Okay, I’ve been pretty much hammering the Browns this season. However, today against the Steelers while they are still bad, I have to admit I like the fact that they are trying different things. From running a lot of wildcat formations, etc. The play calling is still pretty miserable, and the catching is horrid, as are many of DA’s throws. But they are trying different things, anything to make themselves competitive.

Not having a quality receiver and Quarterback hurts. We also need to see more of Harrison and Jamal Tip-Toe-Thru-The-Tulips (T⁵) Lewis just doesn’t bring enough. He seems slow and doesn’t have the power I thought he had. Harrison has speed, but probably not enough size/power.

We’ll still lose this game, but I will say the team is making progress.

Okay, that was absolutely the worst football game I have ever seen. The Browns were terrible, with the exception of our punt team. DA stunk(23 yards passing, worst in Browns history), but so did his receivers (7 drops, obviously in honor of BE). In particular, Robert Royal is just bad. When is Mangini going to bench the guy? Jamal did get over 100 yard rushing, but that’s against a team using their 4th string middle linebacker. Tiptoe through the tulips Lewis drives me nuts, but not sure we have anyone else.

Superb play by the punting team, and an absolute refusal to play disciplined footbal by the Bills lead the the Browns victory. Take away Bills penalties and the Browns would have been thrashed. Take away the one fumble at the end of the game and we’d be headed to overtime. Mangini and staff are really luck that really poor play calling at the end of the half didn’t come back to bite them.

I have to say though, I feel really bad for the Bills fans. They actually lost to the Browns. Probably the worst team I have ever seen(granted I haven’t watched Oakland, Tampa Bay, or St. Louis this year). And they largely lost due to the Bills own mistakes, not anything the Browns did.

I’d like to say the Defense played well, but it’s just too hard to say that with all the penalties on the Bills OL. I mean how many times were they called for illegal motion?

I will say that the Browns had very few penalties, including one roughing the passer call that was a really lame call. So that is definitely an improvement.

So y new favorite NFL coach traded away Braylon Edwards. Of course, this news has been taken up nationally and locally. I am hoping that Braylon does well with the Jets because according to what I read, we get better draft picks next year the better he does.

What I don’t know is whether is was worth it for this year to get rid of Braylon. In our last game, we established Massaquoi (sp?) as a threat when teams double cover Braylon. That’s what seemed to keep us in the game against Cinci. Now that they traded him away what’s that do for our wide receiver threat? Robiskie? The guy Eric Mangini stretch to just let him dress for the Cincy game.

Okay, so we’re getting Chansi Stuckey in return, So far this season he’s had 11 receptions for 120 yards and 1 td versus Braylon’s 10 receptions for 139 yards and zero TDs. I have a feeling that Chansi’s not going to cut it. We’ll see, but I have my doubts that we’ll have effective enough wr threats to let our offense grow.

Update So I was talking with Ken about the Braylon thing and the fact that Sportstalkcle hinted a rumour that the Browns were actively shopping Brady Quinn around . So Ken asks me, and I respond with :

ME: yes, but the real question is….

KEN rudely interrupting: do the cavs win a championship this year

Ain’t that the truth.

Today, Eric Mangini announced that Derek Anderson would be the starting quarterback this Sunday against the Bengals. While it’ll make the game more interesting, I don’t think the results will change, nor does it provide us with a view as to how good or bad Brady Quinn is. He really hasn’t had a chance and while he has looked miserable, it seems to me it’s a combination of him being afraid of making mistakes and just horrendous play calling. I’m also not sure what he’s afraid of…making a mistake?

We know DA will do one of two things: 1) stink up the place, and 2) make throws that make you go “Wow”. And he’ll probably do both during the game. That’s DA. It does make it exciting because you never know what you’re going to get.

I don’t particularly like this move by Mangini because it looks like he’s trying to get a win, a TD, whatever to save his job. It’s not about making the best future football team, it’s about now, this week. But reality is we’ll still be really, really bad. I’d rather see him focusing on improving the team, and I’m not sure that DA is the right choice for that. But I’ve been wrong before…

I don’t like is that Eric flip-flopped on himself saying he’d stay with the quarterback he chose for the whole season. It just makes me question anything he says. At the same time, I do like the difference from Romeo who would stick with his favorites way too long even though they were stinking up the place. And Brady was stinking up the place, I’m just not sure whether it’s Brady’s fault.

Go Browns!

I was not going to post anything negative about the Browns this season, since I knew that it was going to be a bad team. In fact, I anticipated we’d be lucky to match last year’s record. But I expected progress and improvement from a terrible Crennel era.

No such luck.

If anything they are a worse team under Eric Mangini. The team has not improved week to week, losing in increasingly embarrassing fashion. Half way through today’s game I couldn’t help but think how hard it is for these guys to play with the intensity they need to be competitive. I’m actually okay with the Defense, as bad as it got beat up by the Ravens, but special teams is pretty weak and the offense non-existent.

Once again, our Quarterbacks look worse than they probably are since we have no offensive line. (Well it is offensive, but you know what I mean.) I was not surprised by anything Derek Anderson did today as that’s Derek Anderson. I knew that he’d make it more interesting, but in the end would throw picks that would kill any drive. Nor would he get us into the end zone. Brady Quinn, on the other hand, looks bad. He looks like he’s afraid to throw longer than 5 yards. I cannot understand why when Brady is the QB the receivers run 2-3 yards short of the 1st down marker.

Whose fault is that? Is that the Offensive Coordinator or Brady? Or both? I noticed that when Derek was in most of the receivers were passed the first down marker on their routes. So is the coaching staff holding Brady in check? Is there something we don’t know? I can’t tell, but it looks like the offense isn’t designed to go deep when BQ plays. But there are also glimpses of Brady just not wanting to throw it deep.

Anyway you look at it, neither is currently working out.

And the problems come down to the current management. Poor draft choices, poor trades, and implementing overbearing discipline. When you have five players filing complaints, there has to be a problem. When you have “fights” breaking out in the locker room there has to be a problem. When two players the Browns passed up on in the draft are starting and looking like pro-bowl material, and our picks are playing there as to be a problem.

With the management and coaching staff.

So against all common sense and probably all rational thought, my gut reaction is to fire Eric Mangini today. I would normally agree that you give a new coach some time to start building. However, Mangini has made so many missteps already that I don’t think anything of value is achievable. Cut and run now.

Can you imagine, two Erics fired in one year in Cleveland. Music to my ears.

Of course, we all know what the real problem is. Randy Lerner, the owner. Until ownership is changed, a chance at a competitive football team is a pipe dream. I understand that he is probably making money on the enterprise. Unfortunately, it also appears that he has no pride either. I imagine that most folks who run money-making enterprises actually take pride in the quality of the products and services they provide. Randy apparently has zero pride, putting up with garbage year in and year out.

I was hoping to start a movement to have the residents of Northeast Ohio to purchase the team from Sir Lerner. Unfortunately, a short stop at wikipedia cured me of that particular nonsense…Green Bay was “grandfathered” to allow more than 32 owners of a particular team. Even so, it may be interesting to look into it some more since simply asking Sir Lerner to sell is not the answer since there is no guarantee that he’ll sell it to anyone who is 1) going to keep the team in Cleveland, 2) be any good for the team.

Lacking that, though, they need to fire Eric Mangini. I know, it’s probably not smart but nothing else the Browns organization has done in the last 10 years is either. So why stop now. Just fire the twit.