They should pay him. Cribbs, while i hate the whining too, is worth about 5 million (around what Devin Hester is and Cribbs is significantly better).  Cribbs is one of the most valuable guys in the NFl, because he can do just about anything and REALLY well.  The key here is to satisfy him, because he is one of those guys that needs to be a brown for life.  He may sit out the next few years and it could get ugly. 

Yes, I say they beat Pittsburgh in the meeting late in the schedule.

Give yourself a point for that one!

I hope they let the agent and Cribbs stew till summer if they're gonna try and exploit the fanbase.  As long as they don't extend his contract I don't reasonably care how much they end up paying him.  I just don't buy into Cribbs being a long term threat.  After three years we can just let him go and let some other team deal with what I believe by then will be a deflated talent.

I don't care much for the tactics either, but $1.4 million is a bit insulting to the heart and soul of our team.  And I would say "tough luck" to him since he signed a contract, but the NFL works differently than other sports.  JC is locked into that contract, but the Browns are not.  They could cut him anytime before the June deadline and not pay him a dime.  If he gets hurt this offseason, they can cut him.  So I don't blame since the guaranteed nature of his contract is not a two way street.

Part of me thinks the lowball offer was a big FU to Cribbs agent and a message by Holmgren to back the F*** Up while I am trying to get a front office in place and choose a coach.

adam schefter tweets "Filed to ESPN: Mike Holmgren informed Eric Mangini and his full staff they will return to work in 2010 - then said, Let's get to work. "

Smart move.  I have seen the Browns play well in stints since they returned.  The playoff season earlier in the decade and 2007 come to mind.  BUT, not until the past 6 games of this season, had I seen them play like the "Cleveland Browns" that I remember watching back in the day.  Run down your throat offense and hit you in your mouth defense.  That's how we do, dawg!

PD link to Mangini story

http://www.cleveland.com/browns/index.ssf/2010/01/league_sources_eric_mangini_wi.html

 

I am very happy to say, I was wrong.  Stability for the Brownies, it's kind of nice.

Yes, I am very happy to see this.  I was pretty sure he was gone, so this was surprising to me (in a good way).

They should pay him. Cribbs, while i hate the whining too, is worth about 5 million (around what Devin Hester is and Cribbs is significantly better).  Cribbs is one of the most valuable guys in the NFl, because he can do just about anything and REALLY well.  The key here is to satisfy him, because he is one of those guys that needs to be a brown for life.  He may sit out the next few years and it could get ugly. 

 

Devin Hester is overpaid and the Bears know it.  He hasn't had a return TD since 2007 when he had 6 total.  He's a serviceable WR, but not a $5 mil a year receiver.  It would be a mistake to pay Cribbs any more than $3.2 million under his current contract.  Just because the Bears overpaid for Hester doesn't mean the Browns are required to make the same mistake just because Cribbs is better return man (Hester is a better WR).  Just my opinion.

I am very glad that Mike Holmgren elected to adopt the Lowes Home Improvement Company theme with Eric Mangini: "Let's build something together!" 

They should pay him. Cribbs, while i hate the whining too, is worth about 5 million (around what Devin Hester is and Cribbs is significantly better). Cribbs is one of the most valuable guys in the NFl, because he can do just about anything and REALLY well. The key here is to satisfy him, because he is one of those guys that needs to be a brown for life. He may sit out the next few years and it could get ugly.

 

Devin Hester is overpaid and the Bears know it. He hasn't had a return TD since 2007 when he had 6 total. He's a serviceable WR, but not a $5 mil a year receiver. It would be a mistake to pay Cribbs any more than $3.2 million under his current contract. Just because the Bears overpaid for Hester doesn't mean the Browns are required to make the same mistake just because Cribbs is better return man (Hester is a better WR). Just my opinion.

 

Cribbs and Hester are common, but bad points of of comparison.  Yes, they are both kick returners/WRs but Cribbs' value extends beyond that.  Don't forget that he is also our best kick coverage guy.  And he is a guaranteed 5 yards nearly every time he touches the ball out of the backfield (wildcat, reverese, lined up at RB).

 

You are correct that Hester is overpaid, but even Cribbs knows that.  He is not asking for 5 mill/yr.  He would sign for about half of that.  If Steinbach and Corey Williams are worth 6 mill per, Cribbs has to be worth 3 mill.  And as I said ealier, I would tell him tough shite but for the way NFL contracts work.  If the owners can reneg when the players are playing under their contract or get hurt, the players should be able to do the same if they are playing above the pay grade. 

^If we're paying him $3 million a year he sure as hell won't be on kick coverage teams anymore even though you're right, he is our best coverage guy.  For the record, I think he's worth about $3 million a year and I hope the Browns can give him that for the remainder of his contract with maybe an extension?

Cribbs will be in another uniform next year. I'd let him sit out three years personally, draft picks be damned.  :|

 

Cribbs visits Bristol

By James Walker

 

Cleveland Browns Pro Bowl kick returner Josh Cribbs will be a guest Monday at ESPN's campus in Bristol, CT.

 

Cribbs will break down the playoffs throughout the day and discuss his contract situation as a panelist on various shows such as Outside the Lines, NFL Live and SportsCenter.

 

...

 

http://espn.go.com/blog/afcnorth/post/_/id/8152/cribbs-visits-bristol

Braylon just let one go thru his hands in the endzone!  Beautiful!!

I wonder what his excuse will be, it's never his fault

Did Mangini and Holmgren swap Favre stories?

Pretty good article comparing Mike Holmgren to Martin O'Neill (I hated the man when he was at Celtic, but I think he's done a great job leading Villa).

 

Finding a football leader: Lerner found a winner in soccer's Martin O'Neill; has he done the same with Mike Holmgren?

By Bill Lubinger, The Plain Dealer

January 11, 2010, 2:11AM

 

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- In Mike Holmgren, Randy Lerner might have finally found his Martin O'Neill for the Browns.

Huh? Who?

 

O'Neill is manager of Lerner's English soccer football team, Aston Villa. In rough NFL terms, the manager is a combination general manager and head coach, deciding which players to buy and sell and directing strategy from the sidelines.

 

More at Cleveland.com

http://www.cleveland.com/browns/index.ssf/2010/01/finding_a_football_leader_lern.html

 

I always think back to Duane Rudd!

 

Ughhh.... I was at that game.

 

Ha!  I see that disaster hangs around with other Browns fans.  That game was against Kansas City wasn't it?

I always think back to Duane Rudd!

 

Ughhh.... I was at that game.

 

Ha! I see that disaster hangs around with other Browns fans. That game was against Kansas City wasn't it?

 

Yes, it was against KC.  The fans who attended were still trying to figure out what the hell happened on our way out of the stadium.  Rudd wraps up Trent Green at about KC's 40 yard line as time expires.  Green fumbles on the way down but Rudd doesn't realize it and rips his helmet off in glee.  A KC lineman picks up the fumble and rumbles down inside our 20.  Time expired, but the game can't end on a defensive penalty and KC was allowed to run one play... the winning field goal.

 

It might have been bottlegate x10 if the fans who were at the game actually knew what had happened.

Oh yeah.... bottlegate.

 

Anyone care to relive that fiasco, here is some footage:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Br6F0RnETwU

 

Carried over from this post:  http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,6397.0/msg,453773.html

 

 

 

 

Browns are off to a decent start in free agency / trade season:

 

They signed Scott Fujita, a veteran LB, who was one of the leaders on super bowl champion Sants

 

They also signed Tony Pashos, a big offensive lineman.  They are hoping he will find his way into the starting lineup on the right side.  At the least, he is a good "utility" linemen as they think he can play both RG and RT.

 

There are some reports tonight that they have traded for Seattle backup QB Senaca Wallace.  This kid was dynamic in college as both a passer and a runner, and there has been a growing whisper in the Seattle locker room to give him a shot as the full time starter.  No clues yet as to whether he was brought in to backup Brady or to start.  Holmgren, who coached Wallace in Seattle, is not a big fan of QB competitions heading into camp.

Derrick Anderson's been released.

I'm sure everyone's heard this by now, but I wanted to post it, for the record.

Derrick Anderson's been released.

I'm sure everyone's heard this by now, but I wanted to post it, for the record.

 

For the record - thank you for posting that information.

Did you also hear Anderson's parting shot via e-mail?

 

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/thehuddle/post/2010/03/ex-browns-qb-derek-anderson-cleveland-fans-are-ruthless-and-dont-deserve-a-winner/1

 

"The fans are ruthless and don't deserve a winner. I will never forget getting cheered when I was injured."

 

The fans also cheered Tim Couch when he got hurt. And I was at the bottle game against Jacksonville and left before it got out of hand. I could tell things were going to get ugly because damn near everyone was drunk BEFORE they got to the game and things only got worse during the game.

 

The drunken slob fans, the high ticket/food/drink prices and shitty teams are why I don't go to games anymore.

 

I hate to say it, but Derek Anderson is 100 percent correct. Not only do Browns fans not deserve a winner, but they wouldn't remember a Super Bowl game anyway because they'll all be passed out drunk before the game even starts!

Did you also hear Anderson's parting shot via e-mail?

 

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/thehuddle/post/2010/03/ex-browns-qb-derek-anderson-cleveland-fans-are-ruthless-and-dont-deserve-a-winner/1

 

"The fans are ruthless and don't deserve a winner. I will never forget getting cheered when I was injured."

 

The fans also cheered Tim Couch when he got hurt. And I was at the bottle game against Jacksonville and left before it got out of hand. I could tell things were going to get ugly because damn near everyone was drunk BEFORE they got to the game and things only got worse during the game.

 

The drunken slob fans, the high ticket/food/drink prices and sh!tty teams are why I don't go to games anymore.

 

I hate to say it, but Derek Anderson is 100 percent correct. Not only do Browns fans not deserve a winner, but they wouldn't remember a Super Bowl game anyway because they'll all be passed out drunk before the game even starts!

 

Way to generalize all browns fans as drunken idiots.... If anyone deserves a super-bowl its browns fans, who have been loyal through years and years of terrible teams. And the ticket prices/concessions are comparable to any other NFL team.

^ I agree. Frustration makes people do amazing things.... and the vast majority of fans who go to the games are not causing any trouble. I am not excusing bad behavior at all. It was classless to cheer Anderson's injury that time. However, can we say that the entire stadium was doing this? If so, I am ashamed. Nevertheless, this whole expansion thing with rebuilding every three years or so has been mostly a circus at fan's expense. Hopefully the Holmgren era can get this franchise back to where it should be. It will take some time so we should not expect too much too soon. As far as I am concerned, the original Browns era ended when they moved...and me being superstitious, maybe we should have just started with a new name instead of severely poop staining a once respectable franchise legacy.

I think most fans were cheering because Quinn was getting a chance to play, and not solely because someone was injured.

I think Quinn was already out for the season at that point...It was classless, but it doesn't mean that this city doesn't deserve a Super Bowl. Hell even if the Browns made it to the the Super Bowl and lost we would have a frickin' ticker tape parade, unlike Indy where 7 people showed up at the airport.

 

Sorry Derrick,

You got to be the hero in 2007, go to Hawaii for the Pro Bowl , have one hell of a season in 2007 and made a ton of money because Phil Savage got trigger happy and was afraid you would have been signed away as Free agent. Yes you were cheered when you got hurt and got to be one of the main scapegoats for fans frustration at a dysfunctional organization the last two years. However, there is no doubt in mind that your career and pocket book benefitted more than it suffered from being in Cleveland. You could have possibly been out of the league by this point, instead at the minimum you will make roughly $1M a year for the next 6-8 years as a backup in the NFL based on what you did here. Who knows maybe you'll be in the right place at the right time and get to play the hero again.

 

Stay classy DA, these bitter comments are not becoming of you.

 

Sincerely

 

CBC

I was an Anderson fan, maybe because I tend to root for the underdog.  I always felt a little bad for him the way he had to answer the same questions after every game about what is wrong.  I don't know if he made his comment after feeling hurt or if the comments came from a rough couple of seasons.  I am sure he feels disappointed in one way or another, he is a competitor after all.  I agree with his comment about his injury being cheered, that was disgusting.  As far as saying that Cleveland fans don't deserve a winner, I chalk that up to feeling rejected by a former employer.  I am sure a lot of us have experienced that emotion about some of our own former employers.

 

I still like DA.  His comments were a little immature but I am glad he said what he felt.  I don't really like when players hide what they mean, for example Kobe Bryant probably had a whole lot more to say about Matt Barnes then "it's good to be chippy".

Well, now that he got that out of his system:

 

Derek Anderson apologizes for blasting Cleveland Browns fans

By Tony Grossi

March 10, 2010, 7:49AM

 

"I said some things to Jeff Schudel (of The News-Herald) earlier that I regret. Those of you who got to know me personally from covering the Browns over the past five years, know this was out of character for me. I wasn't taken out of context, but I was speaking out of my frustration after my career with the Browns came to a close.

http://www.cleveland.com/browns/index.ssf/2010/03/derek_anderson_apologizes_for.html

Just about everything published in the News-Herald is regrettable.

 

BTW, which game did Derek get injured in?

Way to generalize all browns fans as drunken idiots....

 

 

I think you've been going to a different Browns stadium than the one I used to go to.

 

I would welcome a sobriety test as a condition of admission to the stadium. It'll never happen though. The Browns don't want a half-empty stadium.

Browns are reportedly shopping BQ as well now.  I don't like the reports of them bringing in Jake Delhomme for an interview.  I was never a fan of that guy.

Browns are reportedly shopping BQ as well now. I don't like the reports of them bringing in Jake Delhomme for an interview. I was never a fan of that guy.

 

I really hope we don't go with Delhomme. Hes old, he throws a lot of picks and he folds like a tent in big games.

Yeah I felt the same when we got Trent Dilfer.  I want to see a younger quarterback the team can build around.  Maybe they are looking for an experienced quarter back to act as a mentor?

 

I'm hoping that Quinn gets a shot, I always liked his attitude through his stay with the Browns.  I thought Holmgren might be interested when he said that Quinn has been mishandled.  Time will tell.

 

One thing I have really appreciated about Mike Holmgren is how much more accessible he seems to be.  I don't dislike Eric Mangini, but I the level of hush he kept last preseason felt a little cold.  I realize as fans we don't need to be informed but having an occasional tid-bit thrown our way helps me feel more connected.

The Browns signed Jake Delhomme.

 

In other news, I just died a little inside.

 

Why?

Personal distaste.  Nothing major.  He just was always somebody I seemed to root against.

 

As a player, he is a 35 yr QB who's best years are most likely behind him.  And I don't envision him as a good mentor for a young QB should we decide to go that route in the early rounds of the draft.

Browns trade Quinn to Denver for a fullback and two future draft picks.  I hear the draft picks are one 6th rounder and a conditional pick which will be determined based on Quinn's successes/failures in Denver.  The fullback, Peyton Hillis, is no slouch but probably not as good as the one we already have (Vickers).  More of an H-back than a lead blocker.

 

They also traded Kameron Wimbley to Oakland for an undisclosed draft pick.  If I had to guess, it is a third rounder at best.

 

http://espncleveland.com/

^This would give us 13 draft picks this year.

I liken it to Gary Danielson coming in 1985 to be the starter and tutor Bernie.  I think he did a fine job.

I liken it to Gary Danielson coming in 1985 to be the starter and tutor Bernie. I think he did a fine job.

 

We don't have a Bernie.

Maybe in the draft.

^This would give us 13 draft picks this year.

 

With three 3rd rd picks now, two of those being at the top of that rd, I am not counting out us trading UP in the 1st rd... or possibly trading 2 3rd's for another 2nd if someone we like slips.

Wow, Sean Rogers... Wow.

WTF?  Why does a guy this huge need a gun at all, let alone on a plane, let alone why was he thinking he could get away with it?

I am confused? When did they find the gun? As he was boarding? Or was in the security checkpoint?

 

EDIT: It was at the checkpoint.

Ugh!