Mary Kay Cabot ‏ @
MaryKayCabot
Leroy Kelly Jr., son of # Browns HOF RB, says # Browns will bring him in for
tryout on Monday. Jr and Sr excited http://***********/7z5frpl

Some player quotes...

http://www.cleveland.com/ohio-sports-blog/index.ssf/2012/05/cleveland_browns_players_quote.html

Also think something that is being overlooked is the return of Marcus Bernard. Obviously only OTA's but I hear he's already causing pass rush "havoc." I think after his Kellen Winslow incident that he will be motivated with a chip on his shoulder.

Was surprised to see this at ESPN . . .

Marcus Benard feels 'blessed'

May 30, 2012, 8:32 PM ET

BEREA, Ohio -- As sweat beads streaked his cheeks, defensive end Marcus Benard looked out at the green practice fields behind the Browns' training facility.

For a time, he didn't know if he'd see them again.

He made it back.

Seven months ago, an instant of recklessness on a motorcycle nearly took Benard's life. At 26, a highly paid professional athlete just tapping into his potential, Benard, who had beaten the odds and made an NFL roster as an undrafted free agent, almost threw everything away and left three young sons without their father.

Benard was lucky. He lived and learned.

"I appreciate life," he said. "And I appreciate the sport that I'm playing and my responsibilities to it. It's a blessing and I feel like it's a plan.

"I'm very happy to be here."

Benard spoke to reporters Wednesday for the first time since his harrowing experience. Before answering questions, he smiled and shook hands with several media members, another step in his recovery completed.

On Oct. 10, Benard had just left practice when he crashed his three-wheel Can-Am Spyder into a guardrail on Interstate 71. Brooklyn Police estimated that the 6-foot-2, 260-pound Benard, who led the Browns in sacks the previous season, was thrown an estimated 80 yards before coming to a stop.

He broke his right hand and sustained other unspecified injuries that required a three-day hospital stay at The Cleveland Clinic. Benard declined to discuss any specifics about his horrific accident or other injuries. The only visible reminder of his traumatic ordeal is a long, thick scar tracing from the middle of his right hand past his wrist.

Benard was asked if the wreck had changed him.

He paused, perhaps searching for the proper words.

"It did," he said. "But you live and you learn from everything. You walk up stairs and you stub your toe and you say I'm going to pick my feet up this time. So I learned a valuable lesson, just the appreciation of life. I feel like it was a blessing and you learn your lessons.

"You learn more about life. You learn more about yourself. Sitting out and going through what I went through -- rehab and everything -- you always sit back and evaluate yourself and evaluate your position in life."

When he was finally cleared to return, Benard remembers his mind filling with many thoughts as he ran back onto the field with his teammates.

"I was just excited just to be back with the team and to be back on grass," he said. "Life's chaotic, but the football field is where we're comfortable, where I'm comfortable and it was just a joy to be able to have that chance again and to be able to be on the team."

Benard expressed his gratitude to the Browns, whom he said were there "from Day One." The team could have released him following the accident because it was a nonfootball-related injury, but the Browns chose to pay him the final 12 game checks on his $525,000 salary.

"Words can't even describe how wonderful they've been to me," he said. "I will forever appreciate the Browns for what they did for me."

Benard said he no longer rides a motorcycle. The one he was on when he wrecked last October, one day after the Browns completed their bye week, had its front wheels torn off by the impact. Following the crash, Benard said his first thoughts were about his three boys, Domanic, Marcus Jr., and Ashai.

"That's my heart and I don't ever want to disappoint them," he said. "I want to be there for them."

Browns coach Pat Shurmur has noticed a physical change in Benard, who bulked up last year when the team switched from a 3-4 to 4-3 defensive front. Benard says he now weighs 260 pounds.

"He's much leaner," Shurmur said. "He looks much more fit and he's flashed a little bit. He looks like he's putting himself in position to have a good camp."

Shurmur also believes Benard has matured following last year's life-altering event.

"I'm glad he's here and I think we all go through things in life that refocus us on doing things the right way and allowing us to be able to continue things that are important to us. He's done that."

Not that he did before, but Benard now knows not to take anything for granted.

The crash has made him more aware, more thankful.

"Blessed," he said. "Above anything, blessed. I'm happy to be here. It was an event. It's not something that I can just shrug off or anyone else can just shrug off. I'm not going to say that it was nothing, but it was definitely something and it's a blessing."

Hooley said on KNR yesterday that Colt looked like shit. Also when Shurmur's kid was at camp (St. Eds prep prospect) he threw the ball better than colt.

OneBuckeye;1185727 wrote:Hooley said on KNR yesterday that Colt looked like shit. Also when Shurmer's kid was at camp (St. Eds prep prospect) he threw the ball better than colt.

Saw a blog piece by Bernie Kosar where Kosar said he feels that McCoy would benefit in sitting behind Weeden for a few years. Also heard the same that McCoy wasn't throwing a very good ball but Weeden wasn't "lights out" either.

lol at cupcakes

Browns looking for more punch at wide receiver

BEREA —

As one-two punches go, the Browns go through wide receiver combos like Taco Bell at rush hour.

In the last 10 years, the team’s No. 1 and No. 2 wideouts in terms of receiving yards have run the gamut from:

• Quincy Morgan (964 yards) and Kevin Johnson (703) in 2002

• Dennis Northcutt (729) and André Davis (576) in 2003

• Northcutt (806) and Antonio Bryant (546) in 2004

• Bryant (1,009) and Braylon Edwards (512) in 2005

• Edwards (884) and Joe Jurevicius (495) in 2006

• Edwards (1,289) and Jurevicius (614) in 2007

• Edwards (873) and Syndric Steptoe (182) in 2008

• Mohamed Massaquoi (624) and Chansi Stuckey (198) in 2009

• Massaquoi (483) and Stuckey (346) in 2010

• Greg Little (709) and Joshua Cribbs (518) in 2011.

In Taco Bell terms, that’s way too much mild sauce.

The Browns’ current run through spring practice features a push to put more meat in the latest one-two punch.

The best guess has rookie quarterback Brandon Weeden working with Little and Massaquoi, in that order, as his top two wideouts once the season gets rolling.

Tuesday’s practice didn’t quite point to a major breakthrough.

Weeden eagerly began one drill by licking his fingers, stepping up to center Alex Mack, and barking, “Blue 80, blue 80.” He fired a short pass on the right side. Massaquoi dropped the ball and grunted.

A while later, Weeden whistled a strike on the left side to Little. Rookie Trevin Wade stripped the ball, picked it up and took off.

“Ahhhhhhhh!!!!” Little screamed.

It’s early. The brass thinks the passing game can come around.

Massaquoi has been around for three seasons since arriving via a No. 50 overall draft pick. At worst, he was supposed to become an excellent No. 2 wideout. It hasn’t happened.

“We’ve just got to play to our potential, really,” Massaquoi said after practice. “We’re capable. We just didn’t do it last year.”

Little was drafted last year, nine spots lower than Massaquoi. General manager Tom Heckert thought he was getting a potential No. 1 wideout at a bargain rate, resulting from Little sitting out the 2010 season over trouble with the NCAA.

Little led the 2011 Browns in catches with 61 and receiving yards with 709.

Now, he has the benefit of an offseason to learn new coordinator Brad Childress’ system. Plus, he has a better body, according to head coach Pat Shurmur.

“He’s a lot more sudden,” Shurmur said. “He has been catching the ball at a much more consistent rate.”

Coming off the 2011 season, Shurmur talked to the 6-foot-2 Little about coming in sleeker. Little spent two months at a training compound in Florida before reporting to Berea for the team’s supervised conditioning.

“I lost almost 11 pounds,” Little said. “I’m probably scraping 219, 220 pounds right now.”

Weeden is impressed.

“The more I see him ... the dude can play,” said Weeden, noting similarities between Little and his favorite Oklahoma State target, Justin Blackmon. “He can really, really go get it.”

Little has been maintaining a healthy diet of made-to-order fruits, vegetables and sandwiches in the team cafeteria.

He didn’t pay nearly as much attention to what he ate last year.

“Every Thursday,” he said, “(linebacker) Chris Gocong’s wife would bring in cupcakes. I would eat (pausing and grinning) seven to 10.”

The cupcakes are out. Svelte is in.

Browns Notebook for May 30

HARDESTY ON RICHARDSON
Running back Montario Hardesty lost his entire rookie season of 2010 to knee issues and was ineffective while battling nagging injuries in 2011.

Initial thoughts that he could be a good feature back were scrapped, and a No. 3 overall pick was spent on Trent Richardson.

“I just looked at it as, all right, cool ... let’s get back to work,” Hardesty said. “Competition is good for everybody. I’m excited about it, honestly.”

Richardson will be the main back unless something strange happens.

“There’s plenty of work for two backs,” Hardesty said, “especially in our conference, the way teams pound the ball.”

Hardesty carried 88 times for 266 yards (3.0 average) in 2011. Backs who remain employed tend to run for at least four yards a carry.


HAGG HEATS UP
Eric Hagg, a 2011 Round 7 pick who impressed coaches late in the season, got some reps with the first-team defense Tuesday.

“It’s a good opportunity,” said Hagg, who looms as the No. 3 safety behind starters T.J. Ward and Usama Young.

Hagg said he learned a ton during his rookie year from veteran cornerbacks Sheldon Brown and Dimitri Patterson, both of whom have a long background in the defense being run by coordinator Dick Jauron.

His head was swimming when he got to camp last year, without the benefit of an offseason program.

“We had to try to learn everything super fast,” Hagg said. “Having an offseason makes it a lot more work, but it also makes it a lot easier.”

http://www.cantonrep.com/news/x639969570/Browns-Weeden-sets-playoffs-as-goal#

So apparently ESPN was having a roundtable discussion on whether the NFL should go to a draft lottery like the NBA. Wingo said the Browns would've ended up with the first pick and would've selected Andrew Luck. Schefter then chimed in and said "and then they would've traded back up to #3 and taken Richardson too." Luck & Richardson?....oh to dream.

BR1986FB;1186324 wrote:So apparently ESPN was having a roundtable discussion on whether the NFL should go to a draft lottery like the NBA. Wingo said the Browns would've ended up with the first pick and would've selected Andrew Luck. Schefter then chimed in and said "and then they would've traded back up to #3 and taken Richardson too." Luck & Richardson?....oh to dream.

I don't think it will happen, tanking is not as prevalent in the NFL as it is in the NBA. For some reason teams still try to win if they are 1-11 and blow the chance for the #1 overall pick.

If the NFL can make money by holding a lottery, then it will probably happen at some time

Mr Miyagi;1186331 wrote:If the NFL can make money by holding a lottery, then it will probably happen at some time

Never thought about that, having it on the NFL network.

BR1986FB;1186324 wrote:So apparently ESPN was having a roundtable discussion on whether the NFL should go to a draft lottery like the NBA. Wingo said the Browns would've ended up with the first pick and would've selected Andrew Luck. Schefter then chimed in and said "and then they would've traded back up to #3 and taken Richardson too." Luck & Richardson?....oh to dream.

Thats stupid. All speculation.

Pick6;1186408 wrote:Thats stupid. All speculation.

No way? You mean it's all speculation to talk about a draft lottery that doesn't exist and then discuss the Browns winning it and making some moves to pull in the 1 and 3 picks?

You don't say?

hoops23;1186417 wrote:No way? You mean it's all speculation to talk about a draft lottery that doesn't exist and then discuss the Browns winning it and making some moves to pull in the 1 and 3 picks?

You don't say?

No shit. I thought they were going to re-draft under this format and we'd end up with both of them. :rolleyes: Friggin' Cowboys fans....not too smart.

BR1986FB;1186423 wrote:No shit. I thought they were going to re-draft under this format and we'd end up with both of them. :rolleyes: Friggin' Cowboys fans....not too smart.

Yeah, because if the NFL switched to the NBA's format, the order would have been the exact same :thumbup:

hoops23;1186417 wrote:No way? You mean it's all speculation to talk about a draft lottery that doesn't exist and then discuss the Browns winning it and making some moves to pull in the 1 and 3 picks?

You don't say?

LULZ

Pick6;1186454 wrote:Yeah, because if the NFL switched to the NBA's format, the order would have been the exact same :thumbup:

It was a hypothetical "filler" discussion BSPN tends to do during the offseason. Are we seriously arguing about this? LMAO

like_that;1186456 wrote:It was a hypothetical "filler" discussion BSPN tends to do during the offseason. Are we seriously arguing about this? LMAO

That is the nice thing about this thread....everyone can find a way to argue about just about anything.

wes_mantooth;1186457 wrote:That is the nice thing about this thread....everyone can find a way to argue about just about anything.

Very true. When the season is over for the Browns this thread deserves to go to the HOF for number of pages and the types of arguments that have occurred here. I wish there was a way to highlight certain pages, because there are definitely some interesting arguments/idiotic posts that deserves to be revisited.

Pick6;1186454 wrote:Yeah, because if the NFL switched to the NBA's format, the order would have been the exact same :thumbup:

This is one of the better guys (Cosell) in the league. Posted it here because the NFL forum doesn't get as much traffic...

Cosell Talks: “He’s a Winner”

by Greg Cosell

Recently on my weekly Thursday morning appearance with Ross Tucker on “The Morning Kickoff” on Sirius XM radio, Tucker raised an interesting point on Tom Brady, who is now heading into his 13th season in New England.

Tucker broke down Brady’s career into two separate parts:

1. Brady’s first five years as a starter. (He threw a grand total of three passes in his rookie season of 2000.)

2. Brady’s last five years — not including 2008, when he tore his ACL in the opening game of the season.

The CliffsNotes version of Tucker’s take is this: Brady has been a far better player over the last five years, yet he won all three of his Super Bowls in the first five.
I agree with Tucker.

In fact, I don’t think the former statement is debatable at all. Yet, for those who believe that playoff success and Super Bowl championships are the best measuring stick of quarterback greatness, it’s a bit of an intellectual challenge.
Tom Brady celebrates winning Super Bowl XXXVIII (AP)

Brady won his first 10 playoff games, including, of course, those three championships. And he only threw three interceptions in the process. Since then, he’s 6-6 in the playoffs with two Super Bowl losses. In those 12 games, he’s thrown 17 interceptions.

Consequently, we’re left with a pair of much larger questions about quarterback evaluation and judgment: Is Brady, celebrated as one of the great “winners” of all time after his third championship in 2004, no longer a winner? How does one reconcile Brady’s clear improvement over the last five years with his inability to replicate the phenomenal playoff success he enjoyed in his first five?

None of this is meant to disparage Brady, who is one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time. Rather, it is designed to focus on a phrase that has become a big part of football lexicon over the years …

“He’s a winner.”

What exactly does that mean? Is it simply an “access to the result” verdict, without much thought given to the process?

Again, let’s relate it to Brady. Think back to his first Super Bowl victory against the St. Louis Rams. New England won that game with an Adam Vinatieri field goal on the final play. Two years later, Vinatieri essentially did the same thing against the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl XXXVIII.

For the sake of discussion, let’s say Vinatieri missed both of those kicks (each was more than 40 yards). Then the Rams and the Panthers, respectively, won the toss in overtime and the Patriots never got the ball back. Would Brady’s performance have been any less impressive in those games? Obviously not. What would be different is our collective perception of his performance. He would not have been acclaimed a “winner.”
Joe Flacco vs the Patriots in the AFC Championship game (AP)

How about last season’s AFC Championship Game? Joe Flacco made one of the best throws you’ll ever see in a critical, game-deciding situation: 27 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, the Baltimore Ravens trailing Brady’s Patriots by three.

We can debate forever whether it was a drop by Lee Evans or a great defensive play by Sterling Moore. That’s irrelevant. It was as good a throw as you will ever see in a pressure moment. It was reminiscent of Ben Roethlisberger’s touchdown pass to Santonio Holmes to win Super Bowl XLIII. The outcome of the game — two plays later, Billy Cundiff missed a 32-yard field goal — was not, in any way, a reflection of Flacco’s performance.

You could easily argue that Flacco was brilliant on that final drive. The result did not change the process, only the perception of the process. How different would the public perception of Flacco be today if he was a Super Bowl quarterback? Would he be viewed as a “winner?”
Peyton Manning throws a pass in the AFC Championship vs the Patriots (AP)

I remember Peyton Manning talking about the winning touchdown drive in the AFC Championship Game against the Patriots back in 2007 when we interviewed him for our “America’s Game” series.

To paraphrase, Manning said it was a great series of plays, executed extremely well in a very trying and tense circumstance (with the Super Bowl at stake). He then went on to add that if Brady had followed with a Patriots touchdown in the final 54 seconds, no one would have remembered the Colts drive, as special as it was in Manning’s mind. His outstanding play would have been viewed through the prism of “he’s not a winner.”

His performance would not have been any different. Again, perception without context and understanding.

In 2011, one quarterback in particular fostered blind obedience by many observers to the phrase “he’s winner” without much thought as to why it was being said. Tim Tebow won seven of his first eight starts, a number of them in spectacular fashion with late-game heroics. Of course, Matt Prater made two 50-plus yard overtime field goals to defeat the Dolphins and Bears (and the Chicago win also featured a 59-yarder with eight seconds remaining in regulation).
Tim Tebow reacts after scoring a touchdown (AP)

Then came four losses in his last five games, during which Tebow, with the exception of the playoff win against Pittsburgh, played about as poorly as an NFL quarterback can play. In those four losses, he completed 39 percent of his passes. So the question must be asked:

Was Tebow a “winner” in some games, but not others? Did he not practice “winning” in the weeks leading up to those four losses?

Let’s not focus on the specific quarterbacks I used as examples. If you do that, you are totally missing the point. My broader objective is to compel a re-thinking of the “winner” concept. When you drill down deeper, it’s really a term that has almost no meaning.

wes_mantooth;1186457 wrote:That is the nice thing about this thread....everyone can find a way to argue about just about anything.

Everyone wes?

Pretty sure "everyone" can't get on a message board forum. Some don't have internet (Africans), some can't see (blind people), etc. SMFH.

Gosell is great, and I agree. I have always hated the "winner" moniker attached to players. Its a cop out when you don't have anything to back it up. The worst was when people used it on Tebow coming out of college, example "I' dont care about his throwing mechanics, or the fact that he can't hit the broad side of the barn, or the fact that it takes him 4 sec to throw the ball, the kid is a winner!"

Commander of Awesome;1186491 wrote:Gosell is great, and I agree. I have always hated the "winner" moniker attached to players. Its a cop out when you don't have anything to back it up. The worst was when people used it on Tebow coming out of college, example "I' dont care about his throwing mechanics, or the fact that he can't hit the broad side of the barn, or the fact that it takes him 4 sec to throw the ball, the kid is a winner!"

LOL, people (hook, SoS) still use that with Tebow, wtf are you talking about?