’t convince me otherwise.

That was out of halftime. That was reviewing plays and making adjustments. There’s no defending any of it anymore. we’ve played mariota, Trubisky, Mayfied, Flacco, and a rookie 4th round pick. There’s just no excuse, we gotta aggressively shake it up. We’re seeing dudes who have played well just look like they’ve never seen the field before. This defense is not as bad as it looks.

What I can’t get over though is how little our back half maintains integrity. I’m almost positive Emerson went inside to face a NE guy who was already blocking another Brown. Keeping outside integrity there is literally football 101.