With a little time having passed since Sunday's large rotten egg, I thought to myself: "self, wasn't this Pettine's first Bye", and of course I answred "Why yes self, it was". So I don't forgive the total team letdown, but I expect whatever approach Pettine took for the Bye week will not be repeated. This is a week to week league, "pass / fail" every week. I don't know of a grade below fail, but we achieved it last week. The good news is there are still 6 tests left, and we need to pass every week. I'm not saying we need to win out, but we haqve to approach and treat every game as the single most important game of the year, because it is. Next weeks game isn't even remotely important until next week. Duh Can these guys do that? Can the coaches and players play like each game is the Super Bow? A tall order. One thing seems certain, whichever team emerges from the AFC North is going to be "playoff ready" cause they will have been playing playoff games for a month. Let's hope it's our Browns
Bluez I saw it yesterday on espn. It was on the ticket thing that goes across the screen. My brother also called me because in our auction FFB league we have Peterson and dropped him to pick up another back. Because Bradshaw is hurt in Indy we picked up Richardson for insurance. We were watching to see if Indy got him instead. On to something I just read on CBS. CBS has us picking #8 and Buffalo picking #7. 7th Landon Collins, S Alabama 8th Andrus Peat, OT Stanford CBS said the fans here are going to want a WR. But every draft guy has Collins as a higher prospect than even Cooper. With Gilbert struggling this wouldn't surprise me. Although I would still take a DT/ILB/DE with one of these picks. Our run defense is terrible. Peat they said would be the best tackle at this point in the draft. They said Schwartz has been disappointing. That and we already have 2 pro bowl lineman in Thomas and Mack would give us one of the best lines in the NFL. They also said that when Thomas retires Peat could move to left tackle. At least SB Nation has us picking in the middle of the draft! CBS must not think we are going to win anymore games. I dont like Schwartz. I think he sucks. But I agree we need help on the right side of the line. Landon is a stud. But we have Gipson and Whitner who are doing fine. I do think Gipson is a RFA this year. I also agree we need another WR. After next year Gordon is a FA. But i feel we need the most help at D-Line and ILB. WR/D-line,ILB/RT are the positions I want addressed with the first 3 picks in the draft. Farmer with the pick of Bitoinio can find a lineman in the 2nd rd. I'm worried about those 1st rd picks. we cant Gilbert one of those picks. We need to add talent (starters) to a position of need.
Gordon Draws Rave Reviews For His Work At Car Dealership 19 hours ago Cleveland Browns wide receiver Josh Gordon got plenty of work done during his 10-game suspension, and much of it had nothing to do with football. In addition to staying in shape for his return to the football field, Gordon was busy with his car dealership job at Sarchione Auto Group in Randolph, Ohio. And by the sounds of it, Gordon was an exemplary employee. Sarchione employee Mike Sabatine told Yahoo that Gordon sold a dozen cars in his time at the dealership. "He did really good," Sabatine said. "A respectful young man. And he sold a lot of cars. "He was a great worker. He worked extra hours, too. He came in, checked the cars, followed up with sold and unsold customers." TMZ says that Gordon, who has expressed interest in going into car sales after his football career, helped lease a car to Cleveland Cavaliers player Mike Miller. "He was totally into it," TMZ quotes a Sarchione employee as saying. "He was very patient with customers. He answered their questions. Josh knows a lot about cars. "He was working a full schedule. 8AM to 8PM Mondays and Thursdays ... 8AM to 6PM on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays. He also worked 8-3 on Saturdays."
Looking ahead at the AFC North: Pitt: Bye NO 4/6 @Cin 6/3/1 @Atl 4/6 KC 7/3 Cin 6/3/1 totals: 27 / 21 3 home / 2 away Balt: @NO 4/6 SD 6/4 @Mia 6/4 Jax 1/9 Hou 5/5 Clev 6/4 totals: 28 / 32 3 home / 3 away Cin: @Hou 5/5 @TB 2/8 Pitt 7/4 @Clev 6/3 Den 7/3 @Pitt 7/4 totals: 34 / 28 3 home / 3 away Cle: @Atl 4/6 @Buf 5/5 Ind 6/4 Cin 6/3/1 @Car 3/8 Bal 6/4 totals: 30 / 29 3 home / 3 away So who's got the inside track? Pitt with 7 up and only 5 to play, 3 of them home, 2 divisional games, but no gimmies? Bal with 3/3 home/away, only 1 divisional game, and Jax thrown in as a phone in game? Cinci with only 2 home games, 3 divisional games (2 away), and Tampla the only one to count a W? Clev with 3 home 3 away, 2 divisional games (both away), Carolina the only weak opponent? Gotta go with Balt / Pitt, as the front runners: Balt has the softest opponents Cleveland next with a 50/50 split home/away, and Carolina the only soft opponent. Cinci looks to have the hardest road to travel, only 2 home games, with 2 of 4 away games vs divisional opponents. It's a week to week league, and the AFC north is proof. Cleveland, like each of the AFC north teams holds it's destiny in it's own hands, so the playoffs have begun for all of us. Round 1 in Atlanta this week. We can win, but so too could Atlanta, if we fail to bring out A games. Pass / Fail test 1 of 6. Don't let the dog eat your homework.
Ken . . . Great minds think (almost) alike. I was doing the same thing this morning and this is what I came up with; Do I think the Steelers will go 2-3 to finish up the year? Probably not but, if they do and everything else happens . . . Here's the tiebreaker;
I have been wondering how that tie was going to play out . if nothing else playing meaningful football in November / December is refreshing . I could get used to this [:} *DRINK*
Jordan Cameron (concussion) remained sidelined Thursday. Nearly all signs point toward Cameron missing his fourth-straight game.
While the rest of us will be loading up on turkey for the next week, Browns linebacker Karlos Dansby has a different meal in mind. Dansby, who doesn?t seem likely to make it this week because of a sprained MCL, has a unique way of eating while he?s rehabbing. According to Tom Reed of the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Dansby was singing the praises of of eating lobster and mashed potatoes. ?I?m feeding like a vampire drinking blood,? Dansby said. ?I?ve got to feed it. For a vampire to bounce back, he?s got to get his blood and I?ve got to keep getting the lobster mash in my body right now. I?m eating a lot, man.? Whatever the healing properties of lobster and mashed potatoes might be, Dansby might be on the cutting edge of medical and culinary technology. If he?s able to get back for Sunday?s game at Atlanta, however, the Browns will doubtless be serving it up to all their injured players.
Lym, laying it out game by game, that seems reasonable, everyone going 50/50 except Pitt. Hoping to get the W this week, and then we'll re-evaluate. A loss this week makes the playoffs a very long shot. Overall, the division is either the best in the NFL or a by product of mediocrity. In any case I believe this division will end up becoming a historical anomaly, where every team finishes over 500. Who saw that coming?
After a long day on the golf course, I stopped in at ?Hooter's? to see some friends and have some Hot Wings and Ice Tea. After being there for a while, one of my friends asked me which waitress I would like to be stuck in an elevator with. I told them, "The one who knows how to fix elevators." After all, I'm old, tired, and I have to pee frequently.
Extra Points ? Rookie ups and downs: Who?s the better cornerback in his first NFL season ? Justin Gilbert, the Browns? first-round pick, No. 8 overall in the draft, or K?Waun Williams, who was undrafted? Based on playing time and stats, the numbers are close. Based on comments from defensive coordinator Jim O?Neil, the competition isn?t close. ?I think you would struggle to find a corner that was drafted this past year playing at a higher level than K?Waun right now,? O?Neil said. ?It?s just hard to keep K?Waun off the field.? The distinction should be made that Williams plays inside against the opponent?s slot receiver. Gilbert is being trained as an outside cornerback. Not many cornerbacks do both ? Buster Skrine being a notable exception. But the Browns have tried hard to keep Skrine from doing double duty, which is why Williams is receiving more playing time recently than Gilbert. ?For Justin to get on the field more, he?s got to outplay Joe Haden or Buster Skrine,? O?Neil said. ?Right now, we feel our three best cornerbacks are K?Waun, Buster and Joe. (Gilbert?s) our fourth corner right now. That?s where he fits on the totem pole.? For the record, Gilbert has played 274 defensive snaps (37.7 percent of the total) and has 23 tackles and five passes defensed. Williams has played 210 snaps (28.9 percent) and has 20 tackles, six passes defensed and one sack. Neither has an interception. Williams was inactive for the Jacksonville game because of a concussion. Gilbert did not play a single snap on defense in the Houston game because of a heel injury and the Texans? offensive scheme. Gilbert figures to see more time in Atlanta because the Falcons like to line up four wide receivers. In those cases, Haden and Gilbert would line up outside, and Skrine and Williams inside. O?Neil stressed, ?I?m not down on Justin. I?m just really high on K?Waun. If they let us play with 12, I?d play with 12 and put him out there.? The Gordon factor: Another benefit of Josh Gordon?s return involves the domino effect on Travis Benjamin. Fewer reps on offense might result in more concentration from Benjamin on the punt return game. On Thursday, Benjamin hinted that an increased role in the offense may account for his troubles on punt returns. He has had three fumbles or muffs, no return longer than 13 yards and a miniscule average of 2.7 yards on six returns total. ?Throughout my years of returns, catching the punt was never a problem,? Benjamin said. ?It?s all about getting refocused, knowing what?s on your plate, going back to offense, going back to punt return. It?s all about settling in.? While Benjamin said he has been ?very happy? about a larger role on offense ? he does lead receivers with three touchdowns ? you get the feeling his No. 1 focus this weekend is on igniting the punt return game. Going up against his hometown idol, Atlanta?s Devin Hester, will help. ?Both of us are from Palm Beach County (FL), both of us went to Miami, so I always kept my eye on that guy,? Benjamin said. ?I know him very well. Before the game, I?m going to go out there and try to challenge him on who?ll have the better game, just to push myself to that next level.? Benjamin said he senses a big return coming, and the ideal conditions inside Georgia Dome could be the spot. ?It?s steaming up,? he said. ?It?s going to be a very fast track. It isn?t cold, isn?t sunny. You can just spot the ball and get upfield.? Nobody could use a breakaway return more than Chris Tabor, special teams coordinator, who?s banging his head trying to snap a season-long slump on the punt return unit. ?There?s no question, any time something bad happens in our area I feel terrible about it,? Tabor said. ?It?s painful. I can?t even describe it to you what it?s really like.? Tabor said Benjamin will handle punts in the Atlanta game. ?There?s a little bit about him out there (at practice). I see him walking around, the confidence, the swagger, is coming back. I sense that,? Tabor said. Brownie bits: Not practicing on Thursday were tight end Jordan Cameron (concussion), linebacker Karlos Dansby (knee) and linebacker Jabaal Sheard (foot) ? With Dansby and Sheard unlikely to play, Craig Robertson and Chris Kirksey would fill the inside ?backer spots and Barkevious Mingo would adjust to a pass-rush role instead of coverage on passing downs ? Special teams core players Tank Carder and Eric Martin also would see more time in reserve roles on defense ? Everyone?s marveling at the sight of Gordon picking up things as if he hasn?t been away for 11 weeks. Coach Mike Pettine said Gordon?s practice ?pitch count? was increased on Thursday. Quarterback Brian Hoyer prides himself in delivering the ball in games according to the play-call?s read progressions, but in practice it?s been hard to resist the temptation of getting Gordon the ball frequently. Pettine: (On Wednesday) at practice every time he was out there the ball mysteriously found its way to him. (Hoyer) was like a kid with a new toy on Christmas.?
The Jeckyl & Hyde nature of the NFL has been epitomized by Cleveland and Pittsburgh, meaning they both have lost games they were distinctly favored in, more than once this year. Baltimore hasn't dropped a game all year to a "weak opponent". Cincinnati, the same. Pittsburgh and Cleveland have. Looking at the games remaining, and taking out interdivisional games (which I consider 50/50 at thsi point), three are only 7 games left outside the AFC north. Pitt has NO, Atl, and KC. They should be favored vs NO & Atl, so based on the season's results thus far, that comes up 1 & 1, then they have KC, in the next to last game at home: flip a coin. Cleveland has Atl & Car, where they are favored, again expect 1/1. Then Indy & Buf, hope for 1/1. Balt has NO, Jax, Hou, where they should be favored, based on season results they get them all, Then there's SD & Mia, where the odds could be either way, so 1/1? That makes them 4 and 1 with only Cleveland to play.......... Cinci has only TB where they will be favored, but figure +1, Then they have Hou & Den, maybe 1, then it's division time. Advantage Baltimore again. Only one divisional game, and quite probably favored in all of the remaining games. Their history vs teams they are favored against, their playoff history, and their opponent's records are all favorable. They will be the team to beat. I want that game to be for all the marbles, but there is a lot of work to do before we get to accept that challenge.
Crazy Crex?s Musings: Big football weekend here for me. *DRINK* Saturday is the big cross-state Rivalry between the MSU Bobcats and the UM grizzlies. Conference title and playoff implications here. Spoiler Then come Sunday hopefully our beloved Browns right the ship once more and go get a big win in ATL. This will be no gimmie by any stretch. Again the key will be winning the battles in the trenches, injuries will make this more difficult, but the next guy up will have to git-r-done. Mingo and Kruger are going to have to step up their games, and get plenty of pressure on matty ice. The big guys in the middle will need to bottle up the run game. I agree that cutting Tate was addition by subtraction. Getting Gordon back will be another boost to the offense. It should help open up the run game even more as the defense will have to stay honest. Hopefully Hoyer has better aim and accuracy this weekend. Let?s just hope that the not so special teams don?t give this game away. [h]Here We Go Brownies Here We Go! WOOF WOOF!!!![/h]
Friday Funnies [video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RgvihRmyd5o[/video] Spoiler [video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=IRBAZJ4lF0U[/video] This one is just too funny not to post. *ROFL*
