Seriously stopper...just stop. You aren't going to convince anyone that there is no talent on Cleveland's roster. Give it up. How the hell can you look at the list of names Irish posted and then say that we have no talent? Clearly the problem here is coaching and quarterbacking, and we suck at both. And don't forget the front office, because as far as the QB search is going, they suck too!
2018 Browns Mock Draft (Order based on SportsLine projections) 1.1: Saquon Barkley, RB Penn State The most complete running back in the nation. Barkley already grades better than Ezekiel Elliott and Leonard Fournette - both taken at #4 overall. He's a lock for Top 3 and the argument for best player in the draft isn't hard to make. Passing up on a quarterback could be tough to stomach for the fanbase, but they've got a plethora of picks and it doesn't hurt to add the best player each year - just ask Myles Garrett. Barkley is averaging 5.8 YPC in his career rushing and 12.4 YPR in his career receiving. Behind Cleveland's offensive line, Barkley would instantly be a candidate for rushing leader in the NFL, take pressure off the quarterback (whomever it is), and give a legitimate player for defenses to have to scheme around. 1.14 (f/Houston): Minkah Fitzpatrick, FS Alabama Passing on Malik Hooker was probably a worse move in 2017 than passing on Deshaun Watson. Fortunately, the pick they acquired gives them a mulligan in the 2018 Draft, which Fitzpatrick, a safety-cornerback hybrid, is one of the top players coming out. He can play that centerfield position extremely well, which gives them more versatility to use Peppers - either sticking him in more of a traditional strong safety position, converting to a base nickel defense and putting him in a S/LB/CB role, or even moving him to cornerback, which he also played at Michigan. Through three seasons, Fitzpatrick has produced 9 interceptions, 20 passes defenced, 17.5 TFL and sacks, and recorded 145 total tackles (95 solo). 1.25 (f/Buffalo): Baker Mayfield, QB Oklahoma Browns trade 2.45 and 2.63, both picks from Houston and Philadelphia, to move back into the first round. #25 is worth 725 points. #45 (450) and #63 (276) are worth 726 - making this a near-perfect trade. Browns make a trade like they did to grab Njoku because we've reached the point where players > picks and secure their quarterback of the future here. These moves give the Browns their young nucleus of talent to grow together and get this team into the post-season. I don't see a world in which the Browns can afford to pass on a signal caller in the first round in 2018. This is what the tear-down and rebuild has been all about - getting the franchise QB. With names like Darnold, Rosen, Allen, Falk, and Rudolph already in the mix and the chance a Trubisky-like dark horse comes out of nowhere, Mayfield may very well last until the later half of Round 1. Baker Mayfield is a smaller thrower (listed at 6'1" and 220 pounds) who's done nothing but excel. He's the first true freshman walk-on to ever start in NCAA history (Texas Tech). He transferred to Oklahoma where he's completing 70.0% of his passes, thrown 93 touchdowns to 16 interceptions (including an astonishing 17:1 ratio in 2017), and plays with super-sized confidence. Hearkening back to my new rules for drafting rookie QBs: Is he accurate? 68.4 completion percentage in his career. YES. Can he ball? Massive confidence. Like a cocky Cody Kessler. YES. Is he a raging coke-head? Doesn't appear so. NO. 2.34: Courtland Sutton, WR Southern Methodist Sutton goes 6'4" and 215 and has the look of the receiver they thought they were getting in Corey Coleman in 2016. Sutton takes a lot of screen passes for big gains (career 16.6 YPC). As a starter, Sutton has posted 156 receptions, 2,597 yards, and 26 touchdowns in 30 games. Easily the worst position - outside of quarterback - on the current roster. Sutton adds solid size and speed to the position. Not a ton of hype for the wide receiver class yet this season, but Browns cannot pass up talent here. 3.65 (f/Houston): Matthew Thomas, LB Florida State So while it pains me to take a player from FSU, Thomas may help improve the middle of our front seven. He's more of a downhill linebacker from the film I've seen, but has the size (6'4" 230 pounds) to be a range-guy at ILB in the 4-3. Joe Schobert looked solid to start the season, but the Browns defense is still routinely being burned over the middle with opposing tight ends. We need someone with the size and speed to take those kind of players on. This selection choice is definitely subject to the remainder of the 2017 season. If Schobert finds a way to turn it around, that would be great. One other potential option that's not being discussed yet (to my knowledge) is sticking Peppers in an LB role on the defense, much like Michigan did his final year there. Coach Williams could even go as far as to have the nickel package become the base defense with Peppers as the S/LB hybrid player. Briean Boddy-Calhoun is producing an NFL-best 1.3 yards allowed per coverage snap and has taken some plays from the free safety spot. An interesting test would be BBC at FS and Peppers in at weakside LB or even S/LB hybrid within a base nickel defense.
Front Office I'm keeping Sashi and DePodesta working on maximizing capital and adjusting the approach to the draft, but I am bringing in someone to help with some input on what players, when to take them and when to be willing to spend draft capital to acquire talent. The two names I would go after with a bit of cash would be Joey Clinkscales and Alec Halaby. Coaching Staff Head Coach: Ken Norton Jr. Offensive Coordinator: Matt Canada Defensive Coordinator: Johnnie Lynn Special Teams Coach: Jeff Genyk Quarterbacks Coach: Klint Kubiak Running Backs Coach: Kelly Skipper Wide Receivers Coach: Grant Heard Offensive Line Coach: Bill Bedenbaugh Defensive Line Coach: Tray Scott Linebackers Coach: Jason Phillips Defensive Backs Coach: Anthony Midget The idea with Norton is to bring in a solid player motivator that is comfortable with delegating to his coordinators. Canada's offense is styled to the players first and adapting to the personnel available, which will be critical to developing an offense that has zero identity. Johnnie Lynn is a D-back specialist with some play-calling experience rooted in the 4-3. There is a mix of pro and college blood here but the focus would be to win immediately with a veteran quarterback with a big enough percentage to ensure that the staff remains intact for more than 3 seasons, and hopefully for several more. Off-Season Acquisitions (offensive skill positions): Quarterbacks - One of the following; Phillip Rivers (trade), Blake Bortles (if released, Case Keenum (trade or release), Matt Moore (release) and Sean Mannion (release) Running Backs - Orleans Darkwa (free agent), Carlos Hyde (free agent) and Peyton Barber (trade) Wide Receivers - Jarvis Landry (free agent), Brice Butler (free agent) and Justin Hardy (trade) If I can get Rivers in a trade I would try to bring in Moore or Mannion to back him up on a two year deal that would end the same time Phillip's current deal is set to expire. Drafting a quarterback this upcoming April would be an absolute with the goal of developing them into a starter by year 3. I would work towards getting Darkwa Hyde or Barber simply to fill the void of Crowell. Saquon Barkley is my first pick in this draft, with no exceptions. Butler and Hardy are additions for the inevitable subtractions I will be making in the receiving room, but Landry would obviously be an immediate starter. Off-Season Acquisitions (defensive): Defensive Tackle - Sheldon Richardson (free agent) Linebacker - Connor Barwin (free agent) Secondary - Tre Boston (free agent) Richardson would immediately slide into a starters role. Barwin would be a situational pass rusher and depth piece. Tre Boston would be the immediate starter at FS with Kindred sliding over to SS and Peppers moving to WLB. Pre-Draft/Pre-Free Agency Depth Chart QB: RB: Duke Johnson, Matt Dayes, Dan Vitale WR: Corey Coleman, Ricardo Louis, Rashard Higgins, Bryce Treggs TE: David Njoku, Seth DeValve, Randall Telfer LT: Joe Thomas, Zach Banner LG: Joel Bitonio, Marcus Martin C: J.C. Tretter, Austin Reiter RG: Kevin Zeitler, Spencer Drango RT: Shon Coleman DE: Myles Garrett, Emmanuel Ogbah, Carl Nassib, Nate Orchard DT: Larry Ogunjobi, Jamie Meder, Trevon Coley, Caleb Brantley MLB: Joe Schobert, Christian Kirksey WLB: Christian Kirksey, Jabrill Peppers, Dominique Alexander, Deon King SLB: Jamie Collins, Joe Schobert, James Burgess CB: Jamar Taylor, Jason McCourty, Briean Boddy-Calhoun, Michael Jordan FS: Derrick Kindred SS: Jabrill Peppers, Derrick Kindred, Ibraheim Campbell You will notice immediately that quarterback is empty, because I would simply be clearing the room out if I can make a move for a veteran to start, which is a must because I will be taking a rookie quarterback with that second first round pick, even if I have to reach for one. At running back, Barkley is my first pick of the draft and would sit atop a depth chart that would hopefully include another utility back to go along with Duke Johnson. Getting Darkwa, Hyde or Barber is not a necessity, but a luxury that I could live without if need be. Wide Receiver is something that would be making a change in dynamic as I would look to work Canada's base system and get the ball out of the quarterback's hands quickly. Signing Landry to go with Coleman, Higgins, Hardy, Butler and Njoku would immediately change the dynamic of the air game. On the defensive side of the ball, I would stick with the 4-3 but there would be a shift in how the front 7 is approached. Signing a bull to replace some of the weakness in the middle and moving Kirksey to the inside would be the start, followed by bringing Peppers down to WLB where he will be forced to sink or swim. This is where paying the premium for Richardson is a must. Moving Christian to the middle may be dependent on that signing. In the secondary, I'm not concerned with signing a big name corner, but bringing in safety Tre Boston would give me the ability to move Kindred to the strong side, move Peppers to WLB and have the three of them work as an umbrella in long passing situations. For the draft, I would be taking Saquon Barkley at #1 overall and then going after my top rated quarterback with the next available pick or possibly moving up to go after the player I want. The foundation on offense needs to be set and getting the franchise passer and rusher in the same year would be a solid start. I would look to add a couple pieces in the secondary and add depth to the line on both sides of the ball. I want to protect my new weapons on offense and give the defense as much chance to solidify in year 2 of the base system as possible. That's the basics. Given more time I could go into some more detail.
Only problem is you keep making fun of me while every football fan across the country makes fun of the Browns....no talent equals no wins....talent can make a coach look good...bad talent and bad coaching = 1-21
@showstopper ... after barely beating what's essentially an FCS football school (Duke), the Noles decide to let Louisville beat them in their house and then allow their head coach to verbally assault a fan? #Classy #NoleModels #DavlinCookIsStillABum
Yep...frustration boiling over and hes to blame....he needs to stop being OC, fire his DC and OL coach...pretty simple fixes
Here's the other reason we likely have to go free agency for our starting QB in 2018: Hue Jackson & this dumpster fire of an organization have made the team a laughing stock. A strong, proven head coach coming here for $10+ million a year is a start in 2018, but you'll have to open up the purse strings for a QB, too. On the bright side, spending #1 overall pick on Saquon Barkley should numb some of that.
Stick a fork in Kizer. While he didn't break any rules and is pretty tame by recent QB night-out standards, it's still a bad look for a freshly-benched quarterback of an 0-6 (at the time) football team. His coach has obviously turned on him. The media is beginning - if not already - turned on him. Chances are high the F/O was never all-in on him. Oh, and we're getting a new coach (maybe more) in the offseason.
So... where do we go from here? Fire the head coach. The easiest answer is you fire Hue Jackson on the BYE week. He's in over his head, lost, and never really was qualified for the job. Hearing/reading the stories out of Oakland and his time there, it's amazing that he's still got a reputation in this league anywhere besides Cincinnati. There's a pretty solid chance he's ruined DeShone Kizer's career - at least in Cleveland, has burned through his other quarterbacks, continues the mind-boggling game-time decisions (decline a 15-yard penalty on third down to knock them out of FG range? Final score decided by 3 points, FYI). The Browns have added talent to this roster - the head coach is killing any chance of victory the longer he stays in power. Cut Kenny Britt. The F/O - if it has any integrity left - needs to send a direct message. The lack of effort on the field and lack of direction off it is a bad look for the organization, for the young players on the roster, and for the rest of the receiving corp on the team. He's taking up a roster spot while a guy like Jordan Leslie tries to battle back from a hamstring and make an NFL roster. This team has a projected $117.2M in cap space for the 2018 league year... I think we can stomach the $17M guaranteed it would cost. Start Cody Kessler. Sure, he's not flashy with a massive arm, but he's efficient and gets the job done. You simply whatever playbook the new coach decides upon and move towards a Mangini-ball style of offense - rhythm passing with a heavy dose of the running game. The goal has to be to put some wins on the board at this point - this team cannot continue to go winless. The easiest games have passed... the likelihood of 0-16 just became a very real reality without the most solid of the guys at the position taking the meaningful snaps. Kessler - not having practiced since preseason - took a decent team to overtime, and put them in positions to win the football game without the team's best player (Joe Thomas). Bench Isaiah Crowell. No, I (we) don't know if Duke Johnson Jr. can be a feature back in this league and we're selling out to draft Saquon Barkley in 2018, but Johnson deserves a shot - even if it ends up being an audition for his next team. Seven carries and six receptions is a season high for him - and it was our closest game yet. He practically carried the team to overtime and then wasn't seen from again. He's the leading receiver on the team but beyond his merit, Crowell is ineffective. Tentative to the hole, too easily tripped up or brought down - he simply doesn't have it. Two-tight end sets. Outside of Johnson Jr., the next two best skill players on offense are Seth DeValve and David Njoku. Both should be on the field more than any of the receivers this team is sporting and both deserve upwards of 10 targets a piece. What's more, moving to a two-tight end set not only allows for the gameplan to get the ball into their hands more often, it also allows the coordinator to dial up the running game with a heavy line. Lastly, a tight end on either end will help the weaker spots - especially with Joe Thomas missing the rest of the season - in the tackle spots (Coleman, Drango). Move Jabrill Peppers to linebacker. Again, a mobile quarterback beat us with his legs for a couple crucial first downs because our linebackers were either out of position or "free lancing". Peppers is undersized, so don't ask him take on blockers, but let me use his excellent athleticism as a QB-spy, situational rusher, and clean-up tackler. Part of this may require moving to the nickel defense as a default defense (Gregg Williams' defenses recently have spent 70% of their time in the nickel anyway, so it's merely a formality). Michael Jordan, a converted cornerback, started at free safety with Peppers sidelined due to a toe injury. As a result, the defense held averaging 24.3 PPG to 12 points, 19 total first downs (3 by penalty), 189 net passing yards (5.2 YPP), and 80 net rushing yards (2.5 YPC). Put Peppers on a Delanie Walker or Marcus Mariota on a couple of those conversions and maybe the result is better. One thing's for certain, he wasn't exactly missed on the back-end. Comp your ticket holders. This is embarrassing.
Well...Chris Collinsworth just called Johnson Bademosi a shutdown CB for the Patriots. What say you Browns fans?
Scheme fit? Bademosi was used more as a safety for us, I believe. Could have been out of necessity, but he wasn't exactly making himself non-expendable during his time here.
