Just a thought, Berry might want to save all the money he can with 33 free agents next year and already $61,162,829 over the estimated cap increase for 2024 staring the team right in the face. I know, the cap doesn't matter - until it does.
New defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz generally lined up right next to the center for the 7-on-7 sessions and coached his defense from the middle of the play. From there, he gets an up-close look at what he still says are basic installations and has delivered instant, direct and often colorful feedback.
“I’m just out there right now just trying to hear guys communicate, just to have a little presence out there and those things,” Schwartz said. “I don’t know if I’ll be out there all the time. Right now, when things are new, I can get my ears real close to them and I can hear where the communication is. And that means you can feel the players. It’s one of the reasons as a play caller, as a defense coordinator, I’ve always liked to be on the sideline, because you don’t make calls in a vacuum. You have to really feel the players.”
Schwartz has stressed that spring football is just about reps and communication, and that nothing involving a real depth chart or playing with the proper physicality will come about until training camp.
Schwartz’s emphasis on attacking shows up in the 7-on-7 sessions when he lines up two defensive ends who aren’t among the seven in the play and has them target two tackling dummies set up seven or so yards behind the line of scrimmage. Those players hit the dummies while steering clear of the quarterback on each play to simulate what Schwartz wants and what the Browns hope will be their blueprint: let Watson build a lead, then turn the pass-rushers loose.
Just watched the tail end of a special about the Bills. The four loses etc.
Just up the road and their story is not a whole lot different than the Browns.
Now Jim Brown is gone and there is discussion about a tribute. How about we win the Super Bowl?
I was in 11th grade in 1964 when we did win. I think I have waited long enough. Thinking back to then. If someone would have said the Browns would not win another. I would never have believed them. Never.
59 years later and here we are. I am running out of time. If DW doesn't get it done. That would mean a rebuild and I probably will not see it happen.
Listening to the Bills people and how much it would mean. We can all relate to that. Hard to explain why it would mean so much. But it does.
i want it to happen so badly. It would mean so much to so many people. I have lived in Atlanta and seen the Braves win two World Series. It was special for sure.
But the Browns are my roots. I was so proud to a Browns fan back in the day. It has been painful since then. Lots of suffering. It was a disgrace to lose every game. Like a blow torch to the heart. Maybe all that pain will make winning one somehow greater.
Mr. Jim Brown wherever you may be. Please put in a good word about Cleveland. Somewhere out there in the universe we could use a little help.
Was that article from The Athletic or from Beat Writers, or both? Would like to see if there is more inside information on how Swartz works as he installs the new defense. Being that close to the trenches seems like an obvious approach but I wonder how common it is among DCs. It seems like an excellent way to judge how these guys will perform as a unit. Obviously, it's just one tool in Swartz's toolbox but it speaks to his wealth of experience on how he builds a defense.
From the Athletic (Zac Jackson). It was basically a news, notes and tidbits type article so I copied the defensive part as I found it pretty intriguing.
Never heard of that from DCs. I'll admit, I'm insulated from the rest of league this time of year as I'm not really interested; but we change DCs about every two years and I don't remember any of our DCs being so 'up close and personal' on our turf.
How many times did we hear about communication issues last year? It was never-ending. Maybe this is an attempt to nip it in the bud. If they hear it straight from the horse's mouth, right there on the battlefield, there is no room for conjecture later.
I dig it. The last two years it seemed like two many players on D saw their position and disposition as some type of entitlement. "All I know is I was doin' my job". Got tired of hearing that trash when every week they pointed fingers at each other... and seemed downright allergic to all forms of accountability.
I wasn't looking for it but after you made your post about Swartz coaching the D from next to the center I found this video of him doing just that. Some of the commentary might be goofy but hey!
Obviously, "locks" is an opinion but I think he is pretty damn close if not spot on at this point. Maybe the team assumes Dunn is a lock after bringing him back but I think his contract is non-guaranteed so that's nothing concrete.
At DT, context and meaning are a scarecrow kicking at moving goalposts.
Probably 1 rb and 1 DT and probably a guard are locks to be kept. So 4 others. At least 1 will be a Ventron ST selection, so it's getting pretty tight.
Diabate might be a Ventrone selection. I think he could be a pretty good special team ace, but you also have Phillips and fields.
Should be a good competition across the board and in the end we are going to have to let a few pretty good players go.
If everybody had like minds, we would never learn.
Overall I feel pretty good about where the Browns are. We are not the front runner for the division.
Good.
We have revamped the defense. Put resources into areas of need especially along the D-front.
We have added good pieces to the WR room. DW has looked really good so far. Obviously, it is practice without pads. But he looks razor sharp throwing the ball.
If there is an area I have some concern about it is offensive tackle.
Wills, we know what he has been. He is still young but he has not improved much. Will he improve? Have to see it first.
Conklin returns. He has injury history. He has not played very well after he returned. He is 28. A patellar tendon tear is a bad injury. Really hard to recover from. We don't know if he will return to the pro bowl player he was before the injury.
The backups are unproven and young.
Hudson has not shown he could be a starter. Dawand Jones is a rookie. Hunter Thedford? Never heard of him. He is 6'6" 260lbs (?), He is 26 years old in his second year. Tyrone Wheatley Jr. ? Never heard of him. He is 6'6" 320lbs. He is 26 years old in his second year.
I can not say we have a legit backup at tackle?
If we get injuries at tackle. It could get bad quickly.
This is a position we need to watch closely as camp begins.
As with any deal, you never know until you know. Berry didn't know when he made the deal. Had we stood pat, we don't know if the player we might have taken at #42 would end up any good, so me me, two players increases your chances of it being a good deal for the team.
If everybody had like minds, we would never learn.
I agree with you that you don't know until you know. All we can lean on right now is how the results look at this point in time. I'm pretty high on both of those WR's so to me at least the early returns look good.
Intoducing for The Cleveland Browns, Quarterback Deshawn "The Predator" Watson. He will also be the one to choose your next head coach.
about 2 weeks ago a thought entered my mind, that, well, there actually could be a way the Browns could win it all this year and being a feasible logicaly felt thought that most years wouldn't fit, but... If Watson leaves the game in about the first @uarter of playoff game number 2... for whatever reason, and, if Dorian Thompson Robertson were forced into action... not, other @uarterback, Dobbs, probably a whole different vibe, but, if DTR came in and pulled out an orchestrated win in the divisional round, well he could provide a running @uarterback advantage, and a new @uarterback advantage that might get 2 more wins before the magic wore off, and those would end up being the Championship round and the super bowl round. But, why don't I think they could just win it all with Watson, because I've always thought Watson could be counted on to throw an interception to lose a playoff game by the end of round 2.
Can Deshaun Watson play better for the Browns, than Baker Mayfield would have? ... Now the Games count.
Schwartz’s emphasis on attacking shows up in the 7-on-7 sessions when he lines up two defensive ends who aren’t among the seven in the play and has them target two tackling dummies set up seven or so yards behind the line of scrimmage.
....
Imo it's about as smart/ would be about as smart as Wyle E. Coyote against the road runner looney tunes if your defensive coordinator let's the world know, including other coaches know, and then commits to only always rushing your two D ends to a known spot on the field. other NFL coaches will use that against you.
Can Deshaun Watson play better for the Browns, than Baker Mayfield would have? ... Now the Games count.
I don't know if there would be enough touches for him and Nick. I would think not with the expected passing game we will have.
I would be a luxury.
I think we are pretty satisfied with Nick and Ford as the primary back-up. Ford is unproven, but with our line near any back is going to look pretty good. If Ford falters or gets hurt, I think John Kelly could be a fine back for us, not to mention there are always backs to be had. If there is any position on the field where you can find at least a decent fill in player, it is running back.
At many positions if you are looking for fill-in guys you could have a significant drop off. I don't think that is the case at running back. The difference between the best back in the league and a middle of the road guy isn't a lot. The number of touches is as big a part of things as anything else. You might miss out on several of the breakaway runs, but when you are talking about a back-up, you aren't really expecting that. You are still going to get the 3-4-5 yards that you need. Those first 3-4-5 yards are almost always a result of blocking. The best backs don't look all that good if blocking doesn't open something up at the point of attack.
If everybody had like minds, we would never learn.
You're right about that. I'd rather have a luxury on the DL or OL.
Mostly so, but I might add a few other positions as well.
It's just a matter of supply. Running back is a position where there is ample supply.
In recent Browns history, just look at D Johnson and P Hillis. Both looked like world beaters when given a legit shot at carries, but for whatever reason were pretty easy to toss to the side. The reason is it is easy to find replacements unless you are Emmitt Smith.
If everybody had like minds, we would never learn.
One thing the NFL has proven is that with a good passing attack you can run the ball without a premiere RB effectively. It's obvious by the investments made that the Browns are focused on having an aggressive passing attack. Opposing defenses have to respect that and no longer will they have the ability to stack the box on defense. Cook would not only be a luxury, he would be a wasteful investment.
Intoducing for The Cleveland Browns, Quarterback Deshawn "The Predator" Watson. He will also be the one to choose your next head coach.
There is a reason that most, or many teams have dumped the Big linebackers in favor of smaller, or even extra DB types. Teams don't want or need big bruising backers like Lewis or Butkus anymore. They tend to go for more medium sized backers and more speed on the field.
JOK would haver never been considered for linebacker position 20 years ago. He would have been a slow safety.
If everybody had like minds, we would never learn.
Imagine the current Browns offense plus Dalvin Cook. It would be pretty sweet.
Cook would be a great addition but, with Chubb planned to have his carries reduced by 20-30 percent, how feasible is it to consider adding one of the top 5 RB's in the NFL to split those reduced carries with arguably the best RB in the NFL? Who could justify a plan to cut Chubb's carries by 50-60 percent from 2022? Cook is going to cost at a minimum of 10M - 12M multi-year contract to sign with the Browns. That would put the Browns RB's (Chubb, Cook, and Ford) cost for 2023 at a cap cost of around 28M. Is that a smart spend with an increase of a minimum of 25% more passing plays than 2022? Where do the Browns have their 2023 cap money invested?
I look at that locks etc spreadsheet and I wonder why there isn’t more chatter about LB’s. That was a major weakness of ours last year.
And no investment by the team into the position either. If the Browns defense struggles at all it will be the LB position and to a lesser extent DT.
Depends on what you mean by investment. They've invested three years in a row having Anthony Walker as a leader of this defense and he was playing extremely well according to PFF (82.7) as a top LB before going down. They moved UP in the second round to draft JOK in 2021. They re-signed Takitaki who, although I think is overrated, is beloved by many on here. That said..this team, like many others, view LB as the least important position group to invest in on defense. DI, DE, CB, S are all more valuable groups to allocate resources. And I don't think that's a wrong approach.
The major issue with LBs last year was (1) injuries as Walker, JOK, Phillips and Takitaki missed a combined 35 games, and (2) a poor DL, specifically the DI, that had a ripple effect to that unit's ability to make plays. This defense doesn't need a fantastic LB unit. It does, however, need a fantastic and deep DL and secondary.
At DT, context and meaning are a scarecrow kicking at moving goalposts.
I don't disagree with you but as far as the lowest spend, LB has a very poor monetary investment. Now the consensus is with an improved defensive interior (yet to be seen), the Browns will be a better team even with the poor monetary investment at LB. My point is that if they struggle, it will be because pf the LB position and to a lesser extent the defensive interior where they added bodies but did it on the cheap. This will be the 3rd straight year changing the DT group but still low investment in the position. I hoping they have it right this time, but it wouldn't surprise me if the struggles remain considering the lack of monetary investment in LB and DT.
Running back is a position where there is ample supply.
Over the last 3 to 4 years, some group that has a lot of ability to put it into the media has repeated, and repeated, and droned into, and repeated again, and overly repeated the line that the Rb position has become easily replaceable and therefore devalued.
It gives me pause that they repeat it sooooo often, b/c if it were at all true, there would be no need to repeat it, or even focus on it, sooo often.
Therefore, I pretty much conclude, it must be wishful thinking but not entirely true, on someones part, some groups part, maybe it's owners of teams, maybe it's people who sign paychecks who want to pay less to running backs.
Either way... overly repeating the line won't make it any more or less true when it comes to on the field, on gameday trying to actually win football games. And if they can't run the ball, >> well' pfft, we ALL know what happens.
Can Deshaun Watson play better for the Browns, than Baker Mayfield would have? ... Now the Games count.
I wish we would get something done to bring Hunt back, I’d feel better even if he just rode the bench all season. But if Watson under performs, doesn’t return to form, or goes down I would feel better knowing we have the dynamic duo to fall back on. At this point, a couple mil might do it.
I wish we would get something done to bring Hunt back, I’d feel better even if he just rode the bench all season. But if Watson under performs, doesn’t return to form, or goes down I would feel better knowing we have the dynamic duo to fall back on. At this point, a couple mil might do it.
Lolz.
At DT, context and meaning are a scarecrow kicking at moving goalposts.
I wish we would get something done to bring Hunt back, I’d feel better even if he just rode the bench all season. But if Watson under performs, doesn’t return to form, or goes down I would feel better knowing we have the dynamic duo to fall back on. At this point, a couple mil might do it.
Lolz.
AKA "the fall back plan". We need Hunt for the fall back plan. "Hey man, you never know".
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