2017 Season The Good, Bad and Ugly

JFTR....According to Bovada Sportsbook, the Cleveland Browns have opened as road favorites (-2.5) for the first time since 2012....Though early indications are, folks are taking the Colts and the points as the spread has already dropped to Cle -1. So we'll see if we're still favored by the end of the week. I have my doubts....

 

Here's the clip.



To be fair, it's reported that Coates was dealing with a hamstring and cramping issues. So sure, give him a pass. Britt's effort was inexcusable and yet Hue refused to call him out.

The worst part might not be the effort, but rather the wide receiver in a slot who climbs the seam and comes back and it wide freaking open that Kizer never sees.

 

I'm saying that Pittsburgh is an infinitely more talented squad that Cleveland or Baltimore and we matched up well with them... drawing to within 3 to lose a narrow one. Baltimore may be better than Cleveland, but only marginally and definitely nowhere on offense.

Browns should have been able to match up nicely with them. Fact is, they did everywhere but on offense and specifically, at quarterback.

 

Word is Coleman is heading to IR-designated to return, so that opens up the roster spot for Jordan Leslie...welcome back, I wanted him to make the 53 to begin with...I hope he makes an impression, that way when Coleman comes back in 6 weeks (or 8, not sure when the roster mover has to be made, he can practice in 6, but must miss 8 games) we can simply part ways with Britt and cut our losses.

 

Baltimore didn't blow us out or anything. Hell, if Kizer hits the open WR in the endzone instead of firing it a yard behind him, who knows how that game would have went? We killed ourselves all afternoon with turnovers. If Baltimore was a real SB contender, they would have hammered us by 30...

Through two weeks, it looks like the Bengals are dialing in on our reserved spot at the bottom of the AFCN....But we are what we are, and that's 0-2 right now. This is where the schedule gets much softer though, and with wins over the Colts and Bengals, I expect us to even out that record over the next two games. The schedule makers did us no favors (what else is new?), but I don't think Browns fans should be down at all. We are a team on the ascent, and the rest of the universe will likely take note of that over the coming weeks...I heard Garrett might even be able to play this week.

 

You were absolutely right about K. Hunt. He is special....

Not on that level, but a RB I pounded the desk for, and tried to acquire in every mock I was in, was this guy:


TARIK COHEN...(pats self on back)....I said he'd be the next Darren Sproles. Unfortunately, the Bears saw that too and they sniped him in the 4th round....The little guy is the real deal.

 

That clip of the horrific effort by our WR's is really sad. Britt looks like another Bowe. Just cut him and move on if that's the kind of effort he's gonna give. Just pathetic. What is he pouting because coach called him out week 1?? ...Kizer can't win with that kind of effort from his receivers, and neither could Tom Brady.

Coates and Britt should be embarrassed. And probably unemployed as far as the NFL is concerned...

 

I wuld say Pitt has the better offense and Balt the better defense....over the long haul Pitt will probably b better cause Balt is crushed when w injuries...top to bottom when healthy Balt is the better bad team...they have tremendous depth to have 15 guys on IR and still b 2-0

 

@showstopper



Not cracking the Top 25? Dalvin Cook.

 

But, Duke Johnson has...

 

Uh oh. Here comes another chart. (at least Kessler's name isn't at the top)

Uhm, I don't get the order. All I can say is if it's about production, they have Cohen way too low. He's kinda the focal point of the Bears attack already. I own McCaffrey, Kamara, Duke, and Coleman (as well as Cohen) in various fantasy leagues and I can tell ya, the little man is out producing all of them...In fact, you've got about 20 RB's listed ahead of him that he has out produced at this point. Tyler Ervin? Rex Burkhead? Darren Sproles? please...Andre Ellington is up there, and he was cut a couple weeks ago, then re-signed due to injury. lol! Obviously those metrics don't tell the whole story...Dalvin Cook is better than 95% of the RB's on that list...

 

This is running backs as receivers. @showstopper was insistent that Cook was a great weapon in the passing game. To date, eight targets, five receptions for 10 yards and 2 drops.

K. Hunt has a 100% catch rate, 126 yards (15.8 YPC), and 2 touchdowns. In fact, Kareem is 24th overall in receiving yardage. Ty Montgomery (converted WR for Green Bay) is the next closest RB with 114 (31st).

 

3 down RB easily

 

All three rookies look rock solid to me. From a fantasy football perspective, I think Hunt and Cook would make a great RB duo. Throw Cohen in the flex, and you'd be pretty deadly in a PPR league....

 

Since we're talking stats and throwing pictures up....

THIS is why I am excited to see what we can develop in DeShone Kizer. Eventually, this stat right here will help open up the ENTIRE offense. Defenses will have to start paying attention down the field.

 

"This was the type of game that was bound to happen at some point."

Do we have any concerns that it happened Game 2?

 

No concerns at all. A week 2 loss counts the same as a week 17 loss.

I do, however, have a growing concern. Jimmy Haslem is, first and foremost, a business man. He lives, breathes and dies over shit like ROI. He just spent more than the GNP of Montana, N. Dakota and S. Dakota combined on an offensive line and paid $16M for the right to pick a player not even on the roster yet. And THIS is what he gets in return?

 

Yes, he is a business man...I don't know how many profitable returns on investment come over a 6 month period which is the time frame you are talking about with the free agency and trade moves.

I am ECSTATIC we saw this type of game in week 2 of year one and not week 2 of year two. There are many "FRANCHISE" QBs that have had games just like this one sprinkled throughout their career. I don't know why everyone is freaking out 2 weeks into the second year of the rebuild. When you have an average age of 24 years old, you will have games like this. We won't expect games like this in 2019, but in year 2 of the rebuild...it doesn't surprise me in the least. I also think we will have a couple of games that will have the fence jumpers saying they are Super Bowl contenders...it's going to be like that when you have such a young team. Enjoy the ups and absorb the downs...it will be a roller coaster of a year.

 

Uh, Irish . . . this IS week 2 of year two. And they STILL can't (or won't) run the ball. He has a shiny new QB that can place the ball through the air anywhere on the field but they can't keep him upright long enough to do that. And, even if they could, they don't have a single wide receiver that can get to those spots on the field and accually catch the ball if they did!

 

I don't know that anyone should be ecstatic to have a game like this, but I do think some people are overreacting. If everyone is to be believed, he had a migraine in-game, which can obviously kill any performance. And, he's had these all his life (though I'm surprised to hear him say not in a game since high school. That sounds unlikely). This, then, would be of no surprise to the team management or staff. I think the only real issues here are:

How often is this going to happen in the future? What's the acceptable frequency?

Jackson clearly mishandled the situation. Hopefully he's learned that Kizer isn't good to go, with such an issue, and that he should keep him sidelined even once he's said he's feeling alright. That's not to say that Hue is at any real fault - he trusted the kid to evaluate his circumstance - there's not much else to go on, there. But hopefully he's learned from this instance, so any problems are avoided in the future.

I think everyone should've expected the ups and downs from Kizer. I mean, that was one of the single biggest knocks on him. I do, however, think people are guilty of reacting with too much hyperbole to both the ups and downs. Let's all give him some time, and some room to breathe. We're 1/8th of the way through the season.