Dawghouse Blog

May 2007 - Posts

• Sitting Quinn, Misc Notes

  Terry Pluto makes it plain: sit Quinn. It's a no brainer, really. I know we all want to win soon, but it's better to win (or lose) without Quinn on the field for most of 2007. The news in the above article is that Savage reiterated he wouldn't sign a veteran QB. Really the only way that could happen is if Fry or Anderson is dealt, and that would have happened during the draft. It's also the one thing that I don't understand about Savage -- why the reluctance to get a veteran in the house? Does he really think the best way for a QB to develop is to be around a bunch of other inexperienced QBs? Saw that Tyrone Moss has been cut. Who is that? That is a rooki FA RB from Miami that looked great in college... a few years ago... before serious injuries... that prevented him from playing well in college again. I meant to comment on this guy's signing in yesterday's post but didn't get to that. If I had commented, it would have been something along the lines of, "Hope it works out, but I'd put better odds on Ben Gay." Yeah, it's not as good to comment the day after... still, it's clear that the Browns need a young runner to groom. Thankfully Chris Barclay was player fo the week (for special teams) in NFL Europa (Europa? When did they rename it?) and rookie FA RB from Michigan Jerome Jackson was signed. We are set baby!!! Why the F is Donovan McNabb shocked the Eagles picked QB Kevin Kolb in the second round of the draft? Do good quarterbacks not need backups? McNabb is a crybaby. He's also delusional. The guy has been hurt often the last few years and every time the Eagles season went down in flames because they had a third-rate backup to take his place (ooops, except last year when second-rate-but-perfect-fit Jeff Garcia arguably outperformed McNabb). What are the odds McNabb goes down this year? That's an interesting question now since McNabb now knows there's a guy behind him who could take his job. That hasn't been the case before (Garcia wouldn't have been considered a serious threat). Is Eli Manning the next QB to bomb out? Certainly the situation in New York does not look healthy. Take for example Plaxico Burress, who Manning requested work out with the team in the offseason: "I'm not trying to make a statement," Burress said. "I want us to be better, and I want him to reach his full potential, which I think would be great. I want to help him out. We're here, we're willing to work." That sounds a lot like, "Hey, we're giving Eli everything he needs and if he still sucks it ain't my fault." Posted May 09 2007, 04:57 PM by MikeB with no comments Filed under: Browns

• 2008 First Round Pick

  Does the after-the-fact scuttlebutt on Quinn shake your confidence in him? For me, not much, but I wasn't as high on him as many. I think he ultimately went at about the point of the draft he should have. He's a good prospect, but not a fantastic one. I would have been on-board with Quinn at #3 if Savage made that call, but not without a lot of skepticism. Quinn at #22, however, dramatically reduces the penalty to the franchise if he doesn't measure up while increases the probability for success. And even though Quinn could easily win the starting job this season, I believe very strongly Quinn should sit for the whole year. There's just not much upside to playing him more than some mop-up time. Quinn is our 2008 first rounder, not our 2007. So let him sit and learn, and come 2008 he'll be ready. Right now, I'd say these ought to be the goals for the 2007 season. Of course, I'll do this all over again come August, but not much is likely to change... Solidify the offensive line. A lot of talent has been acquired. 2007 is the time for that group to coalesce and perform better at the end of the year than at the beginning. I'd like to see the left side be impervious in the passing game, and the right side provide the muscle in the running game. It will take the development of Thomas and the emregence of another player besides Tucker or Shaffer. Continued health and development of Edwards and Winslow. I don't care if the numbers are there as much as the effort. Edwards needs to show he's ready to be a real presence. Winslow needs a solid campaign without too much physical punishment. If these guys come out of 2007 strong the team can be justified in having high expectations for the following year, and the stage should be set for Quinn to takeover. Complete the grade on Frye. Sure, he's not in the running to be the starter in 2008 (hopefully). But after this season he's either the clear #2 in 2008 or hopefully has played well enough to earn the Browns a decent draft pick. Continued growth among the LBs and DBs. There are a lot of pieces here and a lot of promise. You can easily slot who and where players could fit. But they have to make it a reality in 2007. I'd like to say the defensive line needs to improve, but it's unreasonable to expect the long-term solutions on the DL to come out of the 2007 season. The fact is Roye is in his last few years and Washington is about done. The two Smiths could be around a while and hopefully they measure up. But the reality is that the DL will be the priority next offseason. From the teams I dislike file...      ...I was just fine with the Dolphins passing on Quinn and picking Ginn. Ginn will be a good player, probably. But the Dolphins are a mess. They need to change the team colors before their fortunes will improve. ...it's nice to see the Bengals' draft get panned. It sure seems, at least on the surface of it, that this team has taken a step back in talent level this offseason. ...While I think Troy Smith can play in the NFL because his arm is strong, I never thought he was that great at OSU. So in a sense I think going to the Ravens is some sort of karmic payback for his unexplained runaway Heisman award. He was good, but was he that good? Posted May 08 2007, 04:23 PM by MikeB with no comments Filed under: Browns