Its a crying shame KJ overpaid for VG ... what a horrible move that was ...
So is this is the new cool? Just endlessly repeating someone's incorrect assessment of a player when talking about a totally different player/situation? I mean should we have "David David David" as a response to schtick when someone doesn't agree with your opinion? How many years is it cool to bring trash back up?
Glad Higgins is signed. Hope he contributes.
As someone else said - Baker has as much talent around him as any QB. It's on his shoulders along now what he does with it. Sure he has a new scheme to adopt - but it can not be worse than the garbage we had last year.
Last edited by mgh888; 04/30/2009:49 AM.
The more things change the more they stay the same.
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
And to see some of the posts from a couple of days ago.....lol. They strike again!
Hey, we finally agree on something.
Nothing quite screams "go-to" receiver like a 1-year contract for $910,000 and a chance to compete for the 3rd WR spot.
With that garbage dealt with, I will reiterate that I have always liked Higgins. I was the one guy who said we should consider drafting him before the draft. I kept saying he was better than Louis and Payton. I am also glad we re-signed him for peanuts. I have just maintained that he is overrated by some folks on here. Including you.
I got it before I posted, after thinking about it for a minute or two I clicked the Tweet link and saw the Hollywood sign. Then it came back.
Thanks for trying to clear me up. I appreciate it. I very well could have been pulling up our list of UDFA's and not finding a player named Wood. I'd have been cussing, who is this guy? LOL
If everybody had like minds, we would never learn.
He was the "Go-To" guy in 2018...he signed this deal in 2020.
I know facts and perspective around one's opinion never stops you from trying to pick a fight - or re-ignite one ala Mason Rudolph - but I'm sure you will soon tell us what a victim you are and claiming that you knew all along that Tom Brady was going to be great.
Fact is that this was a deep WR draft, and a lot of veteran "mid range" free agent WRs are still sitting on the shelf. There were 37 ... think about that ... 37 WRs drafted over the 3 day draft. That's over 1 per team, and a big reason why many of the mid level guys are still without a team.
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
Browns WR Rashard Higgins: ‘I’ve seen the rain and now it’s time for the sunshine’
Today 4:07 PM Browns wide receiver Rashard Higgins runs routes in pregame Cleveland Browns wide receiver Rashard Higgins runs routes in pregame warmup, November 14, 2019, at FirstEnergy. (John Kuntz, cleveland.com) By Mary Kay Cabot, cleveland.com Facebook Icon Twitter Icon Email Icon Text Message Icon More options Icon
CLOSE More share options: CLEVELAND, Ohio — Rashard Higgins has clawed his way out of Freddie Kitchens’ doghouse and back to the Dawg Pound, where he’s always been a huge fan favorite.
“I’ve been through hell and back in Cleveland and I’ve seen the rain and now it’s time for the sunshine,’’ Higgins told cleveland.com by phone on Thursday.
Higgins, who got on Kitchens’ bad side last season and was targeted only 10 times all year, agreed to terms with the Browns Wednesday on a one-year free agent deal worth the veteran minimum of $910,000, turning down more money from multiple teams to come back and finish what he started.
“I want to see us prevail,’’ he said. “I want to see us win, so I couldn’t give it up that easy. I’m not in it for the money, I’m in it for the glory. I’d rather just win with a team that I’ve been with.’’
Higgins, who caught only four passes for 55 yards and a TD last season, acknowledged it was difficult knowing he could end up with another team.
“But it will be all worth it,’’ he said. “I promise it will be. I was never worried to be honest.’’
Higgins, the Browns’ fifth-round pick in 2016 out of Colorado State who was cut in 2017 before being re-signed to the practice squad, believed the door would be open for him here if he didn’t find greener pastures.
“That’s kind of how I felt,’’ he said. “I kind of felt like, I know what I’m capable of, they know what I’m capable of, [GM] Andrew Berry knows what I’m capable of. The film doesn’t lie. I’m a good receiver, and I feel like me and Baker [Mayfield] having a good chemistry that can go a long way, and I know GMs, coaches, I know people look at that kind of stuff.’’
In fact, he believes Mayfield, with whom he developed a special chemistry in 2018, may have put in a good work for him to return.
“There’s a possibility,’’ he said. “I’m sure he had some type of say-so in it. He was the one I talked to. He’s excited. We’re ready to get back to work.’’
He acknowledged that the two have something special from their time as second-teamers together in Mayfield’s rookie training camp, repping it over and over and connecting for numerous TDs. He used to joke back then that he was Baker and then-girlfriend Emily’s son because he spent so much time at their apartment. The friendship they developed carry over to the field, and Higgins became a favorite target that year.
“It’s a trust factor,’’ Higgins said. “I trust him, he trusts me. I believe in him, he believes in me.’’
He’s confident the chemistry will still be there even though they didn’t have much in-game time together last season.
“That’s something you can’t take away from us,’’ he said.
Higgins, who caught 39 passes for 572 yards and four TDs in 2018, prefers not to dwell on his challenging 2019, one in which he got on Kitchens’ bad side for stating publicly that he felt he should’ve been active for the Niners game on Oct. 7 after missing four games with a sprained knee, and it deteriorated from there. The ball came his way only eight more times in the next nine games, and he was a healthy scratch for the season finale.
“Everything didn’t pan out like we wanted it to you last year, but there’s a lot of stuff that we can’t control and we’re just going to go control what we can and move forward,’’ he said. “We’re just going to do us and not look back.’’
Likewise, he hasn’t talked to tight end David Njoku, who was also in Kitchens’ doghouse last year but is back in good standing with the new regime, about their similar plights. Berry was the Browns’ Vice President of Player Personnel when both Higgins and Njoku were drafted, and has breathed new life into both.
“We don’t talk about negativity,’’ Higgins said. “I’m always positive. I never try to bring up some negative stuff. I always think positively in everything.’’
Besides, it wasn’t just Higgins and Njoku that suffered last season. Mayfield had a down year, and receiver Jarvis Landry was frustrated and caught yelling at Kitchens and quarterbacks coach Ryan Lindley on the sidelines a few times. He often said Kitches didn’t rely enough on him and Odell Beckham Jr. to win game, and he’s admitted this offseason that the players felt there was no plan after the first 15 scripted plays.
“It was very tough,’’ Higgins said. “We’ve just got to get back to having fun, that’s all. I told Jarvis that. We’ve got to get back to having fun. The year we were winning (in 2018_, we were having fun with it, so getting that feeling back, that’s what we’re looking for.’’
Higgins said coach Kevin Stefanski has reached out to him.
“He told me congratulations and I told him thanks for believing in me,’’ Higgins said. “I’m just excited to get in that building.’’
Higgins has also been in contact with new receivers coach Chad O’Shea, who’s coached the likes of Wes Welker, Julian Edelman and Danny Amendola.
“He’s somebody that believes in — believes a lot in me, actually,’’ Higgins said. “We’ve been talking a lot and we just can’t wait to work together. He’s been around a lot of great receivers and just the way he’s seen guys routes, that’s the way I mimic my game because I’m a very good route runner. I can’t wait to be coached by him and it’ll be a fun season.’’
He said all of the offensive players are eager for a fresh start.
“Oh absolutely,’’ he said. “We’ve got a new OC, a new head coach, different play calling, different plays, different routes — it’s going to be a lot of stuff that we’re capable of showing. They’re excited to see what we can do, and what abilities they’re able to pull out of us.’’
He said the 6-10 season of 2019 “definitely humbled us. It’s a feeling that you want more. We know what we’re capable of and I know what I’m capable of and we’ll try not to let anything stop us. Me and Jarvis have already had that conversation, just us getting back to that winning feeling.’’
Higgins knows he’s capable of so much more than what he’s shown and “I’m so excited to put on some new threads, so excited to be in that locker room, catch touchdowns, just have that team camaraderie and being together and winning. I just want to get to the playoffs with my brothers.
He said the offensive players have already discussed working out together — possibly in Los Angeles — as soon as they can, like they’ve done each of the past few years.
“It’s up in the air,’’ he said. “We plan do it, we just don’t know when or where yet.’’
Higgins said the coronavirus situation has put his situation in perspective, and he never felt sorry for himself while waiting to return to the Browns. Instead, he kept busy by helping raise money to feed families through a church in Dallas.
“It’s just a hard time right now and if we can all get together and do it all for a great cause, which is feeding families, we can let them know that tough times don’t last but tough people do,’’ he said.
During his time away, he’s been overwhelmed by the support of Browns fans, who have always embraced him.
“It’s amazing,’’ he said. “I’ve never felt more love than what the fans do and say, how they reach out to me. I try to reach back out to everybody that DMs me. You give respect and you get respect.’ Regardless if I would’ve gone anywhere else, they were still going to be a fan of mine. They love me and I love them too.’’
Fortunately for Browns fans, they can still love him here.
Is that your reasoning why this FO would let Baker's "go to guy" sit there all this time? And according to the reports, Higgins turned down other offers. Do you believe that too? That a player wanting to stay in the league would simply turn down offers, "Hoping the Browns would want to sign him in late April" having no way of knowing if that would even happen?
Mmmm hmmmm....
Intoducing for The Cleveland Browns, Quarterback Deshawn "The Predator" Watson. He will also be the one to choose your next head coach.
Higgins and Baker established a real rapport in 2018. Last year was a cluster ....... and I believe that Baker missing 4 targets that he relied on in 2018 really hurt him. (Fells, Perriman, Higgins, and Njoku)
I think that having 2 of those guys back this coming season is a plus for Baker. You might disagree, and that's fine. No one is saying that Higgins is Baker's #1 WR. That would be ridiculous. However, in 2018, Baker would often look to Higgins when he was in trouble. That was definitely missing last year.
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
Is that your reasoning why this FO would let Baker's "go to guy" sit there all this time? And according to the reports, Higgins turned down other offers. Do you believe that too? That a player wanting to stay in the league would simply turn down offers, "Hoping the Browns would want to sign him in late April" having no way of knowing if that would even happen?
Mmmm hmmmm....
I believe he wanted to stay in Cleveland. I follow him on social media and he has never wavered for his love of the city and fans. He has no reason to lie about it so yes I believe him. I’m happy he is back, aren’t you?
As to him being Mayfield’s go to receiver. I don’t know what to call it but when he was on the game and Baker was in trouble he looked to Higgins. Landry was by far Mayfield’s favorite target but I believe that the relationship between Baker and Higgins is real off the field and it showed on the field as well.
Is that your reasoning why this FO would let Baker's "go to guy" sit there all this time?
Analytics says, "wait until the player and value match". They felt they had a match, and Higgins wanted to return.
And according to the reports, Higgins turned down other offers. Do you believe that too? That a player wanting to stay in the league would simply turn down offers, "Hoping the Browns would want to sign him in late April" having no way of knowing if that would even happen?
No idea who else may have made offers to Higgins. Maybe this deal was in the works with the Browns as were others elsewhere. Who knows? Can you say that there were definitely no other offers? If there were others, then, by definition, he turned them down to return to Cleveland.
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
Higgins and Baker established a real rapport in 2018. Last year was a cluster ....... and I believe that Baker missing 4 targets that he relied on in 2018 really hurt him. (Fells, Perriman, Higgins, and Njoku)
I think that having 2 of those guys back this coming season is a plus for Baker. You might disagree, and that's fine. No one is saying that Higgins is Baker's #1 WR. That would be ridiculous. However, in 2018, Baker would often look to Higgins when he was in trouble. That was definitely missing last year.
That is the miscommunication here. I agree with you.
Some think the go-to guy is the #1 receiver. Sometimes he is, but in the end, when things are getting wet and the QB is about out of time, the guy he looks to last is the go to guy.
I seem to recall Higgy catching 17 yard 1st down throws on comebacks when things were looking pretty bleak.
No doubt Baker leaned on Higgy.
If everybody had like minds, we would never learn.
I don't see any WR on this team being a better option as our #3 WR than Higgins. Any time we can upgrade anywhere on our 53 man roster I'm happy about it. But at the same time I won't try to glorify its importance.
I'm sure he "wanted to stay in Cleveland". That's not really the issue here. The issue is he had no way of knowing if he would ever receive an offer from the Browns at all. So the claim would be he risked never playing in the NFL again in hopes the Browns would make him an offer in the future.
That doesn't add up.
Intoducing for The Cleveland Browns, Quarterback Deshawn "The Predator" Watson. He will also be the one to choose your next head coach.
Higgins and Baker established a real rapport in 2018. Last year was a cluster ....... and I believe that Baker missing 4 targets that he relied on in 2018 really hurt him. (Fells, Perriman, Higgins, and Njoku)
YT...I think you are right and losing the targets he relied on in 2018 was a factor in our passing game last season.
It seemed that Baker had a high degree of confidence in this 2018 receivers/te and the longer they played together, the smoother the offense functioned.
In 2019, imo, the entire franchise put too much emphasis on OBJ and the necessary work it took to become familiar with your new team was not turned in and Baker's game suffered.
Hopefully the new coaching staff will have everyone on the same page this year and Baker has a better rapport with his receivers/te.
Analytics says, "wait until the player and value match". They felt they had a match, and Higgins wanted to return.
So your assertion is that they thought they needed to get a huge bargain on Baker's "go to guy". See, that's the only point I'm actually debating here. If they viewed Higgins as that, they would have considered him worth much more and would have moved quicker to sign him before another team scooped him up.
Quote:
No idea who else may have made offers to Higgins. Maybe this deal was in the works with the Browns as were others elsewhere. Who knows? Can you say that there were definitely no other offers? If there were others, then, by definition, he turned them down to return to Cleveland.
What I can say is that it would be rather foolish to "hope" your former team would call and use that as a reasoning to risk the future of your career based on that hope.
Intoducing for The Cleveland Browns, Quarterback Deshawn "The Predator" Watson. He will also be the one to choose your next head coach.
I certainly don't want to step between you and fighting the good fight.... but I think Higgins turning down any offers is a flat-out lie. I think it's utterly ridiculous that, having no offers from us, he would turn down a contract anywhere so that he could maybe get on a field a quarter of the time with a team that was a hot mess from 'go' last year, and a new coaching staff that has absolutely no vested interest in him.
I like the guy. I don't doubt he wanted to come back. I think he can fill a small but important role in a potent Cleveland offense. I don't believe for a second he had any real path to playing in the NFL except for the Browns. Sounds like agent-speak to me.
There is no level of sucking we haven't seen; in fact, I'm pretty sure we hold the patents on a few levels of sucking NOBODY had seen until the past few years.
I don't see any WR on this team being a better option as our #3 WR than Higgins. Any time we can upgrade anywhere on our 53 man roster I'm happy about it. But at the same time I won't try to glorify its importance.
I'm sure he "wanted to stay in Cleveland". That's not really the issue here. The issue is he had no way of knowing if he would ever receive an offer from the Browns at all. So the claim would be he risked never playing in the NFL again in hopes the Browns would make him an offer in the future.
That doesn't add up.
I agree. It wasn't a Cleveland or Bust situation.
This all didn't start 4-5 days ago. His agent has been in contact with the Browns for weeks. Maybe months. Reports are other teams had interest as well.
Guys like Higgings don't get signed in the first wave, then you get close to the draft and teams aren't thinking free agents at that point. The focus is on the draft.
We probably offered him something a month or so ago, but it was fairly low-ball and his agent was getting better vibes from other teams.
I don't think Higgins and his agent were fearful he wouldn't get an offer. They were just waiting for the draft to end and take the best offer. Same with the Browns.
It's business. One side wants to make a much as they can and one side wants to pay as little as they can. Go to any car dealer to buy a vehicle. The numbers might be $25,00-$45,00 rather a $mil, but it is the same thing. They finally agreed that $910,000 a year was a figure all could live with. Not sure what kind of bonuses /guarantees were involved.
If everybody had like minds, we would never learn.
Jc That was a great set of quotes by Higgins. He wants to be here. It’s not all about the money (and thats for sure with him) .. so he’s the type to root for
"First down inside the 10. A score here will put us in the Super Bowl. Cooper is far to the left as Njoku settles into the slot. Moore is flanked out wide to the right. Chubb and Ford are split in the backfield as Watson takes the snap ... Here we go."
So 18 had nuttin to do with the fact Higgs was the only one Bake practiced with that entire off season and through the first few weeks of the season ...
Come on bro ... your smarter than that ...
And the two biggest bail plays of the year IMO were made by Perriman and Wiley ... not Higgs or VG or ... crap ... Njoku ... *L* ..
One of my favorite plays was when Baker rolled out right, and into pressure. He then wound up, throwing off his back foot, and I'm yelling "No! No! No!", until the ball landed in Higgins's hands in the end zone for the TD.
Then there was the pass to Higgins in the middle of the field, and he got to the outside and did his best Mike Vick impression ... launching himself about 5 years, and getting the ball just inside the pylon.
Fun stuff. Hope there's a lot more this season.
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
So 18 had nuttin to do with the fact Higgs was the only one Bake practiced with that entire off season and through the first few weeks of the season ...
Come on bro ... your smarter than that ...
And the two biggest bail plays of the year IMO were made by Perriman and Wiley ... not Higgs or VG or ... crap ... Njoku ... *L* ..
18?? I think the fact that Baker and Higgins worked together all preseason is why Baker trusted him so much. They became close on and off the field because of it. If Baker gets 1st team reps I doubt Higgins gats as many looks. I don’t think Higgins has the talent to be a number 1 receiver. Brian Brennan didn’t either but he was a security blanket for Kosar. I’m not saying Higgins is going to be a security blanket for Baker again. Baker has other reliable receivers that he has played with now. I do believe he was one Baker’s rookie year.
Boy my last post is a mess grammatically. Hopefully I got my points across to you Diam.
Speaking of grammar and/or spelling, does the Plain Dealer / Cleveland.com still employ copy editors? That article by Mary Kay was a mess.
I saw that too. I think I stopped after 5 or 6 typos. lol
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
Boy my last post is a mess grammatically. Hopefully I got my points across to you Diam.
Speaking of grammar and/or spelling, does the Plain Dealer / Cleveland.com still employ copy editors? That article by Mary Kay was a mess.
I doubt it. That costs money. Something papers don't have. Writers these days bang it out on the lap top and send it to the wire, be it online content or for the print version.
Kind of sad. At one time, the Plain Dealer was considered one of the best papers in the country. Solid reporting and editing. Now it is 15 pages of crap.
But it is what it is. The younger generations don't read papers, and people just don't advertise the same way anymore.
Think about the movie sections that used to be. That one section probably brought in $150,000 a week in revenue to a big paper. Heck, maybe more than that. You had a smaller one every day, but on Friday, it was 4-5-6 pages of quarter page ads listing the movies playing.
Help wanted ads, you had pages, with real jobs. "Engineering Manager Wanted" Nobody looks to the newspaper to find a better job anymore. Grocery stores are about the only big time advertisers anymore. People still like to circle the deals which hold interest..."Hey Honey, chuck roast at $1.75 a lb!! Let freeze up a few to cook in the croc pot later!
I still look for deals in the Wednesday grocery fliers. Greek yogert on sale, lets go!
If everybody had like minds, we would never learn.
He was the "Go-To" guy in 2018...he signed this deal in 2020.
I know facts and perspective around one's opinion never stops you from trying to pick a fight - or re-ignite one ala Mason Rudolph - but I'm sure you will soon tell us what a victim you are and claiming that you knew all along that Tom Brady was going to be great.
Here's your helmet back.
Memphis started this. Not me. I responded to his post.
Btw---39 receptions does not make one a "go-to" guy. You were talking out of your butt, as usual.
He WAS the go to guy, just as JJ was Anderson's. He's the guy that when he's on the field and if things broke down, he is who the QB went to. Forget your little "39" and go back and watch since you've forgotten.
Browns is the Browns
... there goes Joe Thomas, the best there ever was in this game.
I disagree. I think he did have some chemistry w/Baker and have said so. However, I think the fact that others drew more attention is a big reason why he was open.
Of course, I don't have the great understanding of recognizing coverages like you, WSU, and Memphis do. So, there is that.
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