May 20, 2013

Jon talks Vinnie Pestano, NFL salary caps and more – WFNY Podcast – 2013-03-12

March 12, 2013 by Leave a Comment

WFNY Podcast LogoI was able to grab Jon on location in Arizona. Unfortunately “on location in Arizona” for his purposes has nothing to do with the Cleveland Indians spring training location. Anyway, we battled the time zones (and my bed time) for a chat.

Here’s what we talked about.

  • Scott Kazmir’s great day
  • Daisuke Matsuzaka injury
  • Matt LaPorta cut and crickets respond
  • Vinnie Pestano and his new contract
  • Mike Trout and his pre-arbitration deal
  • The Angels short-change Mike Trout. How short-sighted is it?
  • What did the Indians offer Vinnie Pestano?
  • Who do you have ill will for?
  • NFL Free agency and waiting for the efficiency
  • Market inefficiencies and roster dynamics
  • PECOTA and Nate Silver’s book
  • The Belichick tree is dead after Bill Belichick
  • Bob Kraft and his willingness to give people leeway
  • Dealing with parents as a coach

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WFNY Debate: Do NFL coaches even matter?

January 12, 2013 by 7 Comments

chudzinskiIn case it hasn’t been clear yet, the WFNY writers email each other a lot. And I mean a lot. So on top of our two email-based roundtables already this week (post-Kelly rumors and post-Chudzinski hire), we bring you inside the famed Gmail inbox for a look at a Friday debate: This time, we’re talking about the possible impact of pro coaches.

Jacob: Hey guys, I’m considering writing a numbers article about Rob Chudzinski. I’m intrigued by the stats about his TDs, points and plays of 20+ yards with Carolina. Then maybe look at the Browns in ’07-’08, the Chargers, Miami, etc. Compare to league averages. His success with RBs (DeAngelo Williams in Week 17). Here’s a quick snippet of the stats that I had in mind for such a post:

2011: plays of 20+ pass/rush (total) —- Carolina: 66/24 (90); Cleveland: 32/7 (39)
2011: third down conversion —- Carolina: 75/185 (40.5%); Cleveland: 92/238 (38.7%)
2012: plays of 20+ pass/rush (total) —- Carolina: 58/17 (75); Cleveland: 50/7 (57)
2012: third down conversion —- Carolina: 88/204 (43.1%); Cleveland: 67/218 (30.7%) [Read more...]

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Browns coach search and why the excitement over Chip Kelly was justified

January 9, 2013 by 41 Comments
Joe Banner will have some decisions to make in Cleveland

On to the next one…

Despite all my criticisms of the Browns’ media handling in the hunt for Chip Kelly, I fully supported their chase of him as a coach for the Browns. The idea of Chip Kelly coaching the Browns was awesome. There’s no guarantee that Chip Kelly was going to be anything more than a complete bust. That’s pretty much the case for any coaching candidate. It drives me nuts that in order to talk about Chip Kelly in Cleveland that we constantly had to talk about Butch Davis because, you know, they both coached in college. That connecting of the dots is probably about as lazy as you can get from an intellectual standpoint.

You just can’t tell me with a straight face that a defensive specialist with experience as defensive coordinator of the Cowboys and head coaching experience at the U is the same thing as a guy who was almost solely an offensive coach on his way to becoming head coach at Oregon. That’s just the resume side of things. The fact remains that each candidate is a completely different human being. Even two doctors who went to the same medical school are completely different, and their training and professional background will be far less diverse than two guys like Butch Davis and Chip Kelly.

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Cleveland ’95: Time Doesn’t Heal All Wounds

October 4, 2012 by 45 Comments

Of course. But maybe.

Louis CK, the Emmy-winning comedian who is arguably the best 1 at his craft, kicked off his nationwide tour on Wednesday night, doing so in the city of Cleveland, or as he refers to as “kind-of-big-guy Cleveland.” In typical CK fashion, he weaved between his act and whimsical tangents with no race, illness or creed left unturned.

Ending his show, CK used a self-belief which he has dubbed “Of course…but maybe.” Without spoiling the specific jokes, the crux of these beliefs are that there are essentially universal feelings regarding certain topics (peanut allergies, gender or race equality, The Make a Wish Foundation), but maybe we should, at times, consider an outsiders perspective and reassess our stance. Unfurling his comedic stylings for a little over an hour, jokes were made, and laughs were had. Lots of them.

At least until the headlining show was followed up with the NFL Network’s broadcast of “A Football Life: Cleveland ’95.”

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  1. Living. [back]

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WFNY Podcast – 2012-10-04 – Craig and Andrew talk Cavaliers playoff hopes and Browns vs. Giants

October 4, 2012 by 4 Comments

The Skype calls continue to make podcasting a nice experience as I was able to get Andrew on the “Subway Fresh Take Hotline” for a nice chat about a variety of topics. Honestly I think Andrew and I could do four hours a day because we both never seem to run out of things to say.

Here’s a rundown of what we discussed…

  • Cleveland ’95 – Why Andrew didn’t care to watch it and why I wanted to see it
  • Pat Shurmur and if he can ever be a good NFL coach
  • Cleveland Cavaliers and the playoffs
    • Can they make the playoffs?
    • Should they make the playoffs?
    • What has to happen to make that a reality?
  • Browns vs. Giants
    • What are the Browns’ chances?
    • 10 days to prepare and what that could mean
    • Greg Little and his future

Enjoy!

As always, thanks for listening. Please tell a friend!

Have an idea for a show? Let us know. Is there someone we should talk to? Let us know that too.

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While We’re Waiting … Belichick’s Browns, Tyler Zeller’s Blog, Indians as Next Orioles?

October 3, 2012 by 28 Comments

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 quick preview of tonight’s NFL Films show: “In 2011, NFL Films launched its remarkable A Football Life series with a two-part study of Patriots coach Bill Belichick. The next episode, which focuses on the ’95 Browns, should more accurately be regarded as a Belichick prequel. The study of the 1995 Cleveland Browns, which debuts Wednesday night at 8:00 p.m. ET on NFL Network, spends more time focusing on the legacy of the coach than the fate of the franchise. Yes, there’s plenty about the final days in Cleveland of the team that became the Ravens. But there’s more about the manner in which Belichick influenced a generation of men who reached tremendous heights (admittedly with varying degrees of success) elsewhere.” [Mike Florio/Pro Football Talk] [Read more...]

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“Cleveland ’95: A Football Life” will be mandatory viewing for me

October 2, 2012 by 62 Comments

I’ve read countless tweets from Browns fans saying they won’t watch this documentary about the 1995 Cleveland Browns. Tony Grossi wrote about it and likened it to reliving a family member’s funeral. While those scenes depicting the stadium being torn apart might cause me to shed a few tears, after seeing the sneak preview, I think I’ll have to watch it because there is so much more there for someone like me born in 1979. I wasn’t anywhere near maturity as a football fan by that point in my life.

I know all the names of the guys in and around the Browns, but to say that I have vivid memories of Bill Belichick as Browns’ head coach would be a lie. It makes this story almost mandatory viewing for NFL fans when you consider that names like Bill Belichick, Mike Lombardi, Nick Saban, Kirk Ferentz, Scott Pioli, Eric Mangini and Ozzie Newsome were all at least partially built during this time period. Yes, it hits hardest for Browns fans who lost their team and in many ways still don’t have it back. Even still, part of being a Browns fan is understanding and wanting to explore the rest of the ecosystem that they exist in in the wider NFL view. 1 [Read more...]

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  1. One of the most difficult adjustments for Browns fans since the team has been back has probably been missing out on five years of game evolution in terms of on and off-field culture. In many ways, I think Browns fans are still fighting many of the changes that happened while we were… ahem… “away.” [back]

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Grossi: Browns should “spread out” on offense

October 1, 2012 by 51 Comments

Tony Grossi has been a different guy since jumping over to WKNR. I’ve said it a few times. I also said Pat Shurmur looked like a different guy before he shrunk back into the ugly cocoon of negativity and churlishness once the Browns sale was announced. I digress.

Grossi seems to be enjoying his freedom from the Plain Dealer. Even if you still don’t like the Browns’ most tenured beat reporter, I think he nailed his post today about what he would do if he was Browns coach.

The plodding, 1980s-era fullback-tailback run game is not working here. It’s not only not working, it is deflating everybody. Richardson spends too much time running up the ankles of fullback Owen Marecic or guards Jason Pinkston and Shawn Lauvao. He needs room. They get in his way.

The Browns have to spread out defenses with their formation. The NFL likes to think it invents every new trend in the game. Sorry. The college game is far ahead on the offensive side. That’s why Bill Belichick visited Urban Meyer at Florida for so many years – to get a leg up on his NFL rivals.

I recommend the whole post. It seems spot on to me. The Browns have some weapons now, and a few scheme adjustments would seemingly benefit the team greatly. Not to pile on Owen Marecic, but his presence on the field usually indicates an obvious run. His inability to punish anyone by catching the ball out of the backfield makes him even more one-dimensional.

It kind of reminds me of all those running plays last year where Alex Smith went in motion the exact same way probably 10 times per game. At least he caught the ball some.

[Related: Cleveland Browns Game 4: Winners and Losers]

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Bill Belichick Looks To Tie Chuck Noll’s Record For Super Bowl Wins

February 5, 2012 by 5 Comments

Bill Belichick looms over today’s Super Bowl perhaps more than anyone involved in the game. There are plenty of narratives that the media look for during the two weeks between the conference championships and Super Bowl Sunday. As Belichick looks to tie Chuck Noll as the only head coaches with four Super Bowl victories, the New England coach has certainly been a first topic of the coverage this week, including a blog post of a comical old Starter ad in which he dons a classic Browns coat.

Despite his shortcomings and relatively unsuccessful time in Cleveland, I’ve always found Belichick completely fascinating and someone I am constantly interested in learning about. Those days in Cleveland bred a stable of NFL and college coaches, as well as personnel evaluators. The Patriots’ current head personnel man, Nick Caserio, is a Cleveland native and of course we’re all familiar with Josh McDaniels Northeast Ohio roots.

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While We’re Waiting… Rookie Honeymoons, Twitter Rankings and Brady/Belichick vs History

January 24, 2012 by 13 Comments

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

Is the Tristan Thompson honeymoon over already? “What really concerns me, though, is his offense. While he’s still great at doing what he’s always done (facing the basket and throwing it down with authority) he hasn’t really shown much improvement in the post, which is critically important, particularly for a guy his size who won’t be able to use pure power against the Dwight Howards and Andrew Bynums of the NBA. At the rim, TT is shooting a good 57% (especially for a guy who spends most of his time in the paint), but at just 3-9 feet away, his numbers drop to 38.2%, meaning our guy has a lot of learning to do even just a few feet away from the hoop.” [Factor/Cavs the Blog] [Read more...]

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NFL Playoffs Teach Us that Building Teams is Hard Work

January 23, 2012 by 52 Comments

Every week of the Browns season we do the (sometimes comical) “Browns will win if…” articles here on WFNY.  Usually it was something about Peyton Hillis being healthy, Colt McCoy finding some rhythm with his receivers, Phil Taylor and Ahtyba Rubin stopping the run, or Phil Dawson hitting eleventeen field goals as the keys to victory.  It was always interesting to see how the games turned out to see if any of our “predictions” or key matchups became as key as they felt on Friday afternoon as we were making things up.  In the end, the NFL has become a game of predictions between Vegas and Fantasy and, really,  nobody knows what is actually going to happen.  Nothing could have been illustrated more perfectly than that sentiment yesterday during the NFL playoffs.

Peter King pointed it out in his MMQB column and it is true. [Read more...]

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Patriots Send Ravens Packing 23-20

January 22, 2012 by 9 Comments

Former Cleveland Browns kicker Billy Cundiff had a chance to tie the football game with a field goal, but he yanked it left.  All that was left was the kneeling by Tom Brady as the Patriots get back to the Superbowl and the final AFC North team was sent home for the off-season.

Love or hate the Patriots, it still feels good to see the team associated with Art Modell go down in spectacular fashion without a championship as they did on Sunday 23-20.

For Bill Belichick and the Patriots it is another Superbowl appearance, their first since losing to the Giants in 2007 with a perfect season on the line.

Now, at least we can avoid the whole Baltimore team playing for a Superbowl on the home field of the team that used to play in Baltimore.  We know how played out those storylines can get.  Producers will have to work just a little bit harder to find something as contrived as Jerome Bettis being from Detroit.

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What Would it Cost for Matt Flynn if He is Franchised?

January 9, 2012 by 55 Comments

One of the options for the Browns this off-season should they choose to address quarterback in free agency is Matt Flynn.  Flynn has only started two NFL games as Aaron Rodgers’ backup, but his most recent start was a record-setting performance that set the world abuzz.  That can tend to happen when you throw for 480 yards and six touchdowns in a football game.  For reference, this weekend in his playoff game against the same Detroit defense, Drew Brees put up 466 yards and 3 touchdowns.  That says a lot about the defense that Matt Flynn went up against.  Anyway, that’s a different discussion.  Let’s assume that the Browns do want Matt Flynn and they have to deal with the Packers who franchise him in order to trade him.  What might the price tag be?

First of all, the price tag for franchising a QB is, um, really high.  Going into this past season, Jason La Canfora had estimated that the cost of franchising a QB would be $16 million.  So assume that to franchise Matt Flynn will be somewhere in the same ballpark.  The acquiring team will be on the hook for that, but in all likelihood it will lead to a new long-term contract that will be pricey.  But what we are really looking for is what the potential acquisition cost could be for the Browns.  There are three obvious examples, Matt Schaub, Matt Cassell and Kevin Kolb. [Read more...]

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While We’re Waiting…Browns vs. Patriots Edition

November 7, 2010 by 1 Comment

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.

On Holmgren and his coaching staff:  “I hope team President Mike Holmgren keeps the same open mind that he had about coach Eric Mangini as he watches the remaining games. Mangini has brought much-needed discipline and toughness to this team. I don’t know how they will play in the remaining nine games, but there is no reason for Holmgren or anyone else to come to grand conclusions about the head coach until the end of the season…I hope (and believe) Holmgren meant it as a compliment when he said defensive coordinator Rob Ryan’s defenses drive him crazy with all the wandering around and strange formations. That’s exactly the point. No matter who is the coach next season, Ryan and special teams coach Brad Seely must remain because these are veteran coordinators who make an impact.” [Terry Pluto/Plain Dealer]

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While We’re Waiting…Patriots QB Coming Home, Belichick Takes a Shot at Mangini , Week One Cavs Thoughts

November 6, 2010 by 2 Comments

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.

Hoyer returns home tomorrow:  “Anyway, I remember we were at [Municipal Stadium] for the last game. People were ripping out seats and that’s what I really remember. It was the last game there, they were going to get rid of the stadium, the Indians had already moved, so everyone already knew (they were gone). Those are the memories I have of the Browns.”  Yikes. Not really what you want to remember from the team you rooted for growing up. And, make no mistake, Hoyer did root.  “I’m sure if I went back home and looked at my closet,”  Hoyer said, “I have a bunch of old Bernie Kosar jerseys.”  In an odd twist, the coach Hoyer grew up watching was — wait for it — Bill Belichick. Strange.”  [Ian Rapoport/Boston Herald]

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The Browns Will Win If…

November 5, 2010 by 18 Comments

Aaaaand, we’re back! Fresh off their Bye Week, the 2-5 Browns get back to it against another tough, tough opponent. Raise your hand if you thought this team would be 2-5 at this point. OK, OK, I see a lot of hands, including my own, raised. Now, keep your hand raised if you thought one of those wins would have been against the Saints on the road. Yeah, me either.

brownspats

The Pats’ offense is still solid, even without Randy “I wouldn’t feed that [bleep] to my dogs!” Moss—its name is “Tom Brady”. Their defense, however, well, it’s not your slightly older brother’s defense that won three out of four Super Bowls. There’s some talent there, but the Viking among other teams showed there are yards to be gained out there against them: in fact, they’ve allowed 200 more total yards so far on the season than our Browns have. In fact, marinate in this stat for a moment: the Browns secondary—yes, that Browns secondary—allows 40 fewer yards per game than the Pats’ secondary does. Without further ado…

The Browns Will Win If…

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Report: Colt McCoy is “Likely” to Start Against the Patriots

November 4, 2010 by 17 Comments

While the quarterback situation remains cloudy, the lack of practice from Seneca Wallace appears to lend rookie Colt McCoy a bit of an advantage in terms of starting against the New England Patriots this Sunday.  Mary Kay Cabot of The Plain Dealer reports that Wallace was slated to practice but is not quite ready, leaving McCoy with all of the first-team repetitions.

With official injury reports slated to be released Thursday afternoon, a lot will hinge on whether or not Wallace can practice – even at a limited level – though it may not matter with kickoff less than four days away. [Read more...]

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Scott Fujita, Saints Sideline Savant

October 25, 2010 by 6 Comments

On Sunday afternoon, I commented on Twitter that it appeared at least a handful of Browns players were wearing Scott Fujita jerseys as the man was seemingly everywhere.  Whether he was sacking Drew Brees, stopping the run, or playing in pass coverage, it was Fujita who led the way for the Cleveland Browns as they stifled the heavily-favored Saints. 

Turns out that while Fujita was very familiar with his former team’s way of life, the defensive team captain was actually aware of almost every play prior to the Saints snapping the ball.

All game long, he monitored the Saints’ sideline between plays, tracking substitution patterns, then signaling what he saw to Cleveland coaches and helping with pre-snap adjustments.

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NFL Free Agency: Leigh Bodden Signs With Pats

March 11, 2009 by 6 Comments

For all those hoping that the Browns could sign Leigh Bodden in order to say that we traded a draft pick for Shaun Rogers, well the opportunity is gone.  While Mangini and company were signing Hank Poteat, the Pats were signing the Browns’ former starting CB to a one-year “prove it” type of contract for the veteran minimum $750,000.  Of course, financial terms were not disclosed in the Poteat signing, but let’s assume the numbers are similar.  Who would you rather have?  Hank Poteat or Leigh Bodden?

Just to be fair, we don’t know if Bodden would even be willing to come back to Cleveland.  Certainly, if he had the option between going to New England on a one-year deal, and coming back to Cleveland on a one-year deal, you have to think the decision was easy.  Plus, last time I checked he hasn’t had any problems at Logan International Airport in Boston just yet.  

Also in fairness to the new regime here, Hank Poteat will be able to help teach the new system to Browns CBs.  Also, when analyzing this year vs. last year, I would like to think that Hank Poteat will be a better nickel option than Terry Cousin.  I can’t remember the last time in Cleveland sports history that an insignificant player accounted for so much negativity as Terry Cousin.

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The Browns Will Win If…

November 14, 2008 by 5 Comments

I thought about changing the title of this column to something snarky like “The Browns Can’t Win Because…”, but that would be a great disservice to you, our faithful readers. You’ve come to expect professionalism, and professionalism you shall get!

The Browns’ season is over relative to the playoffs, and even more than that there is some activity on the lifeboats-deck of the U.S.S. Romeo. But, the Bills are currently wallowing in a 3-game losing streak with some QB questions of their own (Dick Jauron says Edwards is his guy). Will the Browns’ extra-long prep time mean another sighting of the team that dismantled the Giants after the bye-week? Can we hope to not see the prevent defense in the third freaking quarter?? Without further ado…

The Browns Will Win If… [Read more...]

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