Red Right 88

In Cleveland, hope dies last

Archive for the category “Cleveland Browns”

14 Sep 2010
2 Comments

Sometimes, a loss is just a loss

The voices started shortly after the Browns loss to Tampa Bay:

“Same old Browns.”

“Here we go again.”

“Not Metcalf up the middle again!”

OK, maybe not that last one, but you get the point. And Bill Livingston fed into that paranoia with his column in the PD, writing that “the sunny outlook (after the loss) particularly jolts the system because it followed proof on Sunday that the leopard hasn’t changed its spots after all.”

After decades of disappointment, some fans default to a doom and gloom scenario any time the Browns lose. On some level you can’t really blame them, any Browns fan under the age of 45 has never seen a championship.

But the important thing to remember is the team doesn’t feel that way. Eric Mangini and Mike Holmgren are working hard to make sure the players don’t carry the burden of past failures.

“There’s nobody in there that I even have a sense feels that way and a lot of guys are new,” Mangini said in his Monday press conference. “A lot of guys don’t know what ‘here we go again’ means because they weren’t part of that in the past.

“As you look at the tape and even after the game, everybody understood what happened and what needs to be fixed in order to prevent it from happening again. We are talking about game-specific, not any bigger picture type thing.

“There are a lot of guys in there that are veteran guys, that are mature, that understand how to fix problems. I don’t think there’s anybody that feels that way, top to bottom.”

“I want them to start feeling like good things are going to happen instead of, you know,” Holmgren told the paper. “And they will, they will.”

That attitude is an important piece of the rebuilding plan, not just of the team but also of the fans’ mental state.

With so many new faces in town – 38 players weren’t on the roster two years ago, Mangini is in his second season and Holmgren and Tom Heckert in their first with the team – why would they feel any sense of “here we go again” after one loss?

None of them were here when the Browns lost heart breakers in the playoffs in ’85, ’86, ’87 & ’88. They weren’t here for Spurgen Wynn, Tim Counch, Ty Detmer, Trent Dilfer and Kelly Holcomb’s “teeny tiny fracture.” Likewise, this front office didn’t pass on drafting Richard Seymour and LaDanian Tomlinson, pick Chaun Thompson in the second round or sign Andre Rison to a big free-agent deal.

The “here we go again” crowd has to carry that water themselves. They have to realize that sometimes a loss is just a loss, that Jake Delhomme’s interceptions are just interceptions, not another example of how the Browns are getting ready to go “full circle on the same carousel to oblivion as before.” (Livington’s words).

Luckily, there is still a portion of the fanbase that can take a loss without crumbling. It’s certainly not easy being a Cleveland fan – if it were this site, along with ones such as Cleveland Frowns, Waiting for Next Year and ’64 & Counting, to name a few – would look and read differently. And it’s not as if downtown Cleveland is congested with victory parades.

Going into the season, you could realistically say the Browns had a chance to beat five teams: Tampa, Carolina, Buffalo, KC and Jacksonville. They were never going to beat all five, and most fans would take a 3-2 record out of this group. That’s still possible, even after losing to the Buccaneers.

And as much as some want to lay the blame for the loss at Delhomme’s feet, the receivers have to take their share of the blame as well for poor route running, particularly Mohamed Massaquoi and Chansi Stuckey.

Sometimes, a loss really is nothing more than a loss. All it will take is a win on Sunday against Kansas City to quiet the voices, even if it’s only for a while.

Posted in Cleveland Browns, culture change, here we go again, NFL
13 Sep 2010

Two is Better than One

The Browns are better off this season at the quarterback position – despite what happened Sunday in Tampa. And the team may be putting that depth to the test this week against Kansas City.

The Plain Dealer is reporting the Jake Delhomme is scheduled for an MRI on his right ankle after injuring it during Sunday’s game. Delhomme was visibly limping for most of the second half, and it looked like it was affecting his throwing as his right foot is his plant foot.

With Seneca Wallace on the roster, the Browns actually have one of the better starting/back-up quarterback situations in the league. If the team needs to turn to him for a week or two, things should be fine. As WFNY points out, they can use both quarterbacks without it turning into the mess from last season.

So no worries on Delhomme’s ankle; odds are the MRI is just a precautionary procedure, you know, teams do that all the time.

Of course, T.I.C.

***

Much like the Browns, we’re off to a bit of a disappointing start to the 2010 Cheddar Bay Invitational over at Cleveland Frowns:

Saints (-5) vs. Minnesota – PUSH thanks to Garret Hartley. Jackass

Notre Dame (-3.5) vs. Michigan – FAIL. This is the only pick we regret as we had narrowed it down to this game or Oklahoma (-7) vs. Florida State. The lesson? Notre Dame ruins everything.

Indianapolis (-2) vs. Houston – FAIL

Cleveland (+3) vs. Tampa Bay – PUSH

So 0-2-2 to start the season. Time to head back to the Red Right 88 lab and crunch some data in preparation for Week 2.

Just remember, it’s a marathon, not a sprint.

Posted in Cleveland Browns, Jake Delhomme, NFL, Red Right 88 | Leave a comment
12 Sep 2010
2 Comments

A Tale of Two Halves in Tampa

What happened?

How did the Browns look so good in taking a 14-3 lead against Tampa, only to see the offense revert to 2009 levels of play calling and execution, eventually turning what looked like a sure opening-day win into a 17-14 loss to the Buccaneers?

It wasn’t even so much that they lost – this team is still rebuilding and will lose more games than it wins this season – as much as how they lost. The one thing you didn’t want to see was Jake Delhomme turn the ball over and make some of the bad decisions that haunted him last season in Carolina. He really needed to carry over his performance from the preseason, both for his confidence and to retain the confidence of the fan base.

But after leading the Browns to the early lead on a 41-yard pass to Mohamed Massaquoi and a 10-yard run by Peyton Hillis, the bad Jake Delhomme returned.

With a chance to put points on the board at the end of the first half after a Mike Adams interception, Delhomme made a horrible throw under pressure, Ronde Barber intercepted and returned the ball to the Browns 3. Tampa then scored right before halftime, trimming the Browns lead to 14-10.

The Browns moved the ball well in the first half, gaining 202 yards, but could only total 138 yards in the second half as offensive coordinator Brian Daboll fell back into his 2009 bad habits of inexplicable play calling. Daboll, supposedly “more comfortable” this year had Delhomme throw three straight passes – the third of which was intercepted – on the series following Eric Barton’s fumble recovery on the six-yard-line. Why?

After completing passes to seven different receivers in the first half, the wide receivers became an after thought about halfway through the third quarter. Was that play calling? Or another example of how this group of receivers just really isn’t all the good?

After Hillis fumbled the ball away at the Tampa 15-yard-line early in the third quarter, the offense ground to a halt. From that point on, the Browns only gained two first downs and had only one play of more than 10 yards.

The Browns also threw 38 passes to only 23 rushes for the game. The team can not win that way, especially on a day when Browns rushers were gaining 4.5 yards per run. Now obviously the game situation can dictate the play calling, but if the plan was to throw the ball that many times, it’s going to be a long year.

And going back to Barton’s fumble recovery for a minute, after falling on the ball he just laid there; why didn’t he get up and run with the ball? He wasn’t down by contact – at least not until defensive end Jason Trusnik jumped on him for no reason. It may have changed the play calling if the Browns hadn’t been starting the drive on their own 6.

OK, it was just one game. For all that went wrong, the Browns did some things well and we’re more disappointed than discouraged. They essentially lost this game through their mistakes, rather than Tampa beating them, but that shows that this team has virtually no margin for error this year; they can’t make mistakes and hope to win.

The running game was solid; the defense put pressure on Freeman, sacking him three times; and the young secondary held up well, with rookie T.J. Ward totaling 10 tackles, a forced fumble and a forced interception.

So while the team has some things to build on from this game, they also have plenty to work on as they prepare for the home opener against Kansas City.

Posted in Cleveland Browns, disappointment, Jake Delhomme, NFL, TJ Ward
12 Sep 2010

Browns vs. Bucs – Week 1

The Browns open the 2010 NFL season today against Tampa Bay with a legitimate chance to win just their second opening-game since 1999.

The Opposition

Tampa Bay (2009) record: 3-13
Offensive rank (2009): 28th overall/24th passing/23 rushing
Defensive rank (2009): 27th overall/10th passing/32 rushing

What to Watch For

Led by a running game that was 8th in the league last year and featuring Jerome Harrison and Peyton Hillis, the Browns should be able to run the ball and control the clock – Tampa’s defense was 27th overall last season but last in the league against the rush. We should also see the debut of the new Flash/Cyclone package with Josh Cribbs and Seneca Wallace.

Even with the right side of Cleveland’s offensive line still unstable, the combination of Joe Thomas, Eric Steinbach and Alex Mack – who should be even better in his second season – should allow the Browns to control the line of scrimmage, even with Tampa rookie Gerald McCoy at one of the defensive tackle spots.

Controlling the game by keeping the ball on the ground should be in the Browns game plan throughout the season, and especially today. Limiting the number of times Jake Delhomme has to throw the ball will help:

  • Keep the Browns defense off the field as much as possible, normally a good idea but even more important as today is expected to be one of the hottest games in Browns history
  • Continue the process of rebuilding Delhomme’s confidence
  • Limit the responsibilities of the wide receivers, who as a group are still unproven and a weakness.

That’s not to say the Browns can’t turn to Delhomme if needed. Delhomme’s past success against the Buccaneers – he was 9-2 as a starter with Carolina – and knowledge of the team should come in handy at some point today. With the Browns only playing the NFC South teams once every four years, any extra edge will help.

Tampa QB Josh Freeman enters the game with a broken thumb on his non-throwing hand, but his size can still prevent problems for the Browns defense, and tight end Kellen Winslow will present a good test for the Browns revamped secondary, especially safety T.J. Ward. The Browns won’t face many tight ends better than Winslow this season, so a solid day by Ward and the secondary will pay off down the road.

The Best Browns vs. Tampa Bay Game I’ve Seen

The 1989 game in Tampa, which the Browns won 42-31. Eric Metcalf had 233 yards of total offense and abused the Tampa defense all day, scoring on a 24-yard reception and a 43-yard TD run (look at the 1:25 mark of the video). Here’s the Plain Dealer‘s game story.

The Prediction

The Browns are better than Tampa, even if only slightly. The Bucs are three-point favorites, but the game will be blacked out in the Tampa area, which negates any perceived advantage they may have. We’re taking the Browns (+3) and fully expect them to win outright.

And with Cincinnati facing New England, Pittsburgh taking on Atlanta and Baltimore facing the Jets Monday night, we could very well be looking at the first-place Browns after Week 1 concludes.

Posted in ball-control offense, Cleveland Browns, Eric Metcalf, NFL, Tampa Bay | Leave a comment
11 Sep 2010

Week 1 Picks

Here are our Week 1 picks in the 2010 Cheddar Bay Invitational over at Cleveland Frowns:

Saints (-5) vs. Minnesota – PUSH thanks to Garret Hartley. Jackass

Notre Dame (-3.5) vs. Michigan

Indianapolis (-2) vs. Houston

Cleveland (+3) vs. Tampa Bay.

Be back later tonight or tomorrow with a detailed look at the Browns game vs. Tampa.

Posted in Cleveland Browns, NFL | Leave a comment
09 Sep 2010

Breaking Down the Browns Season

Sunday in Tampa, the Browns open up what is sure to be an interesting 2010 NFL season.

The team has improved in some key areas, but unfortunately some holes remain unfilled. After all, there is only so much you can do in one off-season.

In addition to the usual divisional games, this year’s schedule features a potentially brutal stretch starting in Week 3 with Baltimore and ending Week 10 vs. the Jets. It also has some interesting subplots:

  • Jake Delhomme taking on his former team, Carolina, plus facing former division opponents New Orleans, Tampa Bay and Atlanta.
  • Coach Eric Mangini facing two of his former teams in the Jets and New England.
  • Familiar faces in new places, including Braylon Edwards (Jets), Kellen Winslow and Sean Jones (Tampa Bay) and Romeo Crennel (Kansas City).
  • The Browns getting the Steelers in Pittsburgh for Ben Roethlisberger’s first game back from suspension.

The over/under for the Browns victory total this season is 5.5, which shows why the Las Vegas oddsmakers are the dogs bollocks. That’s the perfect number for this team, and you can easily talk yourself into both sides of the over/under.

So how will the team do? Let’s take a look by breaking the schedule down into three parts.

Teams the Browns are as good as:

  • Tampa Bay
  • Carolina
  • Buffalo
  • Kansas City
  • Jacksonville

The Browns should be able to run the ball against all five, as they were all in the bottom half of the league in run defense last season, with Tampa Bay ranking last, KC (31st), Buffalo (30th), Carolina (22nd) and Jacksonville (19th). That’s a good sign for a Browns team that needs to run the ball effectively this year to have a chance to win.

Can the Browns go 5-0 against this group if they play smart, mistake-free football? Of course. Is that at all probable? No. But let’s say they go 3-2 against this group.

Teams that are better than the Browns:

  • New Orleans
  • Atlanta
  • New England
  • NY Jets
  • Miami

It’s hard to see the Browns having much success against this group. New Orleans and New England are clearly better, Atlanta’s offense may be too strong, and the Jets (first) and Miami (fourth) were two of the best rushing teams last season. Not a good sign when you were the 28th ranked rushing defense last year.

But teams can always win one game that they are not expected to win, so let’s give the Browns a 1-4 record against this group.

Teams in the AFC North:

This is where the Browns will make or break their season. Since the NFL split into four-team divisions in 2002, the Browns have gone 13-35 in the division. That includes matching 1-5 records each of the past two seasons.

The Bengals showed last year that you can be a mediocre team (4-6 outside the division) but if you take care of business inside the division (6-0) you can have a winning season. The Browns simply have to play better in the division if they are going to become a team to be taken seriously.

This year may be the perfect opportunity to do just that:

  • Many are picking the Ravens to be some kind of powerhouse this year and we’ll know early on if that’s true, as they face the Jets, Bengals, Pittsburgh and New England in the first six weeks of the season.
  • The Bengals haven’t had consecutive winning seasons in 28 years, and after last year’s fluke division title, there’s not much reason to believe they will break that streak this year.
  • Pittsburgh has an aging defense and will have Dennis Dixon or Charlie Batch at starting quarterback for the first four weeks while Roethlisberger serves his suspension. We’re constantly told that quarterback is the most important position on the field, so why wouldn’t losing your starting quarterback be a problem for the Steelers? And it’s not too hard to imagine Roethlisberger being rusty for his return against the Browns.

The opportunity is there for the Browns to at least split with two of their division opponents this year, giving them a 2-4 record – at worst – in the division.

Add it all up, and the Browns finish with a minimum of six wins, covering the over bet on their season total.

The first step in the journey starts Sunday in Tampa. The Brown and Orange are almost back. Whatever happens this year, you can be sure it won’t be dull.

Posted in Cleveland Browns, dogs bollocks, intrique, NFL, over/under | Leave a comment
07 Sep 2010

From Cleveland to Villa Park

Cleveland Browns owner Randy Lerner is apparently a quick study.

According to a story out of England, Lerner is using his experience reshaping the Browns this off-season as a guide to fixing what ails his Premier League team, Aston Villa, which found itself without a manager when Martin O’Neill walked out five days before the season started.

Lerner’s plan to name Gerard Houllier as his new chief at Aston Villa has been inspired by his “other side across the pond,” the Cleveland Browns.

According to the report, “he was in a similar ­situation with his Cleveland side last year as the club ­suffered a difficult start. His solution was to ­appoint ­experienced Mike Holmgren as club president and ­allow him to oversee team ­operations while Eric Mangini ­continued as head coach.

“The set-up has shown signs of success and Lerner fancies testing out the policy in the Premier League.

“Villa have not yet decided on a formal title for Houllier but Lerner has been hugely impressed by his credentials and director of football seems his most likely position. He would take on a similar role to Holmgren, in that he will oversee all football ­operations including scouting, transfers and contracts.”

It’s good to see the Browns front office being acknowledged for the work they’ve done in trying to turn this team around. It’s just too bad that credit comes from an English paper, rather than from the national media here at home, who seem content to recycle the same bowl of soupy drek, like the Associated Press’ latest coach on the hot seat* story, featuring Eric Mangini:

“The Browns won their final four games, long after they had become irrelevant in the AFC standings, then Mangini persuaded Holmgren to give him another chance. The roster doesn’t look any stronger after a 5-11 season, and unless Mangini shows some versatility in demeanor and strategy, his stay in Cleveland could end with another firing.”

Yep, the team didn’t improve in any area since last season. Good analysis there.

We can already see evidence that the Holmgren/Heckert/Mangini trio is working out. It will be interesting to see how well Lerner’s plan translates across the pond.

*Why is the seat always a hot one? I was talking with a physics professor at work a few years ago and he was explaining how extreme cold and extreme heat do the exact same damage to our bodies, our brains just perceive them differently. So an extremely cold seat would be just an uncomfortable as a hot one.

***

A bit of a disturbing article in USA Today about more NFL teams are expected to face blackouts this season.

The Browns are listed as “no blackouts expected,” but I just went online and could buy tickets for the home opener against Kansas City. If the team gets off to a slow start this year, they could run into some trouble selling out games, although having a strong home schedule will help.

***

Finally, the Browns waived David Veikune, aka Chaun Thompson 2.0, today. Fellow 2009 second-round picks Brian Robiskie and Mohamed Massaquoi really need to come through this year.

Posted in Cleveland Browns, hot seats, Randy Lerner | Leave a comment
06 Sep 2010

This Isn’t the Big Ten

With Saturday’s cut down of NFL rosters to 53 players came the news that the Ravens finally cut ties with former Ohio State quarterback Troy Smith.

That news was predictably followed by the cries of the hoople heads who want the Browns to sign Smith.

The big question in that scenario is why would the Browns do something like that?

Smith was exposed in the 2007 National Championship game against Florida as not being an NFL-caliber quarterback. The Gators defense, loaded with NFL talent and speed, overwhelmed Smith and the Buckeyes that night.

Since then he’s done nothing in Baltimore to change that fact. He played in 14 games for the Ravens, starting two of them. In three years he completed only 53 percent of his passes in a league where the top quarterbacks best 60 percent, for three TDs and one interception.

The NFL is a quarterback starved league, with half of the teams barely able to find one decent quarterback. Derek Anderson has a starting job in Arizona. Todd Collins – who played at Michigan so long ago they may have been wearing leather helmets – earned a roster spot in Chicago. Dennis Dixon is going to be starting Week 1 for Pittsburgh.

The jobs are there if you can play; it seems obvious that is not the case with Smith. He’s really no different than Pat White, who was cut by the Dolphins.

The Browns need players who can compete on the NFL level. It doesn’t matter where they went to school, they just need players who can be the dogs bollocks on game days. Thankfully, Mike Holmgren, Tom Heckert and Eric Mangini realize this. They aren’t going to sign someone who can’t help the team on the field.

And for those who think that Smith just “needs a chance” to prove himself, ask yourself this question: If Smith had played at any other college than Ohio State, would you still think he’d be a good fit for the Browns?

If you’re being honest, then the answer is clearly no.

Posted in bad quarterback play, Cleveland Browns, dogs bollocks, hoople heads | Leave a comment
05 Sep 2010
2 Comments

The Browns (mostly) final roster

The Browns made their final cuts on Saturday to get their roster down to 53 players with no major surprises.

The biggest name cut was Brandon McDonald; a minor surprise as that leaves the team with just three cornerbacks on the roster – for now. The consensus is the Browns will make some additional moves this week after they have a chance to see what players are available from other teams.

For now we know who is on the roster. Looking at this year’s roster vs. last year’s opening day roster, it’s pretty clear where the team has improved – primarily on offense – and where it still needs help:

Quarterback: Jake Delhomme, Seneca Wallace and Colt McCoy – even if he never plays a single down – are better than last year’s trio of Derek Anderson, Brady Quinn and Brett Ratliff. Clearly better than last year.

Running back: Essentially trading Peyton Hillis for an on-his-last legs Jamal Lewis makes this a better unit. Better than last year.

Offensive line: With Alex Mack entering his second year, Eric Steinbach and Joe Thomas anchoring the left side, and the quick growth of rookie Shawn Lauvao, plus no more Rex Hadnot, takes what was already a team strength and makes it that much better. Now if they could only do something about John St. Clair. Better than last year.

Wide receiver: Still a weak spot, but we’ll go along with Braylon Edwards no longer being around as addition by subtraction. The team is just relying too much on second-year players Mohamed Massaquoi and Brian Robiskie for this to be a strength. Not better than last year, but not worse.

Tight end: Ben Watson has to be an improvement over Martin Rucker, but the stone-handed Robert Royal is still on the team. Certainly not a glamor position on the squad. Not better than last year, but not worse.

Defensive line: Another unremarkable group, at least until we find out if Shaun Rogers is actually ready to play. Ahytba Rubin looked solid last year filling in for Rogers; let’s see how he does over a full season. Not better than last year, but not worse.

Linebackers: The team appears to be going for quantity over quality with 12 linebackers on the squad. Relatively young – only three of the group are over 30 – but lacking any legitimate playmakers, this looks to be a group project. But you have to love that the team kept Titus Brown, just for his name alone. Not better than last year, but not worse.

Defensive backs: After quarterback, the most improved group on the team, although very thin at cornerback. Sheldon Brown, T.J. Ward and Joe Haden are all huge upgrades over Brodney Pool, Hank Poteat and Coye Francies. Clearly better than last year.

Special teams: Reggie Hodges isn’t as good as Dave Zastudil, but he’s not bad. As long as the Browns have Josh Cribbs returning kicks, Phil Dawson and Ryan Pontbriand, they don’t have anything to worry about with this unit. Just as good as last year.

As for what the Browns will do this week, it seems likely they will make some additional rosters moves. It would make sense for them to talk with Justin Hartwig, who was cut by the Steelers, to see if they could add an experienced player to the offensive line.

Other than that, I don’t really see them going after any of the name players who were cut, for example T.J. Houshmandzadeh. For one, his production has gone down three years in a row (from 112 catches in 2007 to 79 last year) and I’m not sure adding a 32-year-old receiver is really going to make a difference in the won-loss record this year. Plus, if having him around takes time away from one of the younger receivers, is that helpful?

And whatever the Browns do, I truly believe they are smart enough to stay far, far away from Troy Smith.

So the offense improved in one vital area, while not getting weaker anywhere else. The defensive secondary should be better; hopefully that will make the linebackers and defensive line at least somewhat better.

We’ll know for sure in less than a week when the team takes the field against Tampa Bay.

Posted in Cleveland Browns, NFL, roster cuts
03 Sep 2010

Thoughts on the Browns exhibition season

When you arrive at the last preseason game of the year, as a fan and as a team you are just hoping to make it out of the game in one piece.

Unfortunately for the Browns and running back Montario Hardesty, that wasn’t the case Thursday night against the Bears.

After missing all of training camp and the first three preseason games with an injury, Hardesty finally got back on the field against the Bears only to see his season end with a torn ACL in his left knee (he tore his right ACL while playing in college at Tennessee).

“We are all very disappointed for Montario,” coach Eric Mangini said in published reports. “He’s worked extremely hard since he was drafted, he’s done everything we’ve asked him to do, and I’m sure he will be just as diligent with his rehab. It’s unfortunate but it opens the door for other guys to step up and contribute.”

You have to feel sorry for Hardesty, who worked hard to rehabilitate to try and get on the field for the Browns this year. I was watching the game when he got hurt and immediately thought “he’s done for the year” because that’s how it works here in Cleveland. You can’t just have a twisted knee, when a player goes down it has to be a season-ending injury.

The only bright spot is that, if the Browns had to lose someone to an injury, running back was the one position they could afford to have it happen. With Lawrence Vickers and a top-notch offensive line leading the way, the trio of Jerome Harrison, Peyton Hillis and James Davis, the expected trio to man the tailback position, should be very productive.

And in the long run, maybe sitting out a year and letting his body completely heal will be the best thing for Hardesty.

As for the rest of the game, there’s not much to say about backups playing against backups. Colt McCoy held his own, going 13-for-13, which is certainly better than going 0-for-13. And while there has been some criticism that he “only” passed for 131 yards, that’s 10 yards per completion and, the last time I checked, you needed 10 yards for a first down. So that’s not too bad.

I’m trying not to be worried that the Browns could not create any kind of pressure on the quarterback during the four preseason games. We’re willing to chalk that up to the Browns playing a simpler defense since the games don’t count. But still …

***

No surprise that Commissioner Roger Goodell cut Ben Roethlisberger’s suspension to four games. That means Roethlisberger will make his debut in Week 6 at home against the Browns, turning up the heat on what was already sure to be an intense game.

***

Ndamukong Suh fined $7,500 for trying to decapitate Jake Delhomme. That’s it? Be interesting to see how much the fine is when he does that to Brett Favre.

***

No they don’t. And no they didn’t.

***

Caught some of John Gruden’s over/under predictions on ESPN this week. In both the AFC North and the NFC North he believes every team will surpass the projected over in wins. I haven’t seen him talk about any other divisions, but from his tone I’m guessing that he will peg every team for the over in wins this year. He may be a good coach (debatable) and a decent announcer on Monday Night Football (debatable), but one thing he clearly is not is a math wiz.

***

Excellent start for the Three Lions with Jermain Defoe nailing a hat trick as England begins its quest to qualify for Euro 2012.

***

What everyone else is saying:

Posted in bad math, Ben Roethlisberger, Cleveland Browns, Jermain Defoe, Montario Hardesty, Ndamukong Suh | Leave a comment

Post Navigation

← Older Entries
Newer Entries →