Was Braylon Edwards Allowed to Play Basketball?
Written By: Scott | Category: General | Comments: 43
When I first heard that Braylon Edwards was a guest at [Tigers center fielder] Curtis Granderson’s celebrity/charity basketball game, I thought little of it. I mean, we all know that Braylon is philanthropic. We all know that he has strong ties to Detroit, Michigan. And we all know that he’s a pretty athletic guy that most people would pony up to watch play a little five-on-five. However, once I got a chance to look a bit more into the game, I find myself wondering if the Browns were aware that Edwards was suiting up for the event.
One look at the picture to the right, and it is pretty evident that Edwards wasn’t just out there to loft up a few 15-footers. There are several photographs of Edwards attempting a bevy of slam dunks, and there was even an account that one of them was completely botched. No offense to people like ESPN’s Dana Jacobson, but she isn’t exactly the person that I’d pen as an expert at the Mikan drill. Given that, these types of games can get pretty sloppy – would you want your top receiving target out there throwing down slam dunks in transition?
Michigan Live claimed that Edwards was right up there with And 1 Mixtape’s Jamal Nelson when it came to the actual play on the court. Sure, this is a feather in Edwards’ cap, but is this something that makes Browns fans feel better about the situation? And to add a little salt in the “trying too hard” wounds, Edwards actually blocked a shot coming from Dana Jacobson – obviously because she was on the other team, and that’s the point of basketball, right? And it was not just one of those where it just happened to hit Edwards’ hand. He actually swatted the ball past half court, leading to a breakaway bucket for his team. No word on if he yelled anything at her while blocking said shot. Go hard or go home, Dana.
And when the game had to be decided by a slam dunk competition? Who else would represent the “blue” team but Braylon Edwards? Though coming out on the losing end of the “contest,” Edwards did 
make both of his dunks. You know how a few Wizards fans were a bit upset with Gilbert Arenas dunking at half time of the NBA All-Star game? At least Arenas is a basketball player. All it would take is one bad landing during the game of play or the contest to see who “wins,” and Edwards is back on the table for his second knee surgery in four years.
But fear not, fans. If Edwards were to miss a few games due to playing basketball, he’d still look good. In a post-game interview, Michigan Live came away with the following.
Who is the better dresser in Cleveland, you or Lebron?
That’s not even close.Who is it?
Me.
Why aren’t you on the cover of GQ?I play football. LeBron is LeBron. That’s not even a smart question.
Captivating. I could get into a whole separate argument regarding why LeBron was on the cover of GQ instead of Edwards, but that would be a very long tangent.
I know that we’re attempting to reconcile with Edwards before the 2009 season starts. With a Browns team that needs all of the help it can get, we need #17 to get back to the level at which he played in 2007. In no way do I knock Edwards for giving back to the community. In fact, I admire his willingness to do so – even when it isn’t his charity. But I just wish that he could find other ways to do such. Perhaps ones that do not endanger his future as a professional football player with the team of my (sometimes obsessive) rooting interest.
Is it wrong of me to place this right below riding a motorcycle? I would really like to know how Eric Mangini/Randy Lerner feel about this one. Or if they even knew…
(Photos courtesy of MLive.com)
Author: Scott
Scott is a co-founder/editor of Waiting For Next Year who resides in Cleveland, Ohio. Feel free to follow him on Twitter or email him at scott@waitingfornextyear.com.Scott has written 1701 articles for Waiting for Next Year.
I’d immediately check into the terms of his contract in regards to off the field activities. If this is a violation it should be quickly and strictly dealt with.
Doesn’t matter……Manigini is moving Edwards…I guarantee he wants no part of him. He is a selfish, me-first player
Did they have the lights turned out in this gym…why are the pictures so dark?
It is Detroit, right?
Any word on how many drops Braylon had in the game?
@Boomhauer Not sure there was an official count. But if you were the parent of the little kid that BE’s lifting towards the rim, tell me you’re not nervous…
Did he wear shoes?
You guys are not helping my reconciliation project.
AT ALL!
I guarantee that kid’s parents had to sign a waiver
As long as they didn’t pass that kid to Braylon, he was probably ok.
Perhaps some firm “ManKok” handling can help straighten BE out?
He really shouldn’t be doing this, but we really need to get off of this guy. Braylon had a bad year we get it, but he is not the whole reason we were 4-12. He had pretty decent rookie numbers after being buried on the depth chart after a contract hold out. He was playing really well when he went down the next year after making a great catch against Jville-not to mention he already had 2 tds that game. He followed that up with a decent season coming back from injury and C Frye holding onto the ball to long. Then the breakout 2007 season. This year was riddled with mistakes from everybody. We won’t get anything for him now anyway give him another year to see what he can do. I keep hearing Boldin’s name. Great, but what makes you think Zona would give him to us for anything we have? I don’t want to give up draft picks for him, we already are thin on draft picks. Besides if Boldin is a cancer on a team that is on their way to the Superbowl, how will he be on a mediocre team? We have far worse holes than WR. We need a solid 2nd or 3rd option to take the heat off Braylon. Hopefully Joe J can come back and stay healthy. That moves Captain muscle strain Stallworth to 3. I like that rather than getting a mid round draft pick for Braylon.
Who knows, maybe Mangini can Coach the guy to play ball, rather than wanting to get rid of him. I know that is a new concept around here. I wasn’t a Mangina fan, but that is who we got. So let’s give him a chance.
Boldin won’t be coming here either…..Mangini wants CHARACTER players…..Boldin and Braylon don’t fit that mold
@ #1 RandyOSU: my memory fails… wasn’t there an NFL star who tore his ankle up playing basketball just a few years ago? I would have expected basketball, like motorcycle riding, to be one of those restricted activities too.
@Scott: love the commentary on Dana Jacobson. Scary seeing her in that basketball uni.
Mj, Aaron Boone messed up his knees real bad playing basketball right after he signed a big deal with the yankees, maybe thats what your thinking of
And I can’t imagine he had more drops than JJ Hickson did down the stretch last night. Big Ben and Z, get well soon
Jeremy,
It’s not like people are mad because his numbers are down, or he was struggling because he was constantly double teamed. We’re mad because HE CAN’T CATCH.
He single handedly killed so many drives that prevented a struggling offense from finding a rhythm and an identity.
Thanks Ricky. That was probably it.
Still curious if their contracts prohibit playing basketball.
lol@Boomhauer and Greg Oden’s Tonsils
@Jeremy, Edwards did not look great in his first two seasons. He flashed potential. He has all the physical ability in the world but there is more to being a wide receiver than leaping and running fast. He has only hit 1000 yards once in 4 years. The 2008 season is not entirely his fault but he only showed up once in 16 games, then b*tched about the fans. Let him go. We can only hope that some how JJ comes backs. Don’t plan on Stallworth as the #3 receiver. If this new front office ponies up a $5 million roster bonus for a receiver who had 170 yards on the year, then they should be fired the next day.
mj-if I were a betting man I’d bet that basketball would contractually require team approval, given the potential for injury.
This is a joke right? I mean are we really talking about the Browns players playing a basketball game? I saw Winslow at the Lakers game last night, maybe he suited up after with Kobe? Either way, I don’t care.
I would think so too, RandyOSU. I’d like to say it would be interesting to see what Berea thinks of this, but I doubt we’ll hear anything. I could see this affecting Mangini’s opinion of Braylon, though.
You may not care, S-Dub, but the people paying him millions of dollars may care about the unnecessary risk of injury. They do agree to terms in their contracts not to participate in certain activities.
So called “Athletes” get hurt all the time. Names escape me right now, but I remember a baseball player getting put on the DL because he pulled a muscle in his rib cage lifting heavy luggage. Another because he fell down the stairs. This isn’t anywhere near K2’s days of stuntriding in my book. The guy played basketball for charity. Jesus. Give him a break.
@Brandon Look I never said he was great, as a matter of fact I said he was decent. I’m trying to make you guys understand that there are far worse problems on this team than WR, and if we get rid of Braylon then we are creating another hole. Him not reaching 1000 yards can’t be put on him entirely either, with the likes of Trent Dilfer and Charlie Frye. Our line was horrible, we had no running game. I think we need to give him another chance this year, see how he does. If he is like 2008, then by all means get rid of him. By then we should have a better cap, and maybe more draft picks that will help us. If he is more like 2007 then we should be pretty good. We knew Braylon had trouble making some catches coming out of Michigan, we also knew he makes some catches that alot of guys can’t make. Now if another team wants to give us something of value for him, then fine. I don’t want to burn a first round, or even a second round pick on a WR. Especially when our defense is swiss cheese. Linebacker or two, DB, maybe a safety. Someone who can put some pressure on a QB. I am tired of watching the Steelers, and Ravens defenses. They have guys who are tough as nails, and want to punish you. Our defense is softer than charmin.
The Browns even screw up every day in the OFF SEASON. Unbelieveable.
I agree with Jay….give the dude a break. There are many reasons to not like the man, but this is one that actually gives me reason to like him. You don’t think he has to think at least a little about how he could get hurt? I’ll bet he does. Even if I loved BE, if he got hurt playing for charity I would NOT be mad at him, sad…yes, but not mad at him. He is an athlete, yes he could simply do a golf tournament that only the really wealthy people could enjoy or he could go play some ball and have some fun. Yes, people get injured doing it, but not nearly as often as people make it sound. I find it very amusing that people playing TACKLE football think it is more dangerous to play basketball. I could see if it were Lebron playing football, being worried, but this, come on.
mj-Mangini will handle this “in house”. Fans and media play no part in his persona.
Jay…..sorry, but when you own a multi-million dollar property you call the shots. We’re not talking about falling down a flight of stairs, et al-but rather a willfull and deliberate case of contract violation (apparently).
BigShow-so what do you do with the next player who violates his contract in the same way? (and breaks a leg). You’re giving free reign not only for another player to do same but also providing legal precedence to do so.
It’s in the contract for a reason.
I love this website, I check it 2-3 times a day. But I’m begging you, no more Braylon Edwards stories for at least 2 weeks, OK? Isn’t everyone sick of talking about him? And since his name will come up again soon when draft stories start in earnest, can we just forget about him now, at least for a few weeks? Please? Please?
I think it is perfectly acceptable. One of my earliest childhood memories of the Cleveland Browns is watching them play basketball. I’m sure my brother, Rock, will agree. They played in Toledo, OH. The players were webster slaughter and some of that era’s players. And yes, just like Edwards, they were dunking the ball. I remember Slaughter doing one dunk where he grabbed the rim and flipped himself up onto the rim and ended up sitting on it. The crowd went crazy! Taking us to a Browns game would have been very expensive I’m sure, but I remember my Dad taking us to Toledo to watch them, which was probably a charity event. I believe it was even a Browns sponsored event because the whole team was browns players and they were selling browns items in the concensions. Back then they didnt worry as much about getting hurt in the offseason. Lets face it, these guys are athletes and we cant expect them to sit around all off season and not have any fun. Just my opinion.
@Aaron, I can’t believe you remember that. I was so young that I barely remember it. Slaughter was the flashiest player, but the best player was definitely Bubba Baker.
Oh, and for the record, no, I don’t really care either. I probably wouldn’t do it if I was making millions of dollars playing football, but I always feel like far be it from me to tell someone else how to live their life. But if he hurts himself, you better believe you’re jeopardizing your contract.
Not long before the time when we were watching Webster & the others dunk, NFL players sold insurance in the offseason to support their families. Times have changed. Regardless whether you or I think it’s acceptable, the issue of whether or not their contracts allow them to participate in non-football activities such as this is a legitimate question worth asking.
Completely off-topic, but:
RIP Dante Lavelli:
Cleveland.com
Truly a browns great.
[...] Sure, Braylon Edwards played some basketball, but did the Browns know about it? [...]
My dad was a police officer in Akron, and they took on the Cleveland Browns in a charity basketball game once. Reggie Rucker was the man for them on the basketball court. I remember standing in line forever to get Paul McDonald’s autograph.
The playing basketball is a non-issue to me. It might not be to the Browns, based on the terms of his contract, but I’m not bothered by it.
Now, as for swatting Dana Jacobson — why can’t he do that when opposing DBs are about to intercept the ball?
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