So Blow Up the Cleveland Browns, Right?
NFL December 18th. 2008, 4:00pm
Last year at this time, the Cleveland Browns bandwagon was brimming with optimism about the playoffs and beyond.
Ten wins! Derek Anderson! Braylon Edwards! The hype was so prevalent, schedule-makers booked the Browns for three Monday Night games. There were perhaps the sexiest pick to do serious damage this season by sportswriters, including Peter King and Len Pasquarelli. (We looked at the schedule and smelled disaster; Norman Chad, not so much.)
And now they’re 4-10. It appeared to us as if Edwards hired an aggressive PR agency that put his handsome mug all over the place (including the infamous Costas show!). Terrible move. It inflated expectations and led people to believe he was destined for the most Moss-Owens stratosphere. Following another offensively-challenged loss Monday, the Browns have completely fallen apart, and an potentially-explosive offseason awaits:
* Anderson suffered an injury three weeks ago and was booed while being helped off the field
* Kellen Winslow got a staph infection, wound up in the hospital, and then feuded with management (in public!) over the cause of his illness
* Edwards has riffed twice this week about how the city doesn’t like him, and how people are mean to his family out in public
* Irate at Romeo’s coaching job, some fans have started a Cowher09 website that they hope will lead to Bill Cowher leaving his cushy CBS lair for the cold one in Cleveland
Let’s see - new coach, perhaps a new system, and who knows, maybe a new top WR and no more Winslow. You think Brady Quinn thought things would get this bad after he got the starting gig?
56 Responses to “So Blow Up the Cleveland Browns, Right?”
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December 18th, 2008 at 4:07 pm
5 Step Plan:
1. Fire Romeo.
2-5. Will take care of themselves.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:09 pm
The Slaughter/Langhorne High-Five was the best. That is when the Browns were relevant and owned this town. Now they are nothing but a disgrace. Nothing like Braylon blaming the fans for not liking him on going to Michigan, because as you all know, every single person who ever grew up in Cleveland is a Buckeye fan….
December 18th, 2008 at 4:09 pm
Did anyone really think the Browns were going to be an 11- or 12-win team this season? Come on…
December 18th, 2008 at 4:11 pm
So Blow Up
theClevelandBrowns, Right?/YES
December 18th, 2008 at 4:11 pm
Colts suck.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:12 pm
But Super Bowl XLI was awesome.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:14 pm
All-time favorite Browns photo.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:15 pm
A new receiver should be pretty far down the priority list.
The Browns desperately need guys who can rush the passer and guys who can cover people, in that order. They should be looking at a DE in the first round or a CB.
If the new coach sticks with the 3-4 they still have a great anchor. They could use some speedy linebackers, and McGinest is likely to retire? (right?)
December 18th, 2008 at 4:15 pm
This post makes me want to cry…
The schedule was brutal. They’ve had the injury plague (again). Still, no excuse for some of the pathetic performances and injustifiable coaching decisions that have (or have not been made) on the North Coast this season.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:15 pm
i did…because i drank enough Brown Drank to delude myself into forgetting romeo crennel was the coach.
im gonna miss braylon.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:25 pm
You drank Diarrhea
December 18th, 2008 at 4:27 pm
So trade Braylon to Detroit for Calvin Johnson? Does that solve things for Braylon since Detroit fans are in Michigan and they’d never boo a former Wolverine with a case of the dropsies?
December 18th, 2008 at 4:28 pm
I don’t actually think they are as bad as the record, Romeo “punt or kick” Crennell never actually tried to win games, he was most interested in keeping the score close (/TMQ //sucks)). With some actual leadership they could have done better.
I would be surprised if Braylon is gone, I believe they just gave him a new contract, so they aren’t going to cut him and no one would trade for him.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:28 pm
this is sad. cleveland is such a good football town and the brownies have shat on them and teased them for decades.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:28 pm
Thanks for the Super Bowl Cleveland. We appreciate it.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:29 pm
I think Braylon has a lot of talent, but Megatron’s on another level right now. Watching him last week just torch Kelvin Hayden, who’s a solid corner, was impressive. The guy’s a physical marvel and if you don’t get a jam on him at the line of scrimmage, you’re toast.
As for the Browns, the NFL knew who was going to be on their schedule this year, so why give them five primetime games? I thought that was odd back in April, but they have caught some bad breaks.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:30 pm
Hey Braylon, you fucking douche. How about you stop doing those Five Hour Energy commercials and practice doing what you actually get paid to do, catch the fucking ball. Stop dropping it. Seriously. Thanks for fucking two of my fantasy teams this season, by the way. Asshole.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:30 pm
braylon has his fucking head up his ass…we don’t boo him because he’s from fucking michigan, we boo him because he’s fucking wasting his prodigious talent. you know what, braylon? fuck you. don’t go all Michigan man this and that when you’re fucking singing Carmen Ohio on the sidelines like a fucking traitor. we loved you, dude, we’d defend you to the death.
act like a fucking man and take responsibility for your own shortcomings. own up to the fact that you’ve sucked so much ass this year it hurts. you fucked over the entire city and it’s OUR fault?
go to hell you michigan piece of shit. if you want us to treat you like a stink-bear, we will, but don’t you dare for a second accuse us of turning on you for THAT reason. the NFL is a performance-based league, and your performance has sucked.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:30 pm
is old man ford that senile to trade calvin johnson for a guy who has yet to live up to his expectations? what would it cost cleveland, three first round picks and two seconds?
December 18th, 2008 at 4:32 pm
That’s some good quality hating, Spence. You sound like how I felt about Cato June and Gilbert Gardner during 2006. It is a hate-filled rage I know well. Then again, I’m not about to compare my misery to that of a Browns fan.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:33 pm
gfy
December 18th, 2008 at 4:34 pm
I’d like to think Peter Angelos is getting me to that point, especially with the fact he fucked up the Vero Beach thing this week, but I know Cleveland has had much more misery. But I would really like to take a bat to Angelos.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:35 pm
They were not as good as their record last year, and they are not as bad as their record this year.
Plan for the Browns
1. Fire Crenell
2. Trade DA for whatever they can get
3. Give Brady Quinn the starting job at end of the season
4. Acquire dependable veteran back-up QB
5. Find a young linebacker that can tackle
6. Find a corner or impact safety that does not get hurt
7. Have healthy wide receiver corps
8. Draft well this year.
Simple.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:37 pm
You’d think that’s simple, but as many teams have demonstrated in every single sport, it really isn’t. I don’t know why it isn’t, and why team execs seem so dumb, but apparently, it isn’t that simple.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:37 pm
/That hurts more than any profanity laced tirade.
//Not quite as bad as the words Drive or Fumble though.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:37 pm
BE did not just sign a new contract. He is a FA after 09.
Sean Jones is the big FA this year that I’m afraid is leaving.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:38 pm
It must suck to play a tough schedule. How do you expect a team to overcome that?
/steeler’d
December 18th, 2008 at 4:39 pm
Even I’ll admit, as a Ravens fan, that’s a low blow. Not cool.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:39 pm
it has nothing to do with hate, it has to do with frustration. frustration stemming from the fact that everything associated with this football team lacks any type of accountability since they moved.
-art modell didn’t take accountability for his shitty money managing.
-belichick didn’t take accountability for his shortcomings
-al lerner didn’t take accountability for surrounding himself with moronic cronies
-butch davis didn’t take accountability for not knowing what the fuck he’s doing
-tim couch didn’t take accountability for having the work ethic of a fucking three-toed sloth
-savage doesn’t take accountability for being an egotistical dick
-and braylon is just the latest in a long line of assholes who just don’t think ANYTHING is their fault
i don’t know how much more i can take of this…it’s disgusting.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:39 pm
Anyone who thinks the job of an NFL GM is easy should read Tom Callahan’s book he did on Ernie Accorsi. Shit ain’t fantasy football.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:40 pm
I also dont see how Cowher would fix anything. Look, I love Cowher, but its a love that took years to grow and wasn’t without some serious hatred along the way. Cowher has many good aspects, he would demand discipline, toughness, and gets the best out of the players, however he was outcoached many, many times, especially in the playoffs. Some of his success has to be attributed to the Steelers organization.
Would he be better than Romeo, duh, but I have to think there are some hungrier/better guys out there.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:42 pm
Matt Millen had a job there for years. I wouldn’t put anything past this guy.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:42 pm
I’m not saying being a GM is easy, but it just seems guys like McHale, Millen, Kerr and Savage do this stuff constantly, like mindblowing stuff. I just don’t get how it’s rationalized sometimes.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:42 pm
I’ve come to find that all NFL wide receivers are selfish assholes by nature. They’re out there on an island. I mean, the one wide receiver I always assumed was somewhat normal - just because he never talked - may have shot someone this summer, or at least stood by and watched someone else do it with his gun.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:43 pm
if we went with the steelers model, it’d be by pure luck and bad officiating.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:44 pm
Cowher’s not going to ruin his coaching legacy by going to that cesspool where no matter what, you just don’t win. Poor ownership, poor management, bad luck, classless fans (cheering injuries, throwing batteries, etc). It’s a no win, plus he makes a million enemies in Pittsburgh (where he was born by the way) where he’s beloved. Hell, Belichick’s genious wasn’t enough to overcome that franchise’s downward spiral.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:44 pm
December 18th, 2008 at 4:45 pm
I’d like to think Derek Mason is level-headed, but honestly, I don’t trust any WR not named Calvin Johnson.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:45 pm
oh, spence. that’s coming from your angry place. think of it this way, I’m a Pirates fan too.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:47 pm
personally i think they should force any owner of a sports team that refuses to make their team a winner sell to someone who has oodles of cash to make a winner.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:47 pm
The Bengals have 3 Michigan men. I like 2 ok(dhani jones, leon hall), but I fucking hate Chris Perry
December 18th, 2008 at 4:48 pm
Spencer
December 18th, 2008 at 4:48 pm
Matt Millen had a job there for years. I wouldn’t put anything past this guy.
OUCH!
December 18th, 2008 at 4:51 pm
I forgot to put a sincere tag after my simple. Molding the Browns into a championship team will not be simple.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:53 pm
it’s actually extremely simple…kill that no-caring asshole randy lerner, give the team and his bankroll to me and watch the super bowls roll in one after another.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:54 pm
Tampa that guy is going to give me nightmares now, thanks a lot
December 18th, 2008 at 4:58 pm
I don’t know if I trust your talent evaluation Spence. You are the one that talked me into believing the Browns could be good this year. My instincts were that they would struggle, and thought 6-10.
December 18th, 2008 at 5:03 pm
I think Spence is too emotionally involved in the Browns’ fate to reconstruct their roster. You need a hired gun with a face like a shoe bottom (Bill Polian) to take on that mess.
December 18th, 2008 at 5:06 pm
slc…well, the talent is there. the coaching and front office? no.
i’d wheel, deal and sex appeal (to georgia fronteirre at least…she’s dead? oh shit) my way to building a winner.
December 18th, 2008 at 5:10 pm
That’s worked so well for the redskins.
December 18th, 2008 at 5:11 pm
The Browns haven’t been the same since Webster Slaughter left.
December 18th, 2008 at 5:14 pm
December 18th, 2008 at 5:15 pm
/threadjack
We have another Athlete on Bird incident
/endjack
December 18th, 2008 at 5:25 pm
seriously, Quizz…the rest of your ohio knocks are annoying but charming, but that one crossed the line.
December 18th, 2008 at 5:34 pm
I tend to agree with spence, much like brian billick’s comment earlier. Low blow.
December 18th, 2008 at 5:38 pm
couldn’t resist