Monday Rumblings

The Cavs are off until Tuesday, but there may be something to report on as rumors circulate about a potential Sam Cassell trade. Not sure these aren’t more than the ‘that would make sense’ variety of rumor. Personally I would welcome Cassell, especially if Hughes was the target. No, huh? Alright.

Buckeye land awaits the decision of James Laurinaitis today.

(Was that too obvious?)

With Alex Boone in the fold for another season the O-Line will be in good shape again next season. Especially with the recruiting class we have coming in. The battle for right tackle is going to be fierce! With regard to Laurinaitis, I hope he does come back, but not because I think he would be the difference between a championship or not. The Buckeyes have 2 outstanding LB recruits coming to Columbus next year in Etienne Sabino and Andrew Sweat. I would love for Laurinaitis to show these two what it takes to be the next great linebacker at OSU. A.J. Hawk was there for James. Matt Wilhelm was there for A.J. Wilhelm never won any of the major awards, but he certainly had the work ethic.

Browns Sack Grantham

Defensive coordinator Todd Grantham was let go today. Guess you had to see that coming…or did you?

 

Since arriving in 2005 the Browns defense has gotten statically worse each year. They were the 16th ranked unit in ’05, before falling to 27th in ’06 and finishing 30th this season. With numbers like that it shouldn’t surprise anyone that the Browns decided to go in a different direction. But does it?

I honestly thought they were going to give Grantham another year. They did give him an extension in June. Rumors were that if Crennel was fired during this season that Grantham would be the interim head coach, and have an inside shot at the job outright. It could be argued that Grantham has never had a ‘full deck’ of players to work with. Certainly the woes of the defensive line are not entirely his fault. But remember that most of the blame for the ‘off’ year’ in ’06 was given to injuries in the secondary. Grantham was given a pass for that season. This year the defense stayed relatively healthy.

Browns Extend Chudzinski

The Browns haven’t officially announced it, but multiple sources are reporting that offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski has removed his name from consideration for the Baltimore Raven’s head coaching vacancy and signed an extension to continue with the Browns. Thanks to RockKing for the heads up on the story. Here is the link for the Plain Dealer article. Interesting to see how or if this has any impact on the Romeo Crennel extension talks.

Obviously, we are thrilled with the news! Let’s hope this is the beginning of a great sports day here in Buckeye land!

Forget Derek Anderson and Jamal Lewis…

Without Rob Chudzinski, the Browns are in trouble.

 

Found this in the Plain Dealer today.

Browns offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski will interview for the Baltimore Ravens head-coaching position, General Manager Phil Savage said Thursday. Chudzinski, in his first year with the Browns, helped develop the Cleveland offense into one of the best in the NFL. The Browns ranked eighth in the league with an average of 25.1 points and 351.3 yards per game. One reason for their success was quarterback Derek Anderson, who was fifth in the NFL with 29 touchdown passes.

The Browns’ success this season can be attributed to many things; a revamped and healthy offensive line, a solid running game led by Jamal Lewis, the improved play of Braylon Edwards, Kellen Winslow and of course Derek Anderson. But in my opinion, Rob Chudzinski was reason 1A that the Browns’ offense was a success.

On the Outside Looking In

The Browns finished the regular season 10-6, and missed out on the post-season on tie-breakers. Good season guys!

I refuse to whine about the Colts game. If the Browns would have taken care of their own business they would have never been in that situation. I will say that the NFL should think about this last week of the regular season however. Personally, I think the Colts should have just forfeited. They obviously had no interest in winning the game, as they were only looking to achieve individual numbers and get out without injury. Of course, had they forfeited they would have to refund too many tickets I guess.

The Browns’ defense looked pretty good yesterday, but keep in mind they were playing a team that had only the most basic offense possible available because of the new QB. Truthfully, I thought they did a terrible job in the first half. Frank Gore ripped off nice runs, and we got no pressure on Weinke. Sure, that changed in the second half when the Browns seemed to realize the 49ers didn’t have the personnel to win that game. Then the sack party was on, and the San Fran running game was shut down.

Josh Cribbs returned a punt and a kick-off back for touchdowns yesterday, though the kick-off was called back on a phantom illegal block penalty. Cribbs was a difference maker yesterday, and that is why he is headed to Hawaii.

Merry Christmas

Wishing you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from us here at Halftime Adjustments!

It would be too easy. I could rip the Browns, and in particular Derek Anderson for that dismal performance yesterday. I could lament how Anderson could have just cost my favorite team their first playoff appearance in years, while at the same time throwing my shot at a fantasy football title in the dumpster. Or I could write about the Cavs. I could spew venom for an hour about the Wine and Gold getting ripped on their home court last night by the Warriors. I could gripe about them never having a lead in the game. I could continue to rant about the albatross around the Cavaliers neck that is Larry Hughes.

But I’m not. Instead, I will say Merry Christmas to you. I hope that you are celebrating the birth or our savior with friends and family. I will also mention that I don’t plan on posting much this week, as I will be celebrating with my family.

If I could give Christmas presents to our favorite teams, I would give the Cavs relief from their salary cap struggles, as well as a point guard that can maximize the talent already on the roster. I would give the Browns some help on the defensive line, and turn back the clock to allow them a do over of yesterday’s game. The Indians would get an all-star left fielder, health for those with nagging injuries (Hafner) and a dominating closer. The Buckeyes would get exactly what they need- redemption in the form of a BCS title. Here’s hoping they don’t need any help from me on that one!

 Merry Christmas!

The ‘Dawson Bar’

A reader of Patrick MaManamon suggested it, and I’m all for it.

I’m not sure how many times it may come up in conversation, but from henceforth, whenever you are referring to the single, curved, pole support of a football goalpost- it shall be named the Dawson Bar.

As in the Phil Dawson Bar. While the Cleveland-Baltimore game earned the Dawson Bar national attention, it was the Buffalo game last week that cemented Dawson’s name on the bar permanently. Some who watched the game may not even be aware of it however.

Let’s go to the tape…

Pro Bowl Snubs Announced

Wow. How Eric Steinbach was left off that roster I’ll never know.

Congratulations to Josh Cribbs, who will be the ‘starting’ kick returner for the AFC Pro-Bowl squad, and also to Braylon Edwards who made the roster at WR. Those two are certainly deserving of their first Pro-Bowl appearance. Unfortunately for Cribbs and Edwards, every article written about the Browns and the Pro-Bowl will more than likely focus on who was not invited to Hawaii. I understand that because of injuries another Brown or two might find themselves invited, but there is something to be said for being nominated from the get-go.

We know this for certain- Browns guard Eric Steinbach was the leading vote-getter on the offensive line from the fans. That vote is supposed to count for one-third of the final tally. The other two-thirds come from the players and the coaches. So what does that tell us? Well, apparently Eric is either not well liked, or not well respected among those in the league. He was first among guards from the fans, and obviously didn’t crack the top three from either the coaches or the players or he would have made the roster.

It’s not over yet…

The Browns survived the storm on Sunday, but let’s hold off on the champagne for now.

They say that’s Derek Anderson sliding through the snow to celebrate a Browns’ victory over Buffalo. I see a 3 in there somewhere, so I’ll have to take their word for it. Anderson, who admitted he’d never played a game in conditions remotely close to this, spent the majority of the game watching his big running back carry the pile 3 or 4 yards. Watching the game with me, Mrs. Adjustments repeatedly said, “I can’t believe they didn’t cancel this game.” She grew up in Kentucky, where they probably would have cancelled it.

This was a game built for Jamal Lewis. As many have already said, his stature and short choppy running style are perfect for these conditions. I’m frankly surprised that he didn’t find the end zone. Lewis ran for 163 yards, averaging just a hair under 5 yards per carry. His counterpart on the Bills had a decent game going early on, but finished with 82 yards on 21 carries. It was Lynch’s first time running in these types of conditions.

The Browns looked to be in their element. They certainly seemed to be the most confident and sure-footed of the two teams out there. The defense was aggressive, daring the Bills to try and beat them through the air. Safeties Brodney Pool and Sean Jones crept up to the line of scrimmage early and often to make plays in the running game. The defense pitched a shut-out, and my first reaction was that there probably should be some type of asterisk next to this shut-out, but then I reconsidered. If we had shut-out the Buccaneers, or the Dolphins, or the Cardinals I would say none of those teams are designed to play in these type of conditions, and you could understand why they would struggle. But these are the Buffalo Bills! Last time I checked their weather was about the same as ours. They get no sympathy from me. Edwards and Lynch are California guys who looked startled to even be standing around in snow like this, let alone trying to play football.

For Browns the playoffs begin now

Cleveland hosts the Bills this week with a wild card spot on the line. Good to have meaningful football on the North Coast in December again!

It certainly has been a long time since a December game in Cleveland had playoff implications for both teams. Not since the Kelly Holcomb led Browns have we even sniffed a December to remember. That is about to change.

The Buffalo Bills come to town with a chance to get back to the playoffs themselves, but they will have to leapfrog the Browns for the last wild card slot. A win this Sunday would certainly help them in that leap. They will have to beat a motivated Cleveland team to do it. The Browns have the playoffs in their sight. They can nearly taste it. But they realize that without this game it will be an uphill battle. Browns quotes to follow.

Joe Thomas honored

Not a major award, but certainly Thomas deserves a post for his contributions to the Browns. (Photo from Browns 247.com)

You would think that a former offensive lineman would pay more attention to the Browns rookie offensive tackle. Shame on me. Truth is that Joe Thomas has had an outstanding rookie year, and it is starting to be noticed around the league. Joe Thomas earned the league’s AFC Rookie of the Month for November. Joshua Cribbs was also honored as the AFC’s special teams player of the month.

Joe Thomas is performing at a very high level, at a very difficult position. He certainly has benefited from outstanding play from Eric Steinbach, lined up right beside him. But make no mistake, Thomas is the real deal at left tackle. Does he have a chance to be the rookie of the year in the league? No. Simply because of the year that Adrian Peterson is having. Ironic that many fans complained about the Browns taking Thomas over Peterson. It seems that the future is lined with pro-bowls for both of these players, barring injury.

Thomas has kept top pass-rushers off Derek Anderson this season. He has lined up against the likes of Mario Williams, Terrell Suggs, James Harrison, Jason Taylor and Richard Seymour. In 7 games against the Browns, those players had 4 sacks against the Browns, and I can’t verify if all of those came against Thomas. My memory says Jason Taylor’s was not, neither was Suggs’. In any case, that is outstanding for a rookie LT. In addition to his pass blocking, he has shown tremendous rush blocking technique. He pulls well and blocks well down field.

Because of the signing of Steinbach, and the drafting of Thomas the Browns’ offense is ready to fire on all cylinders.

Browns vs Cardinals, the good, bad, and the ugly

Let’s start with the good…(crickets chirping)…ok, let’s move on.

I’m not even going to take time to talk about the final play. Yeah, the refs probably got that one wrong, but there were two calls that could have been reversed and weren’t earlier in the game. The refs aren’t to blame for this game. The Browns are.

First the bad. 1. Josh Cribbs and the return team. Josh gets a pass for this performance. He has played at a pro-bowl level this year, and so we give him a break for the fumble yesterday. The return team as a whole did not perform well yesterday. The Cardinals squibbed several kicks instead of giving Cribbs the opportunity to burn them, and the Browns didn’t seem to know how to handle those kicks. They nearly lost another kick-off by not fielding the ball properly. 2. Derek Anderson. DA made poor choices with the ball. He overthrew and under threw receivers all day. His sloppy play forced the Browns to abandon the running game too early.

Now the ugly. This one goes to the entire team, but probably needs to be pinned on the coaching staff. What in the world is going on with this team and stupid penalties? Bodden kicks a ball after a big third day stop for a 15 yard penalty? After the penalty gives a first down to the Cardinals they finish the drive for a TD. How many false start penalties do we average a game? That is the most ridiculous penalty, and is a tell-tale sign of a team without discipline. Andre Davis and the offsides penalty on the final drive? You are right over the ball!!

Does Brady Quinn need to play?

Hear me out Browns’ fans. I’m not saying he should be the starting QB…

As the Browns continue to win, and get closer to the playoffs, Derek Anderson cements his place as the team’s starting QB. He will get Pro-Bowl consideration this season. He has led this team to their best record since my nephew was born. But let me ask you a question, if Derek were to get hurt this week or next what would happen to the Browns’ playoff chances?

The Browns have a second string QB that has never thrown a pass, or taken a snap in an NFL regular season game. Imagine this scenario, fourth quarter of a playoff game in Pittsburgh with the Browns down 4 and D.A. gets Kimo’d. (Sorry Bengal fans.) Quinn comes in for his first ever series? Is that fair?

So here’s my suggestion. Sometime in the next couple of weeks (like say, this one) Romeo needs to pull Derek and Brady in the office and have a conversation something like this-

(Sniff, sniff) Is that the playoffs?

Easy there big guy, take a breath. One game at a time.

For once it wasn’t all Derek Anderson and the flying receivers. The defense and especially the running game contributed to this win. Chud’s game plan was terrific in this one. I will admit that in the first half I was a bit skeptical. It seemed we were calling an awful lot of running plays without much to show for it. But those early running plays helped set the ground work for the pounding that was delivered in the second half.

Jamal Lewis was running downhill by the end of the game, finishing with 134 yards on 29 carries. Jason Wright provided a nice change of pace as well. The pair finished Houston off in the fourth quarter, as the Browns held the ball for roughly 11 minutes of the final quarter.

The defense rose to the occasion as well. Much has been, or will be written about rookie cornerback Brandon McDonald who was spectacular on Sunday. He covered Pro Bowl wide out Andre Johnson for most of the game, and absolutely shut him down. Before Sunday Johnson had played just three games due to injury, but in those 3 games he averaged just over 125 yards and scored at least 1 TD in each of his games. Against the Browns- 3 catches for 37 yards. McDonald sealed the win when he made a great read and jumped one of Johnson’s routes for an interception.

Upon further review…

Um, that was crazy…

So here is the field goal that was no good, then good giving the Browns the opportunity to win in overtime. I have never seen something like that, the closet I can remember was the infamous Jacksonville bottle game. Perhaps that is the very thing Phil Dawson was talking about when he said in his post-game comments, “Most of the time the Browns don’t get those calls.” Too true Phil.

Truth be told, I’m not ready to write a post, because I had already accepted defeat in this game. Thank you Josh Cribbs, who is certainly looking like a Pro-Bowl player. As for the rest of the Browns, the jury is still out.