AVP called the plays on Friday. Fine by me. We’ve had too many failed coaches come in and do both (Palmer, Shurms, Hue, etc) and our mild successes have been with the OC calling plays (Davis and Pettine)
I hope so. My gut says no because PTSD and those kinds of things.
But I really hope so. I'd love to be excited for Browns football for more than 8-10 weeks.
I made it about 8 weeks into the regular season last year before throwing my hands up. It usually takes zero weeks, because we rarely have any reason, at all, to believe our QB is good enough to have an excellent team.
(Not to say we and I *don't* believe it - just that we don't have reason to)
When Baker was still bad against NE after the bye, that was when I hopped on the head coaching search bandwagon. Normally, we don't have a good QB *to* ruin, so I was more vehemently in favor of firing Freddie at that moment than I was any other Browns coach in the last decade. I was big mad.
I remember my son and I marveling at how HARD everything looked on offense. Chubb was literally setting a record for fewest yards before contact compared to most after contact. Mayfield NEVER threw on schedule, had to concoct because we had the worst separation in the league (our #1 was like 92nd).
I'd never in my life seen a worse outcome from a better collection of offensive talent. Never ever, even the Dream Team. It seemed like we schemed our way into nothing and defenses always had a very strong sense of what we were gonna do. OBJ was severely diminished while Higgins and Njoku were basically erased. No real innovation with Chubb and Hunt.
I honestly try to not even think about it. It was a lost year.
Browns ranked as having the 3rd most enviable quarterback room due to Mayfield being ready to bounce back but also having Keenum, who was a fantastic quarterback the last time he was paired with Stefanski.
I can't say I disagree. I feel like Mayfield is going to have a fantastic season, with a minimum of being a clear bounce back, while Keenum is arguably the best insurance we've had at the position since... I don't know... at least since returning.
For what it's worth: The best QB room is ranked as the Saints (Brees, Hill, Winston) and second is Dallas with Prescott and Datlon. Perhaps fair, although I could see anyone arguing we know more about Keenum in this system than we know about Dalton with McCarthy.
Meanwhile, the Steelers are ranked #1 in having the least enviable quarterback room. Roethlisberger is 38-years-old and coming off injury. While Gil Brandt predicts Roethilsberger has a comeback player of the year type of season, he feels Rudolph/Hodges/Lynch starting will doom the Steelers season. None of those are a QB of the future, and likely not even solid spot starters.
Maybe it is our year. But I'll take it if our future at the position proves bright while Pittsburgh's looks among the bleakest.
They got the first three right for sure. I was watching the Cowboys camp and thinking Dalton is likely the other most comforting backup you'd want coming in to win you a couple games. Not quit as sure about Winston.
I love Keenum to be honest (shoutout to PGL who advocated for him way before I saw anyone else) at backup. He's a veteran with a quality arm who can make throws. That's really all you can ask for at this point. Baker, hopefully, does bounce back alleviating all the anxieties I have about us ruining yet another quarterback.
Compared to so many years where we're all holding our breath knowing if the starting QB goes down we are FUCKED.
x
Aug 23, 2020
We also can't overlook the kind of help Keenum will be on the sidelines. He's pretty much the perfect guy to be holding the tablet and helping Baker with what is happening out there. Keenum has long been one of those "could coach one day" types, and his experience with this offense even further enhances that.
Hopefully we won't have to see Keenum. But not seeing him doesn't mean he's not greatly helping.
Personally, that's why I would have listed the Browns ahead of Dallas. Dalton is so different from Prescott, and both have their own goals - Dak wants to get paid and Dalton wants to return to the starting light. I feel like Keenum knows he's a back-up, Baker has long been called a "plus Keenum" type of quarterback and Keenum has played at a high level in this offense.
I'd take that situation over what Dallas has.
On the Steelers front, all reports suggest Roethlisberger is back and in phenomenal form. He's been annihilating their defense in practice and his receivers sing his praises every time they get in front of reporters.
It complicates our season further if the Steelers return to having an elite quarterback. I just can't understand how that always-banged-up, overweight, big bodied dude hasn't fallen off. I get it with Brady and Brees, but Roethlisberger feels like a guy who should have declined years ago.
Very true. I remember joking about getting a big brother figure who just happens to be a 6' QB from Texas... but I wasn't really joking. I've never heard a young QB NOT prefer that his backup leans into the mentor stuff.
In discussing our chances for success this year, I wish to emphasize what I consider to be a principle for success in football and that is continuity. I see football as the ultimate team sport and I believe that continuity is fundamental to success.
This is not true for all sports or at least not to the extent it is with football. Baseball, for example, consists mainly of a series of battles between the pitcher and a succession of batters while the rest of the team stands around waiting for something to happen. A third baseman for one team can be traded to another team, take a redeye flight to a another city, quickly learn a few signs and take the field for his new team the very next evening, never skipping a beat.
Not so with football. Football requires a coordinated attack. Success in football requires continuity. Playing together in a familiar system counts. Everything affects everything. It takes more than mere talent to have success in football. Need I add another cliché to make the point? 😀
Look, we have had talent in the past. In 2012, when I first became a Browns fan, we had a young promising team that seemed set for the future. We had every reason to think our future was bright. We had talent. Any team that had players like Joe Thomas, Alex Mack, Mitchell Schwartz, Jabaal Sheard, Josh Gordon, Ben Watson Ahtyba Rubin, Billy Winn, D’Qwell Jackson, Joe Haden and TJ Ward was not without talent. Unfortunately, Joe Banner happened. Within three years, our young promising team was transformed into an old, overpaid, over the hill gang with still no continuity. And soon after that, with Sashi at the helm, we were thrust into the football wilderness with neither talent nor continuity.
Fortunately, Dorsey came along and worked some magic. And then AB followed with some shrewd moves, and, suddenly, we have by far our most talented team in recent memory. Furthermore, we seem to have a promising coaching staff with systems that have had significant success with other teams. Seemingly, all we lack now is continuity. Unfortunately, this year, we are lacking even the normal means of acquiring said continuity. We have lacked even a normal preseason. The new systems are actually being installed now, as we speak, in training camp. How can we even think about competing with teams that have played together in the same system for years?
Nevertheless, individually, we have one of the strongest offenses in the league and a very promising defense. And talent ought to count for something. The question before us is whether the talent we enjoy can overcome the lack of continuity of which we suffer. I think it depends mainly on luck. If we get a few breaks, we may be able to play over our heads for a time and compensate for our lack of experience playing together as a team. It will be interesting to see how it turns out. I am going to play the advocate and suggest that as many as 9 or 10 wins may be possible this year.
Cliff...I too am on the continuity train...and have said before (I belief at BH) that my biggest concern and what I thought was the biggest hurdle was the shortened practice time due to COVID.
With that said, I also pointed out some other things that mitigate it to some extent:
Cincinnati (x2): New coaching staff, new QB
Baltimore (x2): New OC; restructure of defensive coaches
Pittsburgh (x2): New QB coach...no NFL experience
Washington: all new coaching staff; likely new QB
Dallas: all new coaching staff
Indianapolis: new QB (how ready will Rivers be in new offense)
Houston: new DC
Philadelphia: new pass game coordinator and new offensive asst...big changes for Wentz
Jacksonville: new OC, new QB potentially
Tennessee: new DC
New York Giants: new coaching staff
The only 2 teams we play this year without any significant changes are the Jets and Raiders.
Lets hope so! Love a good hype thread.
AVP called the plays on Friday. Fine by me. We’ve had too many failed coaches come in and do both (Palmer, Shurms, Hue, etc) and our mild successes have been with the OC calling plays (Davis and Pettine)
Is that an embedded YT vid I see? 😂
A stab at it ....
I hope so. My gut says no because PTSD and those kinds of things. But I really hope so. I'd love to be excited for Browns football for more than 8-10 weeks.
And that is counting the pre-season/camp usually lmao
I made it about 8 weeks into the regular season last year before throwing my hands up. It usually takes zero weeks, because we rarely have any reason, at all, to believe our QB is good enough to have an excellent team.
(Not to say we and I *don't* believe it - just that we don't have reason to)
When Baker was still bad against NE after the bye, that was when I hopped on the head coaching search bandwagon. Normally, we don't have a good QB *to* ruin, so I was more vehemently in favor of firing Freddie at that moment than I was any other Browns coach in the last decade. I was big mad.
I remember my son and I marveling at how HARD everything looked on offense. Chubb was literally setting a record for fewest yards before contact compared to most after contact. Mayfield NEVER threw on schedule, had to concoct because we had the worst separation in the league (our #1 was like 92nd).
I'd never in my life seen a worse outcome from a better collection of offensive talent. Never ever, even the Dream Team. It seemed like we schemed our way into nothing and defenses always had a very strong sense of what we were gonna do. OBJ was severely diminished while Higgins and Njoku were basically erased. No real innovation with Chubb and Hunt.
I honestly try to not even think about it. It was a lost year.
Browns ranked as having the 3rd most enviable quarterback room due to Mayfield being ready to bounce back but also having Keenum, who was a fantastic quarterback the last time he was paired with Stefanski.
I can't say I disagree. I feel like Mayfield is going to have a fantastic season, with a minimum of being a clear bounce back, while Keenum is arguably the best insurance we've had at the position since... I don't know... at least since returning.
For what it's worth: The best QB room is ranked as the Saints (Brees, Hill, Winston) and second is Dallas with Prescott and Datlon. Perhaps fair, although I could see anyone arguing we know more about Keenum in this system than we know about Dalton with McCarthy.
Meanwhile, the Steelers are ranked #1 in having the least enviable quarterback room. Roethlisberger is 38-years-old and coming off injury. While Gil Brandt predicts Roethilsberger has a comeback player of the year type of season, he feels Rudolph/Hodges/Lynch starting will doom the Steelers season. None of those are a QB of the future, and likely not even solid spot starters.
Maybe it is our year. But I'll take it if our future at the position proves bright while Pittsburgh's looks among the bleakest.
They got the first three right for sure. I was watching the Cowboys camp and thinking Dalton is likely the other most comforting backup you'd want coming in to win you a couple games. Not quit as sure about Winston.
I love Keenum to be honest (shoutout to PGL who advocated for him way before I saw anyone else) at backup. He's a veteran with a quality arm who can make throws. That's really all you can ask for at this point. Baker, hopefully, does bounce back alleviating all the anxieties I have about us ruining yet another quarterback.
It's the kind of thing you hope doesn't become a big deal... but if it does, you're thrilled to see Keenum jog onto the field. Eases the pain.
Compared to so many years where we're all holding our breath knowing if the starting QB goes down we are FUCKED.
We also can't overlook the kind of help Keenum will be on the sidelines. He's pretty much the perfect guy to be holding the tablet and helping Baker with what is happening out there. Keenum has long been one of those "could coach one day" types, and his experience with this offense even further enhances that.
Hopefully we won't have to see Keenum. But not seeing him doesn't mean he's not greatly helping.
Personally, that's why I would have listed the Browns ahead of Dallas. Dalton is so different from Prescott, and both have their own goals - Dak wants to get paid and Dalton wants to return to the starting light. I feel like Keenum knows he's a back-up, Baker has long been called a "plus Keenum" type of quarterback and Keenum has played at a high level in this offense. I'd take that situation over what Dallas has.
On the Steelers front, all reports suggest Roethlisberger is back and in phenomenal form. He's been annihilating their defense in practice and his receivers sing his praises every time they get in front of reporters.
It complicates our season further if the Steelers return to having an elite quarterback. I just can't understand how that always-banged-up, overweight, big bodied dude hasn't fallen off. I get it with Brady and Brees, but Roethlisberger feels like a guy who should have declined years ago.
Very true. I remember joking about getting a big brother figure who just happens to be a 6' QB from Texas... but I wasn't really joking. I've never heard a young QB NOT prefer that his backup leans into the mentor stuff.
In discussing our chances for success this year, I wish to emphasize what I consider to be a principle for success in football and that is continuity. I see football as the ultimate team sport and I believe that continuity is fundamental to success.
This is not true for all sports or at least not to the extent it is with football. Baseball, for example, consists mainly of a series of battles between the pitcher and a succession of batters while the rest of the team stands around waiting for something to happen. A third baseman for one team can be traded to another team, take a redeye flight to a another city, quickly learn a few signs and take the field for his new team the very next evening, never skipping a beat.
Not so with football. Football requires a coordinated attack. Success in football requires continuity. Playing together in a familiar system counts. Everything affects everything. It takes more than mere talent to have success in football. Need I add another cliché to make the point? 😀
Look, we have had talent in the past. In 2012, when I first became a Browns fan, we had a young promising team that seemed set for the future. We had every reason to think our future was bright. We had talent. Any team that had players like Joe Thomas, Alex Mack, Mitchell Schwartz, Jabaal Sheard, Josh Gordon, Ben Watson Ahtyba Rubin, Billy Winn, D’Qwell Jackson, Joe Haden and TJ Ward was not without talent. Unfortunately, Joe Banner happened. Within three years, our young promising team was transformed into an old, overpaid, over the hill gang with still no continuity. And soon after that, with Sashi at the helm, we were thrust into the football wilderness with neither talent nor continuity.
Fortunately, Dorsey came along and worked some magic. And then AB followed with some shrewd moves, and, suddenly, we have by far our most talented team in recent memory. Furthermore, we seem to have a promising coaching staff with systems that have had significant success with other teams. Seemingly, all we lack now is continuity. Unfortunately, this year, we are lacking even the normal means of acquiring said continuity. We have lacked even a normal preseason. The new systems are actually being installed now, as we speak, in training camp. How can we even think about competing with teams that have played together in the same system for years?
Nevertheless, individually, we have one of the strongest offenses in the league and a very promising defense. And talent ought to count for something. The question before us is whether the talent we enjoy can overcome the lack of continuity of which we suffer. I think it depends mainly on luck. If we get a few breaks, we may be able to play over our heads for a time and compensate for our lack of experience playing together as a team. It will be interesting to see how it turns out. I am going to play the advocate and suggest that as many as 9 or 10 wins may be possible this year.
I hope I am not a total fool for doing so.
Cliff...I too am on the continuity train...and have said before (I belief at BH) that my biggest concern and what I thought was the biggest hurdle was the shortened practice time due to COVID.
With that said, I also pointed out some other things that mitigate it to some extent:
Cincinnati (x2): New coaching staff, new QB
Baltimore (x2): New OC; restructure of defensive coaches
Pittsburgh (x2): New QB coach...no NFL experience
Washington: all new coaching staff; likely new QB
Dallas: all new coaching staff
Indianapolis: new QB (how ready will Rivers be in new offense)
Houston: new DC
Philadelphia: new pass game coordinator and new offensive asst...big changes for Wentz
Jacksonville: new OC, new QB potentially
Tennessee: new DC
New York Giants: new coaching staff
The only 2 teams we play this year without any significant changes are the Jets and Raiders.