Pittsburgh Steelers | WaitingForNextYear

Pat McManamon talks Browns, Chuck Klosterman, AOL FanHouse, new media and Fox Sports Ohio – WFNY Podcast – 2013-05-15

May 15, 2013 by Craig Lyndall 4 Comments

Really happy to get Pat McManamon on the podcast. I wanted to talk to him about Fanhouse and how the media landscape has changed both for him and also around him over the years. We also had some good conversation about the Browns, Chuck Klosterman and Twitter.

Click here for Pat’s Fox Sports Ohio Page – Also keep up with Pat on Twitter

AOL FanHouse and what it was like to work there
Working virtually with coworkers and editors on FanHouse
Talking to people on the phone and how much richer that communication is
Fox Sports Ohio and the STO purchase
Reporting on the Pilot Flying J story and how to cover it
Sticking to the facts as opposed to writing lots of opinions
Jimmy Haslam’s controversy and how much to report on it
The Browns and transparency with the media
Chuck Klosterman’s piece on the Browns 2013 NFL Draft night
Should the Browns have traded picks or not?
Do the Browns know why their secrets are secrets?
Open practice vs. closing it 15 minutes after it started
Twitter and how it has changed Pat’s job

Check out this episode

Filed Under: Podcast Tagged With: 2013 NFL Draft, AOL Fanhouse, Barkevious Mingo, browns, Chuck Klosterman, Fox Sports Ohio, Pat Mcmanamon, Pittsburgh Steelers, Sports Time Ohio

Browns receiving corps ranked fourth in their division by Jamison Hensley

May 8, 2013 by Craig Lyndall 25 Comments

Jamison Hensley of ESPN is ranking all the position groups in the AFC North and he has decided where they all fall when it comes to receivers. The Cleveland Browns, despite a recent trade for Devone Bess and despite the exit of Anquan Boldin from Baltimore, are last in Hensley’s mind. The Steelers take the top spot and the Bengals with the league’s very best receiver, A.J. Green, finish second.

The Browns feel more comfortable with their receivers after watching what Josh Gordon and Greg Little did last season. But you don’t know if Cleveland’s top two receivers are going to reach their potential this season because they have a combined three seasons of NFL experience. Gordon flashed big-play ability and Little showed signs of developing into a complementary No. 2 target. The Browns have more established depth than the Ravens after trading for Davone Bess and signing David Nelson. Bess will prove valuable on third down. Travis Benjamin provides speed on the outside. This group will be even better next season.

There’s no doubting that the Browns receivers have a lot to prove, but it still seems a little bit odd that the Ravens could be ranked ahead of them without Anquan Boldin. Torrey Smith is a dynamic, young receiver who I definitely think is on an upward career arc, but he’s only entering his third season in the NFL. He’s caught nearly 50 balls in two straight years. He’s covered 841 yards and 855 yards while catching seven and eight TDs. All that being said, he accomplished that playing with Joe Flacco and alongside Anquan Boldin.

We’ll obviously see how it all plays out on the field this year, but Gordon didn’t start the entire season for the Browns and had 50 catches for 805 yards and five touchdowns as a rookie with no established veteran anywhere to be found on the Browns roster. Greg Little added 53 catches for 647 yards and four TDs as he seemed to get over his butter fingers in the second half of the season. The Browns also add Davone Bess who caught 61 balls a year ago for 778 yards from rookie QB Ryan Tannehill.

Filed Under: Headlines Tagged With: AJ Green, Anquan Boldin, Balitmore Ravens, Browns, Cincinnati Bengals, Davone Bess, Greg Little, Josh Gordon, Pittsburgh Steelers, Torrey Smith

NBA playoffs, Armonty Bryant, Browns Draft, 2013 NBA playoffs, Death Cab, Nine Inch Nails with Andrew – WFNY Podcast – 2013-05-07

May 8, 2013 by Craig Lyndall 3 Comments

Andrew and I got rolling and in what seemed like a few minutes, 50 of those bad boys went floating by. We talked about some business of sports by comparing it to the business of the music industry. We talked about the NBA playoffs, the Cavs, the Browns draft and pretty much everything else other than the Indians. We like the Indians though.

Spotify and the business of music
Ben Gibbard of Death Cab yelling at me on Twitter
Nine Inch Nails and their sales experiments
The business of baseball and the bubble
You can’t make it harder for people to buy what you do
The network battles and bringing it to the people
The emergence of Steph Curry as a superstar
The Bulls and the coaching job that Tom Thibodeau is doing
Derrick Rose still in the street clothes
Can Mike Brown coach a team to stop LeBron James?
Why are there no more Bruce Bowen types of players?
Has the lockdown defensive specialist become extinct?
Jason Kidd’s late career three point ability
Armonty Bryant and whether there’s a spot for him in Cleveland
Are the Browns going to be an organization that turns troubled players around?
Javarris James’ arrest when he was a member of the Colts
What about trading a pick to the Steelers?
Shamarko Thomas and how exactly could the Browns keep the Steelers away?
The Browns coaching staff and whether or not it’s better than what they replaced
How much Browns stigma can Browns fans thrust on new people?
Are Browns fans doing it to themselves? [Read more...]

Filed Under: Podcast Tagged With: 2013 NFL Draft, Armonty Bryant, Ben gibbard, Bruce Bowen, Death Cab for Cutie, Derrick Rose, Jason Kidd, Mike Brown, nine inch nails, Pittsburgh Steelers, Shamarko Thomas, Spotify, Terry Pluto, trent reznor

NFL Draft: Browns trade 4th round pick to Steelers for 3rd rounder in 2014

April 27, 2013 by Ryan Jones 13 Comments

For the first time since 1968 the Browns and Steelers are trade partners. Cleveland traded pick 111 to Pittsburgh for the Steelers’ 3rd round pick in 2014. The Steelers used the pick to select safety Shamarko Thomas out of Syracuse. Pittsburgh was reportedly very high on Thomas who has drawn comparisons to former Colts’ safety Bob Sanders.

While the Browns are in need of a safety, trading a fourth round pick for a third rounder in next year’s draft is a no brainer. Browns C.E.O. Joe Banner has said that all of the team’s holes will not be filled this offseason, so with no one jumping out at them at pick 111 Banner opted to add an asset for next year.

Let it be noted that the Giants traded up to 110 right ahead of the Browns to select Syracuse QB Ryan Nassib. Cleveland then traded their pick to Pittsburgh. The Browns have been widely rumored to be in the market for a quarterback with Brandon Weeden not receiving the full vote of confidence from the new regime in Berea.

Filed Under: Headlines Tagged With: Browns, NFL Draft, Pittsburgh Steelers, trade

NFL News: Jimmy Haslam’s stake in Steelers officially sold

April 11, 2013 by Scott 8 Comments

In a statement of ownership transaction released by the team, Jimmy Haslam III’s minority ownership stake in the Pittsburgh Steelers has officially been sold.

The Steelers that in a series of transactions approved by the NFL all of the Steelers stock owned by Haslam has been acquired, the majority of which was purchased by existing Steelers stockholders while the residual portion was purchased by members of the Swank Family, Scott and Russ Swank.

In October of 2012, Mr. Haslam purchased the Cleveland Browns, thus disassociating himself from all Steelers business at that time and authorized Steelers President Art Rooney, II and Morgan Stanley to arrange for the purchase of the Steelers stock owned.

Steelers President Art Rooney, II said, “We appreciate the continued confidence of our Ownership group involving this purchase of stock owned by Jimmy Haslam, and we welcome Scott and Russ Swank to our Ownership group.”

Filed Under: Headlines Tagged With: Browns, Jimmy Haslam III, NFL News, Pittsburgh Steelers

NFL Free Agency News: Browns to host Victor Butler

March 22, 2013 by Craig Lyndall 5 Comments

The New Orleans Times-Picayune first reported and Mary Kay Cabot confirmed that the Browns would host former Cowboys linebacker Victor Butler on a free agency visit. Butler is a former 4th round draft pick in 2009. Butler is an outside linebacker and if signed would be the third linebacker the Browns have signed this off-season as they move toward the 3-4 from the 4-3.

Victor Butler has visited the Steelers and Saints as well. As many publications have pointed out, the Saints were one of the teams the Browns reportedly outbid when they signed Paul Kruger away from the Baltimore Ravens.

Victor Butler was a defensive end at Oregon State before coming to the NFL and playing last season for Rob Ryan in Dallas. Football Outsiders’ Aaron Schatz named Butler a 2012 candidate to be a breakout year.

Butler is a young, developing player that will turn 26-years-old in July. He’s a perfect candidate for what the Browns have talked about wanting to do in free agency, finding younger players who can have a multi-year tenure with the team. If he does get sign it will likely ramp up the pressure on Jabaal Sheard in the pass-rusher spot.

Filed Under: Headlines Tagged With: Browns, Jabaal Sheard, new orleans saints, Paul Kruger, Pittsburgh Steelers

Breaking down Mike Wallace’s Dolphins contract

March 14, 2013 by Craig Lyndall 6 Comments

As they often do, Mike Florio and his compatriots at Pro Football Talk have gotten the final numbers on Mike Wallace’s contract. A lot of Browns fans really wanted Mike Wallace. A few less wanted him after hearing the final tally of the Dolphins deal and just how much they had to fork over for the former Steeler wideout.

I’ve taken Florio’s numbers and put it in the format that we’ve come to use when talking about deals like we did yesterday with Paul Kruger. So, here’s how it looks.

	Signing Bonus	Workout	Salary	Cap
2013	2.2	0.05	1	3.25
2014	2.2	0.05	15	17.25
2015	2.2	0.05	9.85	12.1
2016	2.2	0.05	11.45	13.7
2017	2.2	0.05	11.45	13.7
			Total	60

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Browns Tagged With: browns, Desmond Bryant, Joe Banner, Mike Wallace, Paul Kruger, Pittsburgh Steelers

James Harrison a Cleveland Brown? No thanks.

March 12, 2013 by Rick Grayshock 52 Comments

With two seasons left on his contract, the Pittsburgh Steelers released outside linebacker James Harrison. A part of two Super Bowl championship teams in Pittsburgh, with five Pro Bowls, three All-Pro teams and an AP Defensive Player of the Year award, Harrison leaves with quite a resume.

And he can take the resume and the baggage that comes with him to some other team if I had anything to say about it.

An Akron native. A Coventry High School graduate. A Kent State Golden Flash.

All true statements about Harrison. But so is this one: cheap shot artist.

He’s a player that has said he won’t let the new rules change how he plays the game. Which is to say he will continue to target the head, no matter how many fines or suspensions or number of times he gets called to the principal’s office. A principal that Harrison has gone on record to describe as such. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Browns Tagged With: browns, James Harrison, NFL free agents, Pittsburgh Steelers

NFL News: Baltimore Ravens trade Anquan Boldin to San Francisco 49ers

March 11, 2013 by Craig Lyndall 11 Comments

Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun reports (by way of PFT for us) that the Baltimore Ravens have traded Anquan Boldin across the country for a sixth-round pick.

While many Browns fans will be upset that the Browns didn’t get this deal, it is a pretty good bet that they never would have had the option to make a trade like that within the division. Considering the lofty numbers associated with Mike Wallace, Anquan Boldin’s $6 million salary figure looks pretty reasonable right about now.

All the talk of the Ravens wanting Boldin to take a pay cut were crazy, after all. With the market for receivers developing the way it has this off-season, there was no way Boldin would face a pay cut unless he thought the market for his services would have guaranteed him a smaller sum than $6 million. Even if he wanted to continue to play in Baltimore, there’s little doubt that had he been cut, he would have been able to replicate his financial future, if not improve it.

The only bright spot here for Browns fans is that they won’t have to see the former Eric Wright killer twice a year anymore in divisional match-ups.

Filed Under: Headlines Tagged With: Anquan Boldin, Baltimore Ravens, browns, Jim Harbaugh, john harbaugh, Mike Wallace, Pittsburgh Steelers, San Francisco 49ers

Steelers cut Browns nemesis James Harrison

March 9, 2013 by Craig Lyndall 8 Comments

James Harrison has left a trail of broken bodies in Cleveland and I’m not just talking about guys on the roster. Sure, Mohamed Massaquoi, Josh Cribbs and Colt McCoy took their bumps (videos,) but remember that James Harrison also suplexed an unruly Browns fan who ran on the field during a game.

Well now, James Harrison is no longer a member of the Steelers.

It’s been a great run but all good things must come to a end. Thank you Steelers Nation I will miss you all!

— James Harrison (@jharrison9292) March 9, 2013

As Harrison is set to turn 35 years old in May, he apparently wouldn’t agree to cut his salary back from the approximate $6.5 million he was set to make in 2013. His knees were also giving him problems over the last few years.

There are enough teams converting to the 3-4 and enough teams that might not mind taking a chance on an older Harrison assuming they don’t need him to play full time anymore. It will be interesting to see just how much money Harrison gets and from which team.

For whatever reason, I really don’t expect the Browns to be that team.

Filed Under: Headlines Tagged With: Browns, Colt McCoy, James Harrison, Josh Cribbs, Mohamed Massaquoi, Pittsburgh Steelers

NFL Rumor: Steve Breaston won’t sign with Browns, considering knee surgery

March 2, 2013 by Jacob Rosen 4 Comments

Silly season is obviously going on now. After visiting with the Cleveland Browns on Wednesday, there’s been a bit of a reversal in the Steve Breaston narrative.

On Thursday and Friday, both the Plain Dealer’s Mary Kay Cabot and Elyria Chronicle-Telgram’s Scott Petrak respectively tweeted that the Browns would be unlikely to sign the free agent wide receiver. The 29-year-old, who played sparingly with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2012, had previously visited with AFC North rival Pittsburgh earlier in the week as well.

In addition to these reports on the receiver’s final destination, ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter brought in other big news on Breaston this afternoon. Here’s an excerpt from his article:

“Former Arizona Cardinals and Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Steve Breaston is considering undergoing the Regenokine treatment in Germany in an effort to repair knee inflammation and early arthritic symptoms, according to sources.

Breaston had visits this past week with the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cleveland Browns.

It is the same treatment that players such as Kobe Bryant and Alex Rodriguez underwent to help save their careers.

During the procedure, a small cup of blood is removed from the patient, and then it is incubated at a slightly elevated temperature and spun in a centrifuge to make serum that’s injected to combat inflammation that may resolve the player’s irritation.”

Schefter wrote that Breaston hopes to continue to train until he is ready to sign with an NFL team. But for now, you can cross the Browns out of the running and we’ll see if they continue to look toward other free agent options at this position.

Filed Under: Headlines Tagged With: Browns, Kansas City Chiefs, nfl, NFL Free Agency, Pittsburgh Steelers, steve breaston

NFL Free Agency Rumors: WR Steve Breaston meeting with Browns

February 25, 2013 by Rick Grayshock 20 Comments

The Browns have been connected to free agent WR Mike Wallace in the rumor mill, but Lane Atkins of the Orange and Brown Report states that the Browns are unlikely to use upwards of $10 million dollars of their cap space on one WR.

Enter Steve Breaston. The former Chiefs WR is drawing interest from teams, including the Steelers and the Browns-

“NFL.com’s Aditi Kinkhabwala reported that Breaston is set to visit the Cleveland Browns on Tuesday, according to a source apprised of the free-agent wide receiver’s schedule. ProFootballTalk reported Breaston is meeting with the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday.”

Breaston is a 29 year old receiver/kick returner. His best season was in 2008 working opposite Anquan Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald where the trio all caught passes for over 1000 yards. Breaston has 3387 yards receiving in his six year career. He has 9 career touchdown receptions.

Filed Under: Headlines Tagged With: browns, NFL free agents, Pittsburgh Steelers

WFNY Podcast – 2013-02-15 – @SteelersDepot talking Browns and the rest of the AFC North

February 15, 2013 by Craig Lyndall 2 Comments

Dave from @SteelersDepot was a stud guest on the podcast even if he did defend James Harrison’s hitting style. Dude is prolific, informed and generally about as knowledgeable as anyone I’ve talked NFL with in my life. I haven’t talked to him since the NFL season ended, so I tracked him down to talk about the Browns, the AFC North, the intricacies of NFL finance, and a whole host of other topics.

Great stuff from Dave. If you have a chance, follow him on twitter @SteelersDepot and check his website, specifically his post on the NFL Salary Floor.

Salary Floor
Paul Kruger
Ravens championship
Anquan Boldin and his retirement threat
Joe Flacco and his winning lottery ticket playoff run
Poison pill NFL contracts
The value of Pro Football Talk
James Harrison’s future and where he’ll end up
Brandon Weeden and the Browns QB situation
Mike Lombardi’s opinion of Brandon Weeden
Mike Wallace and what it would take to sign him
Browns expectations
AFC North expectations to win the playoffs over the next couple years
The haves vs. the have nots
QB guru George Whitfield Jr.
Ray Horton and yards after catch and explosive plays

Listen at Stitcher

—————-

Subscribe on iTunes

Filed Under: Podcast Tagged With: Brandon Weeden, Browns, Mike Wallace, Paul Kruger, Pittsburgh Steelers

NFL Rumors: Steelers’ Mike Wallace believed to be heading to Cleveland

February 11, 2013 by Scott 59 Comments

Buried in a recent piece by CBS Sports’ Jason LaCanfora is a few lines which Cleveland Browns fans would likely find intriguing.

With a boat load of cap space (roughly $30 million), Joe Banner’s Browns are already rumored to be in the mix for Baltimore Ravens quarterback — and reigning Super Bowl MVP — Joe Flacco. If this was not enough for those in search of play-making skill players, La Canfora has you covered.

“The Browns have about $30 million in space and will be big spenders under new owner Jimmy Haslam and team president Joe Banner” writes LaCanfora. ”Many in the Steelers organization believe [wide receiver Mike] Wallace will end up with their division rivals in Cleveland (Haslam was a former minority owner of the Steelers).”

The Steelers are not expected to retain their high-impact receiver on the heels of last year’s holdout. Two weeks prior to the regular season, the 26-year old opted to play under the one-year, $2.7 million tender. He caught a career-high 72 passes for 1,193 yards and eight touchdowns in 2011 and followed that up with 64 receptions for 836 yards and eight touchdowns through 15 games in 2012.

The Browns are not expected to re-sign wide receiver Mohamed Massaquoi or tight end Ben Watson, so an addition to the receiving corps is not out of the question. Wallace was a third-round pick in the 2009 NFL Draft out of Ole Miss.

Filed Under: Headlines Tagged With: browns, Mike Wallace, NFL News, NFL Rumors, Pittsburgh Steelers

Browns contribute to Deadspin naming Erie PA the NFL’s most tortured TV market

January 10, 2013 by Craig Lyndall 8 Comments

Many of our friends down in Columbus know what it’s like to not know exactly which games will be on TV every week. I’m sure it’s a pain in the neck, but know that it could be worse. Apparently being caught between the Bills, Browns, Steelers, Eagles and Lions in varied proportions has made Erie Pennsylvania the most tortured NFL TV market according to Deadspin.

Sweet, sweet victory! Fifty-four percent of Erie’s Sunday afternoon games involved one of 2012′s s****y teams, including 10 Bills games (63 percent of Buffalo’s Sunday afternoon games) and nine Browns games (56 percent). Despite being further west, Erie still managed to pick up four Eagles games (33 percent) and four Jets games (29 percent); what’s more, Erie wandered a little close to the Midwest and got hit with three Lions games (25 percent). To top it all off, the city got only nine Steelers games, just 75 percent of the team’s Sunday afternoon total.

I have known people from Erie all my life and I know that it used to be a much stronger Browns market. Obviously the Steelers have made inroads there since the 90s when the Browns were (even more) irrelevant. In all seriousness, this is one of the battlegrounds where Jimmy Haslam can pick up some marginal Browns fans. There is a history of Browns fans in Erie at least historically. Maybe he can find a way to re-ignite it. Plus, if the Browns were a good and exciting team, they would no longer become a knock on the TV.

Filed Under: Headlines Tagged With: browns, Buffalo Bills, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Pittsburgh Steelers

NFL Rumor: Bruce Arians wanted Browns coaching job “badly”

January 5, 2013 by Scott 14 Comments

Per WEWS’ Mike Cairns, we have word that former Cleveland Browns offensive coordinator Bruce Arians wanted to return home but was not granted an interview.

I am told that Bruce Arians wanted #Browns job very badly but was never granted an interview.

— Mike Cairns (@MikeCairns5) January 5, 2013

Arians, the current offensive coordinator of the Indianapolis Colts, was one of the two men whom most Browns fans had claimed to have wanted to be the next head coach of their team. He is also one of the main antagonists in the 10-year retrospective playoff piece that hit WFNY earlier this weekend.

Since leaving the Browns after the 2003 season, Arians, 60, spent several years (and two Super Bowls) with the Pittsburgh Steelers — the team in which Jimmy Haslam III had minority ownership — before being relieved of his duties and helping the Colts make the playoffs one year after winning just two games. He is expected to interview with the Philadelphia Eagles later this weekend.

Filed Under: Headlines Tagged With: browns, Bruce Arians, NFL Rumors, Pittsburgh Steelers

NFL News: Phil Taylor fined for hit during Steelers game

January 4, 2013 by Jacob Rosen 6 Comments

The NFL unveiled its fines for hits from Week 17 today, and surprisingly, only one player from the Browns-Steelers game received a penalty. And of course, it was a Brown.

Cleveland defensive tackle Phil Taylor was the one in trouble, because of his unnecessary roughness forearm that concussed Pittsburgh offensive lineman Kelvin Beachum away from the play. He was fined $7,875 for the play. It’s the second fine of his career, along with his $7,500 penalty for hitting Chad Henne in a Sept. 25, 2011 game.

Notably, there were no other fines assessed to other players, such as Pittsburgh linebacker James Harrison, offensive lineman Doug Legursky, or Browns defensive tackles Billy Winn and Ahtyba Rubin. The game turned ugly after Legursky dived into the legs of Craig Robertson after a second-quarter play.

Filed Under: Headlines Tagged With: browns, nfl, phil taylor, Pittsburgh Steelers

Browns drop final game to Steelers and start off-season of change

December 30, 2012 by Craig Lyndall 6 Comments

The Browns and Steelers is usually a much-anticipated matchup, but this time it seemed as if the end of the game was the most intriguing part. With the end of the game comes the end of the charade that Pat Shurmur and GM Tom Heckert will keep their jobs. Gone is the last bit of the Mike Holmgren era, but more importantly the Randy Lerner era for all practical purposes.¹ In the end, the Browns had a chance to tie it up in the fourth quarter but turnovers caught up with them as they dropped their final game 24-10. The Browns finish the season at 5-11.

Despite my looking ahead to the end, there were still decent enough reasons to watch. Thad Lewis was getting his first start and honestly, even if the team is bad, you only get 16 chances to watch them play meaningful football a year so most people like to try and make the most of it. It’s not exactly fighting for a playoff spot, but most Browns fans barely remember that feeling if they’ve even been alive long enough. So the Browns and Steelers went at it, neither having anything real to play for. [Read more...]

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Lerner will own a small portion of the team for a while still, but it’s really over. [back]

Filed Under: Browns Tagged With: browns, Greg Little, Joe Banner, Pittsburgh Steelers, Thaddeus Lewis

Animated: James Harrison personal foul headshot on Thaddeus Lewis

December 30, 2012 by Craig Lyndall 13 Comments

In case you missed it and want to follow along as the NFL offices levy fines against the notorious James Harrison, here is his all-too-typical hit on Browns quarterback Thaddeus Lewis.

Filed Under: Headlines Tagged With: Browns, James Harrison, Pittsburgh Steelers, Thaddeus Lewis

Browns-Steelers Week 17 Open Thread

December 30, 2012 by Kirk 8 Comments

Thaddeus Lewis makes start number one. No Weeden, no McCoy, no Richardson, no Brown, etc. Phil’s a Pro Bowler! Shurmur and Heckert’s last dance. There’s no shortage of questions, and the Browns head into Heinz Field looking to give Pittsburgh a losing season and finish 6-10.

Get your commenting and Steeler hatred on below!

Filed Under: Browns Tagged With: browns, Phil Dawson, Pittsburgh Steelers, Thaddeus Lewis