While We’re Waiting serves as the early morning gathering of WFNY-esque information for your viewing pleasure. Have something you think we should see? Send it to our tips email at tips@waitingfornextyear.com.

McShay says Browns will have to trade up for RGIII: “The Cleveland Browns have the fourth overall pick, but that won’t be high enough to draft Baylor quarterback Robert Griffin III, ESPN draft analyst Todd McShay said in a conference call Thursday.

He believes the Browns must trade up to the No. 2 pick if they want to select the Heisman Trophy winner. And, if Cleveland doesn’t do it, McShay expects another team to leapfrog the Browns for RG3.

“I think he’s every bit worth the [No. 2] pick,” McShay said. “I’ve got him as the third prospect overall in this class, and I think that if the Browns want him, they need to move up and get him. I’ll be surprised if he lasts until four, and I’ll be even surprised if he gets to No. 3 because I think that No. 2 pick is up for public auction. I think the Rams are going to get a good deal to move back and can still get a player they want at tackle or wide receiver. And if it’s not Cleveland, then it’s probably going to be Washington [at No. 6] right behind them leapfrogging Cleveland to get up to No. 2.”

McShay said the Browns might be able to trade the fourth overall pick and their second-rounder (No. 37) to the Rams in exchange for the No. 2 selection. But, according to the draft value chart, the Browns would have to trade both their first-round picks (Nos. 4 and 22 overall) and their sixth-rounder to the Rams to move up to No. 2.” [ESPN / Jamison Hensley]  [Read more...]

While We’re Waiting serves as the early morning gathering of WFNY-esque information for your viewing pleasure. Have something you think we should see? Send it to our tips email at tips@waitingfornextyear.com.

“Though he still had a decent game, it didn’t look like Braxton matured much more than any of his teammates during bowl practices. His final statline read 18/23 through the air for 162 yards and a pair of touchdowns but he was 12/17 with just 80 yards until a last gasp drive against Florida’s prevent defense saw him pad his numbers with 6/6 for 82 yards. Passing accuracy really wasn’t the issue today though he did overthrow a wide open Posey for a sure 23 yard touchdown that would’ve tied the game at 14 late in the 1st half. Windy or not, the throw needed to be a touch pass as there wasn’t a Gator defender within 10 yards of DeVier but Miller threw a laser high and outside.

The biggest area of opportunity from this game, as it has been with many others, was a lack of pocket awareness. Yes, the pass pro was shaky at times but Braxton often had plenty of time to throw, either to a receiver or simply to get rid of it, but instead took a sack.” [Lauderback/Eleven Warriors] [Read more...]

While We’re Waiting serves as the early morning gathering of WFNY-esque information for your viewing pleasure. Have something you think we should see? Send it to our tips email at tips@waitingfornextyear.com.

“How do we evaluate the job Shurmur did in his first year? I like to ask myself if there are any redeeming qualities when it comes to keeping a head coach. In other words, “is there something I can look back at on this season and say, ‘Shurmur did [this] well.’?” The Browns played well defensively, but I don’t see how you can directly attribute that to the “offensive-minded” Shurmur. Shurmur was brought here to install the West Coast Offense. After 16 games, I don’t see how anyone can say they were encouraged by the offense this year. The Browns scored 218 points all season. The only two teams who scored less were the Chiefs and the Rams, and they are both undergoing coaching changes.” [Pokorny/Dawgs by Nature] [Read more...]

While We’re Waiting serves as the early morning gathering of WFNY-esque information for your viewing pleasure. Have something you think we should see? Send it to our tips email at tips@waitingfornextyear.com.

Been saying this for a while. Starting to really wonder. “I hate to be this guy, but the biggest “misstep” the Cavs could make this year would be winning a few too many games and not landing Anthony Davis or Andre Drummond. We need one more elite guy to develop into a contender. Dan Gilbert can find us the supplementary guys (e.g. the Iguodala’s of the world)…and I’m hoping we need only one more draft to hit on a second star.” [Braun/Cavs the Blog] [Read more...]

While We’re Waiting serves as the early morning gathering of WFNY-esque information for your viewing pleasure. Have something you think we should see? Send it to our tips email at tips@waitingfornextyear.com.

Eleven Warriors has the Top 11 Moments of the Year for Buckeye Fans, including #2 about Bo Ryan and dealing with it, “The home fans were not disappointed as the Buckeyes used two big first half runs to turn what had been a relatively close game into a blowout. The team would go on to shoot a blistering 68% from the field for the game, including an insane 93% from downtown (14/15) in a 93-65 laugher, that concluded a perfect season at home for Ohio State.” [Eleven Warriors]

Next, Chris Pokorny at Dawgs By Nature covers Seneca Wallace and his opinion that he maybe should have had a shot at starting for the Browns earlier than Week 15, “”At the end of the day, I can control what I can control,” said Wallace. “Yeah, I get frustrated that, hey, I feel like I deserve a shot or I want a shot.” … Asked if he should he have a chance to compete for the starting job next season, Wallace said: “Maybe so. I don’t know. I’ll let you guys evaluate that.” [Dawgs By Nature]

Dawgs by Nature also recapped the playoff and draft order scenarios that are the top storylines for this Sunday.

UniWatch has a new installment, which includes the special Rose Bowl uniforms for both Wisconsin and Oregon.

If you’re looking for some humor, Brian Tarcy made some Week 17 NFL picks, including a Browns’ victory.

Finally, Mo Williams just cannot catch a break in Los Angeles. After getting pushed behind Chris Paul and Chauncey Billups on the depth chart, the PA announcer can’t even remember his name.

While We’re Waiting serves as the early morning gathering of WFNY-esque information for your viewing pleasure. Have something you think we should see? Send it to our tips email at tips@waitingfornextyear.com.

Leading off, our own Brendan Bowers caught up with Tristan Thompson for SLAM Magazine, and when asked about starting for the Cavs being a goal right now, Tristan replied “No, my focus is clearly on winning basketball games for the Cavs and getting better everyday. I think those are the two most important things. Starting is just a position. At the end of the day, I’m a basketball player, and I’m a basketball player who just wants to win. So winning trumps everything, and getting better everyday is how I feel like I can help us do that. The whole starting or not starting doesn’t faze me at all because I just play basketball for the love of the game. Whenever Coach Scott wants to put me in, or whatever unit he wants to put me on, I know he’s going to make the right decision so I’m not worried about it.” [SLAM Online]

Chris Pokorny at Dawgs by Nature captured some of Browns defensive coordinator Dick Jauron’s quotes from Thursday’s media session, including some thoughts on his defensive line, “”You’ve talked about Phil (Taylor) a lot. I think Phil has grown a lot through the course of the year. In the last five or six games he’s played pretty consistently and played well. He seems to be getting stronger. This will be a huge test obviously again this Sunday. Jabaal (Sheard) has just played well from the beginning to the end. Rube’s (Ahtyba Rubin) played well from the beginning to the end. At the right defensive end, Jayme (Mitchell) got hurt and then we struggled for a while.” [Dawgs by Nature]

Shutdown Corner published a Peyton Hillis quote about his tough season and the role he thinks the Madden Curse played in it, “”No doubt about it, things haven’t worked to my favor this year. There’s a few things that happened that made me believe in curses. Ain’t no doubt about it.”" ESPN’s AFC North Blog also has this about Hillis, “The Cleveland Browns’ Peyton Hillis has recently looked like the running back from last season. He has a total of 211 rushing yards in two games after producing just 346 yards rushing in his previous seven this season (that’s 49.4 yards per game). Hillis is once again powering his way up the middle of defenses. He has 57 carries in between the tackles the last four games; no other player has more than 38 over that span, according to ESPN Stats & Information.”

Let’s Go Tribe has an entertaining article chronicling the frustration of a quiet offseason for the Tribe and a quiet landscape in general for MLB right now.

And finally, from Ball Don’t Lie, former Cleveland Cavalier Shaq’s willing to give you one thousand dollars! The catch: you need to get a tattoo, but not just any tattoo.

While We’re Waiting serves as the early morning gathering of WFNY-esque information for your viewing pleasure. Have something you think we should see? Send it to our tips email at tips@waitingfornextyear.com.

A good read about MVP voting and year by year snubs- “The Cleveland Indians from 1994 to 2002 had some of the most amazing offensive lineups in baseball history. They reached two World Series. They led the league in runs scored three times and finished second another three. They had players lead the league in runs (Albert Belle, Robbie Alomar), hits (Kenny Lofton), doubles (Belle), triples (Kenny Lofton), homers (Belle), RBIs (MannyBManny, Albert Belle), OPS (MannyBManny, Thome), stolen bases (Lofton), slugging percentage (Belle, MannyBManny, Thome) and walks (Thome). They did not have a single player win the MVP award.

I don’t like RBIs as a defining statistics, but we know the MVP voters do. In 1999, Manny Ramirez drove in ONE HUNDRED SIXTY FIVE. That was the most in baseball since Jimmie Foxx. Jimmie Bleepin’ Foxx. He finished tied for THIRD in the MVP balloting. Whew. What does an enigma have to do around here to get some respect?” [Posnanski/SI.com] [Read more...]

While We’re Waiting serves as the early morning gathering of WFNY-esque information for your viewing pleasure. Have something you think we should see? Send it to our tips email at tips@waitingfornextyear.com.

“The University of Akron won one football game in 2011. A few of you knew that. Most of you didn’t — or more likely didn’t care. Terry Bowden knows all of that, certainly he does now. Bowden was hired as Akron’s new coach last week, a month after the job came open and a week or so after he was first contacted about the opening. He was introduced by the school at a news conference Wednesday. He’d been coaching at Division II North Alabama.

But he made his name in the 1990s in the SEC, at Auburn. And I North Alabama is 500 football miles from the football hotbed that won the BCS championship just a season ago, Akron is 5,000 miles away from it.” [Jackson/FSO] [Read more...]