Santonio Holmes anyone?

 

Meh. Only if Gordon is suspended for any length of time. But there's a reason Pettine hasn't jumped at Holmes. Pettine has seen what Holmes is like in the locker room when he was the DC for the Jets.

Santonio Holmes anyone?

 

Meh. Only if Gordon is suspended for any length of time. But there's a reason Pettine hasn't jumped at Holmes. Pettine has seen what Holmes is like in the locker room when he was the DC for the Jets.

Well apparently we have shown interest in him so I guess they are willing to roll the dice now.

 

BTW, this is an interesting legal analysis of why Josh Gordon is likely going to be allowed to play in all 16 games this season even if he loses his appeal:

 

What To Expect If Josh Gordon Loses His Appeal

Written by  Cedric Hopkins August 04, 2014

 

I’ve already explained why Josh Gordon should win his appeal. But what if he doesn’t? After all, he does play for the Cleveland Browns. (Sorry, Dad. That one was just too easy.)

But that was the question posed to me by Michael Salfino, the guy who wants to retweet his own retweets:

 

 

I hit my legal databases, the Ohio Code and poured over several Ohio state cases, as well as numerous federal law cases involving labor disputes. I've outlinged what you can expect to see if Gordon takes an “L.”

 

READ MORE AT:

http://fieldandcourt.com/component/k2/item/246-what-to-expect-if-josh-gordon-loses-his-appeal.html

 

^There are several misstatements and misapplications of the law in that article.  The most obvious would be that the author is relying on a regulation applicable to employees of the State.  The "Ohio Code" he references is actually the Ohio Administrative Code, not the Ohio Revised Code.  The OAC is a set of regulations written by the various agencies expanding on more general provisions of the law (the Revised Code).  The particular chapter (123) contains the following definitions - "Agency" means any office, department, commission, board, institution or facility in the executive branch of government...... and "Employee" means any person holding a position subject to appointment, removal, promotion, or reduction by an appointing officer who is paid by warrant of the director of budget and management. The NFL and the Browns are not an "agency" and Gordon is not an "employee"

 

Really, the author lost me first with the notion that Josh would file his suit in the Cuyahoga County Court of Common Pleas.  Even if it was a state law issue, he would still want to pursue the claim in Federal Court (via diversity jurisdiction) for the court's wider enforcement powers.

Interesting discussion. Lawyers!!

How about some Monday morning quarterbacking?

 

Running game looked good enough for its first outing in a zone blocking scheme.  Tate seemed to be able to get decent yards.  West is smaller, but quicker than I expected.

 

Hoyer looked 'serviceable.'  Johnny flashed those quick feet he is famous for and some nice zip on the ball.  They didn't try to do anything too fancy with the passing game, so it was hard to judge.  Protection seemed to hold up OK.

 

Whitner comes as advertised.  I will be shocked if he plays the whole season without at least one fine.  WRs will know he's back there.

 

Haden is going to have to adjust to the new rules.  He has always been a bit more of a 'hand-on' defender in coverage.

 

Robertson looks like he wants to secure that other ILB job.

 

Armonty Bryant continued to show real potential as a pass rusher.  He'll be in on passing downs.

 

I'm not sure yet about the switch of Rubin and Taylor.  I liked how they were placed last year.  I hear it mostly has to do with Rubin's ability at NT, not that Phil fits better at End.

The word on Josh Gordon could come down very soon.

 

And after Ryan Fitzpatrick's awful performance vs the Cardinals last week, rumor is they are looking for a QB. Browns are looking to bolster the receiving corps. And who has an unhappy, top-level WR on their roster? Hmmm.

^Doubt it.  Texans already have $10mill+ in dead money on their salary cap for Schaub and would have to absorb another $10mill+ for Johnson.

^Doubt it.  Texans already have $10mill+ in dead money on their salary cap for Schaub and would have to absorb another $10mill+ for Johnson.

 

Too bad that dead money can't play QB because no one else on their team can.

I'm not saying they wouldn't be interested in obtaining Hoyer.  I just HIGHLY doubt it would be in a swap for Johnson.

By the way, on a different subject (maybe!), Donte Whitner tweeted a cryptic message a little while ago....

 

DonteHitner ‏@DonteWhitner 14m

Nobody believes it... until it's done.

 

Could be a prediction about the team's chances to win. Could be something about Josh Gordon. Could be anything......

Multiple media outlets are reporting that the Browns expect to hear on Friday afternoon about the NFL's ruling on Josh Gordon's appeal. Browns are preparing for it....

 

Cleveland Browns helping Josh Gordon set up post-suspension support system and treatment if necessary

By Mary Kay Cabot, Northeast Ohio Media Group

on August 13, 2014 at 7:20 PM, updated August 14, 2014 at 7:31 AM

 

BEREA, Ohio --- Browns owner Jimmy Haslam spent the first 10 minutes or so of practice Wednesday chatting with receiver Josh Gordon, who's awaiting word on his indefinite drug ban by the NFL.

 

It's been a weekly sight at camp, the two men conversing on the field for a few minutes, even sharing an embrace last week when they met at midfield.

 

But the support from the Browns' front office hasn't stopped there.

 

READ MORE AT:

http://www.cleveland.com/browns/index.ssf/2014/08/cleveland_browns_helping_josh.html

Embracing the player rather than washing their hands of him is the right answer, especially given the murky justification for the violation (and, indeed, the very existence of the policy). If he has a real problem, it helps him get past it. If he doesn't, it at least complies with the NFL's demands. And it keeps Josh Gordon a Cleveland Brown. It's not like we're overpaying him in the meantime.

We won't be paying him at all during any suspension imposed.

 

Good read here - http://abcnews.go.com/Sports/wireStory/nfl-seeks-answer-marijuana-24979594

Embracing the player rather than washing their hands of him is the right answer, especially given the murky justification for the violation (and, indeed, the very existence of the policy). If he has a real problem, it helps him get past it. If he doesn't, it at least complies with the NFL's demands. And it keeps Josh Gordon a Cleveland Brown. It's not like we're overpaying him in the meantime.

 

The nature of pro sports (win NOW) dictates whether a team should have latitude with an employee.  You or I would be on the curb so fast if we behaved like Gordon has within our respective professions.  The potential ROI on Gordon exceeds that of most professionals in any sector by half a continent.  Crazy to think that if I could make tackles in the NFL, I could act wanton 7 days a week and still keep my job.

^We wouldn't if we were as talented at our professions as Gordon is at his.  But, also, in all likelihood, Gordon's alleged positive test wouldn't have tested positive under most drug testing standards.  And, I personally, probably wouldn't have stayed with a job if I could be randomly tested up to 10 times per month, had to report my whereabouts at all time so that such random tests could be administered, had passed 70 random tests and my employer wanted to keep testing me.  I'd just find another job.  Apples and oranges, to say the least.

Adam Schefter tweeted yesterday that he doubts the NFL will decide Gordon case until NEXT Friday. Oy.

^We wouldn't if we were as talented at our professions as Gordon is at his.  But, also, in all likelihood, Gordon's alleged positive test wouldn't have tested positive under most drug testing standards.  And, I personally, probably wouldn't have stayed with a job if I could be randomly tested up to 10 times per month, had to report my whereabouts at all time so that such random tests could be administered, had passed 70 random tests and my employer wanted to keep testing me.  I'd just find another job.  Apples and oranges, to say the least.

 

You can be as talented as possible and still not earn like Gordon because he's a member of a closed industry.  Closed to the free market, closed to all but a select few that all are there by good fortune.  One injury and nobody ever hears of a guy that got kicked out of three or four colleges. 

 

You and I would put up with random drug testing for $1.3 mil, Gordon's scheduled salary this season.  All you have to do is not do drugs and the check clears.

Name me one job that pays $1.3 million and gives two sh!ts whether you smoke weed..... Other than the NFL

^ nba

Name me one job that pays $1.3 million and gives two sh!ts whether you smoke weed..... Other than the NFL

 

Cokehead execs don't have their board meetings televised.  Pro sports is a public forum and the leagues don't want any surprises on-camera.  Not saying it's fair, just pointing out the facts.

How about a "who cares" option for the poll?

 

I care about wins, no matter who is under center!

^ nba

 

The NBA testing program for THC is a joke.  You have to be a complete idiot to get caught. Certainly, no one has ever been suspended for an entire season or kicked out of the league because of pot.  Once the players agree to HGH testing, the NBA will likely completely wipe out THC testing

Name me one job that pays $1.3 million and gives two sh!ts whether you smoke weed..... Other than the NFL

 

Cokehead execs don't have their board meetings televised.  Pro sports is a public forum and the leagues don't want any surprises on-camera.  Not saying it's fair, just pointing out the facts.

 

So now people who make a lot of money on TV don't do drugs?  Please.....

 

And what surprises?  Do you think Josh is gonna fire up the bong during a timeout?

Name me one job that pays $1.3 million and gives two sh!ts whether you smoke weed..... Other than the NFL

 

Cokehead execs don't have their board meetings televised.  Pro sports is a public forum and the leagues don't want any surprises on-camera.  Not saying it's fair, just pointing out the facts.

 

So now people who make a lot of money on TV don't do drugs?  Please.....

 

And what surprises?  Do you think Josh is gonna fire up the bong during a timeout?

 

Are you determined to take my comments out of context?  I am saying that if players were not subject to drug testing, some would of course use drugs.  Some of course would abuse drugs.  The fear may be that erratic behavior could potentially occur on-camera, damaging the brand of the NFL. 

You mean erratic behavior like this?.....

 

^LOL. Checkmate, Hts121 wins!

Yeesh...bring on Grossman, and somebody who can catch the GD ball...

Yeesh is right...Colt Mc Coy just gave up a pick six. The circle of (football) life is complete

ew, dat stanky

What we saw last night with Hoyer/Manziel was no different than the Frye/Anderson competition where neither QB got enough reps before the regular season.

 

As of today they absolutely must go forward with Hoyer as the no. 1. That offense last night sucked and looked like Maurice Carthon was drawing up plays. And the receivers sucked too.

Agreed. Also, sit Gordon if he's going to be suspended more than 3 games. He looked disinterested to be out there. Hoyer looks like he's thinking too much. At least he's making the read before throwing the ducks at the receivers.

 

 

 

Agreed. Also, sit Gordon if he's going to be suspended more than 3 games. He looked disinterested to be out there. Hoyer looks like he's thinking too much. At least he's making the read before throwing the ducks at the receivers.

 

Right. Especially coming off major surgery, combined with a whole new offense it's understandable that things look shaky all around.

 

Also relevant and eerily reminiscent to the Frye/Anderson mishandling is how the coaches are setting themselves up for failure with this QB competition. By choosing either Frye or Anderson early on, the coaches could have focused 100 percent on tailoring the offense to that specific QB's abilities. Instead time was wasted "Oh I'll just flip a coin and see who starts" b.s. And precious time is being wasted now, as the skillset and plays applicable to Manziel and Hoyer are very different.

Obviously the defense will be the strength of the team, but the offense still needs to be serviceable, chew up enough of the clock, get 2 or 3 field goals and sniff out the end zone at least 2 times a game. I think Hoyer has that in him, with Tate and West behind him.

 

Speaking as Yoda, "Pick Six, not offense plan make"

Hoyer was certainly not spectacular last night, but he was the victim of some misfortune out of his control.  On his first series, the offense starts off with an early snap when the rest of the line was not ready to block and Hoyer is sacked.  Then there is a false start.  Then Cameron drops a first down catch on a fairly well thrown ball and we have to punt.  Gordon dropped another of his passes on another drive.  And that pass to Hawkins in the end zone was not well-thrown, but still catchable.  It's not like if Hawkins came down with that pass, it would've made Sportscenter's top plays.  NFL receivers regularly (are supposed to) make difficult catches look routine.  Aaron Rodgers has practically made a career out of throwing to the wrong shoulder so as to avoid the defense.  If not for those two drops and the Hawkins miss, Hoyer would've went 5-6 on pass attempts, and would've had more pass attempts with the resulting first downs.  Now.... before you think I am saying that Hoyer is the second-coming, please re-read the first sentence.  He still looks 'serviceable' to me.

 

On defense, Armonty Bryant continues to look like he might turn into a pass rushing beast.  They are lining him up at multiple positions, including the interior of the line on passing downs.  He is going to have a big, big role in this defense.  Dansby appears as good as advertised.  Taylor seems to be relishing the more freedom he has at DE.

 

The most frustrating thing about last night to me was the amount of penalties.  I'm worried about the Pettine defensive system with these new rules on coverage.  His system requires the CBs to play physical and aggressive.  Regardless, the NFL needs to stop making such drastic changes each off-season to the rules.  If anything, the league needs to remove some rules, not add to them.  This is going to be a frustrating transition.  It seems the league just hates defensive football and wants regular games where a team scores close to 50 points.  If I wanted to see that brand of football, I would go watch an arena league game.

^The number of penalties were ridiculous on both teams. It was unwatchable (It was pre-season so I guess that is a given)

^The number of penalties were ridiculous on both teams. It was unwatchable (It was pre-season so I guess that is a given)

 

Illegal contact penalties called in 2013 NFL regular season: 54.

 

Illegal contact penalties in first two weeks of 2014 preseason: 56.

 

What you saw from the Browns offense during the game yesterday is what the Browns offense has been doing in practice. Nothing. They can't score touchdowns or do much else in practice. So the preseason games aren't a big surprise.

 

The question of "Is the Browns offense this bad or the Browns defense this good" has been answered: YES.

BTW: Browns have depth on DL. Cardinals lost Darnell Dockett for season. Cardinals have depth at WR. Browns need a WR. Anyone else pondering?

Hoyer was certainly not spectacular last night, but he was the victim of some misfortune out of his control.  On his first series, the offense starts off with an early snap when the rest of the line was not ready to block and Hoyer is sacked.  Then there is a false start.  Then Cameron drops a first down catch on a fairly well thrown ball and we have to punt.  Gordon dropped another of his passes on another drive.  And that pass to Hawkins in the end zone was not well-thrown, but still catchable.  It's not like if Hawkins came down with that pass, it would've made Sportscenter's top plays.  NFL receivers regularly (are supposed to) make difficult catches look routine.  Aaron Rodgers has practically made a career out of throwing to the wrong shoulder so as to avoid the defense.  If not for those two drops and the Hawkins miss, Hoyer would've went 5-6 on pass attempts, and would've had more pass attempts with the resulting first downs.  Now.... before you think I am saying that Hoyer is the second-coming, please re-read the first sentence.  He still looks 'serviceable' to me.

 

You basically said exactly what I was thinking. He got screwed over on several occasions and never really got the chance to get things going. They kept saying what Hoyer did with his 4 "drives" which was lame since the first one was basically over before it started, and the third one the receiver fumbled before anything could get going. The fourth "drive" was the last 24 seconds of the half and was just one short pass play to wind down the clock. We really didn't get any valuable evaluation time for Hoyer.

 

What we did get to see is that Manziel is far from being ready to start in the NFL. If we put him out there week one we are basically going to destroy his career. Im not certain he will be able to succeed in the NFL like some are, but I think putting him out there now will give him zero chance of doing so.

Maybe the refs are being particularly strict in the preseason in order to set the tone for the season.  It probably wont be as bad during the season because the DBs will focus on it more and referees will be more lax.

BREAKING: #Browns hire the amish to quickly build barn at practice facility to see if we have a QB that can hit the broad side of it.

^They might also want to try to bring in a strain of Ebola to see if any of the WRs can catch it

Oh... so I guess he is the best of the worst?

 

 

Brian Hoyer named starter over Johnny Manziel for Cleveland Browns opener in Pittsburgh

 

Despite awful performances by both of his quarterbacks in Monday night's loss at Washington, Browns coach Mike Pettine announced Tuesday he has chosen Brian Hoyer over Johnny Manziel to start the season opener against the Steelers Sept. 7.

 

Hoyer will also start Saturday night's "dress rehearsal'' game against the Rams at FirstEnergy Stadium.

 

Pettine's decision came two days after Hoyer managed just one field goal in his four first-half drives - despite great field position produced by an opportunistic Browns defense.

 

 

"It probably couldn't get any worse,'' said Hoyer of his outing in Monday night's 24-23 loss to the Redskins.  "It's disappointing. It's embarrassing. The first play was messed up. ...and it spiraled out of control.''

 

Hoyer completed just 2-of-6 attempts in the game for 16 yards, with no touchdowns or interceptions. The lackluster effort resulted in a 42.4 rating -- hardly the number you'd want from your starting quarterback.

 

"I know he missed some throws,'' Pettine after the game. "I know they both missed some throws. It's hard to tell the reason for that.''

 

Hoyer won the derby basically by default, because it's clear that Manziel isn't ready to step into the lead role, especially not in Pittsburgh against mastermind defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau.

 

 

http://www.cleveland.com/browns/index.ssf/2014/08/brian_hoyer_named_cleveland_br_1.html#incart_2box

Pretty sure it was always going to be Brian in Pittsburgh

Boomer Esiason's thoughts ...

 

http://www.cincinnati.com/story/blogs/2014/08/20/boomer-esiason-criticizes-johnny-manziel-maturity/14324633/

Johnny Clipboard?

I am listening to the presser. I wish Johnny worked the football half as well as he works the Mic. He is smooth.

I'm starting to get a good feeling about the Gordon issue.  I think the league is leaving this in limbo either to negotiate a compromise or simply to teach him a lesson by making him wait and ponder what life would be like without football

Soooo. Nobody has anything to say about that "game" last night?

^Is it too late to get Cream-o-Weeden back? :)