Back to live blogging for the seven or eight of you who check in during the Browns game. …
We start with a quick story, told by the priest this morning at church. This came from the Rev. Jim Beattie, an Akron native. He said he got a call from a female friend over the holidays. After chatting for a few minutes, she asked what would happen to the woman who knocked the Pope over during services at the Vatican. "He'll probably get a psychiatric examination," the priest said. "Well then what happens," she asked. "I think the Browns should sign him," the priest said. Ba-dum-bum. I'd say he's here all week, but he's mainly here on Sundays.
First quarter: Frye throws an early interception
Charlie Frye starts for Oakland. And throws a pick on the second play of the game. It sets up a Jerome Harrison 17-yard touchdown run. … this is called a good start. … Next series Frye misses Chaz Schilens open down the middle for a touchdown. … Still shocked by Urban Meyer's announcement. He seemed like a guy who'd be dominating at Florida for another 10, 20 years. There's something to like about a guy, though, who puts his family first. … Harrison is running mad. He's picked right up where he left off after Kansas City. Six carries, 40 yards and the game is not six minutes old. … Clicked onto thebiglead.com and it listed all the best games in the league today. Then it concluded with: "… for the masochists in the crowd, there’s always Oakland at Cleveland. Yes, we wagered on the Raiders." … There is your national impression of the Cleveland Browns. … The score is 10-3 by the way. … Lots of cheers for Josh Cribbs as the Raider line up to kick off. … They plop one short. … Cleveland 10, Oakland 3.
Second quarter: Raiders melt down, then make 61-yard field goal
Big Money (aka Gerard Warren) is having quite the game here. … Sunday is the anniversary of the last championship in Cleveland sports history, the Browns 27-0 win over the Colts. … The Raiders get a second field goal, though a Mike Adams sack on third down erased hopes of a TD. … Cribbs makes an amazing play to tip a punt back to the half-yard-line, where Brandon McDonald downs it. … This game has slowed down a bit. … Bowens gets a sack; he's having quite a game as well. … Now a story breaks that Urban Meyer is not resigning and taking an indefinite leave. … Tomorrow Francisco Franco will still be dead. … Inside two minutes and Harrison just ran for 20 yards on third-and-11 on an inside handoff out of the shotgun. This is why they are the Raiders. … A rumble has broken out. Flags are fling like crazy. Two plays prior Gerard Warren had goaded Alex Mack into throwing what looked like a punch. … Two offsetting penalties. … No ejection, nothing. … But then the Raiders are flagged for yapping at the officials. … This game is worthy of teams with these records. … Now Raiders CB Stanford Routt has been ejected for a "flagrant" head butt after the play. … Class. … THIS is why they're the Raiders. … Anderson finds Mohamed Massaquoi for a TD. … The Raiders had the Browns third-and-11, and Oakland gave up a TD with two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties, a head butt and an ejection on the drive. … THIS is why they're the Raiders. … And the Browns take advantage. … The half ends with Sebastian Janikowski's 61-yard field goal. … This was a gift of a ridiculously short kickoff by the Browns. … This game turned pretty entertaining in the final two minutes. … Cleveland 17, Oakland 9.
Third quarter: Browns move toward their third win in a row
Browns open with a field goal. … Fox's Jay Glazer reports Mike Holmgren will start in Cleveland Jan .4, the day after the season ends. That's when he'll have his news conference. … This makes too much sense for the Browns. Is someone sensible and logical now running the team? … Not sure what this means for Eric Mangini, but it's just hard to think Holmgren won't want a fresh start. … How in the heck have the Raiders won five games? … Penalties, dropped passes. Yuk. … Derek Anderson is playing like the good Derek. … A penalty wipes out a Harrison touchdown on a trick play, and then Harrison fumbles inside the 5. … How did the Raiders win five games? … Cleveland 20, Oakland 9.
Fourth quarter: Browns win third in a row
Charlie Frye is 15-of-24 for no touchdowns and two interceptions. … Those numbers look familiar, no? … Another Phil Dawson field goal makes the score 23-9 Browns. … Another Raiders player is ejected. … These guys are a sham of an NFL team. … Now the Raiders are flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct when tight end Zack Miller dropped the ball on a browns player. … What a lame NFL game. … Pass interference penalty on Hank Poteat gives Oakland the ball at the 2. … Raiders throw four incompletions and commit offensive interference on the final throw in the end zone. … What a team. … Frye's third interception pretty much secures the win. … Hoo hoo!
Urban Meyer is reconsidering his resignation and now may just take a leave of absence from Florida. Offensive Coordinator Steve Addazio would be interim head coach.
Three straight.
The white and pimply is waiting, terje.
Hi Pat sorry i feel asleep during the game so i still didnt see players come up to the Penguin again after this one only Bowens did a lil bit ….Am i being to picky? Its not like they beat a team with a winning record……Only the Steelers had a plus .500 pct and they were going backwards …just saying…still no vote of confidence here!
It wasn't pretty, but you have to give the Browns some credit for winning three in a row after a 1-11 start. Anderson only threw the ball 6 times in the second half as the Raiders continually shot themselves in the foot. 3 INT's for Frye and 126 penalty yards on the Raiders meant all Derek had to do was "manage" the game. Raiders outgained the Browns in yardage 389-282.
I'll have to root for the Jags next week so the Brownies remain in the top 6 of next year's draft. With a win, Cleveland could fall as far as #10 depending on how the 5-win teams do.
Pat, I know you hate Mangini and all, but now your angle in your blog is that you're trying to make the Raiders out to be the worst team in the NFL for the last 30 years, calling them a "sham of an NFL team". This "sham of an NFL team" has beaten the Bengals, Broncos and Steelers in the last month and a half. We win by 2 touchdowns, play good solid defense with several picks and sacks, run the ball well AGAIN, and the only reason why we win is because the Raiders are a "sham of an NFL team". What a joke.
Brian, the total yardage in this game is deceiving. We were up by 2 scores the whole 2nd half after our opening FG, so of course we're going to go into conservative mode on offense while the Raiders are going to gains lots of yards throwing the ball trying to catch up. Nice win by a Browns team that has shown great improvement over the last several weeks. I'd like to see us win again next week to finish off the season strong. I don't care where we draft at this point, since we'll still be able to get a good player no matter what our position is. It'll be interesting to see what Holmgren does after the season.
Tim, put the reefer back in the pipe. The Raiders are HORRIBLE. An absolute joke. The team, the organization. Through and through. Tough to ascertain if the Raiders or the Browns are more of a sham of an NFL franchise.
Gotta love the new Browns offensive strategy, too. Whatta plan! The Dancing Bear is on injured reserve, so now they've gone to the full "we'll try to get the resident mediocre scatback the NFL record for rushing attempts" mode. Brilliant!!!
alan….piss off! The only sham is you and your goof-ball posts.
Tim…you're right! I stand in your corner on your evaluation of the blog and the game.
The bottom line is that the Browns won. Its a "W", no matter how you spin it. and they were the underdog in the game. My hat is off to the team, except for D. Andersen and OC Dabol bizarre play-calling.
The Jags are reeling with 3 straight losses and their playoff chances are remote at best. They will still be mathmatically alive at kick-off next week, but they would need a lot of help. I don't see Mangini getting canned if he finishes with 4 straight wins.
I think the safest pick in the draft is S Eric Berry, and I don't think he will be available if the Browns drop any further in the draft order.
Solomon, the Browns were favored by 3 points at kick-off of this game.
Yeah I saw that 3 point spread in the paper. The sportscasters on the satelite radio picked the Raiders to win big.
I agree with your S Eric Berry pick in the first round. If he not available that S out of USC is a thought.
Yes, you're right, Solomon. I stand corrected. The Raiders are terrific. Nearly as terrific as Kansas City and Detroit and St. Louis and Washington. But just a smidge behind Tampa Bay.
Mike Holmgren will have a conference call with the media at 5pm tomorrow.
Jay Glazer reported this about Holmgren's GM candidates:
“Right now the names I’m hearing are Randy Mueller who Holmgren is familiar with from Seattle, John Schneider who is right now with the Green Bay Packers who had also been with Holmgren in Seattle. Also, Tom Heckert who is the GM of the Philadelphia Eagles is a name I’m hearing. All of these candidates by the way are represented by Holmgren’s agent Bob Lamonte."
Hey where was RB Jennings ? Gotta admit I missed the last part of the game , family and all. Hard to have a one -two punch if you don't take advantage of it. Just my first thought.
GM ? Maybe John Schneider ? Who up there in Green Bay was smart enough to draft The Ohio State Buckeye's Laurenitis ? Matthews Jr. ? Was it him ?
You left out your name in the bunch losers you mentioned.
Of course the Browns are a bad football team and the win doesn't change that fact. But, they are playing harder and better on most facets of the game. It gives the club something to build on for next year. Or at least identify the players that play hard to the last whistle of the game.
Nobody wants a quitter, except for you alan. You live in a cesspool of misery and anger. Enjoy the win! Harrison ran for 146 yds, Elam played his best game, Roth is stud linebacker, Veikune is still on the team. The Browns beat the Raiders and they've won three games in a row.
I just watched the other team Mangenius built knock off the undefeated Colts. What is the man's secret?
The only reason the Jets won is because the Colts benched Peyton Manning and other starters in the third quarter with a 5 point lead. Braylon did have one of his better games for the Jets – 2 receptions for 18 yards.
God, I hate that proverbial line of crap. "It gives them something to build on for next year." Yes, just like breaking ground on Municipal Stadium in 1930, it gives them a nice big landfill to build on.
Earth to Solomon: Beating atrocious teams at the end of the season never gives anybody anything to build on. Doesn't matter what league or what sport. That declaration is absurd. Always. At least half the guys won't even be on next year's roster, let alone receiving a paycheck in the NFL. Put down Tim's bong. Who are you now, a more foul Terry Pluto?
larry, i picked the browns at 5-11 for the year. that white, pimply butt you're so in love with is right on target for my standard of failure.
to paraphrase dennis green….mangini is who i thought he was. a run through the bottom feeders of the nfl is about as thrilling as watching the streetlights come on at night although i think tim may bring a lawn chair and a cooler out for that event every night.
btw, harrison sure has looked good. too bad mangini didn't feel the need to play him or even activate him for some of the games this year. that says a lot about fat boy's talent evaluation skills right there——non existent. i'm not too concerned about whether doughboy stays or goes anymore. holmgren isn't going to put up with his crap.
Why do you fellows suffer from butt acne?
So let me get this straight. When the Browns were eliminated from the playoffs, they should've just rollled over and taken IT up the "trapdoor" to validate your opinion of them. Get real, and get a life.
alan…what makes you think that I give a rat's a** what you think or care about?
Oh by the way "just say NO to drugs". You seem to suggest drug use every time you disagree with someone's opinion.
2-14 was where I had them projected to finish this year. THEY GOT SOMETHING TO BUILD ON FOR THE OFFSEASON! THEY BEAT PITTSBURGH.
My bad, I was wrong!
14-2 was my projected season record with a deep run in the playoffs and loss to the Cowboys in the SB. I just finished smoking some Panama Red and drinking a few cold beverages and I was surrounded by a thousand steelers( local frontrunners ) when I made my bold perdiction. But I knew that my fellow Browns and the Orange and Brown faithful had my back. My buddy alan was beside me when I uttered "14-2" and when I turned around…..I was alone.
alan…..can the Orange and Brown faithful count on you standing beside them?
Don't answer that question, we already know your answer.
Guys,
Arguing over Mangini and the meaning of these wins, nice as they are, is pointless. Holmgren will fire Mangini because that's how business organizations work. Mangini held all the power even muscling aside the GM Kokinis. Therefore, there is no way Holmgren can let him stay-Holmgren and the new GM would have to spend time making sure that Mangini was under control. It isn't a matter of right or wrong, fair or unfair-it's a matter of the new ruler cannot allow the old ruler to stay in the organization. Mangini has been much more than a coach in the organization and so he will go. Mangini knows how all this works-he has done some firing himself.
Just got ambushed by my kids and their friends! I took the trash out and they were waiting for me behind the bushes with seemed like a million snowballs. I forgot how much it stings to get hit in the face by a snow ball. Got to get some payback!
Happy Holidays to all of you and stay safe.
I read in some article that the Browns have gone to zone blocking (like Denver used when they had all those 1000 yarders at RB). Anderson seemed to be pretty well protected (and, yes, of course he was the good Anderson, which will only confuse things for next year).
Roth certainly does seem like a keeper, doesn't he?
I wonder if Holmgren will be on top of personnel moves (for instance, supposedly the Browns can renew players before the Jacksonville game and it will be a hit on this year, where there's lots of cap room, and not next year), which includes Harrison, LB Jackson, and others being in the final year of their contract this year.
I still expect Holmgren to get rid of Mangini and I certainly don't mind, but I do give Mangini credit for the way the Browns are competing even against poor teams!
Dang Gum I missed the fireworks again !!! Good to see everyone in,love with the penguin…..1-11 Mr Lerner says "credible LEADER" he was NOT speaking of his beloved Penguin…..to bad hes gone after the Jags game he is so loved after winning 3 in a row…. if he stays 99.99% of the NFL will be in shock as will everyone in OHIO except for Mr.Solomon whos kids hate him now too and tried to drop him with snowballs …….AH youth there is hope for the future!!! Hope yall had a nice holiday………..
Unfortunately, I agree that Mangini most likely will be gone. It's a shame, though. Our team right now reminds me of Parcells teams – tough, physical, pound the ball on the ground and play solid defense. We're averaging over 200 yards a game rushing in our 3 game winning streak (one of those games was against the #1 rush defense against Pitts). When's the last time the Browns have averaged over 200 yards a game rushing in a 3-game period? Ever? If they have, it was probably in the late 80's under Marty and then before that when Jim Brown was ruling the NFL.
Everyone keep bringing up the hiring of Parcells in Miami as to why Holmgren should fire Mangini, stating that there's precedent there since Cameron was fired after only one season. The 2 situations are night and day. Cameron was a 1st year coach, took over a 6-10 team and led them to a 1-15 season. Mangini took over a 4-12 team, completely blew up the roster in a full-rebuild and now has a team that's won 3 in a row and will either finish 4-12 or 5-11. I still think it was unfair to fire Cameron after one season, especially with the injuries that the Dolphins had that year, but the team did regress considerably during that season and Cameron didn't have a history of being a head coach before. Mangini has been a head coach before and had 2 winning seasons in his first 3 years of coaching, so there's no reason to believe we can't win 7-10 games next year the way we are playing now. Since Holmgren is a brilliant football mind, I don't see any reason why he couldn't run the team while keeping Mangini at least for one more year to see how things progress next year. Just because he's a "West-Coast" guy and a "4-3" guy doesn't mean he can't recognize talent for the type of schemes that the current coaching staff run. Whatever happens, happens – I'll be in full support of the team no matter what Holmgren does and I'll just hope for the best.
Tim, they're playing "solid defense?" They gave up about a billion yards to the pathetic Chiefs just last week. And who can't run against these teams? The Steelers? They were wearing Fabio's butter on their hands. And the Chiefs and Raiders have a horrid defense … my father rushed for 150 yards against both of them in preseason games, and he's been dead for 11 years.
Seriously, why do you persist in seeing things that aren't there? They gave up 38 points and lost to the Detroit freakin' Lions, for God's sakes. It's a pathetic, atrocious teams, these Cleveland Browns. In a round-robin tournament with the other carps of the league, they'd have as much a chance as finishing last as they would finishing first. In a rematch, the Raiders would take them in Oakland. Not because the Raiders are good, but because the Browns suck. Poorly played, poorly coached, even the waterboy performs his job like he has staph.
It's unfortunate … just like I said would happen, they'd win some games at the back end, and the homers and shills would come out in full force. Personally, I think Mangini will be back, and that's only because Holmgren has a self-serving agenda, not because of invisible phenomenal football when the games against turds mean absolutely nothing. The only thing they're accomplishing is shooting Holmgren in the foot on the draft picks … which won't make a difference, because the starry-eyed local media is going to gift wrap Holmgren an 8-year honeymoon.
Oh, and don't get fooled by Harrison. He's Bubbles Hawkins in a football helmet. For those who remember Bubbles Hawkins.
Alan, like I stated in my previous post a few days ago when I indicated my agreement with you, if Holmgren wants to swoop in to be a head coach again, then keeping Mangini makes since. I'm still torn on this one and I can't get a read on the guy one way or the other. His Seattle interview gives every indication that he has that itch to still coach, but all the national media pundits are claiming Mangini is gone and that Holmgren is going to actually hire a GM with personnel decision authority, which flies against our theory that Homgren want's to not only pick the players, but eventually coach them also if Mangini doesn't have a playoff season next year. All the "NFL experts" can't be wrong, can they, on this one? Could Holmgren shock the NFL world and announce that Mangini will be the coach in 2010?
let's take a look at that "solid defense":
giving up 400 yards a game
9 interceptions on the season
7 fumble recoveries (defense only)
0 defensive touchdowns
contrast that with last season and this team has regressed quite a bit. especially in pass defense. the only thing the defense has improved upon is sacks. no wonder belichick's d went in the toilet in mangini's sole season as a coordinator. the guy is incompetent.
Tim, it's a dog and pony show. Holmgren is going to hire people that he knows won't buck him. They won't have the ultimate authority, which is why you'll find he'll be hiring a second-tier guy he can ultimately smush like a Kokinis if and when that guy is perceived to fail. The only question is if they'll be as naive as Kokinis, or if they know what the underlying reality is, but they need to pad the resume. There is precisely a 0% chance that Holmgren won't be the Browns coach by 2015, and that's being incredibly conservative. 0%. My money is 2013 at the latest. Cut-and-paste for future reference, and please alert me if Vegas ever comes up with a prop bet for this.
You've got to tear down to rebuild, terje. Personally, I enjoy winning streaks in December and watching the transformation of three-year backups into Hall of Fame running backs, no doubt due to Draconian after-hours practices and walkthroughs.
This team is rallying around its doughy leader and it is a beautiful thing to see for all but the hardcore naysayers.
uh, o.k. larry. too bad that december winning streak looked pretty possible when the 2009 schedule was released. aside from the pittsburgh game this team has sucked hard enough to pull the lint from doughboy's gut.
The "lose early and then win after you are eliminated from contention" strategy has been a favorite of Cleveland teams for decades. The Browns, Eric Wedge's Indians and the pre-LBJ Cavs have all employed this method which accomplishes nothing but to give you a lower draft pick.
With the exception of 2005 and 2007, why didn't Eric Wedge and his Indians ever get the same respect for performing like clowns and losing the first 140 games of a season, but then winning the all-important final 22 against the Kansas City Royals? They always "gave the club something to build on for next year."
If next year's December winning streak results in a 5-11 or worse final record your point will be well taken, alan. But this season is a "rebuilding" year, tearing down then building back up. Mangenius is right on track and if we can land a HOF qb in the sixth round next April we'll be looking at about three Super Bowl championships.
There's plenty of room on the bandwagon folks!