A Very Good Day for the Browns

Other than to note the usual mismanagement of the PR elements (Bond revealing he is signing with Cleveland before the Browns could get in front of the narrative) related to the pending Isaiah Bond signing, I am not going down the obvious road of being critical about the Browns adding him to the roster.

Why not?

Two reasons why not.

1.  I honestly believe Jimmy Haslam is fed up enough with the issues the Browns have seen over character to have assured in the case of Isaiah Bond, that the Browns had him visit a shrink for an assessment and they have a solid professional input that the young man has sufficient positive potential to take the risk.  I am ok with that.

2. Isaiah Bond is going to be a significant contributor to the Browns.   I like to compare him to Amon Ra St Brown with one major plus for Bond vis a vis St Brown.  He's fast and he can make defenders stop because he's twitchy.

Good day for the Browns signing Bond.  Very good day. 

Preseason Game 1 vs Carolina - Observations

I know it's preseason but....

Carson Schwesinger - Stud!  Jim Schwartz has to be thrilled, this guy is a best case scenario, he already looks super comfortable.

Mason Graham - Stud!   Yes, Graham had plenty of rookie moments.  I saw him get pushed off the line of scrimmage quite a few times, however, he never gave up and he almost always got off the block and usually made an impact even on plays where he started off badly.  He's strong and he fights off blocks. He got double teamed a few times and handled it fine.   By the time the season starts he is going to be fine, he's going to be a problem for opposing offenses.

Shedeur Sanders - Stud!   OK I know, DTR looked good in the preseason.   But I know a good QB when I see one and Shedeur was facing Carolina's first team D out there and he looked fine.   What i liked the most is Shedeur was looking off free safety's like an old pro, like Joe Flacco!  And once he moved the safety he got the ball where it needed to go.  He's super accurate, his calmness is noteworthy, it brings back memories of Brian Sipe and it's obvious his teammates love him.   Did he make a few small mistakes, sure but he made a couple huge plays too and the Browns gave him almost no reps in practice yet he played clean, great football.

Move Over NFL: This September 1st, College Football Makes Its Primetime Power Play with Belichick and Monday Night

On Monday, September 1, American football fans will witness something unusual, a marquee college football matchup taking center stage on a night traditionally reserved for the NFL. In what feels less like a scheduling fluke and more like a strategic strike, UNC will face TCU in a game packed with talent, storylines, and most importantly, symbolism.

The most intriguing subplot isn’t just the talent on the field  it’s the presence of Bill Belichick, now head coach at UNC, making his college football debut under the primetime lights. Belichick was hired by the Tar Heels in December 2024, and by “coincidence”, just a month later in January 2025, the decision was made to move this highly anticipated game from its originally scheduled Saturday, August 30 to Monday night.

Coincidence? Highly unlikely.

Belichick, who was effectively blacklisted by NFL ownership after his long tenure in New England, is now in a position to challenge the very league that cast him aside, not on the field directly, but on the airwaves and in the advertising budgets. The NIL era has already cracked open the college football landscape, giving large college football programs new tools to build teams loaded with top level talent. Now, with Monday Night Football sitting idle until the NFL kicks off the following week, college football appears ready to test the limits of its own ambitions.

This scheduling move may be college football’s first direct step into the NFL’s media territory. For decades, college football respected the NFL’s domain over Monday nights.  In fact in the entire history of college football only one regular season college game was played on a Monday evening, that was on September 9, 1974:  Notre Dame vs. Georgia Tech.  This game also took place "before" the NFL season started and it surely is no coicidence that Monday evening was never again touched by a college team until now.  

But in the post-NIL world with star players operating as brands, alumni bases energized by high-profile hires, and TV networks hungry for content that unwritten rule may be about to change.

At the center of this moment is Belichick. He knows the value of structure, leverage, and competition. It’s hard not to imagine him relishing the idea of building a college powerhouse that doesn’t just win games, but starts to chip away at the NFL’s $14 billion TV empire. In fact, it’s hard not to imagine him helping college football develop a strategy to compete for the same audience, starting with something as symbolic as Monday night football game that’s not the NFL.

UNC vs. TCU will be an entertaining contest. But it might also be something more, a broadcast beachhead in a broader cultural and commercial shift. If ratings soar and buzz builds, don’t be surprised to see more college programs start circling Monday night as prime real estate.

It’s not just a game. It’s a quiet challenge to the football hierarchy. And it starts one week before the NFL even kicks off.

I know I will be watching! 

Dawg Pound vs Fairy

I am trying to imagine the inner workings of the Cleveland Browns leadership team debating in 2022 whether the team should focus it's midfield logo on Brownie the Elf or the Dawg Pound.

Here is my imagination's version of that debate:

Those in favor of Brownie the elf being the Browns midfield mascot please make your case:  

Brownie the Elf belongs as the Cleveland Browns mascot because he taps into deep roots of tradition, magic, and identity. In Scottish folklore, brownies are fairy-like beings who quietly help with hard work and bring good luck to those who respect them—just the kind of energy a football team and its fans need. Brownie isn’t just whimsical; he’s a symbol of grit, heritage, and a little magic on our side.

Those in favor of a big, vicious dawg being the Cleveland Browns midfield mascot please make your case:

The Cleveland Browns should be represented by a big, mean looking dawg because it captures the toughness, intensity, and alpha mindset that defines the modern NFL. The Dawg Pound isn’t just a fan section, it’s a legacy born in the 1980s from Hanford Dixon’s rallying cry that turned Browns defenders into snarling, relentless defenders. A fierce dog embodies that edge, that fight, and the intimidating presence every team needs. It’s raw, it’s real, and it reflects exactly what it takes to dominate on Sundays.

Who wins???  The fairy of course!!!

Laughingstock: Part II - Brown Helmet Promo...

Only in Browns town does something as dumb as this take place.   Do a PR reveal promo of your new helmet on Lake Erie and have the cameraman fall into the Lake.  Can you say "pay attention to safety" when you do this dumb shit?

Here's Rich Eisen making fun of us: 

Laughingstock: Part I - Brownie the Elf

There is one subject and one subject only that I absolutely 100% agree with Art Modell on.  When Modell took over the Cleveland Browns in 1961 he declared with reference to Brownie the Elf that his first official act would be to "Get rid of that fucker"   Amen, Art!

This week, Pat McAfee dedicated an entire segment to ridiculing Brownie....

Do the Browns not realize that when they held that stupid poll to decide in 2022 whether or not to have Brownie be our midfield logo that it was Steelers, Bengals and Ravens fans that voted for that insanely stupid idea!

I've been a fan since 1974, never not once did I have an emotional attachment to that ridiculous symbol.

A Suggestion to the Cleveland Browns

For the second consecutive year, a Cleveland Browns second-round draft pick has been arrested on a domestic violence charge before training camp even begins. I’m not here to comment on the specific charges this year or last, those are matters for the legal system and for personal accountability. But I do want to offer a sincere suggestion to the Cleveland Browns organization: consider rethinking how you evaluate human beings.

Football is, of course, a violent game played by fierce competitors. Evaluating athletic performance like speed, strength, tape is essential. But when it comes to determining how someone will behave as a professional, as a teammate, and as a representative of your organization, athletic ability is only part of the equation. There’s another side to talent evaluation that too often gets overlooked: the deep, subtle, and nuanced process of understanding character.

Let me share a personal story from a very different world, corporate leadership.

Back in 2007, I was the General Manager of the Italian subsidiary of an American multinational. I was on the rise, and a major corporation, one with global revenues north of $10 billion had expressed interest in me for an executive-level position. As I traveled to the U.S. for final interviews, I was asked to meet a third-party evaluator in a private room at O’Hare Airport. This wasn't a business discussion. This was a psychological evaluation, conducted by a professional with an advanced degree in psychology.

I’ll never forget three aspects of that evaluation, each of which revealed something more about me than any resume could capture.

First, I was given a timed written test and left alone. Five minutes in, a cleaning lady entered by “mistake.” She interrupted me, apologized, and left. Five minutes later, she did it again. It wasn’t random. It was a test: to see if I’d lose my cool, become dismissive, or show signs of impatience under pressure. I didn’t. That wasn’t because I guessed I was being evaluated it’s simply who I am. I treated her kindly and kept my focus.

Second, the test itself contained a few questions that were unsolvable by design. The evaluator wanted to see how I’d react. Would I waste time stubbornly trying to solve the unsolvable, or would I move on and maximize my score? I quickly recognized the trick and finished the test well. That wasn’t about raw intelligence it was about emotional intelligence, adaptability, and judgment.

Third, and most importantly, the evaluator asked a series of quiet, thoughtful questions about my parents and my upbringing. At the time, I didn’t fully understand the intent. But looking back, I see now it was a way of probing my emotional maturity, my inner stability, and the kind of trust I’d learned to build with others from a young age.

In the end, the multinational made me an offer. I turned it down for other reasons, but what stuck with me wasn’t the prestige of the offer it was the quality of the evaluation. They had spent real resources to make sure they understood who they were hiring. Not just the professional. The person.

Cleveland Browns, you’re a billion-dollar enterprise in a league that generates tens of billions annually. Your players represent your brand on and off the field. You invest millions in each draft pick and you invest and guarantee up to $230M in one specific case of an athlete you traded for who had known character question marks. You make enormous investments in players and based on the results I have to seriously question whether or not you are doing the kind of deep, psychological, emotional, and relational evaluation that other industries would consider table stakes for leadership hires.   Maybe you are unlucky, but as the saying goes, fool me once....

Maybe it’s time to bring in expert help or if you already have one, a new expert. Not a guy with a stopwatch. A professional who understands people. Someone who can ask the right questions, create the right pressure tests, and separate immaturity from instability, confidence from arrogance, resilience from volatility.

No system is perfect. No process will catch everything. But with the right approach, you can reduce your risk. And perhaps more importantly, you can build a team of men who will make your fans proud both on Sundays and every other day of the week.

It’s time to take evaluating character as seriously as you evaluate combine results. Because the real test of a team doesn’t begin on the field. It begins with the choices you make off it.

Shedeur and Kumar Go To White Castle

There is a hilarious moment in Harold & Kumar go to White Castle that never fails to crack me up and now, unexpectedly, it also reminds me of Shedeur Sanders.  In the movie, Kumar is sitting in an interview with a respected medical school. The interviewer, played with absurd deadpan by Fred Willard, is clearly an old-school bigot. As the interview unfolds, Kumar brilliant, self-aware, and done with this type of performative nonsense decides to light the whole thing on fire. He makes a mockery of the moment. He knows he doesn’t need this guy’s approval. He knows he’s good enough without it.

And just like that, it all clicked: That’s Shedeur Sanders.

When the 2025 NFL Draft rolled around, I couldn’t help but notice a slow, stunning freefall. Shedeur, once projected as a top-10 pick, watched as team after team passed on him not once, not twice, but four times. The buzz afterward was worse: anonymous NFL executives whispering to reporters that Sanders “didn’t respect the process.” That he acted like he was “above” it.

Above it?

I remember watching ESPN’s live coverage of the draft. They often cut to team draft rooms, supposedly the beating heart of football intellect. And in room after room, one thing stood out: 90% white faces. In a league where over half the players are Black, the front-office representation looked like a corporate boardroom from 1985. It was hard not to notice.

Now let’s be honest. Shedeur Sanders was raised by Deion Sanders a man who’s not just a Hall of Famer, but a cultural force. Prime Time didn’t just play the game; he reshaped it. He taught his kids to believe they belong not to ask permission. So when Shedeur shows up to draft interviews confident, polished, and unwilling to kiss rings, it shouldn’t surprise anyone.

Just like Kumar, Shedeur knew the script and chose not to read from it.

In both cases, there’s something cathartic in watching a brilliant young man reject the approval of a system that’s historically skeptical of people who look like him, sound like him, and carry themselves with the kind of self-possession that makes gatekeepers uncomfortable.

But here’s the twist: Kumar didn’t need Fred Willard’s blessing. And in the long run, Shedeur doesn’t need the NFL’s outdated notion of “process” either.

Because let’s face it how many of these NFL decision-makers have been wrong over and over? They missed on Tom Brady. They passed on Lamar Jackson. They dismissed Jalen Hurts. The league loves to preach meritocracy but too often rewards compliance over courage, familiarity over authenticity.

And Shedeur? He’s betting on himself. He’s betting that talent, preparation, leadership, and self-belief matter more than knowing which privileged NFL scout or executive to flatter.

Will it work? I think it will. Shedeur Sanders might become a superstar quarterback not because he played the game but because he refused to and the fact that 32 NFL teams passed on him four times probably means less than nothing if you really think about it.

Are the Cleveland Browns in Good Hands?

 

If you’ve ever watched Moneyball, you might remember the moment of inspiration. The A’s have just lost Jason Giambi and Johnny Damon. Their GM Billy Beane (played by Brad Pitt) is desperate. Enter Paul DePodesta, brilliant, awkward, and analytically inclined. He points out undervalued players like Scott Hatteberg and Chad Bradford. Suddenly, the A’s are winning again. Cue the montage, cue the triumph of data over instinct.

But hold on. The movie leaves something out.

The A’s also had three Cy Young-level starters: Mark Mulder, Tim Hudson, and Barry Zito. They had Gold Glove third baseman Eric Chavez. They had MVP Miguel Tejada. That’s not a bunch of misfit toys. That’s a core. It wasn’t just math that built that team it was scouting, development, and traditional baseball infrastructure. Paul DePodesta’s analytics helped. But they weren’t everything.

Fast forward to Cleveland. DePodesta, now the Browns’ Chief Strategy Officer since 2016, was hired by owner Jimmy Haslam to bring a Moneyball-style approach to the NFL. And while Haslam has cycled through GMs and head coaches at dizzying speed, DePodesta has remained. He’s the constant in a sea of churn. That should tell you something about his influence.

The question is: has that influence been good?

DePodesta’s Browns have become infamous for zigging when others zag. They’ve drafted injured players high. They’ve targeted undersized defenders who were “value” picks—meaning cheaper. They’ve drafted cornerbacks and safeties who flash athletic metrics but fail to hold up over a brutal NFL season. They’ve taken chances on players most teams wouldn’t touch, like Deshaun Watson, who cost three first-round picks and the largest guaranteed contract in NFL history.

DePodesta was reportedly a major advocate of that move. The theory? Franchise quarterbacks at 27 years old are never available so when they are, you do whatever it takes.

But again, a question nags: If he’s so valuable, why was Houston willing to trade him? The Texans—who knew Watson’s habits, health, and psychology better than anyone and had decided to move on. The Browns saw market inefficiency. Maybe it was just an iceberg, and they bought the Titanic.

This isn’t baseball. Baseball is a sequence of isolated, measurable events: pitch, swing, hit, out. The sample sizes are huge - hundreds of at-bats, thousands of pitches. That’s ideal terrain for analytics.

Football? Much messier.

The number of plays in a season is relatively small. The variables are massive: weather, health, scheme, teammates, matchups, mental preparation. There’s less statistical stability. A player might be brilliant for four weeks and invisible for the next eight. That’s why NFL front offices still lean heavily on experience, tape, and context.

But in Cleveland, analytics became the system, not just a tool within it. And that may be the root of the Browns’ continued inconsistency. They've ignored long-held truths of the game like the idea that defensive tackles must anchor the run. Or that linebackers need durability as much as speed. Or that locker room chemistry, character, and leadership matter more than spreadsheet projections.

Yes, the “football guys” don’t always get it right either. But there’s a reason certain traits recur among great players. There are physical thresholds that history shows must be met. You can’t consistently win in the NFL with a soft middle or brittle safeties. You can't build a championship culture if the face of your franchise is a lightning rod for controversy and mistrust.

Analytics can sharpen a decision when it’s close. But when analytics drive every decision—ignoring tape, history, and intangibles the result is what Browns fans have lived through: expensive mistakes, fragile teams, and flashes of promise followed by thuds of reality.

Football is not baseball. And Cleveland is not Oakland. You can’t moneyball your way to a Super Bowl if you don’t respect the brutal, physical, emotionally complex reality of the NFL.

Jimmy Haslam wanted to outsmart the league. Ten years in, the smarter question might be: Is it time to  start building a football team the way winning football teams do?

Until that question gets answered, the answer to whether the Browns are in good hands is… not yet.

Did Jimmy Haslam force the Shedeur Sanders pick?

Of course he did.

And for once, I would say Jimmy Haslam was 100% correct.

So what happened?  Here is my random ass guess

The Browns pick Dillon Gabriel at #94 on Day 2.   Between Day 2 and Day 3, Jimmy Haslam's long list of NFL friends start texting him and calling him.  The tone of those texts and talks would have been something along the lines of "what the fuck?"

On Day 3 when Shedeur is still there into Round 5, and Haslam saw the Pittsburgh Steelers pick coming up, Haslam gets pissed off imagining "what if" the Steelers pick up Shedeur. Mr. Haslam then mandates that Andrew Berry move up and pick Shedeur before Pittsburgh does.  

I am 100% in alignment with Jimmy Haslam on this one, what is interesting is that apparently Andrew Berry and Kevin Stefanski were not, judging by the frowns in the room. 

The Browns have touted their management alignment for the last few years.  First chink in the armor.  It's now on Stefanski to make it work, or else.

The irony is this:   The Browns had a fantastic draft class in 2025 and it should not be difficult to capitalize on it.  The question in Jimmy Haslam's mind must be this  -   Is Kevin Stefanski too rigid to adapt his scheme to the talent on hand?   If the Browns don't win at least 9 games in 2025 I think we all know what the outcome will be.

Is Dillon Gabriel an Opener?

Paul DePodesta has spent much of his 10+ years in Cleveland boldly trying to disprove conventional NFL wisdom or what I suspect Mr. DePodesta might label as conventional NFL bias.  For the most part however he's never discovered his NFL version of Chad Bradford or Scott Hatteberg.

Well, maybe just maybe with the selection of two QB's in the 2025 NFL Draft, the Browns have lurched uncontrollably into an opportunity to get a win over conventional NFL wisdom which states that a team must have a franchise QB and that one QB must take the vast majority of the snaps during a game to be successful.

I happen to like Dillon Gabriel and, yes, I happen to really like Shedeur Sanders.   It occurs to me however that both of them at this point in their careers have strengths and weaknesses.   Well, what if, as in baseball, we use analytics to maximize the strengths each bring and mitigate the risk each have in weaknesses.  

Play them both!

How about Gabriel, who is known for precision, not making big mistakes and making reads across the entire field, as your opener.   Script plays and use him at the start of each half.

How about Sanders as your middle reliever.   He's accurate and has great field vision and importantly he can improvise a big play or two because he possesses an understanding of what defensive backfields are doing.   Use him after the first Browns drive in each half.  

You can close the game with either depending on the opponent.   Once you have a lead, hand the ball off.

Gabriel gets about 20 snaps a game.

Sanders gets about 40 snaps a game. 

Force our opponents to prepare for two QB's not one.

Keep both QB's healthy and fresh

Paul DePodesta gets a long overdue victory!

Win - Win - Win! 

Mason Graham = Jerry Sherk

To my viewpoint, Jerry Sherk is the greatest Brown I have ever personally sat in the stands and watched.  Just to be clear, I first sat in the stands in the 1970's otherwise I would surely answer Jim Brown was the greatest Brown.   But I only witnessed Jim Brown winning the war in Europe together with Charles Bronson.

When I first watched Mason Graham play for Michigan against Ohio State, I thought to myself - Jerry Sherk.   In other words:  Cat like quickness and a nose for the ball in spite of constant double and triple teaming by the Buckeyes.

Then I learned another parallel:  Graham was a world class wrestler - Just like Jerry Sherk was.

From his alma mater's website:  Jerry Sherk was a two-sport star at Oklahoma State University. He was an All-Big-8 selection on the gridiron as well as an All-American grappler in 1969. In 1970, he was a second round NFL draft pick (47^th overall) by the Cleveland Browns. Jerry was a four-time Pro Bowl Selection and named MVP by the Browns three straight seasons 1974-1976. In 1976, he was named the NFL's Most Valuable Defensive Player of the Year.

well it turns out Mason Graham plays like Jerry Sherk and his wrestling background is no small coincidence.  The Browns have drafted a stud who is going to help turn this team around!

Dillon Gabriel - Further Proof that No Matter What the Browns Say, They Want Deshaun Watson to Return as QB

The Browns have one year remaining on the contract of Kenny Pickett and they have Joe Flacco signed to a one year contract.  Yesterday they added Dillon Gabriel whose ceiling is universally seen as a solid 2nd string NFL QB.

I don't care what Jimmy Haslam says, the Browns intend to hand the keys back to Deshaun Watson in 2026.   The reason they won't say that is 100% due to public relations.