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In Cleveland, hope dies last

Archive for the month “February, 2011”

13 Feb 2011

Shedding some light on the Mangini Era

Starting with the release of six veterans this week – five of which were former coach Eric Mangini’s “guys” – the curtain has been pulled back a little bit on Mangini’s failed tenure as Browns coach.

General manager Tom Heckert explained that one the team decided to give Mangini a second year in 2010 the team owed it to him to give him the players he wanted – including Kenyon Coleman, Eric Barton, David Bowens, Robert Royal and John St. Clair

“Once we decided Eric was going to be the guy (and return), we knew that was going to be the case,” Heckert told The Plain Dealer. “And we were fine with that. We were trying to do everything we could to win and help Eric. And Eric wanted these guys, and that’s fine. We understood that. So there’s no sour grapes.

“If Eric was going to be the coach (in 2010), we weren’t going to say, ‘You’re the coach and we’re getting rid of these five guys.’ That’s not a good thing, either.”

It’s a very good sign that management is willing to give the coach what he needs and take a hands-off approach to let the coach do what he thinks best. But we’re left to wonder, in the wake of another 5-11 season, if Heckert and team president Mike Holmgren shouldn’t have taken a firmer hand in shaping the roster this past season.

Take, for example, running back Jerome Harrison, who the Browns traded to the Eagles in October. We didn’t mind the trade as it was obvious Harrison wasn’t going to receive playing time in Cleveland. But Mangini wanted Harrison gone, and Heckert gave in.

“I’m not saying we shouldn’t have (traded him) because Jerome … he wasn’t begging to get out of here, but he was acting like he wanted to get out of here,” Heckert told The PD. “It wasn’t going to do us a whole lot of good to keep him here. Jerome was kind of going through the motions. I think he thought he should have been playing more.

“I think (the RB depth) was good for a while. When we had Peyton (Hillis), Jerome and a couple of other guys here, we were OK. But once Eric wanted us to get rid of Jerome, that’s when it started (going bad). Once you get rid of that guy then it’s just tough to find guys.”

We all saw how that played out as Hillis wore down by the end of the season because the Browns had no viable alternative in the running game.

And even when the coach signed off on the Browns picking someone up, that still didn’t mean the player would see any game action. Take defensive lineman Jayme Mitchell for example, who never played a down after the Browns traded for him on Oct. 6.

“He was by far our best pass rusher and never got on the field, so I can’t answer that one,” Heckert told The PD. “Eric watched him (on tape prior to the trade) and Eric liked him. So I don’t know what happened after that. He’s a nickel pass rusher on third down. We thought he could really rush the passer.”

So on a team that only recorded 29 sacks on the season, the player who was “by far our best pass rusher” couldn’t get on the field?

Heckert’s latest comments help crystallize the comments he made at new coach Pat Shurmur’s introductory press conference:

“Like Pat said, from the day he walked in the door, we were on the same page,” Heckert said at the time. “Everybody says they want the character and hard work and stuff, but we’ve been through it together and we’ve done it with getting those players. I think we are on the same page when it comes to players and what we are looking for, and we’ve done it together before. That can’t be a negative.”

So now, in theory at least, the Browns have a trio all working together with the general manager getting the players that the coach wants and – presumably – the coach will actually put those players on the field on Sundays.

And as Heckert said, if that happens it can’t be a negative, right?

Of course, with the way things have been going around here lately, who really knows?

***

For more on this, check out:

Tom Heckert Gets Loose at Waiting for Next Year

And Cleveland Frowns touches on it in When Eric met Tony

Posted in Cleveland Browns, NFL, Tom Heckert | Leave a comment
13 Feb 2011

Cavs break streak, lose identity?

The Cavs finally broke their historic losing streak with an overtime win over the Clippers on Friday night.

The Clippers should have known better as the Cavs are at their most dangerous in overtime – their last win prior to Friday game against the Knicks in OT on Dec. 18.

Now that the Cavs have finally won again and are no longer the team with the losing streak, they can go about their business like just another NBA team.

Of course, your average NBA team isn’t 9-45, but nobody ever said rebuilding was going to be easy or quick.

As Clay Davis explained it to Stringer Bell on The Wire: crawl, walk, then run.

***

Wayne Rooney’s goal Saturday against Manchester City was sick.

Posted in Cleveland Cavaliers, NBA, Wayne Rooney | Leave a comment
11 Feb 2011

Are the Browns about to get offensive?

Browns coach Pat Shurmur hinted at it during his introductory press conference and he made it official yesterday: he’s also going to be calling the plays on offensive on game days.

When Shurmur first talked about it, we were a little uncomfortable. Now that he’s made it official, we’re starting to worry that the offense could turn into a big enough mess on Sundays that we will actually miss Brian Daboll.

In his book, Take Your Eye off the Ball, author Pat Kirwin highlights how an offensive game plan evolves throughout the course of a game, writing that:

Game day is when the plan becomes practical, where a game plan gives way to the strategy of play-calling. And, as you might imagine, game plans change over the course of the game.

Coaches who run the West Coast offense like to script the first 15 plays. The players know what’s coming, they’re familiar with the plays and ready for them to be called, and they are going to run those 15 plays come hell or high water.

The part about scripting the opening plays is something we actually like, especially with a second-year quarterback in Colt McCoy running the offense. Having practiced those plays and knowing they are coming should help McCoy find his comfort level early on.

But what happens after those first 15 plays are exhausted? The game plan needs to evolve as the game goes based on what’s happening on the field. For example, if it’s 2nd-and-5, the offensive coordinator needs to consider:

  • We’ve run the ball at this down and distance, but we haven’t thrown it yet, should we mix it up?
  • The first two times we faced this down and distance, the defense blitzed. Which of the plays might work best against a blitz?
  • Most of our plays for this down and distance avoid the defense’s best pass rusher, who’s now on the sidelines. Should we expand our plays to take advantage of that?
  • Is the weather an issue?
  • How much time is left in the half/game?

Those are just some possibilities for one play during a game. Then come the halftime adjustments:

(In the locker room the coaches go over) enough material to determine what adjustments are necessary and also lecture the players about what’s working and what isn’t. … Most coaches aren’t going to have emptied the bucket in the first half. There should always be a few plays … that will get unveiled in the second half.

The coordinators write up new play-call sheets. The key is to not rewrite the entire game plan. A coaching staff may be able to identify three new things to roll out; any more than that and they run the risk of confusing too many players. … All this happens in about four minutes.

The team that had the best game plan going into the game – and the team that makes the best adjustments in the locker room – is usually the one that comes out on top.

That’s a lot – and that’s just on the offensive side. The defense is doing the same and Shurmur has to make sure they are on top of things as well. Plus keep track of injuries, clock management, challenges and everything else that goes on during a game.

Is he going to be up to that – especially in his first year? We’re starting to have our doubts, but we’re willing to see how this plays out (not that we have much choice in the matter).

Shurmur said the team tried to hire an offensive coordinator – ”[We] made an effort to hire the very best guys we could, and I think that’s the way it shaped up this year,” he told the Beacon Journal. But we have to wonder how well that search went when it became clear the offensive coordinator role would not necessarily come with the play calling responsibilities.

Hopefully team president Mike Holmgren and special adviser Gil Haskell can school Shumur quickly on everything he needs to know before the season starts.

Because if not, things could get down right offensive when the Browns have the ball.

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment
10 Feb 2011

Cavs on the brink of history

The Cavs can claim their place in the history books Friday night against the Clippers.

If they lose, the Cavs will stand alone among American sports teams with a 27-game losing streak, surpassing the NFL’s Tampa Bay Bucaneers, losers of 26 consecutive games in 1976-77.

While things are rough now for the Cavs, what with injuries and a roster of mostly not ready for the NBA players, coach Byron Scott is not worried for his job.

“I just have a lot of confidence in what I do,” Scott told The Plain Dealer. “I know I’m the right man for the job. We obviously need to keep improving as a basketball team, but I know I’m the right guy for the job.”We’re all unhappy when it comes to winning and losing, we’re all unhappy with the way things are going, but [there has been] no indication about job being in jeopardy or anything like that.”

It seems like an odd thing to even bring up to Scott. He’s halfway through his first season with a team that most people expected to be in a major rebuilding mode. If he was the right guy when he was hired six months ago, why would owner Dan Gilbert change his mind now?

Veteran Antawn Jamison knows where to lay the blame.

“I have no problems with what our coaching staff has been doing,” Jamison told The PD. “I think they’re going over and beyond. It’s hard now with certain guys injured and you’ve got a lot of young guys out there getting the opportunity to play. But our coaching staff has been phenomenal. They bring it every day, they expect us to do it and we’ve been doing it. They pick the right coverages, they talk about things we need to do. Sometimes it takes a while for us as a group and a unit to get to that point, but we get to it.”

The Cavs are going to get through this. Making a change at coach certainly isn’t going to accelerate the process.

No word on if members of that Buccaneers team will gather Friday night with bottles of champagne to celebrate if the Cavs lose.

***

While it seems as if NFL owners and players could figure out a way to split the $9 billion annual pie in a way that would leave both sides rolling on giant piles of money, that apparently may not be the case.

According to Dan Graziano, senior NFL writer at Fanhouse:

The likelihood that the NFL will lock out its players on March 4 now stands at an all-time high after Thursday’s scheduled negotiating session between the league and the players’ union was canceled. Multiple sources familiar with the talks said the owners’ side walked out of Wednesday’s meeting due to a disagreement over the talks’ most fundamental issue — the manner in which the players and owners will split the NFL’s approximately $9 billion revenue pie.

Having some kind of work stoppage obviously won’t be so bad in March and April, but if the labor problems carried over into the summer and the start of training camp, it will be a different story.

With the economy the way it still is in this country, we have to wonder how fans will react to a prolonged battle between millionaires and billionaires.

There’s still time to go and both sides have options to avoid a work stoppage. The owners can impose their “last, best offer” rather than lock the players out, as expected. According to The Huffington Post (h/t to Waiting for Next Year) that means:

After bargaining to impasse, labor law permits employers to unilaterally implement changes to the terms of the previous collective bargaining agreement. These changes must be “reasonably comprehended” within the employer’s pre-impasse proposals – in essence, this means that, after the impasse, the owners can implement their last, best offer as the new set of rules to govern the NFL and its relationship with the players. By implementing their last, best offer instead of locking the players out, it would force the players to either accept the terms while continuing to negotiate, strike, or decertify.

So while things may appear bleak right now, we’re going to remain optimistic.

Because the alternative, a year without Browns football, is just too depressing to even think about.

***

Speaking of big money, Saturday’s Manchester Derby between Manchester United and Manchester City will be the most expensive game – in terms of player salaries – in sports history.

According to The Wall Street Journal, based on analyst estimates, team statements and media reports, the players on the field and on the two benches in the Manchester Derby will have cost their teams roughly $850 million to acquire.

That top mark will fall next month when Manchester City and Chelsea meet – their combined salaries are about $900 million.

Now if we could just get a Russian oligarch to buy the Indians from the Dolans, we’d be all set. Unfortunately, we’ll have to settle for the Tribe signing 36-year-old Orlando Cabrera to play second base this year.

Posted in big money, Cleveland Cavaliers, Manchester Derby, NFL | Leave a comment
09 Feb 2011
1 Comment

Colt McCoy just had a good day

The Browns released six veterans on Wednesday, most notably defensive lineman Shaun Rogers and right tackle John St. Clair.

The release of St. Clair has to put a smile on the faces of quarterbacks Colt McCoy, Seneca Wallace and Jake Delhomme, as it means they don’t have to fear the turnstile brand of blocking that St. Clair employed over the past two years as he inexplicably was put in the lineup time and time again by the former coaching staff.

Also released were linebackers Eric Barton and David Bowens, defensive linemen Kenyon Coleman and tight end Robert Royal. The release of Royal and his stone hands made it a daily double for the quarterbacks.

Despite having a ton of talent, Rogers only played when he wanted to, plus he was hurt for much of last year. He finished the season with 17 tackles and just two sacks. While it would seem as if the Browns could use his talent, if he was unable or unwilling to make it on the field on Sundays, what value did he bring to the team?

It’s interesting to note that new defensive coordinator Dick Jauron coached Rogers in Detroit, so he obviously knew what the team had in Rogers. We think if Jauron would have really wanted Rogers to stay on the team the Browns would have figured something out.

Barton, Bowens and Coleman were “Eric Mangini guys” brought in from New York to teach the Mangini way.

With four of the players released coming from the defensive front seven, the Browns may be giving us a sign as to what their draft plans will be come April.

***

The Ravens are reportedly going to look for a backup quarterback in the draft.

Seems to us they could use a veteran quarterback as well; wonder if Jake Delhomme likes crab cakes?

***

Liverpool’s big win over Chelsea on Sunday set viewership records for Fox Soccer Channel.

Slowly but surely America seems to be getting it.

***

Finally, tonight marks the end of one of the best shows on TV, Friday Night Lights.

We read the book, which was very good; saw the movie, which was excellent; and remember being skeptical when we saw that they were making a TV version.

But we were hooked from the first episode and, despite the show completely losing its way in Season 2, stuck with it and were rewarded each week with quality writing and acting.

We’re going to miss the lights, for sure.

For more, check out:

Posted in Cleveland Browns, Friday Night Lights, Liverpool, NFL
08 Feb 2011

Now What Do We Do?

The NFL season ended Sunday … so now what do we do?

The NFL Draft is still a little more than 11 weeks away. If there is no labor-related work stoppage, the Browns won’t play another meaningful game for almost seven months.

And unless the NFL throws realignment into the new CBA, the Browns are still in the same division as Pittsburgh and Baltimore.

So now what do we do?

The Cavs are currently mired in hell, loser’s of an NBA-record 25 consecutive games. Two more losses and they will own the mark for most consecutive losses by any professional team in any sport.

To their credit, the Cavs are trying hard – they’ve held leads in the fourth quarter of the past three games – but with injuries they are just void of any talent after Antawn Jamison.

Nothing against Jamario Moon, but when he is an option to take a game-tying shot at the end of regulation, that pretty much tells us all we need to know about the Cavs season so far.

So now what do we do?

Spring training is just around the corner for the Indians, but the front office is still trying to figure out a way to compete in a sports where the top teams can spent $6 or $7 for every $1 the Tribe spends.

The Phillies spent $120 million guaranteed on Cliff Lee this winter; the Indians big signing was Austin Kearns for $1.8 million.

So now what do we do?

Luckily the Champions League returns next week with the start of the knockout stage and some exciting matchups in Arsenal vs. Barcelona and AC Milan vs. Tottenham Hotspur, among others.

And while we know it probably won’t last, we’re buying into the magic of King Kenny at Liverpool.

And now that Fernando Torres has turned into a bit of a dandy we don’t feel as bad about him leaving Anfield for Chelsea.

And the Cavs are bound to win a game eventually, maybe even this weekend when Washington – currently 0-25 on the road – comes to town.

And maybe the youngsters actually turn out to be pretty good for the Indians this summer.

And the draft isn’t really that far away for the Browns.

So it may get a little dry here for a while, but we’ll find something to do.

***

According to an article in Sports Business Journal Daily, the four major pro leagues in America are missing out on an estimated $370 million annually by not allowing advertising on jerseys the way they do in Europe.

“We don’t necessarily see this happening soon in the U.S.,” said Michael Neuman, Horizon Media’s managing partner for sports, entertainment and events, said in the article, “but until the revenue potential is clear, it certainly won’t go anywhere, and clearly this shows there is significant opportunity at a time when most of the big leagues are looking for new revenue.”

While this is all speculative – “I don’t think we’re anywhere close to that now,” Phoenix Suns President and CEO Rick Welts said in the article – we’re sure if enough teams found a way to make this a viable revenue option, they would be all over it.

Posted in Champions League, Cleveland Browns, Cleveland Cavaliers, Cleveland Indians, Fernando Torres, Liverpool | Leave a comment
07 Feb 2011

Packers truly are NFL royalty

Green Bay brought it home on Sunday in Super Bowl XLV, filling us with a sense of relief and making sure the jerks didn’t win this time.

Along the way to their NFL-record 13th title – more than doubling the take of the self-proclaimed model franchise from Pittsburgh – the Packers exposed the Steelers weaknesses and, for once, Pittsburgh wasn’t able to weasel its way out.

One of the best parts was listening to whiny Steeler fans today on Sirius NFL Radio. The best one may have been the hoople head who called in to say that, since the Steelers turned the ball over three times, the Packers should have put up at least 45 points. Since they didn’t, that means Green Bay really isn’t a very good team.

And Green Bay coach Mike McCarthy showed he’s the dogs bollocks by having the Packers measured for Super Bowl rings the night before the game. Somewhere, over a plate of nachos, Rex Ryan approved.

The Packers put to rest the lie that the Steelers are some kind of NFL royalty; the truth is they are just another franchise.

After winning four Super Bowls in the pre-free agency, steroid-fueled 1970s, the Steelers have picked up just two additional titles in the past 32 years. In that same time period, the 49ers have won five, the Cowboys, Redskins, Giants and Patriots three each, the Raiders, Broncos and Packers two each.

The Steelers are just another team, nothing more.

In fact, since the Browns grew tired in the late ’50s of monopolizing title game appearances, the Packers have won more titles – seven – in the past 50 years than any NFL team. If any team deserves to be treated as NFL royalty, it’s the Packers.

And there is good news for Browns fans in the win, as the Packers proved a West Coast offense can win a title (for those who still doubted). And while we’re not delusional enough to think Colt McCoy is anywhere near Aaron Rogers, it’s not like Jordy Nelson and James Jones – who combined for 14 of Rogers’ 24 completions – are exactly All Pros at the wide receiver position.

Now it’s up to Mike Holmgren and Tom Heckert to give coach Pat Shurmur the pieces so the Browns can continue their seemingly never-ending rebuilding process.

***

We know we shouldn’t, but after Liverpool’s 1-0 win Sunday against Chelsea, we’re starting to believe in the magic of King Kenny.

***

Honestly, we don’t know what all the fuss is over Christina Aguilera have a minor slip while singing the national anthem.

To read some of the comments or listen to the hoople heads on talk radio, you’d think she had burned the flag at midfield.

Don’t we have more important things to worry about right now?

Posted in Cleveland Browns, dogs bollocks, Green Bay, Liverpool, Super Bowl | Leave a comment
06 Feb 2011

They used to win titles here, yes?

As we prepare for another Super Bowl without the Browns being an active participant (again), we’re left to our annual wondering (again, some more,) about when we will see a championship in Cleveland.

And it got us to thinking about the 1950s, the only true golden era of Cleveland sports, and wondering if Clevelanders appreciated what they had during that decade.

After joining the NFL in 1950, the Browns went to seven title games over an eight-year stretch, winning in 1950, 1954 & 1955:

For the better part of the decade, Cleveland fans knew to block out time right around Christmas because the Browns would be playing in the title game.

Imagine what it would be like now if Browns fans had the first Sunday in February booked for the Browns in the Super Bowl? And it went on for the better part of a decade?

Once football season ended the Indians did their part to make the decade memorable. Over seven seasons from 1950 to 1956, the Indians averaged 94.5 wins a year, won an AL pennant in 1954 and finished in second place, behind the Yankees, five times.

We can only dream of a Cleveland sports scene where one championship-chasing season blends into another one, year after year after year.

For now, we’re left hoping that Mike Holmgren got it right in his hiring of Pat Shurmur as coach of the Browns; that the Indians young players are good enough to make the team a contender before they inevitably leave in free agency; and that the Cavs, currently stuck in an NBA-record 24-game losing streak that seems like it will never end, can get lucky in the next couple of years in the draft and rebuild the team.

Because in the absence of wins, all we can cling to is hope.

***

As much as the Pro Bowl is a waste of time, imagine if next week we would be watching the Jets and the Bears, losers of their respective conference championship games, competing in the Playoff Bowl?

That’s what happened at the end of the NFL season from 1961 to 1970.

The league matched the two second-place teams in each conference in the game, played every year but one at the Orange Bowl in Miami. Later the game matched the losers of the league’s playoff games.

And in case you’re wondering, the Browns played in three of these games, losing to the Lions in ’61, the Packers in ’64 and the Rams in ’68.

Posted in Cleveland Browns, Cleveland Cavaliers, Cleveland Indians, no championship | Leave a comment
04 Feb 2011

Super Bowl Pick

We’ve finally reached the Super Bowl and we’re sitting comfortably in first place of the The 2010 Cheddar Bay Invitational at Cleveland Frowns.

We’re 7-3 so far in the playoffs, but a slip up this weekend could drop us from the top spot.

As much as it hurts, we’re going with Pittsburgh +3.

We struggled with this pick for a while, but as soon as the line went to three points we knew what we had to do.

This way, when Green Bay wins on a last-second field goal, but doesn’t cover, we get the satisfaction of the Steelers losing and bringing home the cheddar.

***

Looks like Dan Gilbert and Quicken Loans may be in a spot of trouble.

According to the article on The Center for Public Integrity, “Lawsuits from borrowers and ex-employees claim Quicken’s day-to-day tactics are at odds with its squeaky clean image. They accuse the company of using high-pressure salesmanship to target elderly and vulnerable homeowners, as well as misleading borrowers about their loans, and falsifying property appraisals and other information to push through bad deals.”

A trial starts Tuesday in Detroit. (h/t to Deadspin)

***

No surprise here, as safety officials in the Dallas-Fort Worth area are advising female partygoers not to leave their friends behind with someone they barely know.

Officials said that the campaign — backed by the Safe City Commission, the Women’s Center, the RecoveryResource Council and local law enforcement — has been in the works for a while but that it made sense to launch it in conjunction with the Super Bowl.

We’re sure the fact that the Steelers are in town also played a role in the decision to launch the campaign. (h/t again to Deadspin).

***

While looking for something, we came across this NFL Game of the Week video of the Browns beating the Steelers 21-16 in 1973.

Enjoy.

Posted in Cleveland Browns, Dan Gilbert, NFL, Super Bowl | Leave a comment
03 Feb 2011
2 Comments

Reading is Fundamental – Browns edition

Today we’re passing along some book recommendations for Browns fans.

Some of these books may no longer be in print, but if you can find a copy it will be well worth your time:*

  • Sundays in the Pound: The Heroics and Heartbreak of the 1985-89 Cleveland Browns by Jonathan Knight: (This book) traces quarterback Bernie Kosar’s winding path from Youngstown to Florida to Cleveland, explains why there was so much more to running back Earnest Byner than one unforgotten fumble, and reveals how cornerback Hanford Dixon created a canine phenomenon in the end zone stands that has persevered to this day. Knight delves into the Drive and the Fumble; examines the fairy-tale performance of an aging veteran quarterback who directed the Browns through the snow and into the playoffs in his final game at the old, cavernous Cleveland Stadium; and recounts an epic playoff saga in which the Browns staged one of the greatest comebacks in the history of Cleveland sports.
  • When all the World was Browns Town: Cleveland’s Browns and the Championship Season of ’64 by Terry Pluto: The 1964 Browns were truly Cleveland’s team; Terry Pluto recreates this ear with the words, thoughts and reflections of the men – Jim Brown, Frank Ryan, Dick Modzelewski and Bernie Parrish, among others – for whom team pride was not just a slogan, and who gave their all for themselves, for their teammates and for the fans who loved them.
  • Classic Browns: The 50 Greatest Games in Cleveland Browns History by Jonathan Knight: Classic Browns counts down the 50 greatest Cleveland Browns games, from unexpected upsets to incredible comebacks to titanic championship battles. The rich, six-decade history of the Browns is layered into these tales, tying together the gritty All-American Football Conference games played in the shadow of World War II to the sleek Sunday battles at shimmering Cleveland Browns Stadium today. Knight ranks heartbreakers like The Fumble and The Drive alongside championship duels and epic confrontations with heated rivals. Included in these pages are the heroics of Browns legends like Otto Graham, Lou Groza, Jim Brown, Brian Sipe and Bernie Kosar to name just a few. Whether it was because of the score, the weather, or an amazing individual performance, each game included in Classic Browns is worth remembering and revisiting.
  • False Start: How the New Browns were set up to Fail by Terry Pluto: It was supposed to be the dawn of a grand new era of football in Cleveland. Instead, it was a rude wakeup call. When the new Cleveland Browns took the field in 1999, legions of loyal fans—once heartsick, abandoned, and disgusted at the loss of their team in 1995—were ready to forgive the past and embrace the future . . . a new owner, a new team, a new stadium. They just wanted their Browns back. They didn’t get what they bargained for. In the five years since a new team called the Browns arrived to play on Cleveland’s lakefront, this has become clear: Browns fans got a bum deal. The NFL traded one of the most storied teams in football history for a franchise mired in mediocrity. These were the fans who, after owner Art Modell skipped town with their beloved Browns, became the only fans ever to take on the NFL, demand their team back—and win. Yet while they were celebrating the supposed victory that kept “our name, our colors, our team” in Cleveland, fans should have been looking over their shoulders and keeping a close watch on the NFL. There would be few reasons to celebrate in the years to come.
  • Kardiac Kids: The Story of the 1980 Cleveland Browns by Jonathan Knight: In Kardiac Kids, Jonathan Knight paints a portrait of the Browns storybook 1980 season and its impact on the city of Cleveland. Knight takes us through that unforgettable year from beginning to end, describing in great detail how the city simply fell in love with this team. It was the year long-suffering Cleveland sports fans finally had something to be proud of. Tickets were at a premium, players were pursued like rock stars and songs were written about their on-field heroics.
  • On Being Brown: What it Means to Be a Cleveland Browns Fan by Scott Huler: What is this madness all about? Ask anyone who has experienced it: being a Cleveland Browns fan is just different. Scott Huler looks at this 50-year love affair between town and team in 33 essays recounting his personal saga of “becoming Brown.” Searching out those special elements of shared experience that define what being a Browns fan has meant for us all, he also holds conversations with the true legends of Cleveland Browns history – Jim Brown, Otto Graham, Lou “The Toe” Groza, Brian Sipe, Ozzie Newsome and others – in which they share their own thoughts about just what made this relationship between town and team so special. This odyssey for Browns fans takes them back to some wonderful places. It revives some truly awful moments. And it looks to the future with great hope. Those who are truly Brown will enjoy the ride.
  • Cleveland Browns History by Frank M. Henkel: There was little fanfare when Art “Mickey” McBride flew into Chicago in 1945 to purchase a professional football team for Cleveland. But that act set in motion a tradition that has brought the city of Cleveland together on Sunday afternoons for (most of) the 60 years to follow. Cleveland Browns History is the story of championship seasons, legendary coaches and Hall of Fame players. Coach Paul Brown led his teams to seven league title games in their first 17 seasons. Running backs Marion Motley, Jim Brown and Leroy Kelley each rushed over opposing defenses and straight into Canton, Ohio, along with fellow Browns like Otto Graham, Ozzie Newsome and Len Ford. The Kardiac Kids in 1980 had too many nail-biters for some fans, but won the AFC Central in typical fashion – by three points in the final game of the season. All these stories, plus those of the many unsung heroes to don the NFL’s only logo-less helmet, fill the pages of this book, sure to delight any Cleveland Browns fan.
  • Things I’ve Learned from Watching the Browns by Terry Pluto: Here’s a question for any Browns fan … Why? Why, more than four long decades after your team’s last championship … despite a relentless pattern of heartbreak, teasing, and more heartbreak … capped with a decade of utter futility … do you still stick with the Cleveland Browns? Good question. Veteran sportswriter Terry Pluto gets a daily barrage of e-mail from fans letting their hearts bleed out orange and brown. So he decided to ask his readers: Just what is it about this team that makes you love them, hate them and still keep coming back for more? A thousand fans responded – in detail. Their stories – along with interviews with former players and Pluto’s own expert analysis – deliver the answer. Answers, actually. Because like any intense relationship, it’s a little complicated … Covering the Browns from 1964 through present day, this book does for Cleveland football what Pluto’s classic about the Indians, The Curse of Rocky Colavito, did for Cleveland baseball: It won’t make the pain go away, but it might help you remember why it’s worth enduring.
  • Glory for Sale: Fans, Dollars and the New NFL by Jon Morgan: Morgan, a sports business writer for the Baltimore Sun, believes the major factor behind the flight of professional football franchises from city to city is stadium economics. Items such as skyboxes, retractable roofs, concession contracts, and scoreboard advertising have replaced fan allegiance and municipal loyalty as the deciding issues in the relocation of teams. To illustrate his case, he chronicles in dollar-by-dollar detail the recent move of the Cleveland Browns to Baltimore, an event determined in the end by the highest bidder. Like the league he targets, this study is more business than sport and thus is likely to frustrate traditional fans who cringe at the commingling of the two. Though the message he delivers may be depressing, it is also necessary for developing an understanding of today’s NFL. (summary courtesy of Library Journal)
  • Fumble! The Browns, Modell and the Move: An Insider’s Story by Michael G. Poplar: The author is the former executive vice president-treasurer of Cleveland Stadium Corp, a company formed by Browns owner Art Modell, to operate the stadium under a 25-year lease with the City of Cleveland. The book “Fumble !” chronicles the difficulties that went with operating the aging and obsolete city-owned stadium, as the writer describes from the many diaries and transaction summaries which he maintained since 1975. Along with the interesting tales of the conditions of the building and the other interesting events held there, Poplar also weaves in 20 years of Browns football memories under five head coaches … ranging from Forrest Gregg in 1975 through the end of the reign of Bill Belichick in 1996. The book is sure to rekindle fond memories of those exciting Kardiac Kids finishes, and the not-so-memorable climaxes, including the Drive and the Fumble, along with the terminations of those five head coaches.

If you do decide to check one of these out, you won’t be disappointed. And remember to shop at your local bookstore. If you don’t have one in your area and are in the Hudson area, it’s worth a stop at The Learned Owl.

*Summaries are all taken from the individual book jackets, except where noted.

Posted in Cleveland Browns, NFL, reading

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