On Sep 24, 2023:
posted by BR1986FBDefense has given up 3, 12, 3 to opposing offenses. Granted, they haven't been tested by an elite offense but it's pretty damn good.
It's early, but this should be the Browns best defense since at least the Eric Turner led defense in 1994 that took them to the playoffs with Nick Saban as the DC. Maybe it could be the best since the original Dawgs with Dixon/Minnifield.
posted by Ironman92After the first 4 weeks I’m going to need about 24 teams in the playoffs
Either that or no one deserves it....lol
On Sep 19, 2023:
posted by BR1986FB100%. Doesn't mean this will work out but that was the price if they were going to get him.
I wasn't thrilled with what they paid for him either but it's kind of the cost of doing business to land a (perceived) FQB. As I stated before, the only other time I can remember a QB in his prime (not TB12) being on the market was Drew Brees so this isn't common.
Much of Watson's woes, at least last night, were on Stefanski. Once Fitzpatrick "Tonya Harding'd" Chubb, the Browns were one dimensional. The Pittsburgh front 7 could send the hounds.
All Stefanski had to do was run a few screens and it would've kept the Steelers defense honest. But instead he dials up these long developing routes, allowing the pass rush to get to Watson. No excuse for Deshaun's inaccuracy but KS needs to put him in a position to succeed.
If the price is too high, you walk away. They paid the price for a hall of famer, but only got a very inconsistent player who will make highlight plays at times because of his athletic ability. We did the exact same thing with OBJ a few years ago except we threw away more picks this time.
posted by Laley23I wouldve rather traded 3 first for Watson, than 2 for Stafford. Again, revisionist history that isnt currently working out. But if Watson was still good (and still a little early), that money would be a joke compared to what guys will be in 5 years. And he is younger/in prime. It was a good trade for a team like the Browns, they just need Watson to still be elite/very good and thus far he has not been. Doesnt mean the process was wrong.
NO ONE else was offering what we offered. When we try to be smarter than everyone else, it always backfires. Just make smart football decisions instead of taking stupid chances where you need everything to be just perfect. I'll ask the question again, where would you rank Watson in terms of AFC QBs? In terms of what we gave up for him, he should be the best. He's not even in the top half.
posted by BR1986FBThe 49ers gave up three 1st rounders to move up to draft an unknown in Trey Lance. Watson, at one point, was a proven commodity and borderline MVP quality. People may think it's "insane" but 1) it's the going rate and 2) if you hit, the draft picks are an afterthought.
So the logic is that the niners gave up 3 first rounders for a QB who sucks, so we made a good trade? There are other veterans who we could have had much cheaper. The Rams only gave up 2 first rounders for Stafford, who is much better than Watson. We greatly overpaid.
posted by Laley23He had only missed 1 year, and it was mostly on his own accord to get out of Houston. And we overpaid, because he was going elsewhere if we didnt. This is all revisionist history, the move is not working out currently, but it was a swing a franchise like the Browns had to make, imo. How many more QBs did you want to draft and waste more time on?
He basically missed 2 years. He played a handful of games in 2022. Almost everyone thought that it was insane to give up 3 first round picks. Where would you rank him in AFC QBs? If a franchise is going to give up 3 first round picks, you better be the best. He's not even in the top half.
posted by BR1986FBA project? The guy was in the MVP discussion and a multiple Pro Bowl QB. Three 1st rounders for Trey Lance is a "project", not Watson. He was proven.
After missing basically 2 years, I think that it is fair to call him a project right now. He put up big numbers in a gimmick offense in a dome in a terrible division. They got exposed when they made the playoffs. If you are going to give up 3 first round picks, it better be for an all-time great, and even then it doesn't usually work out. We win easily last night with an average QB.
posted by BR1986FBIt was the right move in that they were going nowhere with Mayfield and Watson was perceived as a FQB. I don't think anyone would've known he was going to be as bad as he's been. The correct intent was there.
On a side note, if I'm Jimmy Haslam, prior to the next meeting with these guys I'm whispering "$10 million to whoever takes out Fitzpatrick's knees." EVERY national pundit I've seen has called blatant cheap shot to try to take him out by Fitzpatrick but typical "Stiller Football."
This game was SO disappointing. Outplayed them across the board but kind of hard to win when your offense scores more points than their offense for THEIR team. Chalking this one up to an anomaly as that defense isn't going to put up 2 TD's every week and that offense is lucky if it will score more than one against any opponent.
And WTF is Watson's fascination with face masking opponents? When was the last time you've seen a QB with 2 personal foul penalties in a game?
I get taking a chance on guy, but to give up 3 first round picks for a project was crazy. No one else offered anything else close to what we offered. We greatly overpaid. Plus, we are losing out on first round picks who could currently be on the roster helping us, and we don't have a pick next year. It is going to take a long time to recover.
posted by Laley23It looks terrible, but I still think it was the right move. Stefanski may be more the issue at this point...
Stefanski sucks too, but what do you possibly see in Watson that justifies giving up 3 first round picks?
posted by iclfan2Watson’s stats… woof
https://x.com/jake_trotter/status/1704120038515491110?s=46&t=6w2XbPMrNrOkLnwSSn4TOQ
The worst part about Watson is that we mortgaged the next decade for him.
On Sep 17, 2023:
posted by Dr Winston O'BoogieI agree. We’ll see in December if Deion was the Second Coming some are proclaiming him today. I see his tenure at Colorado ending very ugly.
I don't think that they will finish with a great record, but 6-6 would be a big improvement from 1-11. He's just ahead of the curve in working the transfer portal and NIL. That will balance out within a couple of years. Any long term success will come down to his ability to recruit and build a quality coaching staff. My guess is that he leaves for a bigger program within a few years. Colorado was a national power 30 years ago, but the Big 8/12 is no longer a major conference with the changes coming.
posted by queencitybuckeyeYes, and if the ballplayers don't perform in the classroom, they will be gone. No one with the least bit of integrity cuts a substantial percentage of the team, nor should the people they work for allow it.
You are very naive if you think that the majority of players at that level are taking real classes. Why should a player get another scholarship if he isn't doing the job? Most people in life don't get to keep their job if they suck at it.
posted by queencitybuckeyeAgree, but I'm not sure how much I care for the method to accomplish it.
Are you talking about taking away scholarships from kids who don't perform well? It happens with academic scholarships all of the time. If a kid gets a 1.0 GPA, he loses his scholarship.
posted by queencitybuckeyeAfter this performance, perhaps the talking heads proclaiming the Buffs great will get back to the reality that they're a lock to lose 4 or 5 games, perhaps more.
I think that they will lose several games, but he has done a good job of taking over a 1 win team team and making them at least an average to abover average team in a very short period of time.
On Sep 13, 2023:
Scoring 4 TDs in one game (back when football still had defense)
On Sep 8, 2023:
posted by Dr Winston O'BoogieMy prediction is that the Deion / Colorado experiment will eventually fail. Deion is pulling off what Bishop Sycamore was hoping for. But this "system" is a house of cards. I think his personality and ego will ruin it in the end, and the relationship between him in the school will end very badly.
A lot will come down to his ability to have a good coaching staff around and his ability to recruit. I wouldn't count him out in either of those over time. He has a lot of connections.
On Aug 1, 2023:
posted by Laley23Only 1 MI. And he has some pop, which is nice to finally see.
We got 2 and released 1 right away. The one who we kept has played rookie league and class A. He has played 157 games, has batted .234 with 19 HR and 76 RBI. He was a former first round pick who has been a major disappointment and is currently #11 prospect in Marlins organization. He got demoted for threatening an umpire. At least we didn't give anything up to get him.
posted by cat_loverGood call on Bell!! The Central is so bad that you can sell and still be in contention.
It was good to get rid of Bell, and it was nice to pick up a couple of middle infielders who can't hit in the process. They should fit right in.
On Jul 31, 2023:
posted by Laley23Well, 90% of that is on our organization and the hitting approach. Because everyone you mentioned, aside from Jones and Yandy, plus others like Benson/Aguilar/Urshela, etc have thrived once they get out of our fucking ridiculous instructions toon of contact and no power. Not to mention Diaz from Houston who we decided wasn’t as good a hitter as ???
I agree that Diaz for Straw was a stupid trade, then we double down and give Straw a big contract that we are now stuck with. I guess we'll see if anything happens tomorrow before the deadline, but it's disappointing that the only guy that we brought in so far was Thor.
posted by birddog23So you win the division and go get trounced in the playoffs? Who cares?! Manzardo projects to have the potential to be a middle of the order stick that has been wanted and needed.
Civale wasn't going to help this team win a world series this year let alone a playoff series. He's not part of the future rotation either. You have got Bibee, Allen, Williams, McKenzie, Espino/Cantillo.
We'll see how it plays out, but remember that Reyes, Bradley, Jones, and Diaz (and probably several other guys that I am forgetting at the moment) were all supposed to be big sticks in the middle of our lineup and were all big time busts. I'm not opposed to trading Civale if it helps the team, but we just got worse today.