Disarray is standard operating procedure for the Cleveland Browns, both on and off the field

During the soon to be finished 2011 season in which our Browns won only 4 games, there were several episodes of poor organization that marked key division losses.

For example, in the first game of the season against the Bengals, the Browns defense was caught in the huddle by the Bengals offense who proceeded to pass for the game winning touchdown.

In our most recent game against the Ravens, with less than one minute remaining in the first half, the Browns had a first down inside the Baltimore 10 yard line. While the Browns had no time outs left at that point due to fits of disorganization on offense earlier in the same half, there was plenty of time on the clock to take 3 shots at a scoring pass in the end zone before trying a field goal. So what happened last Saturday? The Browns threw a flat pass that kept the clock moving, then our Brownies tried a run with less than 10 seconds on the clock. Hillis was stopped short of the goal which allowed time to run out without even attempting a field goal. This in a game eventually lost by 6 points. I have been watching the NFL for 35 years and cannot recall a worse case of clock management. It was pure Three Stooges.

Now Browns fans are being told that we need to be patient and that hope springs eternal because our Browns have several high draft picks in the 2012 draft.

What is highly concerning to me is the fact that our Director of Player Personnel, Jon Sandusky may have other things on this mind. Just for starters on November 8, Tony Grossi tweeted that Sandusky was taking a leave of absence.


Later the same day, the same Grossi tweeted a confirmation that Sandusky has in fact remained with the team.

Tony Grossi's reputation is rock solid, he would not tweet something like this without talking to a source inside the Browns.



This whole mess has nothing to do per se with the personal life of Jon Sandusky, who has a right to privacy and should not be judged by events he has no control over. What is of major concern is the dissarray both on and off the field in the Cleveland Browns organization at such a critical moment for the Browns.

The above sequence reminds me of a front office version of the defense remaining in the huddle against the Bengals. For this to happen means there is confusion and disorganization in the Browns org. A bad sign considering that if the Browns screw up this draft, it likely means 10 more years of losing in Cleveland.

The Brown Log has been a big supporter of Mike Holmgren, but our patience is wearing thin. Let's hope that the Browns Director of Player Personnel, Jon Sandusky, together with the entire Browns organization is focused 100% on getting this team on track in the future and that the mistakes of 2011 both on the field and off, are behind the team.

The winning organization

The Browns lost game one this season to Cincinnati for many reasons and without doubt one of those reasons was the poor job done by Pat Shurmur in his first game as an NFL coach. You could even hear in Shurmur's voice in the post game that he felt the burden of a job done poorly. His team made too many mistakes, especially with needless penalties and his defense got caught off guard and were still in their huddle as the Bengals quick snapped their way to the winning score. Does one bad game for a first year coach mean he is not up to the job? Of course not. Pat Shurmur is a relatively young, and obvioulsy skilled coach.

What is different about this Browns organization compared to those we have seen in the last 40 years is that the Browns President, Mike Holmgren, is not only a business man, but he understands first hand both the general managers role and the head coaching job. I can imagine that on Sunday evening following the Bengals loss, meetings were held with Shurmur and Holmgren to review the areas that needed attention following that game. Holmgren surely sought Shurmur's opinion on what went wrong, shared with Shurmur points that perhaps Shurmur did not see, and gave him some guidance on how to steer clear of those issues. The result was clear, mistakes in execution and game tactics were fixed and the Browns went on to win their next two games. Had Shurmur been left on his own without a boss who could both push him and also put things in perspective, our Browns could easily be 1-2 or 0-3 by now.

In many sports organizations, the senior executive does not have operational experience in critical roles. In the business world, when you have a young manager, he may have all the potential in the world, but he may be slow to face down problems he has no experience in managing. It's exactly the same in sports. A potentially great but young coach like Shurmur has a much greater chance of success if there is an experienced, mature and wise executive that he reports to, who can probe and assist in his development.

The Browns organization, led by Mike Holmgren is therefore capable of righting the ship quickly and efficiently and this is the main reason that in spite of being let down so many times in the past, Browns fans can justifiably start feeling optimistic about the 2011 season and the longer term future of the team.

Meet Pat Shurmur

here is an in depth article that presents Pat Shurmur. One conclusion is already certain, Shurmur is a convinced disciple of the West Coast Offense and a conventional thinker. The Browns are going to use a traditional West Coast offense and a standard 4-3 defense. They will try to beat opponents by putting a better team on the field and by outplaying their opponents.

My worry is the Browns may now be in another 5 year plan that neither the fans nor the front office have patience for. Perhaps it was false hope, but there were moments last season in which Rob Ryan's crazy defensive formations or Eric Mangini's trick plays made one wonder if the Browns were ahead of the NFL in tactical innovation. I think one could reasonably argue that in 2010, especially on defense, that the Browns schemes allowed them to get far more results than the talent they had should have allowed. In particular, the use of 0, 1 or 2 man defensive lines allowed the Browns to mask the fact that they had no depth on the defensive front and in many cases, using up to 7 linebackers at a time, created massive confusion for the opposing QB. Just ask Drew Brees or Tom Brady. Moving forward, the Browns are clearly going to simply seek better players and play conventional football and that will require that the Browns make a major upgrade, especially on the defensive line.

On offense the Browns will go with the West Coast offense together with young QB Colt McCoy. The book on McCoy is out in the NFL, and we saw the results in the last two games this season: 6 intercepts in 2 games. I believe in McCoy but he still has to gain some experience and the West Coast offense needs strong wideouts for it to work. The Browns have the weakest receiver corps in the NFL so that is another position that requires major upgrade. Look for the Browns to work the free agent market aggresively and to draft to fill those position needs.

Pat Shurmur is going to have to clean house on talent to find new players to fit his approach and that likely means one step back to take two steps forward. Problem is that the Browns are about 5 steps from a Super Bowl. We believe Mike Holmgren but if Holmgren truly wanted to use his West Coast offense and a traditional 4-3, would it not have been better to cut the ties to Mangini one year ago?

Coach Holmgren?

One of the reasons I think it would be a mistake to replace Eric Mangini is that an owners lockout of NFL players in almost a certainty. A new coach would be severely disadvantaged should the lockout last months, as he would not be able to work with new players and implement his approach.

Therefore if Mike Holmgren decides to replace Mangini, look for the new Browns head coach to be... "Mike Holmgren".

There is no mistaking that the Browns are on the right path since Holmgren took over. We have competed all year long thanks to players brought in under Holmgren. If Holmgren decides he is tired of waiting for Mangini to mature, he will have the full support of all long suffering Browns fans as long as he names himself the new head coach.

Bring on Tampa Bay!!

Why, you ask, is the Brown Log optimistic about the 2010 season? While we don't see the Browns getting into the playoffs this year, a team that competes every Sunday, and 7 or 8 wins are well within reach. Such a major step forward would be great compared to the humiliation we had to endure last year.

It is true that Coach Mangini is still learning and hopefully growing as a head coach, but the jury is still out as to whether or not Mangini can lead a team to a Super Bowl win, so, why all the optimism?? There is one major reason, Mike Holmgren. In contrast to last year, what our Browns do have now is steady leadership at the top. Holmgren's first major move was the signing of Jake Delhomme, and this move should be the key to our turnaround. The quarterback is the key to a team's offensive success in the NFL. A successful QB understands what the opponent's defense is trying to do, and is able to make the right decisions, play after play. By moving the ball, avoiding turnovers, grinding down the clock and scoring some points, the QB controls the pace and outcome. It was clear all preseason long that the Browns are in good hands with Jake Delhomme and that should make a huge difference this year, especially if "Coach" can stay out of the way.

"My own belief is this team needs an aging veteran," Mike Holmgren told reporters earlier this year with reference to Delhomme. "They need a guy who's going to grab everybody by the throat and say, 'Follow me through that door.' That's what we need."

Game 1 preseason at Green Bay

Delhomme and the Browns face the first test of the Holmgren era. The Brown log will be in attendance at Lambeau field. Watch for our photos and Comments direct from the game.

Browns poll

Here is an interesting poll in the Plain Dealer assessing the Browns off season moves. Vote while you have a chance. I voted good, and would have voted excellent had the Browns rid themselves of Coach Mangini. Only time will tell if Holmgren is able to raise the youthful Eric Mangini's performance to Super Bowl caliber. One thing is for sure, the player personnel decisions made in the last 4 months will leave no excuses for Mangini. if he doesn't win, it will be 100% his responsibility as the players the Browns have drafted, signed and traded for are excellent.

More housecleaning

Paul Warfield is out.

One irony that I would like to point out is that Warfield was a member of the last Cleveland team to win a championship, the '64 Browns. In any case, I support Holmgren's effort to unify the management group around his vision. Excellence requires competence and unity and while Warfield has proven that he is a skilled football executive, it's hard to imagine that his vision will be aligned completely with Holmgren.

Jim Brown is out

A bit of reading between the lines is required to try to understand why Jim Brown is being stripped of his duties as executive advisor to the club. The announcement was made as delicately as possible, stating that Brown will still be involved with the club but there can be no doubt about the overall intent of the communication: "Jim Brown is out."

Getting back to reading between the lines, in 2010 Mike Holmgren has taken full control of the Browns organization and by any reasonable measure he's doing a good job. I imagine that Holmgren simply does not have budget money nor the need to have Jim Brown in his organization in an official role and furthermore, he probably doesn't like to have Brown whispering in Randy's ears.

Bottom line, Jim Brown has held the executive advisor role with the Browns since 1981 and in all those years the Browns never made it to the Super Bowl. We'll be fine without his shadow being cast over those trying to right the ship.

Mike Holmgren's workday

Here's an interesting article from the pages of Yahoo Sports that gives some insight into Brown's President Mike Holmgren's normal workday.

2010 NFL Draft: Interview with Holmgren and Heckert

Here is an excellent interview with Holmgren and Heckert by Tony Grossi of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Some inside view into their draft strategies and opinions on certain key players. I think it's clear from reading between the lines that Jimmy Clausen is not in the Browns future.

Here is an excerpt of one Holmgren answer that I found particularly insightful regarding how Holmgren analyzes a young quarterback:

Mike Holmgren (On what he looks for in a quarterback)- “Over the years I have kind of tried to break it down. First of all, their ability to pass the ball, just the physical ability of passing the ball. If they can’t do that more often than not I don’t even get to step two. Then if they can do that, I want to see their football intelligence, some of the intangibles. Is he coachable? Just a feeling for the young man. Is he bright eyed? Does he exhibit some leadership qualities and things like that. The third thing is getting back more into the physical part of it, his movement ability. I’m not talking about running, necessarily, but his movement in the pocket. The ability maybe to get a first down if you have to, those types of things. If I go much beyond that then all of a sudden, this is me, I found that you are accumulating a lot of information, a lot of facts and figures that kind of muddies the waters just a little bit. That’s the first step and the next step is I like to see them in person, up close. You see film, you see how he plays and you see all that kind of stuff. I like to get up close and watch him deliver the ball and watch him do those things. My way is kind of simple over the years with how I have looked at it.”

2010 NFL Draft: The Browns are trying to move up!

The St. Louis press is speculating that a trade is in the offing that would allow the Browns to move up to the number 1 pick and choose highly touted QB Sam Bradford. If these rumors were not coming out of St. Louis I wouldn't give much weight to them but consider too that the writer of the article is Howard Balzer, a very well connected gentleman....

This might sound like typical pre-draft hyperbole, but consider that Mike Holmgren is really sold on Bradford and the reason is that Bradford has an arm like Elway with Bernie Kosar like accuracy. That is one helluva combination that has Super Bowl written all over it (watch the highlight film below to get a feeling for how far and how accurately Bradford can wing it). The only question mark with Bradford, and it's a major one, is whether or not he will be durable enough for the NFL. Watching the highlight film it's clear that this guy has a Hall of Fame arm, but he lost most of his senior year to an injury and that's not a great sign that the kid can take the beating an NFL quarterback must endure.

The rumor mill should keep getting hotter as 20 April nears, look to The Brown Log to keep yourself well connected to Draft 2010.

Is Eagles Head Coach Andy Reid in the Browns future?

By clicking on this link, you will find a very interesting article by sportswriter Mark Eckel in the Times of Trenton NJ. The article speculates that Philadelphia Eagles head coach Andy Reid, will eventually replace Browns head coach Eric Mangini, and it gives quite a reasonable set of rationale to support that hypothesis. Here's an excerpt

All right, let's review our beliefs and speculate a bit on the 2010 season.

The Eagles, with a first-time starter at quarterback, a new-look offensive line (hopefully) and a rebuilt defense, playing in a very-tough NFC East go 8-8 or so and miss the playoffs.

That's not a stretch by any means. Could the Eagles be good next year? Sure, anything is possible. But it is not outlandish to suggest with all the changes the team has made there are going to be struggles.

Cleveland, also undergoing some change, finishes 5-11 or 6-10 and remains mired behind Baltimore, Cincinnati and Pittsburgh in an also very difficult NFC North.

Now, the fun starts.
Holmgren and Heckert decide head coach Eric Mangini, whom they inherited, is not the right man to turn around the Browns' fortunes and fire him.

Again, that is not so hard to imagine.

As Cleveland's brain trust searches for a replacement, their guy is not getting along so well in Philadelphia.

Let's backtrack a bit here for a second.

Reid's mentor and best friend in the league is Holmgren. He gave him his first job in Green Bay, taught him the right way to do things, and the two have remained close in the now 11 years they have been apart.

Anyone who regularly follows The Brown Log knows that this blog has no love lost for Eric Mangini. We think he is simply not capable to lead a team to the Super Bowl. It's also an obvious fact that the Brown Log strongly support our new President Mike Holmgren in spite of the fact that he decided to hang onto Mangini for the time being. While we accept the premise that Mangini, a young coach, might mature under the guidance of Holmgren, it would be a lot easier to digest the idea that Holmgren is simply biding time, waiting for his man.

2010 NFL Draft: Carlton Mitchell WR USF

Mike Holmgren has been delightfully methodical in analyzing, quantifying and resolving the talent issues faced by the Cleveland Browns. First he cleaned up the quarterback position, then he set his sights on the defense and now it appears he is looking for solutions to the lack of talent at the wide receiver position. Rumor has it that the Browns are studying USF wide receiver Carlton Mitchell as a possible second round choice. Mitchell possesses blazing speed and would help the Browns open up the field, benefitting all aspects of our offense.

Have a look at some highlights of Mitchell from the 2010 NFL Draft combine



Here is one of Mitchell's highlight reel plays at USF

Browns shore up their defense

Mike Holmgren continues to move the Browns in the right direction with a trade today that moves the Browns one more step towards having a very improved team in 2010. Today's trade with the Eagles. brings two experienced and talented veterans, LB Chris Cocong and DB Sheldon Brown. This trade would indicate the Brownies are not sold on Florida CB Joe Haden and wanted therefore to solidify the defensive cornerback position with a veteran. What does that mean in terms of the probable first round selection in April's upcoming draft? I am still hoping that a miracle takes place and Tennessee free safety Eric Berry drops into our hands.

2010 NFL Draft

The 2010 NFL draft is little more than 3 weeks away. To follow the draft, I recommend visiting this excellent ESPN site. The Browns have several extra draft picks and we all know that the NFL draft will make or break a team's future. We need only site past draft disasters such as Fair Hooker, Steve Holden, Mack Mitchell, Mike Phipps and Tim Couch for proof of that fact. The question here is will Mike Holmgren's first Browns draft rank up there with ex Cleveland Brown and Paul Brown protege Chuck Noll's incredible 1974 selections that set the table for a long run of Steeler's Super Bown dominance by taking 4 future professional football Hall of Famers in Lynn Swann, Jack Lambert, John Stallworth and Mike Webster, or will we be picking the next Willis Adams?

To date, it's clear that Holmgren is dedicating himself very diligently to the draft and he has a good track record. The rumor mill would indicate that unless Holmgren is able to move up in the first round in order to grab QB Sam Bradford, that he will select a DB in round one, such as Florida's Joe Haden (Eric Berry, who is pictured on this blog and is in my opinion the most dominant db in this draft will likely be long gone by the 7 pick that the Browns possess). If the Browns are not able to move up and get a top rated QB, it's likely that Holmgren will look to grab a QB in round 2 or 3 that he can develop, such as Tim Tebow who has the potential to be a great quarterback, albeit many believe his career will be nothing more than an abortion.

Holmgren interview

click on this link to read an excellent interview with Mike Holmgren.

The signing spree continues

The Browns continued their March signing spree by picking up veteran QB Jake Delhomme. Interesting to note that 3 of the 4 free agent players the Browns have signed this month have Super Bowl experience. Could it be that Randy Lerner has decided that the non salary cap year of 2010, pending the 2011 work stoppage, might be his best chance to win a Super Bowl for Cleveland? Consider that most NFL teams right now are sitting tight and not spending, while Mike Holmgren has been extraordinarily active. It's a very good sign.

It's probably a bit early but I'm starting to get excited about 2010. The signings made to date at a minimum are going to make the Browns very competitive in 2010, furthermore they will free Holmgren to draft players in the upcoming draft, who can contribute immediately. We all know that a QB drafted in round 1 almost always needs a year or two to develop but a linebacker, DB, WR or RB can almost always hit the ground running from day one.

Mike Holmgren's Report Card: March 2010

I personally am quite impressed to date with the Browns off season moves. It's apparent that Mike Holmgren has been working very hard. Most Browns fans would agree that Derek Anderson is not a Super Bowl quarterback and now he is gone. It also appears that Brady Quinn is not viewed favorably by Holmgren, and while I have a lot of sympathy for Quinn, I don't get the same sensation watching Quinn that I had years ago watching Sipe or Kosar at the beginning of their careers. Granted Sipe had two years on the taxi squad in which he could learn and mature but from the first instant Brian Sipe stepped on the field in 1974 at 25 years old, you could tell he was a winner. Quinn often looks lost.

QB Seneca Wallace is unproven, but in his 5 NFL years as a backup he has made an impact. More big plays than mistakes and his career numbers would indicate this guy just needs a chance to play full time. Clearly Holmgren himself believes in Wallace but Holmgren also thinks Wallace needs some time under his guidance. This as witnessed by the visit of 35 year old Jake Delhomme to Browns town this week. But if Holmgren signs an older quarterback, it appears his role will be to buy time.

The signings of TE Ben Watson, LB Scott Fujita, and offensive lineman Tony Pashos all bring skilled veteran players to the Browns, two of whom, Watson and Fujita, wear Super Bowl Championship rings.

If you have to give a report card for the month of March so far to Mike Holmgren, the result is A+

Holmgren on the QB situation

This link has an interesting article from today in which Mike Holmgren gives insight into how he evaluates a QB and where the Brown's QBs stand right now. Holmgren correctly refuses to show his hand but the comment that Anderson throws too many interceptions would seem to indicate that the Browns will very likely cut Derek Anderson before March 19, the date on which he has a roster bonus due. On the other hand, Holmgren states that Quinn hasn't proven himself but he still might have time. My guess is that Holmgren will make a move for a new QB before the 2010 season.

One thing is for sure, Holmgren has a long and successful record with quarterbacks, so for once, Brown's fans can feel comfortable that this guy won't screw it up.