Uni Talk, The Lindor Truffle, and Super Troopers 2: While We’re Waiting…
March 26, 2015The Window Is Wide Open… Don’t Fall Out: 2015 Indians Preview
March 26, 2015We don’t yet know what the Cleveland Browns’ penalties are, but this idea that they’re going to be “severe” has me bubbling with potential rage. You can’t argue with the league punishing teams for their transgressions. Whether we’re talking about artificial noise in Atlanta, deflated footballs in New England or yes, even Cleveland Browns texting, the league needs to hand down punishment for rule breakers. Real punishments need to have teeth in order to work. Still, I find myself actually getting hot under the collar by the idea of Browns fans losing a draft pick because we didn’t do anything wrong.
I work really hard to think things through and not give in to the “rage monster” and get irrational, but that’s where I come from. It’s part of my DNA for whatever reason. It’s largely (and thankfully) in remission but the rage disease is one that I’m prone to, whether that means kicking things, wanting to break things that won’t work, or otherwise prove my manhood to inanimate objects that won’t cooperate. I have been known to make myself feel better by destroying things.
I once took a hammer and screwdriver to a door handle that wouldn’t work anymore. If I couldn’t fix it I was really going to break it and I did. The fact that I did this in front of my in-laws should let you know how much I’ve struggled controlling it. I listen to a lot of Opie and Jim on Sirius XM and Opie calls it “fighting air.” The idea that the Browns — and more importantly we Browns fans — could actually lose a draft pick because Ray Farmer sent some text messages makes me want to do something awful and destructive. I’m not kidding, and I know it’s irrational.
The fact that I say it’s irrational and I know it’s irrational should somehow help prevent me from continuing to think about it, but I can’t stop myself. This is how I think. Follow me down the path of insanity for a minute.
Leave those draft picks alone. Those belong to the fans.
As far as I’m concerned (in my irrational anger) the NFL might as well fine themselves. Roger Goodell, Robert Kraft and the Rooney family (among others) should dig into their pockets rather than take away a draft pick from my favorite football team. They’re FAR more responsible for this texting thing and everything else that’s happened with the Browns since Jimmy Haslam bought the team than Browns fans who will be impacted by the loss of a draft pick.
I know it just comes off like a populist message where I’m playing to the “base” and preaching to the choir, but Browns fans getting punished for the deeds of someone else? I get that the team and the people involved need to be punished, but don’t start with me on Browns draft picks. That might punish Jimmy Haslam and Ray Farmer, but it also hits Browns fans who’ve done nothing but support this abysmal team through every trial and tribulation inflicted upon them by a league they don’t control that basically installed a dictator they can’t elect or impeach.
So go ahead and hit those dudes in their wallet or suspend them for games, but you leave those draft picks alone. Those belong to the fans and we didn’t do anything wrong. Now, if you’ll excuse me I have to go re-read my post about how I want to try and be fair to Jimmy Haslam.
47 Comments
That’s a pretty innovative way of looking at it, Craig. I like it. Don’t punish the whole class because one kid threw a paper airplane. Goodell shouldn’t mess with Browns fans. We’re pretty testy already.
Another thing about these punishments: Why does it take so long to levy them? When this was first reported, the word was that the investigation would last about two weeks. How many months ago was that? Same thing happened with the Josh Gordon suspension. They just dragged it out. And the Jim Irsay suspension in Indy. The wheels grind too slowly.
This may be the straw that breaks the camels back for me.
And then they tell the team what the punishment is, but keep it a secret to the public for another week? Thankfully we have SOURCES to let us know that the team knows, and that it might/possibly/very well could be/not impossible/has a chance to be severe. I really don’t understand the logic here.
Just a few days ago, MKC had a story at Cleveland.com quoting Goddell as saying something like – “I don’t want to comment because I’m not familiar with the case yet”. WHY ARE YOU GETTING PAID TENS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS? WHAT DO YOU DO ALL DAY? HOW FREAKING HARD IS THIS?
http://i.imgur.com/vJ1PWkS.gif
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This all day. People try to marginalize this message by labeling it “populist”. As if what’s in the best interest of the majority of the people is a bad thing. What’s not talked about as much is how these NFL teams started out as small business ventures in the early 19th century played by working-class men for side money from their day jobs. Often times ownership of the team was offered to standout players as recruitment to join the team. The point is that the ownership model for teams started in a different era, in different circumstances and has grown dramatically for different reasons but not least among them with the help of government assistance.
Today the popularity of the sport along with the historical attachment of the city to the teams has made them de facto public institutions privately owned. The owner can be completely incompetent and face no consequences. In fact, he’s rewarded. And this from the men who constantly preach merit-based incentives in the work place. No surprise Jimmy inherited his wealth. Wouldn’t be so bad if he didn’t tell the rest of us to pull ourselves up from our bootstraps.
I live in South America and would like to see a model similar to the ones here and in Europe with their Soccer teams. The clubs are all owned by membership and the CEO’s and presidents are elected by the members based on their performance on the field.
I think if any team deserves this it’s us.
The league most likely told the Browns earlier to give them a chance to appeal before a final punishment is given
I want to see Browns fans voting on CEOs. That’d be such a cluster. Heads would be rolling more regularly than during the French Revolution.
Can you define “Europe”? Because in the EPL, the teams are owned by dudes… like Randy Lerner.
I really hope they take away one of our first round picks, most specifically this one:
https://usatthebiglead.files.wordpress.com/2014/05/johnny-manziel-drafted-by-the-browns.gif
“I want to see Browns fans voting on CEOs. That’d be such a cluster.”
I woudn’t be so sure about that…
Browns inaugural public CEO vote results:
Bernie Kosar – 99%
Other – 1%
i’m quasi-sympathetic do this argument as a cleveland fan, but when you start to think about it in any larger context, it pretty quickly falls apart, in my opinion. the browns fans also don’t elect/vote/select the players on the team, and if a player violates the nfl’s personal conduct policy, he gets suspended, which in theory could hurt the performance of the team, thus “punishing” the fans. would you argue that players shouldn’t be suspended for violations, because that indirectly punishes the fans? to me, it’s the same argument. you could pretty much twist any rule/league violation that hurts the on-field product into an argument about how that’s really hurting the fans, and thus according to the logic the punishment shouldn’t be levied.
i think the argument worth having would be one about why sending text messages to the sidelines, which likely provides no competitive advantage, is something worth regulating.
also, don’t forget that the punishment hasn’t even been announced yet. this might not worth be getting angry about.
He’d be our Robespierre. He’d be sacrificed before Thanksgiving. It’d be nonstop. After every loss, there would be an emergency session. I’m getting goosebumps just thinking about it.
“Early 19th century?”
“Forget it, he’s rolling.”
Disagree. The suspension of a player is necessary to punish the player and hitting them financially. Yes, the fans get punished too, but you can’t punish players without, you know, punishing players. The NFL could do all sorts of things to punish Jimmy and Ray without directly impacting the fans by taking draft picks away, I think. Take a year’s salary from Farmer for all I care. Tell me that wouldn’t send a message to GMs all over the league.
I actually think we’re one of the most football-savvy fan bases in the country, if not the most so. If we actually had competent management we would be the first to recognize it and I think the majority would support it.
Yea your right. Most of the top-tier teams in Europe are privately owned but it is a different dynamic. Most fan groups have representatives on the teams’ boards. And the stadiums are owned by the teams, not the cities. Owners can’t hold cities hostage for a new stadium.
Lower-tiered teams are largely membership owned, however.
The only reason we continually want people fired is because other people hire the wrong people from the start. I think Browns fans might have kept Phil Savage though. Can’t decide if that would have been good or bad. lol
I do not see how what the Browns did affects what happens on the field. They can talk in a headset. Just ban all cellphones from the sideline, how hard is that? The fact that someone is checking his cell phone during the game is BS. No way did this affect the game, so it should not be severe consequences IMO. SMH
Hahaha! Perfect.
Monetary punishments less than some upper 6 to 7 digit number wouldn’t likely do anything to Haslam. Perhaps revoking his tickets for 1/2 season (so he can’t chum with his buddies in the elite box seats) would be more effective. Chris Rock humorously compared the rich to the wealthy with the analogy of Shaq is rich. The white dude that signs Shaqs paychecks is wealthy.
Is caring less about a team that so clearly doesn’t care back and is willing to break the rules completely off the table?
Oh man. Now look. You’re getting angry about whether or not we should be prematurely angry about a negative outcome that may never actually occur! 🙂
Might be true, but I think ALL football fans are by their nature reactionary. Us especially.
So basically all teams and all professional sports? Yeah, technically we all shouldn’t logically care/be emotionally vested then and thus sports fandom is totally irrational. I guess then, why be commenting and discussing sports then?
The Indians seem to have built an organization that is very fan-friendly and easy to support. The Browns seem to want to test just how much of a football town this city actually is.
I confess that your logic doesn’t resonate with me. There’s a litany of stupid things the Browns have done that I didn’t have a say in and have negatively affected my team – start with the draft history, Dwayne Rudd’s helmet toss, Banner hiring Lombardi … Good teams please their fans. Bad teams anger and disappoint as they reap the consequences of their incompetence on and off the field.
Look, leagues generally punish not only for deterrence but with a measure-for-measure approach. You break the recruiting rules? We’re taking scholarships. Improperly making ineligible players eligible? We’ll take the wins they played in and more. The Timberwolves’ owner cost them FIVE FIRST ROUNDERS for an under the table deal with Joe Smith to improperly acquire his Bird rights – measure for measure, player for player. Texting rules are (presumably) about competitive advantage. Taking Farmer’s money doesn’t address that, taking a billionaire’s money doesn’t either.
Direct your anger toward the sniveling rat fink weasel Shanahan. There was no reason for the to EVER become public, except he was trying to do damage control in the national media because he walked out on his contract. Daddy Mike is a master media manipulator and they knew the national media (led by Lombardi’s piss boy LaCanfora) would be amenable to putting out a story about “ZOMG! Browns are texting! LOLZ!”
The real question is, if cell phones aren’t allowed on the sideline, WHAT WAS SHANAHAN DOING WITH A CELL PHONE ON THE SIDELINE?!?! Why does he escape criticism/blame/responsibility. If a text is sent, but there’s no phone to recieve it, was it ever sent at all?
WOW +1 for the Robespierre shout out
yeah they can do that, Id be totally ok with it
The Joe Smith stuff is so frequently forgotten.
I agree with your sentiment but two things:
1. I don’t think there’s ever been any confirmation about who received the texts let alone their content (I thought it was someone much further down the food chain than Shan and relayed).
2. While the circumstances of how this issue became public certainly reflects an unsavoriness on the part of those who were responsible for the revelation, if the team doesn’t want to be subject to this kind of exposure don’t break the rules that made it possible.
“dont break the rules that made it possible”
it’s the NFL, we were treated to two weeks of discussion about 1 p.s.i in a football because the nutzoids in the league are THAT hyper competitive. Guys take horse tranquilizers to get on the field. To say “dont break the rules” is kind of disingenuous, since everyone knows each and every rule is pushed to its absolute limit every day, and it is encouraged, if only unofficially.
And I thought Shanahan directly said he was the recipient, so if Im wrong on that, mea culpa. On the other hand, if he wasn’t the one who got the messages, then doesn’t that make his being a stoolie that much worse?
And at the end of the day, if they punish the team for breaking a rule, that’s fine. A draft pick is a bit much but whatever. I just don’t know how Shanahan goes unscathed. Either he’s a rat fink, or he was ok with breaking the rules until it because convenient for him to use the rule breaking to his advantage. Either way, his image should’ve endured more abuse than it has.
This is like Gordon and pot. I don’t think smoking pot is a problem and the rules about it are laughably out of touch but the rules exist. He broke them, got caught and now he has to pay. Not saying it’s right but it is the reality they have to function within. Ray made himself vulnerable and someone used it against him. They can argue for change but in the meantime: DRAFT PICKS.
I’m pretty sure Shanahan is a colossal d-bag for all kinds of reasons.
I don’t know, I see him more as a Philosopher King, whose every decision is just and power is limitless.
Heckert probably kept too.
Speaking of Shanny… I just read an article over on the 4 letter website about Alex Mack’s return. I found this thought from Mack very interesting, and I honestly never considered this (more reason Shanny might just be overrated):
“Considered one of the game’s best centers, Mack isn’t anticipating a production drop-off upon return. But he wasn’t exactly shocked to see the team’s rushing numbers drop without him – that would have happened anyway, he said. The Browns were running the ball at a fervent pace, so he knew defenses would eventually adjust and the offense needed a counter move that never came.”
Agreed. And if somehow they decide to take away a second (or first!?!) round pick for this mess, it’s time for Farmar to lose his job completely.
Call it a case of the punishment fitting the punishment.
we’ll have to wait for the verdict , but expect farmer to get suspended for 4 games , there will be a hefty monetary fine & possibly a mid-round draft pick taken away.
the falcons are going to be disciplined as well for pumping recorded crowd noise into their stadium. wonder how severe that will be.
You know what would be great? If Cleveland’s reps in Congress came out and said something to the effect of “hey, that’s a nice tax-exempt status ya got there, I’d be a shame if anything happened to it…”
I would not hesitate to hit Goddel with my car if he was jaywalking. I’d be declared a national hero.
He is Putin level out of touch with reality.
Goodell’s penalties and judgments will forever be measured against Ray Rice’s. If he hands out “severe” punishments to Browns and Falcons it just increases the neon in which the absurdity is highlighted…..
Waiting for Goddel.
“Either he’s a rat fink, or he was ok with breaking the rules until it because convenient for him to use the rule breaking to his advantage. Either way, his image should’ve endured more abuse than it has.”
I always felt this way vis a vis Mangini and Spygate. You mean to tell me it *never* happened while you were there, Eric, and you’re just a concerned citizen?
The FO should have terrible music blared in their offices 24/7 for the entire season.
Only Browns fans would consider the loss of draft picks a personal affront. It’s like shutting off our cable during the Super Bowl.