The "swaggerless" New England Patriots

Today on ESPN's Sunday NFL Countdown, Chris Berman asked the question, based on this years disappointing results year to date, if the New England Patriots have lost their swagger.

I think it worth reminding folks of a fact: Since their cheating was revealed the Patriots have never won another Super Bowl. The evidence that was destroyed by the NFL pointed to the fact that the Patriots had the most sophisticated cheating system ever built in NFL history. It went far beyond the gamemanship of swiping a signal or two from the other team. The Patriots are believed to have extensively filmed other teams and documented play calls. Furthermore it's very likely the Pats have never stopped cheating, even post scandal.

It took the other NFL clubs years to catch on to how to work around the Pats unetical methods, but now that they have, the Pats are just another ordinary team with a very ordinary head coach.

NFL - Rams vs. Browns Preview

BL Predicts: Week Nine vs St Louis

Last week i predicted with my heart, not my head and approximately 5 minutes into the first quarter, when the Browns found themselves down 14-0 I realized the err of my ways. Pity.

This week the Browns face the 1-7 Rams and I really am worried that our Browns are going to lay another major egg. Sam Bradford will be back at the controls this week, TJ Ward is out with an injury and the Browns are coming off a very embarrasing loss in Houston last week.

Football is a game in which emotions count heavily and the winner of today's game will likely be the team that comes out more motivated.

The bottom line today is that both teams stink, but reality is that the 3-5 Browns have much more to play for than the 1-7 Rams. The fact is that if the Browns win, they are only 1 game south of .500 and a decent season will be still within their grasp. I like Pat Shurmur a lot and hope that last weeks beating at the hands of Houston, opened Shurmur's mind to the idea that a full implementation of the West Coast offense should be a long term project and maybe, just maybe, Shurmur should be a bit more realistic and consider putting a few simple and basic plays in his playbook that parlay the talents he has on his roster, such as Josh Cribbs. Furthermore, Shurmur, Holmgren et al, need to realize that our offensive line has so many holes that executing the West Coast is nearly impossible. Only one example, according to ProFootballFocus.com, rookie Jason PInkston has received a negative grade for his play EVERY WEEK of this season and only two guards in the entire NFL grade out worse than Pinkston.

The West Coast offense and it's complex twists and turns takes time to perfect, and that was never more apparent than last week when Colt McCoy's pass to Greg Little at the end of the first half was intercepted by Houston and nearly returned for a touchdown. On that play, Little read the defense one way, and took the option to head deep. In the meantime, Colt read the defense another way and the result - intercept and field goal Houston.....

So against all my instincts, I am going to guess that the team that has more to play for, our Browns, actually shows up motivated and that Shurmur will have a simple gameplan ready that uses the talent he has and considers the limitations of his current talent. But it will not be easy. The home field advantage is normally a big factor in favor of the home team but look for Cleveland fans today to be anything but loving to the home team. Don't be surprised if Bradford rings up a few big plays early and the Browns find themselves once again playing catch up, something they are terribly inept at.

BL Predicts

Browns 17
Rams 14

The Brown Log are 4-4 this year on the prognastication front.

Joe Paterno's dementia and the hypocrisy of the NCAA

A few weeks ago the Brown Log did a piece in which we considered the possibility that Joe Paterno might actually have died a long time ago and all this time Penn State has been propping him up, ala "Weekend at Bernies" just to get him the all time division I coaches win record. Well, the shocking events of the last week revealed that perhaps we were not too far off. I simply cannot understand how Paterno could have not done more nearly 10 years ago when Paterno learned that Jerry Sandusky was molesting young boys.

It has long been clear that Paterno has been a figurehead coach and that his mental functioning is not what it once was. Today we can see the true price paid for Penn State's board of regents allowing the proverbial tail to wag the dog. It has been many years that it is apparent to any impartial observer, that Paterno has shown signs of senility. The bottom line is that a person doing a given job, needs to be fully capable to carry out ALL of his duties. Up until this week, it was easy to overlook Penn State's inability to force Paterno out, because everyone could appreciate the sentimental element of retaining a figurehead coach. The horrible consequences of allowing a man not capable to perform his full range of duties these last 15 years is now clear.

Did a once honorable and ethical man like Paterno, do the legal minimum on the Sandusky matter simply because he was tired and disengaged??? I prefer to believe that Paterno was simply so detached from reality that he could not get his hands around even the most obvious situations. That is better than believing that Paterno did not do everything is his power to put a child molester behind bars.

Another bitter note here is that the NCAA has been embarrasingly silent on the Penn State matter. Why do I get the feeling that if Jerry Sandusky had stolen a few hundred dollars in NCAA merchandise, the reaction of the NCAA would have been lightening swift?

Peyton Hillis

Cleveland is a working class town where people show up for their job every day and take pride in working through even the worst of illness.

When our best playmaker Josh Cribbs a few years back struggled to get a new contract, he endeared himself further to Cleveland fans thanks to his workmanlike attitude. He showed up every Sunday, played hurt and contributed, in spite of Cleveland management at the time, trying to use time to grind him down.

Peyton Hillis finds himself in the same situation this season. What did he do? He refused to play a game he could have easily played, alienating his teammates. Later in the season, Hillis blew off a charitable function for Cleveland area kids that he had committed to.

Hillis does not fit into Cleveland, in short he is a jerk. I hope he never stains the field of play for Cleveland again.

Our sentiments exactly

BL Live Blog: Colt

I can't remember the last time I've seen a QB take more hits than Colt McCoy did today. He simply cannot be judged until he has an offensive line capable of giving him more than a split second of protection. I'm seriously concerned that McCoy won't make it through the season healthy.

Browns are FUCKING HORRIBLE

The Cleveland Browns are...fucking horrible.

BL Live Blog: Nevermind

The Texans are completely dominating the Browns

BL live blog: Jason Pinkston is being dominated

McCoy has no time to pass

BL Predicts: Week Eight vs Houston

It is officially panic time in Cleveland. Naturally the Browns are still in the hunt at 3-4, and have a chance to be a .500 team at the halfway point of the season, something that has not happened in ages. So why all the gloom and doom? I think nearly 50 years without a championship has simply clouded our ability to reason.

I will go on the record today and exclaim "stay calm". In spite of an offensive line that has two or three players who could not start for any other team in the NFL and in spite of having very little talent at WR this team has competed in nearly every game this season. Furthermore Peyton Hillis has managed to go from hero to villian in less than 8 games. Holding himself out of a game he could have played in put him in a bad position with fans in working class Cleveland. But the end of the love affair took place last Monday when Hillis blew off a commitment to attend a children's event he has promised to attend.

On the plus side, the Browns defense is in the top tier in the NFL which means that on any given Sunday this team can win and finally, for those of you who might doubt Pat Shurmur, I really suggest you listen to the man during his press conferences. He is a straight shooter and has a clear plan for this team. He also has the support of a skilled front office, it is only a matter of time before this guy is a winner and that time might well come this season.

So what do I think about today's game? I predict a shocking Browns win. As troubled as the Browns are right now, so are the Texans. They have key players missing due to injury and are 2-2 in the last 4 weeks. Look for the Browns D to come through big and even put a few points on the board today. Finally, today may be the game in which Carlton Mitchell finally contributes with some long gains. He will get a chance, that is likely

BL Predicts
Browns 20
Texans 13

The BL is 4-3 on the season in predicting Sunday's result

BL Predicts: Week Seven vs San Francisco

On the road vs a good Niners team this week. After the total disappearance of the Browns offense last week it is difficult to imagine anything other than a Browns loss this week.

BL Predicts

Browns 13
49ers 24

The BL is 3-3 this year on the prediction front.

Congratulations Coach Paterno

Coach Joe Paterno yesterday became the winningest head coach in division I college football history, surpassing Eddie Robinson with his 409th career win.

There is only one question left to be answered, "Is Joe Paterno actually still alive"?

Given some of the conspiracy theories out there that folks accept, is it really that hard to digest the idea? All I can say is that it's mightly fishy that Paterno gets hidden in the press box during games. Who knows, maybe Paterno will be the next head coach of the Browns.