what if these QB's start to drop ? that's my feeling . non of them are worth a top 10 pick IMHO . so why panic and over draft one of them ? if they do take one first round may it be Bortles . or Carr later on if he lasts that long .
If we?re giving out draft grades for ?Draft Day,? these are not pretty. Some have been downright brutal. That feeling many Browns fans have on Monday morning after a loss? That might be how director Ivan Reitman and actor Kevin Costner are feeling today. If this were two, three years from now in the real NFL, ?Draft Day? would have bust written all over it. Instead, it?s just a few days later following the film?s nationwide release. Still, ?bust? is sounding like the operative word in North America. According to reports, ?Draft Day,? the film ? with a reported $25 million budget ? about Browns general manager Sonny Weaver Jr. (Costner) and his day wheeling and dealing leading up to the NFL draft, pulled in a disappointing $9.8 million in 2,781 theaters. The NFL might sell on TV sets, but the big screen is another thing. Many negative reviews ? several within shouting distance of NFL commissioner Roger Goodell?s office in New York City ? likely didn?t help either. A sampling across North America, courtesy of the movie website RottenTomatoes.com: ?Draft Day is a diluted mix of Jerry Maguire and Moneyball that lacks the emotional pull of the former and the intelligence of the later.? Perry Seibert, TV Guide?s Movie Guide ?Draft Day is an enjoyable and sentimental sports drama that, sadly, falls short of greatness ? one that might also require die-hard football fans to suspend serious disbelief.? Ben Kendrick, ScreenRant ?Under the steady hand of Costner, it scores ? not a touchdown, but a field goal.? Annlee Ellingson, L.A. Biz ?It?s a sign of Costner?s enduring stardom that he can skate through a movie this hyperactive and dull, yet still have you like him.? Wesley Morris, Grantland.com ?Not destined for Costner?s personal hall of fame.? Peter Howell, Toronto Star ?All of these interesting performers can?t save a dull script.? Brian Tallerico, RogerEbert.com ?At times, the film seems like a highlight reel interrupted by a forgettable movie.? Peter Keough, Boston Globe ?A shallow and evasive movie, built more around corporate wish fulfillment than around reality.? A.O. Scott, New York Times ?Lacking feeling and momentum, Draft Day seems like it would be more successful as an ad for this year?s NFL draft, rather than a piece of worthwhile entertainment.? Jordan Adler, We Got This Covered ?Draft Day is lumbering and predictable, and its hero general manager is so dumb, it should have been called Dummyball.? Kyle Smith, New York Post ?Haven?t Cleveland fans suffered enough? Not only have they have never won a Super Bowl, but now the Browns serve as the center of Ivan Reitman?s painfully creaky sports drama.? Elizabeth Weitzman, New York Daily News ?To paraphrase Mel Kiper, it?s obvious to me the makers of Draft Day don?t understand what the draft?s all about.? Stephen Silver, EntertainmentTell ?At least the movie absolutely nails the dysfunctional, pathetic execution of the Cleveland Browns? front office.? Phil Villarreal, COED.com To save the most brutal for last ... ?Draft Day is one of the dumbest movies about sports ever made because it?s one of the dumbest ideas for a movie about sports that anyone has ever had, a fictional film about pro football that isn?t even actually about football.? Jack Hamilton, Slate Like I said, it?s not pretty. To be fair, there are many reviews nationwide that are favorable, but it?s fairly obvious ?Draft Day? won?t go down in sports film history with the likes of ?Hoosiers,? ?Rocky,? and Costner-led classics ?Bull Durham? and ?Field of Dreams.? I liked the film. It?s not my favorite sports film of all-time ? not even in the ballpark ? but, like many of you, I?ve lived in Northeast Ohio for most of my life, so take that for what it?s worth. For comparison-sake, ?Major League? ? arguably the most beloved sports film in Northeast Ohio history ? fared much better than it?s football counterpart on its opening weekend. The films debuted almost 25 years apart from each other to the date. ?Major League,? which opened on April 7, 1989, was No. 1 at the box office in its first week, earning a reported $8.8 million on 1,541 screens. Remember, we?re talking about 25 years ago, when the average price of movie ticket was $3.97, according to the website BoxOfficeMojo.com. According to the site, an average movie ticket in 2014 is $8.35. Sports film are traditionally tough sells ? ?The Blind Side? is the only one to crack $200 million and only six more, three of them ?Rocky? films, have topped $100 million ? but the opening-weekend receipts have to be a disappointment for the filmmakers, Goodell and the NFL. Many of the national critics are saying save that $8.35. I say see it if you?re a fan of the Browns, who can?t seem to catch a break these days.
So what your saying Bluez, the movie is like the Browns drafting. One big BUST! I also heard today that the movie was suppose to be about the Jets but they didn't want the distraction of it. So give it to the most dysfunctional team in the league. The Browns. How much worse can it get? Irish ( If that is what you are) I'm starting to think not. What will you do if the yahoo article is right and the Browns trade out of the #4 pick and don't take a QB? All that circle jerking for nothing but pleasure! Call Farmer ( Is that good enough Lym) and tell him that the Irishdawg on Mud N Cleats will not like that move! It will ruin everything! HAHAHAHAHAHA
The Browns have taken their fair share of criticism, but 2014 has been very positive, and three factors have played a major role in the uptick. 1. Hiring Ray Farmer: Installing Farmer as GM and vice president of player personnel puts a solid football man at the top, and his actions speak volumes about the direction of this team. Farmer has put good football people like Bill Kuharich around him and decisions this offseason will translate to better results in the fall. 2. Using the transition tag on Alex Mack: The decision to use a transition tag instead of a franchise tag was a very good move. The transition tag is seldom used, though more teams should consider it for the reasons Farmer used it. The Browns let the market set Mack's value and let another club negotiate for them. When the NFL eliminated "poison pills" from transition tags it made it much tougher for agents and competing clubs to write a contract the home team couldn't match. For the Browns, Mack was not signable to a long-term deal and while the franchise tag would have prevented him from leaving Cleveland for this season, using that tag for a second year wasn't realistic. It would have cost the Browns more than $12 million to franchise tag him in 2015, or $4 million more than the contract they now have in place for Mack, thanks to the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Browns likely will need the franchise or transition tag next year on cornerback Joe Haden or even nose tackle Phil Taylor (if Haden's deal is done in time). Also, if the Browns were repeatedly tagging Mack they would be stuck when emerging star WR Josh Gordon needs a new deal before his rookie deal expires after 2015. They most certainly will want a tag available for him. Farmer looked at top players coming up for extensions and knew getting Mack signed was critical, so he used the Jaguars to get it done. When teams like the Raiders let quality young players go in free agency we heard the player "doesn't want to be here." The Browns heard the same about Mack but employed the transition tag instead letting him go. Now they have Mack, who turns 29 in November, under contract for two seasons. And I believe Mack will think long and hard about voiding his contract heading into the 2016 season as a 31-year-old center with $8 million guaranteed on the table. 3. Not engaging in QB pro day chase: The Browns need a quarterback, but their predraft process is not driven by chasing young candidates around at their pro day workouts. The Browns aren't buying the dog-and-pony shows run by agents and QB gurus. Farmer and his evaluators are working out candidates on their own terms, giving them a better where to take the guy they want with two first-round picks and the ability to wait until a later round on a QB.
Mike Pettine, Sr. might be retired from coaching on the sidelines, but that doesn?t mean he?s done giving football suggestions. Last week, the father of the Browns? head coach mailed a 40-page document for his son to give to offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan. ?When I was a coach, I wanted ideas,? Pettine Sr. said recently via the phone. ?You never know where it?s going to come from, and a light bulb will go off.? Pettine, Sr. is a guy you want throwing suggestions your way. When asked about the biggest piece of advice he would give the coaching staff in Cleveland, Pettine, Sr. gave a rather rousing six-minute sermon with some of his favorite philosophies, capping it off with, ?Sorry to go on that tangent, but football is about a lot of little things.? A legendary coach at Central Bucks High School West just outside of Philadelphia, Pettine Sr. amassed a stunning 327-42 record from 1967-99. Multiple ESPN documentaries were filmed on his successes. Coach Pettine?s football teams were revered in Pennsylvania and recognized around the United States. And believe it or not, Pettine, Sr. should be regarded as the godfather of the current Browns coaching staff. Not only did Pettine, Jr. play for his father in high school, but so did defensive coordinator Jim O?Neil, as well as linebackers coach Chuck Driesbach, who suited up for Pettine Sr. in the early 1970?s. It?s a rare bond that has impacted all three coaches. ?I was in a bad place,? said Driesbach of his underclassmen years in high school. ?I didn?t have good grades. I never would have gone on to college. But he got me a scholarship to Fork Union military academy. Not only did he win games, he improved us as men. I wouldn?t be sitting in the NFL without him.? ?He set extremely high standards and was very demanding,? said Jim O?Neil. ?The reason the program had so much success is they maximized everyone?s athletic ability. You were going to be close to your ceiling when you graduated from Central Bucks West. He taught me accountability, how to tell the truth to players and being cutting-edge on putting together schemes.? ?Dad taught me to not worry about the things you don?t have control over,? said Pettine Jr. ?You have to be able to prioritize as a head coach. If you start doing something here, and all of a sudden ?I got to do this, and I got to do that.? Just get one thing done at a time.? ?Money can?t buy this type of satisfaction,? said a beaming Pettine, Sr. about his three NFL coaches. THREE DIFFERENT CHARACTERS Each of the Browns? coaches personalities and teaching styles can be boiled down to the type of player they were in high school, Pettine, Sr. says. Driesbach was an intense competitor who earned notoriety for some of the street fights he got himself into in the early 1970?s. He carried that brawling style over to the football field as offensive and defensive end. During a big game his senior year, Driesbach was returning from an injury and was supposed to be out of the game. He convinced coach Pettine Sr. that he at least wanted to dress for the game. Driesbach?s replacement at defensive end hurt himself, and while coach Pettine was scrambling around looking for a replacement, Driesbach already had run out on the field, ?limp and all,? Pettine, Sr. recalled with a laugh. O?Neil has always been the baby-faced, young puppy, according to Pettine, Sr. Playing for Central Bucks West in the late 1990?s, O?Neil was the kind of guy coaches dreamt about cloning in a laboratory. On-and-off the field, he was a spongy student of the game who often told his teammates what their assignments were. O?Neil was an excellent leader and exemplified toughness. The current Browns defensive coordinator battled a nasty shoulder dislocation his entire senior season; an injury which he played every game through. Pettine, Sr. jokingly said O?Neil ?did have some delusions of wanting to be a skill player,? but he was more suited as an interior lineman. Pettine, Sr. even introduced his son to O?Neil, while the latter was an up and coming defensive coordinator at Towson University in Maryland. O?Neil eventually talked his way into shadowing Pettine, Jr. while he was an outside linebackers coach with the Baltimore Ravens. Pettine, Jr. told O?Neil if he ever got a coordinator position, he would be bringing O?Neil on board with him, and did so with the New York Jets in 2009. As for Pettine, Jr. as a high school player, his father?s tone changed. ?I was overly tough on him,? Pettine, Sr. said after a long pause. He went on to describe his son as a gifted, naturally talented athlete. Pettine, Jr. still holds the interception record as a defensive back. Pettine, Jr. also starred at quarterback and committed to the University of Virginia to play the position. The Central Bucks West team Pettine, Jr.?s year finished with a 9-2 record; both losses were by one point each. 'NAME OF THE GAME IS WINNING' Pettine, Sr.?s days are currently spent relaxing in Florida. His best golfing buddy hails from the Cleveland area and is a lifelong Browns supporter. The two chitchat about the excitement surrounding the team with a stable of veteran free agent acquisitions and a bevy of draft picks. Pettine, Sr. plans on visiting the Berea facility sometime in May. He reiterates how proud he is of his son but his businesslike coach tone buzzes loudly over the phone. He knows the challenge his son faces in turning the Browns into contenders. ?We all are enjoying the honeymoon period,? Pettine, Sr. said. ?But once September rolls around, the name of the game is winning.?
No hard feelings for Mack Now that he?s back, in body if not in spirit, look for Alex Mack to behave himself and continue his career with the Browns as if nothing happened. That?s the way it?s done when acrimonious acts occur during one?s career. He is a professional and most likely will act like one once he returns to Berea. It?ll be business as usual because that?s the way it should be. Once cornered by the media, you can expect something like this from the veteran center: ?It?s strictly business. I meant nothing personal to the fans or the team or the city of Cleveland. Right now, I just want to focus on playing football and be the best player I can be.? In actuality, he told cleveland.com Saturday that he?s happy. ?It?s been a long, hard road, but I?m here and I?m happy,? he said. ?I?m excited. I?m fired up. There?s no bad blood. Now that it?s done, I?m happy.? He?s also a wee bit wealthier. Matching the Jacksonville Jagwires? offer sheet was something the Browns had to do. The Cleveland offensive line, overrated for some reason the last couple of years by veteran observers of the National Football League, could not afford to lose Mack. Bringing in a new center via the college draft or free agency would have exacerbated the situation. In building an offensive line, you don?t want to start new at the second most important position (blind-side tackle being the most important) on the offensive line. Do not underestimate the importance of the center. He?s not some slug who snaps the ball to the quarterback. He is the linchpin. Everything revolves around him. Everyone else on the line get their blocking assignment changes from him. He is the smartest man on the line. Watch a center once he sets himself over the ball at the beginning of a play. His head is on a swivel. He is the key to the success or failure of every play. And when a play fails, it is not necessarily the fault of the center. Four other guys have to carry out their assignments properly, too. Mack, through hard work and diligence, rose to Pro Bowl status with a team that had no identity. To be recognized by his peers playing a position that is virtually anonymous to the ordinary fan was a signal honor. Perhaps it was that reward that emboldened him to seek his escape from Cleveland. Who could blame him for wanting to leave behind all the losing, all the frustration of playing well for naught? And now that he?s back for at least the next two seasons, the Browns are on the clock. During that time, they have to show Mack that losing football will not be tolerated anymore. They?ve got to build a winner and they?ve got to start right now. But they can?t do it with words. As former Browns coach Marty Schottenheimer used to say, ?Deeds, gentlemen, not words. Deeds.? It is incumbent on Ray Farmer, Mike Pettine and those responsible for turning this sad franchise around to start making the right moves. Not just a few here and there. All the right moves. No slipups. Sure it won?t be easy. But it can be done. With 10 picks in the upcoming college draft, rated by many experts as the best and deepest draft in nearly a generation, the opportunity to finally rid this franchise of its losing ways is clearly coming into focus. For most of the last 15 seasons, fans have clamored for a team to rid once and for all the stench of the ones that became the butt of jokes on a national level. It is time to turn the Factory of Sadness into the Factory of Happiness, Joy, Merriment. Whatever. Even though it has a three-year hole in its history, this franchise is still very much alive and rooted in winning football. Yes, the last 15 years have been miserable from a performance standpoint. No one could have forecast such misery once the NFL righted a terrible wrong. Some day, though, when historians look back at the fortunes of the Cleveland Browns, they just might point to the day they matched the Jacksonville offer sheet for Mack as the day the franchise began its comeback. Ironically, his supposed desire to leave Cleveland and subsequent return might turn out to be the driving force behind the comeback of the Browns. At 28, he is now entering the prime years of his career. All that hard work finally paid off. Posted by Rich Passan
Profootballtalk's Mike Florio is "hearing more talk" in league circles that the draft stock of this year's top-rated quarterbacks is "dropping." SI's Peter King added fuel to this fire in his MMQB column, stating the Texans, Browns, Jaguars, and Raiders are all "strongly considering" passing on signal callers at the top of the draft, "and waiting until their second or third selections." Both Florio and King are anticipating a second-day run on quarterbacks. We still expect Blake Bortles and Johnny Manziel to be first-round picks, but Teddy Bridgewater is a candidate to slide to day two, where Derek Carr, Zach Mettenberger, Tom Savage, Jimmy Garoppolo, and A.J. McCarron may also go.
Everyone can throw eggs at me and I will wear my dunce cap in public...But this would be a 180 degree turn in draft history if that is how this all plays out. Either these guys really are getting good info and I am wrong, or the GMs are getting very good at playing the media to do their bidding for smoke screens. I will go on the side of history and say at least 3 QBs will be gone in the top ten and 2 in the top 5...
Thanks but the Votto trade actually went through in spite of the email that said it had been withdrawn - weird. But anyway I'm set at 1b now.
I will take that bet Irish . I say only 1 goes top 5 if I was closer I would say we bet a BEER *DRINK* I will wear a Manziel av :! ..if the little turd goes top 5
A commonly held belief is that the Cleveland Browns are going to draft a quarterback in this year's NFL Draft. What is very much up for debate is just when they will draft one, holding three picks in the top 40. In his latest edition of Monday Morning Quarterback, "The Draft Games Begin," Peter King explores the issue of how the teams at the top of the draft, including the Browns, value the quarterbacks who will be available. "I've heard that at least four quarterback-needy teams--Houston (first pick), Jacksonville (3), Cleveland (4) and Oakland (5)--are strongly considering passing on quarterbacks with their first picks and waiting until their second or third selections," King writes. "Simple reason: They're not in love with any of the quarterbacks, and there are too many other good players who are surer things than a quarterback you have sincere doubts about." The Browns' second and third picks are at No. 26 (the pick acquired from the Colts for Trent Richardson) and No. 35. Much of the mystery lies in just which quarterbacks are really highly sought after and which may fall. Is Derek Carr, for instance, a top 5 pick, as some prognosticators speculate, or a late first/early second-round selection? Sporting News' Eric Galko addresses the Browns' "QB dilemma" in a piece filed Monday: "From what I've heard, the scouting staff may prefer Derek Carr and [Jimmy] Garoppolo, both 26th or 35th overall targets. However, new coach Mike Pettine and owner Jimmy Haslam reportedly are excited about the potential of landing Johnny Manziel." But is Manziel's stock as high as many perceive? Galko casts doubt upon that, writing, "Optimum Scouting has long had Manziel as the Browns pick at No. 26 overall because of these rumors. There's simply not a clear team fit for Manziel in the first round." Manziel falling all the way to No. 26 -- that sure would be something and make for quite the interesting (and most likely plentiful) green room shots come the night of May 8.
Happy Tuesday Lounge houndz... *DRINK* Yo Bluez how was the racin' I've still got another month to wait till they fire em up round here I'm sure Irish would be happy to send you a copy of his current one As much as I'd prefer Bortles, I still think that JF is a very real possibility at #4. :! Farmer/Pettine and Shanahan need to get their guy and this is their best opportunity to draft one or perhaps even two.
Bluez . . . you are sooo screwed. Everyone knows you don't need even one fullback in baseball much less three of 'em.
