Cleveland Browns Game 16: Winners and Losers
December 30, 2013
Scott Raab talks about Rob Chudzinski being fired and Andrew Bynum – WFNY Podcast – 2013-12-30
December 30, 2013
“We appreciate Chud’s passion for the Browns, and we have great respect for him both personally and professionally. We needed to see progress with this football team.”
Following an evening practice about halfway through training camp, Rob Chudzinski finished speaking with the media and walked to the one of the benches just outside the team facility where his wife Shelia had brought the couple’s three children for a visit. (Little did I know at the time that she was carrying the fourth child, another son born after the final home game.) Coach picked up and hugged each kid. Then they wanted to play catch with the little football on the big field.
I was standing outside the facility waiting to speak to a player that I had requested that day. A few players were still out around the facility signing autographs. Every once in a while a group of fans would get loud trying to entice a player over to sign.
As coach Chudzinski was tossing the ball to his kids, the crowd starting calling for him to come sign. After a few minutes, he obliged as he usually did during camp.
After the crowds had gone, Coach was once again playing with his kids when the youngest son bumped into his sister and immediately started crying. Any parent could tell that it wasn’t an ‘injury’ kind of cry. It was a ‘I’m smallest and not getting my way’ kind of cry. Chud bent over and reassured the little one that he was okay.
He must have seen me smiling. He looked at me and asked “You have kids?”
“One,” I replied. He gave me a head nod as if to say then you understand.
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I wanted it to work with Rob Chudzinski. Not just because he is a good guy. Which he is.
Not just because he is from Cleveland and WANTED to be the head coach of the Cleveland Browns.
Quite frankly, I wanted Chud to be the right coach because he was the new coach. I wanted the carousel to stop rotating. I wanted to buy into the consistency idea.
Even when I woke up Sunday morning the thought that it could be Rob Chudzinski’s last game with the Browns never entered my head until I checked twitter after church while getting a few last minute groceries before the game.
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“We needed to see development and improvement as the season evolved and, unfortunately, we took a concerning step backward in the second half of the year.”
I posed the question to the WFNY staff back on November 21st. Are the Browns a better team in 2013 than in 2012? I posed the question because I was starting to have real doubts. Records aren’t EVERYTHING, but they have to be SOMETHING. The Browns finished the season 4-12 after going 5-11 last year. Were there signs of progress? Of course there were. I don’t think you could watch the last two games though and really see that improvement.
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“Our fans deserve to see a consistently competitive team. We have high standards, and there’s an urgency for success. When we believed we were not positioned to achieve significant progress in 2014, we knew we had to admit that a change was needed, and move forward.”
There’s an urgency for success? Since when has there been an urgency for success? Was there an urgency for success back in late April at the draft? How was trading out of picks in ’13 for picks in ’14 having an urgency for success?
If there is an urgency for success, how could the team lead the league in cap space? Were there no holes that could be filled? No upgrades to the roster to be made?
If there was an urgency for success, how could the running game have been left up to Willis McGahee? The Browns did not have a running back go over 80 yards in a game this season.
And how exactly can you say that the team was not positioned to achieve significant progress in 2014? Wouldn’t that greatly depend on what personnel the front office brings in?
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The firing of Rob Chudzinski Sunday night gives me a number. That number is eight. As in eight wins next year. Sure, technically six wins would be an improvement over the four they won this season. But they said significant progress. Going from four to six just doesn’t sound like significant does it?
I expect the Browns to be at least 8-8 next season.
I don’t care who is under center.
I don’t care who is running the ball.
I don’t care who the defensive coordinator is or what system they run.
I don’t care if Butch Davis or Ricky Davis or Josh McDaniels is the head coach.
Eight wins.
Anything less and it is a failure of the front office. Not the coach. Rob Chudzinski is your mulligan. If hiring him was a mistake, then you get one mistake. No more mistakes with head coaches. The next guy is YOUR guy, even though Chudzinski was your guy. Your words, not mine.
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“Browns fans are the most loyal and passionate supporters in the NFL. We’re fully committed to bringing them the winning football team they deserve.”
I think everyone has their breaking point. I’ve seen a lot of people on social media saying they are done with the Browns. Will they be back? More than likely. It seems to be the way with a lot of fans.
There are people that I know or have talked to that have given up on the Browns and the NFL in general. To be honest, I don’t think I could ever root for another team. I would likely have to walk away from the league altogether.
Browns fans went without a team for three seasons. Is it out of the question to think that fans could finally have had enough? Could they be at a breaking point deciding that the heartache and frustration aren’t worth it anymore?
Each fan has to decide that for themselves.
I can’t help but think that the Browns are pushing some closer and closer to that line.
69 Comments
wow, what did you smoke for lunch? We just won 4 games, still have no QB (we don’t know Hoyer is good after 2 games, one of which he threw 3 picks), no RB, the potential loss of 2-3 Pro Bowl players, and uncertainty at Head Coach. The fact that you get 10 wins out of that schedule amazing to me. That’s what the front office is counting on.
That’s been my approach for the past couple years, made easier by living so far away. But for most of my time living out of state, I made a point to attend at least one game a season back in Cleveland, watching the rest in my Browns gear from the local pub. Then last year I invested in Sunday Ticket via the PS3 and watched from my couch. This season? What I saw of the team’s games was via Red Zone, save for the Dolphins game which made local tv here. Making effort for or financial investment in this team has become less appealing with time, especially when it seems to offer less and less satisfaction.
It’s worse when you are immersed in it though.
I just can’t stress it enough sorry.
Thank you. I can’t find the prediction for 10 wins though where is it?
I was hoping to have met a fellow member of the Tribe, although it seems everybody enjoys Yiddish sayings.
They handed Chud a Sh-t sandwich and now act surprised that it tastes like a sh-t sandwich. The next coach should be no worse than what Andy Reid did in KC. That is assuming of course the FO doesn’t screw up the draft and free agency and leaves the next coach all the ingredients to another sh-t sandwich (a very real possibility), in which case 8-8 may be acceptable
But by then I may not really care anymore what their record is.
“I don’t care who is under center.”
I do – if it’s Brandon Weedon starting again, I’m forgetting the Browns even exist.
Oh dear God what a nightmare. Some cocky new coach that sees those beautiful throws in practice and decides he’s the guy that can turn Weeden into a superstar. The mind reels.
I love you, man.
I heard they’re gonna hire Kevin Costner. Already got him locked down.
My children bark. And since I’m not a Georgia fan I’m pretty much stuck – and so are they.
Mr. Banner, is that you?
2nd to last line
I HAVE HAD ENOUGH. I thought Chud had football smarts and definitely had a passion to turn the Browns into winners. How the hell do you give a guy that YOU HIRED only one season to turn things around, especially as the article points out, with trading away draft picks, and not spending the cap space on much needed free agents? You give Chud McGahee as your featured RB? You set the guy up for failure. I can’t root for another team, but I am done with the Browns unless they get a proven head coach this time, someone that has won a ring, someone like Gruden or Cowher. Any retread failures (McDaniles), or any first time head coaches, and this team will no longer exist for me.
I overlooked the “see more” lol. Two words: OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOY VEY!
Browns had all that cap space, wouldn’t home town kid Aqib Talib have worked out nice opposite Haden, with Skrine in the slot? How about spending some of that cap space on a good ILB to finish off the defense?
And then on offense, how much better could the running game have been with a real FB? Vonta Leach was available, Lawrence Vickers is still available. They could have also spent some of that cap money on legit OGs. They needed 2 of them, one that could pull (like Steinbach), and one that was a mauler.
There were talented players still on the board that could have been had with those picks that the FO pawned off to the 2014 draft.
The biggest FAILURE was from the FRONT OFFICE for not getting the needed talent. Chud did what he could with what he had. It was the first year in a new offensive and defensive systems, with limited talent. We could have seen large improvements next season, instead of hitting the reset button and friggin starting all over again.
Not me, I am done.
Hilarious, thank you. Poor Brownie Elf, he didn’t even know.
Very sad, but true. To various degrees they’ve managed to lose many of us in the same way. The sad thing is we all now have kids and how do you make them follow a loser? Probably why there are now so many stinking Steeler fans that live in Cleveland 🙁