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Kelly Holcomb


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The fans in Cleveland deserve better': The Thursday Conversation with Kelly Holcomb



CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Kelly Holcomb's eyes welled up as he watched a documentary on the 1985 Chicago Bears over the weekend.


As the former Browns quarterback viewed ESPN's latest "30 for 30" film, he reminisced about his days at practice, in the locker room, on the road and in the huddle. His three children -- two daughters in high school and a son in sixth grade -- saw the tears and told their father to keep it together.


Holcomb said he misses just about every aspect of football. He tells his kids and the high schoolers he coaches that you don't know how fast it goes until it's over. He knows they won't understand.


He's 42 and more than eight years removed from his last NFL pass. Holcomb spent more than a decade in the league, including a stretch as Peyton Manning's backup in Indianapolis. His most accomplished stint came in Cleveland, the pinnacle of which came in a heart-wrenching loss to the Steelers on a sloppy Sunday afternoon in Pittsburgh on Jan. 5, 2003.


In relief of Tim Couch, who suffered a broken leg a week earlier, Holcomb racked up 429 yards and three TD passes, but the Browns relinquished a 12-point lead in the fourth quarter. The Steelers moved the football and the Browns grew more conservative as the clock ticked toward their demise.


Thirteen years and one month later, the Browns have not returned to the postseason. Nineteen quarterbacks have tried their hand at directing the team's offense, to no avail. Every year or two, a new regime pops in and attempts to recalibrate the franchise's parts, but nothing has proven fruitful.


The Browns sputtered to a 5-11 mark in 2003. Holcomb shared the quarterback duties with Couch that year and with Jeff Garcia the next. He lasted another three years in the league for several teams. The Browns have posted one winning season (2007) since the playoff year.


To Holcomb, it all comes back to that trying day in Pittsburgh in the first week of 2003, and what Browns management did afterward.


Here is this week's Thursday Conversation with the former Browns signal-caller.


ZM: Is it crazy to think you played with Peyton Manning nearly 20 years ago and now it's 2016 and he just won a Super Bowl?


KH: I'm not surprised. He's had a great career, a great run. I'm happy for him. I was concerned about him this year. When you start getting up there in age -- I'm feeling it now. I'm 42 and he's about to be 40. You're playing a young man's game and you can't get away from the guys that you used to be able to get away from. He's never been an escape artist, but he's been able to get rid of the football. Now, I think time has caught up to him a little bit.


But it's good to see him go out on a good note, just like [Denver's] team president, John Elway. He went out the same way and won his last football game and then called it quits. I don't know if this is Peyton's last, but what better way to go out than winning more games than any other quarterback in the history of the game and doing it [by winning] the Super Bowl?


holcomb-04-vert-ap.jpg

Before he joined the Browns, Kelly Holcomb spent a few years with the Indianapolis Colts.

AP file


ZM: Is it cool to think you were there to watch him at the beginning of his career?


KH: Yeah, it was kind of cool. His first year, he had 26 touchdowns and 28 picks. We weren't very good that year. We were coming off of a 3-13 season and we went 3-13 again and the next year, we had the biggest turnaround in NFL history, going from 3-13 to 13-3.


It's pretty cool to see how he developed and how he was a constant worker. I tell young kids when I speak to them now, 'Hard work pays off.' They're always telling me that that was back in the old days. I say, 'Nope. From the beginning of time, hard work pays off. I promise you. You'll have some hard times, but if you work through it, then it'll work out for you.'


ZM: Do you look back fondly upon your time in Cleveland? It was your longest stop along your NFL journey.


KH: Absolutely. That's where most people know me from. I really wish there could have been things done differently, from a management standpoint. The year we went to the playoffs, I think we had a really good football team. If management would've kept that team together -- they'd tell you they had salary cap issues -- but everybody wanted to stay there. Everybody loved it and enjoyed it. I have fond memories of playing.


When we were there, there were some pieces of the puzzle that we never got. That's really the big regret that I have. Tim [Couch] gets a bad rap. I get a bad rap. We could play. For whatever reason, we had no pieces. It's really frustrating. We had a really good team when we went to the playoffs that year. If we could've beaten Pittsburgh and gone out to Oakland, you never know what could happen. We needed more pieces to the puzzle. So that's what's frustrating.


ZM: So the front office didn't capitalize on the fact it had a team moving in the right direction?


Kelly Holcomb

Kelly Holcomb, in the huddle during a 2003 preseason game, wasn't thrilled with the front office's decisions following the team's 9-7 season in 2002.

PD file photo


KH: No, they really didn't. I think they're still going through that. I don't think they have ever recovered from that, to be honest with you. I think that was a turning point for the Cleveland Browns right there. We had some really good guys on that football team. Bruce [Arians] was the coordinator and ended up getting let go. Bruce has done so much out in Arizona. He won two Super Bowls with the Steelers. We had good coaches. We had Carl Smith, who was my quarterbacks coach.


We had people there and we had good players. We had Dave Wohlabaugh. We had Shaun O'Hara. He went to two Super Bowls with the New York Giants. We had people. We just needed to get some more. We needed to get some more dynamic skill players. We had people there. Then we had a mass exodus of people. We were told, "We don't have salary cap [space]. We have to get rid of some of these guys." Then you talk to guys years later and they say, "All they had to do was ask me, because I wanted to stay there. I would've stayed there." We had something really good.


It's amazing. It's amazing that all we needed to do was add a few players and then they got rid of everybody and it was like starting over again.


ZM: How much fun was that 2002 season? It was like a roller coaster, with the Dwayne Rudd helmet toss, the Hail Mary win in Jacksonville, the clinching game against Atlanta, the playoff game.


KH: It was fun. It was a crazy year. We had some injuries, but we were expected to step up and play and we did that. We ended up 9-7 and went to the playoffs, but that was the turning point that I was talking about. We had really good people there.


It was exciting. It was fun. The Dwayne Rudd thing -- we lost that game and then won the Cincinnati game the next game. You never know what's going to happen. We rebounded from that. All you can ask for as a team is to get ourselves into the playoffs. Once you get into the playoffs, it's anybody's show. You never know what's going to happen, but we weren't able to finish it out.


ZM: Take me through that playoff game. You threw for 429 yards and you had a big lead. I know you can never get too comfortable, especially in a playoff game and on the road. What was it like from your perspective?


I miss it every day, because when you're playing, you're young and you don't think it's ever going to end.

KH: Everybody talks about the big game that I had. We, as an offense, had a really big game, but we got conservative at the end. We were up [24-7 and 33-21]. We had those guys down. Defensively, we were rushing Tommy Maddox. We were knocking him down and making him uncomfortable. We got that lead and sometimes that's what coaches do: They get conservative. We went to playing a prevent defense. I tell people all the time that a prevent defense prevents you from winning a lot of games. I don't like that. I wish, defensively, we would've kept the pedal to the metal and kept coming after him. We had a couple of key penalties, a pass interference penalty and things like that.


It was fun. It was one that you dream about as a kid. It was one of those situations where you're not even thinking. You're just playing ball. You don't even hear the crowd. You focus on what you're doing. It was a fun game, not only for me, but for our whole offense. Defensively, I'm sure it's a different memory.


The one thing that I remember is we lost the game. It doesn't really matter -- we're paid to go out there and play and win ball games. You're not going to win them all, but that one was should've, could've, would've. They made the plays when they had to. We kind of self-destructed.


Holcomb, Couch

Kelly Holcomb and Tim Couch shared the quarterback duties in 2002 and 2003. Since, 19 other quarterbacks have started a game for the Browns.

PD file photo


ZM: You said you're amazed that the franchise hasn't really recovered since that off-season. The franchise's quarterback issue is what stands out. It's been a revolving door.


KH: It's absolutely amazing. The fans in Cleveland deserve better than what they've been able to put on the football field. I know there have been a lot of people to try. I know this is the arch rival -- it's not even a rivalry anymore; it used to be a rivalry, but it's not anymore -- you look right up the street at the Pittsburgh Steelers. You look at what they've been able to do and the consistency they've had with their organization. They've had three coaches. Chuck Noll and then Bill Cowher and then Mike Tomlin. It's unbelievable when you think about it. Look at all of the people the Browns have had since they came back in 1999.


It's amazing. It's the same thing with the quarterbacks. You have to hit on the quarterbacks in the draft. They've been unable to do that, for whatever reason. I'm sure people have had a lot of opinions about it. Sometimes I thought when I was there that management would listen to everybody else instead of going in and getting the game plan of what they wanted out of a player. I think it shows. I really think it shows with the product on the field with the Browns.


ZM: Have you seen the jersey that lists every Browns quarterback since '99?


KH: Yeah, I've seen it. It was on SportsCenter and people were texting me and teasing me. I've seen it.


ZM: That's a strange fraternity to be a member of.


KH: It is a little strange [laughs]. You're absolutely right. That could've stopped with myself or Tim. You have to have people around you. You have to have the management on the same page. You have to have everybody in the organization working toward a common goal. For whatever reason, in Cleveland, it's dysfunctional.


ZM: How was the transition into broadcasting once you retired?


KH: I did broadcasting for a little bit. I didn't want to get into coaching just yet. I wanted to see my kids grow up. I've been blessed. I did do broadcasts for Middle Tennessee State for five years and I did a high school Game of the Week on TV. I enjoyed doing that. I got tired when I was doing it for Middle [Tennessee State]. I love keeping up with the Blue Raiders, but I really don't want to go spend a weekend in Provo, Utah, when we played BYU. For 30 years, I've been doing something in the fall. It's been pretty nice the last two to be home with my family and watch what I want to watch.


ZM: Have you gotten into coaching?


KH: I volunteer at a high school. Bruce [Arians] asked me to maybe come help out in Arizona last year. If it was the right time, I would've. I'm not ready to pack up and leave. I did it enough times when I played in the NFL. I know how that goes. My daughter is going to be a senior in high school next year. My other daughter is going to be a sophomore. My little boy is just getting into ball. I didn't really want to do that at that time. I always said I'd never get into coaching, but I always knew that if I did get into coaching, I'd enjoy it. I coach up at a high school here, my wife's alma mater. I really enjoy it.


ZM: How old is your son?


KH: He is 12.


ZM: Does he play football?


KH: Yes. He plays the major three: football, basketball and he just started baseball. He had a scrimmage [last week]. He hasn't gotten a break since the start of football. He went from football, the next week right into basketball. Right when he finishes basketball, he goes right into baseball.


Kelly Holcomb

Kelly Holcomb played in the NFL from 1995-2007, including four years with the Browns (2001-04).

John Kuntz/PD


ZM: He's young, but is there any trepidation on your end, any concern about him playing football in the future?


KH: I haven't really thought about it. My wife is a big advocate. She doesn't really care that he plays. I don't know. I hear people all the time [talking] about that stuff. I heard people on the radio talking about if they had to do it all over again, they wouldn't do it. I watched the '85 Bears' "30 for 30" and all of those guys said they would do it again.


Football teaches so much. All this concussion stuff that's going on, I understand it. I get it. People ask me all the time, "Would you do it all again?" I tell them, without question, I absolutely would. I would do it all over again. I love the game. I love every aspect of the game. I love being in the locker room. That's the thing you miss. You love being around the guys. We all have a shared goal and we want to win a championship. It's a brotherhood.


That "30 for 30" thing, I was sitting in front of the TV. That's the first time I watched it [on Sunday]. My kids were yelling at me because I was crying. That's what you miss. For people that don't play, they don't understand it. It's a brotherhood. You literally love the people that you're playing with and the people that you're around. You can be so successful. I miss that. I miss those guys. I miss being in the locker room.


I miss it every day, because when you're playing, you're young and you don't think it's ever going to end. Finally, when it does end -- that's what I try to explain to these young kids these days -- every day I tell them, "When it's over, it happens really fast. You don't understand it." You can tell them until you're blue in the face, but until they experience it, they really don't understand what you're talking about. When it's over, you walk out that door and it's so different. It's a brotherhood. It's a fraternity. I would do it all over again.


ZM: Who were the people with the Browns you most enjoyed being around?


KH: I liked everybody. I was good friends with Tim and Mark Campbell and Andre King and Andre Davis. I still talk to those guys. Alvin McKinley, I still talk to him. It's fun to see Phil Dawson. He's still playing, which is amazing to me. He's still being productive.


We had a pretty tight-knit group. I thought we had good people. We had good players, too. We just weren't able to, for whatever reason, stay together.



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You know what bothers me most about that interview? "they dumped guys because of salary cap issues."

"Those that don't remember the past are doomed to repeat it."

Skrine- Sheard- Rubin- Ward

 

Hate to say it but we'd be a lot closer to the playoffs with those guys back.

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You know what bothers me most about that interview? "they dumped guys because of salary cap issues."

"Those that don't remember the past are doomed to repeat it."

Skrine- Sheard- Rubin- Ward

 

Hate to say it but we'd be a lot closer to the playoffs with those guys back.

 

"Farmer!"-in my best Seinfeld "Newman!" voice. :mad:

 

BTW did anyone else feel a little sick when T.J. was marching through the playoffs with his newfound team? Every time he'd make a play I'd cringe with a "Farmer!"

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"Farmer!"-in my best Seinfeld "Newman!" voice. :mad:

 

BTW did anyone else feel a little sick when T.J. was marching through the playoffs with his newfound team? Every time he'd make a play I'd cringe with a "Farmer!"

Not sure how much of that was on farmer. I'm pretty sure TJ wanted to go to a contender
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Not sure how much of that was on farmer. I'm pretty sure TJ wanted to go to a contender

 

Ward would have stayed- for the right price. Him and Joe Haden are good pals.

 

Farmer thought Rubin was overpriced, & let him walk for way less money. I was just about as ill seeing Ahtyba starting for the Seahawks D. BTW, he's an UFA again this year. Seattle was only paying him $2.6 million- I'd bring him back for that, no hesitation.

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Damn, nice article.

 

I always thought Couch could play. Holcomb had that unreal game vs the Steelers in a losing playoff effort. If I recall, the Steelers were down 2 starting CBs in that game and Holcomb lit 'em up.

 

Then, the front office banked on Holcomb. They forgot that O Line nearly got Couch killed. Holcomb the starter in 2003, he breaks his leg. Couch takes over again, has a decent showing and gets concussed on national tv. Cries on camera during a concussion....end of Couch in Cleveland. At least we beat Pitt's ass on a Monday night game in Pitt.

 

Sashi, turn this thing around. Holcomb's right, we deserve much much better.

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