May 24, 2013

ESPN: Improved 2012 Browns are still a 4-win team

June 20, 2012 by 85 Comments

Vegas isn’t very impressed with the Browns, and now ESPN’s John Clayton is echoing the sentiments. Clayton doesn’t doubt that Weeden, Richardson and Mitch Schwartz will come in and start. He also recognizes the addition of Brad Childress to the coaching staff. In the end, it isn’t enough for the Browns to make what Mike Holmgren refers to as a “big jump” in the record books.

Despite these additions, there are some major doubts about whether the Browns’ offense will take the necessary step forward because of their wide receivers. Cleveland lacked speed and dependable hands (Cleveland was tied for the most drops in the NFL) at this position last season, and the Browns did very little to change that.

There is some good news for Browns fans if you think the opinion of AFC North writer Jamison Hensley means anything. While he agrees with Clayton’s assessment of the W/L record, he seems to think the way the Browns lose this year will be of an improved nature.

Clayton is spot-on with four wins, although I will put an asterisk by it. The Browns will be a much better team despite not improving on last season’s win total. A challenging schedule, a tough division and a lack of playmakers in the passing game will lead to the fifth straight season of at least 11 losses.

As I’ve stated time and again, I think predicting W/L records is nearly impossible with all the moving pieces and question marks, not just in Cleveland but all over the league. What is encouraging, at least on paper, is that most think the Browns have improved the team year-over-year even if they can’t see the Browns winning a ton of games within an admittedly scary-looking schedule.

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  • mgbode

    I think SNF does a better job figuring out how to get better games on their docket. the flex games at the end of the season also help them alot.

  • http://twitter.com/oribiasi oribiasi

    Lordy that’s what you’re focused on? I have an M.A. in English and I don’t even care. Form follows function.

  • http://twitter.com/oribiasi oribiasi

    @mgbode:disqus Nice tix. Enjoy the park, it’s fun.

  • mgbode

    we tried to hire Heckert w/o Holmgren. Heckert told us no. Holmgren’s presence is part of what brought Heckert to the Browns.

  • mgbode

    thank you sir.

  • http://twitter.com/anolt52 Alan Nolt

    The Browns schedule may look hard now but not when the season is over. People thought the Bengals were one of the worst teams in the entire NFL and they made the playoffs. And if the Browns had beaten the Bengals in that 1st game last year who knows what would have happened.

  • nj0

    By Holmgren’s own admission, Mangini was fired because “we did not win enough”. Wins clearly mattered in 2010. Not sure why that wouldn’t be the case in 2012.

  • markn95

    I can realistically see 2 division wins this year (one of the Cincy games is a gimme (I can’t see them beating us 4 times in 2 years) and we should win one of the home BAL/PIT games if only due to their age and attrition). That’s already +2 from last year. Everyone is worried about the tough schedule but the Browns should take one game from the SD/DAL/PHI portion of the schedule. Even when those teams are good (and none of them really were last year) they tend to give away games to inferior competition. Even the Giants game is not completely out of reach, especially because it’s early in the season. They were a 9-7 regular season team last year and lost at home to a bad west coast Seattle team. Then, there’s the “winnable” portion of the schedule–BUF (home), IND, KC (home), and WAS (home). That’s 2 wins if we split those games, or even 3 if we take 2 of the 3 home games (not impossible) and beat a rookie QB on the road.

  • realrepublic

    I said nothing about the platform or discussion. I simply noted that I read the same article on ESPN.com earlier in the day and this had exactly zero new insight. I am all for commenting and debating topics but this is cut and pasting another sites content to drive traffic. So, nothing personal, just calling out what I see.

  • dan

    The Browns “improved” last year, or so everyone told me. They “improved” the year before. And the year before that, there was “improvement” at the end of the season. None of these improvements ever translated to more wins. This year, I want the Browns to get worse, just so that I can have the pleasure of watching them win more games.

  • Steve

    Right, not every team is going to get better. But even the old teams are bringing in 10 or so new young guys who are taking the spots from the guys at the end of the roster. The talent across the league is improving every year.

  • Bryan

    ”
    What is encouraging, at least on paper, is that most think the Browns have improved the team year-over-year even if they can’t see the Browns winning a ton of games within an admittedly scary-looking schedule.”

    Its depressing that this is the bar you set for the Holmgren regime in Year 3. Wow. Holmgren was the one who said W/L is all that matters. Improvement without wins is not acceptable, according to him. But I can already see that the Holmgren peeps are starting to shift the bar lower so they can define this year as a “success” even when we stink again.

  • The_Real_Shamrock

    Yea I have no clue as to the truthfulness but thought it was topical. Not sure what his relationship with Childress was/is either but he’d be an unbelievable dynamic option to add to that offense.

  • mgbode

    yeah, Harvin reportedly wants out, the question is if Minny is dumb enough to go through with it. If I were them, I’d hold strong (like Philly did with DeSean).

    Completely agree that he’d be a HUGE addition to the offense.

  • mgbode

    ok, so you’ve got us at 6-10 w/ an upside of 8-8 if I read that correctly.

  • eldaveablo

    I’m less concerned with the spelling than I am with the idea that somehow the money paid Holms takes away from FA spending. It’s not like Holms counts against the cap, and it’s Heckert’s call to sign free agents anyway, and that’s not the way he wants to build the team.

    Granted, I agree that the choices Holms has made are pedestrian at best – he hasn’t proven to be worth his paycheck by any stretch. I guess we’ll see where we are when this is all over, but so far it’s not looking good.

  • cmm13

    Well I could have focused on the other ridiculous points made in the comment:
    1. Holmgren is here only for money
    2. There were better candidates beating the door down to be the coach
    3. We could have hired Heckert without Holmgren (which we tried and he said no)

    But I figured we’ve already debated those points to death in other comment threads …..so yeah, I went the easy road.

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1028050197 George Walter Laird III

    cleveland will win 9 games.

  • floydrubino

    So my point is ridiculous and your concerned with spelling

    here is how amazing you are with your views

    1.holmgren could care less about the fans of cleveland and is here for a check and because no one else in the nfl wants him as a gm or executive

    2.there is without question better candidates out there. This is dream jobs for people to be a nfl coach. Shurmur stinks and Holmgren threw him in there unprepared to make things even worse

    3.we had to pay a kings ransom to get holmgren here so your saying heckert is worth the money of both holmgren and his own salaries(which is my point if you could put anything together)

    hey great your that guy on these type of sites that corrects grammar and spelling errors and then has nothing important or relevant to write about

    got it

  • floydrubino

    so they take everything about cleveland sports and puts on a site that we can quickly look on instead of spending forever combing through espn. What you are complaining about is why i look at this site. I hope he pulls articles from everywhere about cleveland so we don’t miss anything. I’m confused on your criticism. Even if there are mistakes or lazy articles like you say as a whole they do a very good job. I disagree with their views quite a bit but I’m not ignorant enough to think I’m right all the time. I’m only right 99.9% of the time and I’m willing to admit this.

  • The_Real_Shamrock

    With Childress in town there is an obvious link but this would be the kind of move I could get excited by therefore I know it’ll never happen.

  • Believelander

    This is patently false. Despite the inability of a prediction to be false.

  • cmm13

    Please provide:

    1. The letter you posses from Holgren to Heckert in which he clearly states he is here for a paycheck only because you obviously have this proof.

    2. The list of qualified candidates Holmgren interviewed but chose Shurmur instead.

    3. How Holmgrens paycheck affects any of the actual players brought into the team.

    It’s okay to post your opinions but be sure to state “these are my opinions” versus the “this is fact” style in which you declare them.

  • Believelander

    It’s also how a genius divests himself of the literary chains of punctuation; just capitalize when it is time For a new senTence.

    But, I will agree with the commenter that the Shurmur hire was, well…..Ask Pat.

  • Believelander

    Define #1 wide receiver. It is true that championship teams have highly productive receivers, but the implication that we need to have a Megatron is not. In fact, many Super Bowl teams lack a receiver who is top echelon in NFL production, or even a prototype #1 receiver. Victor Cruz generated 1500 receiving yards, sure. He is a 6′ 200 undrafted free agent the Giants nearly cut.

    Greg Jennings for the Pack is a late 2nd.rounder. He is 6′ 200ish as well (5’11″ actually). Mike Wallace, the Stillers’ highly dangerous wideout from that super bowl, was a late.3rd rounder.

    The most productive receiver for the 09 Saints was a 7th rounder, Marques Colston.

    The 07 Patriots had Randy Moss. They lost the Super Bowl.

    The point is, Super Bowl champs have productive receiving corps and great QBs. The proto-weapon receivers sometimes appear in the title games, sometimes dont. I am not.saying the Browns receivers don’t need to improve; they need to improve a lot. But receiving by committee is just as effective as having one truly terrifying receiver.

  • Believelander

    You Have Been Downclicked.

  • cmm13

    Also please now berate me for the mis-spellings in my previous comment.

  • mgbode

    yes, they have a separate section for their own articles and those pulled from elsewhere “headlines”
    just like sites like hoopshype, etc. have that give you a sampling of a bunch of outside articles on the same topic. pretty dang standard.

  • iel76

    Same President, same coach. It’s a crappy organization so how else do you expect the experts to feel. This organization is simply a joke…and I say this as a fan since 1958.

  • Elmer1234

    As a season ticket holder and long time fan, I’m afraid that this will be yet another disappointing year. Despite all the hype locally, it seems everyone else outside of Cleveland save one or two out there who like to be contrarians, is down on the Browns. I’ve seen Holmgren in person twice now at speaking engagements, and have heard his interviews and press conferences. He talks a pretty piece, and we all desperately want to believe him. But – the fact remains, many many intelligent people from the bettors, to ESPN, to analysts, to news writers, to bloggers, to even sympathetic writers who genuinely feel sorry for the Browns, thinks (no, KNOWS) that the Browns will have another lackluster year. Being 2 or 3 years away is a verbal form of comfort food that is fashionable to say. Many other teams have turned it around much faster than this, but the Brownies just seem to be stuck.

    It doesn’t make sense to me how this could happen, frankly. We have fan support. We have our colors and history. Lerner has money. So why? Can anyone really answer this?

    And before we blame previous players, coaches, or GMs, remember that they ALL looked good once – before the season started. Just like the current regime and players!

  • KAG

    Well I guess that’s it then… No point in playing the games this season since these desk jockeys have already decided our fate!

  • http://www.facebook.com/tim.fuzie Tim J Fuzie

    Its not about pleasing the fans….Holmgren wants to win (has to win). Better candidates? The coach doesnt make plays…He uses the players he is given, which leaves a lot to be desired. i know this, H&H better start winning pretty soon or we will be starting over again…4 wins? more like 6 wins….more competitive? we were told that the last 3 yrs. Get 6 to 8 wins or dump them both.

  • floydrubino

    You realize that there was more candidates than just the ones we looked at. Since Holmgren runs a certain system that limited our selections which right there is stupid to begin with. It’s like having a mentality of picking a player out of necessity when he is not that good and passing on a great player. So we passed on great candidates because shurmur fits holmgrens system. And you think that Holmgren taking a huge salary doesn’t affect lerner spending even more money. I wish you owned the team where millions meant so little where you would just spend like it meant nothing. Nice spelling too because when i misspell words sometimes when you have that spell check stuff words get spelled weirdly sometimes so all you wordsmiths out there calm down. Sometimes people don’t care as much as you to keep xing the word out to change it when it does weird stuff. When you do it your trying to spell correctly and can’t even get it right. well done.

  • tikihat

    Why did you think Holmgren would come in and make a “splash”, because he said he would? Well, no. He said from the outset that this would be a multi-year process of creating a franchise that could become a dynasty. Yes, he started with the basics first. He did that because the Browns didn’t even have the basics in place. Sure, he could have spent a fortune on Free Agents, and been unable to afford to keep Joe Thomas from taking his talent to South Beach. Or worse, Pittsburgh.
    Now, going into just the second year of his plan being implemented, we already have a Top-10 Defense. Our O-Line has been addressed. Our TE Corps might be the best in the League. We have a legitimate Running Back instead of a head case. Our QB question just might be answered. Sure, there are pieces we still need. But at least now we have a foundation underneath them.
    As to Shurmur, the man has a better resume than Holmgren had when Green Bay gave him a chance. Pat is now surrounded by respected, veteran coaches to help him grow. You want splash? Root for Cincy. They’re always making splashy moves. Sometimes they even work. I’ll take a methodical plan to build a team that can dominate our division for years.

  • http://twitter.com/ericvsthem Eric B

    I hear that, but what team executives say does not necessarily reflect their true motivations.

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