calfoxwc Posted November 9, 2010 Report Share Posted November 9, 2010 Browns, Hillis capitalize on terrible Broncos trade By Charles Robinson, Yahoo! Sports Nov 7, 11:41 pm EST Maybe the hooded sweatshirt was hanging over Josh McDaniels’ eyes the entire 2009 season. Or maybe he never took the time to watch all of the Denver Broncos’ game film from 2008. Or maybe Mike Holmgren and the Cleveland Browns’ new front office is a whole lot smarter than we realized. Or maybe there’s no reasonable explanation for how Peyton Hillis(notes) ended up where he is – sparking the suddenly feisty Browns, and leaving Broncos fans writhing in agony over the worst trade of last offseason. Where is Brady Quinn(notes) these days? You’ll find him scraping barnacles off the bottom of the depth chart, languishing behind Tim Tebow(notes). Yes, that’s the guy whom McDaniels traded Hillis for – he of the career 66.8 quarterback rating and 52 percent completion rate. And it wasn’t even a straight up player-for-player deal. Denver kicked in a sixth-round pick in 2011 and a conditional pick in 2012 to sweeten the pot. Nothing like a couple of bamboo shoots under the fingernails on draft day to remind fans of a team’s brain-searing roster machinations. The Browns’ Peyton Hillis rushed for 184 yards and two touchdowns vs. the Patriots. (Tony Dejak/AP Photo) Of course, you could give Hoodie Jr. a pass and say that there was no way McDaniels could have known Hillis would be a player who almost singlehandedly destroyed Hoodie Sr. (Bill Belichick) and the Patriots, en route to 220 yards from scrimmage (including 184 yards rushing) and two touchdowns – a guy who through eight games is on pace to rush for 1,288 yards and score 16 total touchdowns. You could say McDaniels couldn’t have known, and you’d be right. He couldn’t, because McDaniels never took the time to try and know what Hillis was capable of accomplishing. Despite Hillis’ five yards per carry average and five TDs in a meager 68 rushing attempts in 2008, he didn’t get a sniff when McDaniels took over. Instead, the new regime, in its infinite wisdom, went out of its way to try almost anyone at running back other than Hillis. They drafted Knowshon Moreno(notes), signed J.J. Arrington(notes) (then cut him and signed him again), and scooped up injury-addled veterans Correll Buckhalter(notes) and LaMont Jordan(notes). And into the abyss Hillis went, never to be heard from again in 2009, save for 13 meaningless carries in 14 games. The truth is, McDaniels never believed in Hillis, and the running back said as much when he joined Cleveland this offseason. Maybe only Hillis believed in himself, since nobody in the media (including me) was shooting a thumbs-up in Cleveland’s direction at the time of the deal. Just like nobody talked about Hillis when they lauded the sick talent in the University of Arkansas’ backfield in 2007, yammering non-stop about Darren McFadden(notes) and Felix Jones(notes), and almost never saying a word about Hillis. Hindsight is cruel in the NFL, and Hillis’ success is downright merciless for a Broncos team that can’t run the football (last in the NFL heading into this weekend) and has watched Moreno struggle to stay on the field. So Hillis delivers the two-pronged entry this week, making Denver’s shortsightedness a loser, and Cleveland’s sheer luck a winner. I have a feeling both cities will be talking about this trade for years to come. On to this week’s other winners and losers … http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=cr-w...andlosers110710 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrownsBacker Posted November 9, 2010 Report Share Posted November 9, 2010 Is this news? Pretty sure this is common knowledge, not really deserving of a thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. T Posted November 9, 2010 Report Share Posted November 9, 2010 Browns, Hillis capitalize on terrible Broncos trade Maybe the hooded sweatshirt was hanging over Josh McDaniels’ eyes the entire 2009 season. Or maybe he never took the time to watch all of the Denver Broncos’ game film from 2008. Or maybe Mike Holmgren and the Cleveland Browns’ new front office is a whole lot smarter than we realized. Or maybe there’s no reasonable explanation for how Peyton Hillis(notes) ended up where he is – sparking the suddenly feisty Browns, and leaving Broncos fans writhing in agony over the worst trade of last offseason. Where is Brady Quinn(notes) these days? You’ll find him scraping barnacles off the bottom of the depth chart, languishing behind Tim Tebow(notes). Yes, that’s the guy whom McDaniels traded Hillis for – he of the career 66.8 quarterback rating and 52 percent completion rate. And it wasn’t even a straight up player-for-player deal. Denver kicked in a sixth-round pick in 2011 and a conditional pick in 2012 to sweeten the pot. Nothing like a couple of bamboo shoots under the fingernails on draft day to remind fans of a team’s brain-searing roster machinations. Of course, you could give Hoodie Jr. a pass and say that there was no way McDaniels could have known Hillis would be a player who almost singlehandedly destroyed Hoodie Sr. (Bill Belichick) and the Patriots, en route to 220 yards from scrimmage (including 184 yards rushing) and two touchdowns – a guy who through eight games is on pace to rush for 1,288 yards and score 16 total touchdowns. You could say McDaniels couldn’t have known, and you’d be right. He couldn’t, because McDaniels never took the time to try and know what Hillis was capable of accomplishing. Despite Hillis’ five yards per carry average and five TDs in a meager 68 rushing attempts in 2008, he didn’t get a sniff when McDaniels took over. Instead, the new regime, in its infinite wisdom, went out of its way to try almost The rest of the story here Air Hillis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canton Mike Posted November 9, 2010 Report Share Posted November 9, 2010 Seems like Peyton just may not have run fast enough (on a track) to suit Denver. Good for the Browns to notice how HARD the guy runs, how quickly he reacts, & the fact that he hits the hole at full speed. It's called "game speed" & Hillis has it. In addition, this guy may have the best "hands" I've ever seen on a back. IMHO, he is the biggest steal I have ever seen a Cleveland team pull off. Congrats to all who had anything to do with THAT trade. Plus, we have 2 late picks coming. WOW!!! Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frenchie Posted November 9, 2010 Report Share Posted November 9, 2010 IMHO, he is the biggest steal I have ever seen a Cleveland team pull off. I think that Colt was the biggest steal by the Browns because we stole him from every other team in the league and they had at least two opportunities to land him! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canton Mike Posted November 9, 2010 Report Share Posted November 9, 2010 I think that Colt was the biggest steal by the Browns because we stole him from every other team in the league and they had at least two opportunities to land him! My reference was as a trade & we DID steal him. You are correct, Colt will have a lot of GMs & scouts kicking themselves for many years, I think. Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Browns57 Posted November 9, 2010 Report Share Posted November 9, 2010 My reference was as a trade & we DID steal him. You are correct, Colt will have a lot of GMs & scouts kicking themselves for many years, I think. Mike I have liked the McCoy pick from the beginning but I am still reserving judgement on McCoy as a steal who people around the league will be jealous about. He has only started three games now. Let's not elect him mayor of Cleveland just yet. As I watch him play I see a few things that he will have to improve on. He isn't going through his progressions (like Anderson) He has a tendency to lock on the first or second option and force the throw) He was lucky not to have a couple picked off the last couple of weeks. I think like most rookies he will continue to improve but I for one am holding off on giving him the keys to the city. With that being said. Hillis was a complete steal. I grew up with McDaniels. There weren't a lot of rednecks where we grew up. Maybe he just doesn't like them! lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kosar_For_President Posted November 9, 2010 Report Share Posted November 9, 2010 Bronco fans and their media are a bunch of whiny bitches. Trust me I lived there for 8 years. Anything other then Elway will never been enough. 1/2 the city would turn gay to be with Elway. They are also the least knowledgeable, like a bunch of women (no offense Hutch) fans on the planet. Try talking about BLOCKING schemes for Hillis, and they look at you like you got 2 huge teeth sticking out of your mouth. Oh wait..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gips Posted November 9, 2010 Report Share Posted November 9, 2010 Hillis for quinn was a strong armed robbery of the bronco's though it may have been as much good luck... Harrison for bell was a strong armed fleecing of the browns, a robbery of the ex-general manager kind, though it may have been just as much bad luck.. Trading is a turkey shoot... We win some and we lose some but at least we are trying to put the puzzle together in a way that makes sense from the coaches aspect right on into the locker room! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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