DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Pure Football Forum Mike Pettine

Sorry if this was already posted but I just watched it and felt it was worthy to post. Nice little interview with Pettine:

http://www.clevelandbrowns.com/media-cen...58-f360d90fe1f7

Desir

i agree. UDFA are absolutely a sign of a good/bad GM.

Seattle has gone to back to back SB, winning 1, with a bunch of starters and depth guys that were 3rd rounders or later.

i understand the importance of hitting on 1st and 2nd rounders, but to dismiss the rest because they came later is agenda posting.

Lest we forget, last year was Farmer's first as a GM, Pettine's first as a HC. These are both complicated and nuanced jobs. Very few have ever, or can, step into them and nail it with their first attempt, especially with so many more experienced opponents looking to use that inexperience to their advantage. There is a learning curve.

I thought they both had fairly good overall first years. Both showed room for improvement, deficits that need to be corrected. But that is pretty much what rookies do. I am looking for improvement, and expect that within 3-5 years, they both will have found their stride and established themselves at their level of competence.

J/c:

I still don't get the love for Desir????????

The guy was terrible. He played late in the year and gave up 6 first down passes in one game alone. And then people complain about Skrine and Gipson.

Farmer at Senior Bowl 2014

I don't know if he was a steal and I could care less if he was on the all-rookie team.. but among rookies he finished 4th in ypg.. with Crowell finishing 7th. Hill from Cincy was the best rookie RB and Tre Mason was a good second, then there is a host of them all lumped together with similar stats.

Both West and Crowell suffered in the middle of the season for a few games when Mack when down and we couldn't run the ball AT ALL..

What did you say that made him want to admit he was incorrect?

How was West such a great value in the third round?

And is he really worth giving up a 4th and 6th round pick to move up to get him in the 3rd?

Let's see...........Terrance West = a 3rd, 4th, and 6th round picks????


Are you kidding me?

That was AWFUL!

Given need at RB, I think it was a decent move. There was talk that Baltimore was going to try and take him, I believe. I liked the pick at the time and still do. One thing we can say going into this year is that the RB situation isn't a need.

My problem was the choice at QB given the options and the error of not addressing the WR with one of the top 4 picks in a deep draft. Outside of the first round, I like what Farmer brought in and also like the UDFAs that were brought in. We found some needed talent in Crowell and Gabriel.

People make out like Farmer has been entirely inept at his job. While the texting issue is pretty bad, as far as talent aquisition through 1 offseason, he did better than most we've had at GM.

I've come to the same conclusion, it was a sub-par draft at best but I'm more than willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.

Having said that, why has this thread titled "Mike Pettine" turned into a Ray Farmer debate?

Because its hard to find things to bitch about as far as pettine is concerned?

I still like Pettine AND Farmer. For a first year like they were handed, I think they did well enough. I expect it to begetter going forward for the pair. Why are we still flogging last year? Will it change?

Hope somebody calls the ASPCA for what we are doing to these dead horses. . . .

With the exception of Manziel, nobody else we picked entered the draft with baggage that said they might be or have a problem with work ethic.

Even Manziel wasn't considered a problem child from a work ethic standpoint. His problems were him being a party animal.

I think if anyone is going to pick on ONLY the mistakes then there are no teams that haven't made them, Fire everyone

We also picked up some guys that are doing a great job. And we snagged some UDFA's that are really showing signs of being significant contributers.

Shouldn't Farmer get credit for the Good as well as the bad (or at least the picks that appear today to be bad, we don't know how they will work out)

Dear Damanshot: Since it's your birthday - congratulations! You get to make positive posts highlighting the good things you see in the Browns organization. After today you'll have to focus on the negatives only please.

You begin by saying:



You end with:



If you think West was worth a 3rd, 4th, and 6th.........well then............Nevermind.

Here's what coach Mike Pettine is saying about the Browns

By NATE ULRICH Published: April 21, 2015

Browns coach Mike Pettine met with reporters Tuesday after the second session of the team's voluntary offseason conditioning program. Below is a transcript from the news conference.

Opening statement: “It’s great having our players back in the building. This is always a big day for the coaching staff. We’ve missed having them here. I don’t know if I can say that’s a mutual feeling – whether they’ve missed us – but we’ve certainly missed them. When the season ends the way our season ended, especially have that bad taste in your mouth…Obviously, made some staff changes and analyzed our system from a personnel standpoint, from a scheme standpoint, from a structure standpoint. Made a lot of changes and a lot of thoughts moving forward, and have been planning for this day for a couple months now. This is really the process of building the team. The 2015 season started today. It’s good to get the new faces here along with the old ones…Just getting everybody together and beginning to bond. You’d like to think that the start of the season is so far off, and it truly isn’t. We have them for nine weeks now. Then, there will be a little bit of a break in late June, early July. Then, we’ll be right back at it in training camp. We get two weeks of phase one, three weeks of phase two – which is just essentially phase one, but we’re allowed to go out on the field – then three weeks of OTA practices (organized team activities). Then, we’ll have the mandatory minicamp. I believe it’s the third week of June. Again, it’s just nine weeks, and we have a lot to get done. It’s really on two different fronts.
“Offensively, I don’t want to say we’re starting new because there’ll be a lot of carryover, a lot of carryover with the terminology. Having (offensive line coach) Andy Moeller and (assistant offensive line coach) George DeLeone still here as the offensive line coaches – I think that’s a great benefit. They’re both outstanding teachers, and were very influential last year in what we did. There’s a lot of carryover. From a playbook standpoint, it’s a lot easier to keep the terminology the same for the players and have the coaches adapt. ‘Flip’ (offensive coordinator John DeFilippo) will be the first one to tell you that. He was able to adjust to some of the terminology before. It’s not starting over brand new from a system standpoint.
“Defensively, I know those guys are excited going into Year Two – just kind of having so many more answers to the test, whether that’s knowing our players better, knowing our opponents better and just our own scheme better. Then, having the ability to get through that film and some of the problems that are well-documented – looking to get them fixed. Today is also the start of that, as well.
“From an injury standpoint, several guys coming off surgeries. They all appear to be on schedule at this point. You know I’m not a big fan of talking about that in the offseason. These guys have all been very quietly working hard to rehab. We look forward to getting them back at some point. I had everybody in the team meeting stand up yesterday and give us the most interesting place where they had been since the season ended. There were some interesting answers, but four or five guys weren’t real happy. They just kind of said they never really got that far out of the training room. That was the most interesting place they had been. We had (defensive lineman) Armonty (Bryant) with the knee, (offensive lineman) Michael Bowie with the shoulder, (linebacker Darius) Eubanks with the shoulder, ‘Kitch’s (defensive lineman Ishmaa’ily Kitchen) leg, (offensive lineman Alex) Mack’s leg, (linebacker Barkevious) Mingo’s shoulder, (defensive lineman) Phil Taylor with the knee. Those guys are all…It was all very encouraging. Everything went well. We expect them all…it’ll be at varying times. Some guys will be limited through the spring. Some guys will be full go. Some guys will be full go the start of training camp. It’s good to have everybody back. This is always a very positive day. It’s a day that’s been circled on our calendars, coaches, for a long time.”

On if there was a need for quarterback Johnny Manziel to address the team yesterday and the interaction that has taken place between Manziel and the team: “When he’s here in the building he’s just one of the guys. There was no big part of the team meeting where he got up and spoke. The interaction, I know he has guys that he’s close to that I’m sure he’s had interaction with even before he stepped foot in the building yesterday. I’m sure he’ll handle that as he sees fit, but for us as a staff, he’s here. I’m not sure the exact count of guys we have here, but he’s just one of the guys here working hard.”

On defensive back Joe Haden saying that Manziel was in the building until 3 p.m. on Monday and if he was staying late on Tuesday as well: “I don’t know that. I don’t know if he’s here. After the allotted time is up, I know a lot of guys have lunch and they stick around and do some extra stuff. It was my understanding that he was one of those guys yesterday.”

On if Manziel sat down and talked with Pettine one-on-one: “I’ve spoken with him. You used the right word. It was private.”

On if Manziel was able to work out during the offseason: “It’s my understanding that he was able to.”

On if has seen or expects any difference in Manziel’s work ethic now that he’s back in the building: “I see him right now as just one of several of our guys. The Cleveland Browns, they’re all here. They’re all working hard, especially on offense. They have a new system to learn. I sat in on the quarterback meeting yesterday. Every guy in that room is raring to go.”

On quarterback Josh McCown likely being the starter this season and if Manziel, Thad Lewis and Connor Shaw are all in the same group after him:“We’re a ways away from just kind of worrying about how the depth part of it shakes out. Again, they’re all in that room, and they’re all trying to learn it. Josh, obviously, has an advantage having been in this system where there’s a lot of carryover because he worked with Flip before. I know a lot of those similar roots are in there, but we don’t really kind of get into depth charts and where guys are. This is Day One. Guys are working out with (strength and conditioning) Coach (Paul) Ricci, (assistant strength and conditioning) Coach (Mike) Wolf and (assistant strength and conditioning) Coach (Derik) Keyes in the weight room. They get two hours of classroom work with their coordinators and the position coaches.”

On if McCown is the No. 1 quarterback on the roster: “No, at this point we don’t have a game this weekend. I’m not going to get into penciling in guys and, ‘Hey, this guy’s a starter.’ We thrive on competition. I’m not prepared to make that statement yet.”

On Haden saying that Manziel is different and motivated now and what his sense is of Manziel’s mentality: “I’ve seen that, as well. I do think – this is the one comment that I’ll share that Johnny’s made because he’ll be the first one to say it – ‘Don’t judge me on my words. Judge me on my actions.’ That’s something that in the past, even I’ve been critical of him where, ‘Hey, the actions have to match what he’s saying. He’s saying the right things, but it’s not adding up by what he’s doing.’ That’s really been a big part of his message coming out.”

On if Manziel has been allowed to view the playbook at all over the last couple months: “From a CBA (collective bargaining agreement) standpoint, he can’t have meetings and go over any of that stuff. It’s all pretty clearly spelled out. We can’t have any interaction other than, ‘Hey, how are you doing?’”

On Chris Mortensen reporting that the Browns are not expecting a lot from Manziel: “I think he used the number 90 percent. I use that number 90 percent too about the accuracy of reports that are out there of being 90 percent inaccurate. I don’t know where he would have gotten that from. [He’s] very much in our plans, and as we said, his career with us just hit the pause button. We’ve said this before that, ‘[He’s] got to get himself right as a person first before we worry about Johnny the football player.’ I filed that one in the ‘ridiculous category’ when it was brought to my attention.”

On if team’s approach going forward will be that Manziel is just one of the guys and if they can do that with someone with his public persona: “I think you can because a lot of that persona is outside of the building. I don’t think he wants it. He doesn’t carry himself that way. Certainly, when he’s here he is one of the guys and doesn’t expect treatment any other way. For where he was a year ago as the backup quarterback, he’s in that quarterback room today and you would not – you just addressed it – consider him the starter. That’s how he’s going to be treated, as well. I know that persona stuff is out there, but if you ask the players – and they’re probably the best ones to ask – I don’t think they see that they feel the need or have ever felt the need to treat him any differently.”

On if the Browns’ roster is better or worse this season after the moves in free agency: “That would fall into making that judgement of looking at our roster on paper. To me, it’s on the field where we’ll be judged. We look at the moves that we made as we felt were very positive, but it’s all going to come down to ‘how does this group play together?’ When you lose some guys and you add some new, especially at some key positions, it’s not just the talent alone or the past production alone. It’s chemistry. It’s how do these guys fit in? How do they fit in the locker room? How do they interact with each other? Now, drop on top of it too you have a new offensive coordinator, some new faces on the offensive staff. You’re throwing a lot of new together, and I’m very interested to see how that will all hash out. We feel very positive about it, but it’s again ultimately judged on how things go in the fall.”

On what lessons he can take away from last year’s draft given some of the immaturity issues of the team’s top picks and what sort of opportunity it is to have two first-round picks again this year: “I’ve talked about this before. One thing we don’t want to do is overreact to that. We have a process that we go through in researching these players that we don’t want to just go to a knee-jerk reaction and say, ‘Hey, if a guy has any type of issue in his background then he’s off the board. Then, our draft board would fit on that (holds up sheet of paper). I think it’s important that we get a good sense of who these players are coming in and take advantage of the chances we get to interact with them. I just feel so much better in Year Two. To me, it was a natural thing that between (General Manager) Ray’s (Farmer) staff and the coaching staff just getting on the same page. I just feel – and hopefully Ray will be able to speak to this as well – that from an evaluation of players standpoint, that we’re a lot more on the same page this year. Year One, you’re usually all over the map. You have grades from the previous fall, and it was for a different system. Now that the scouting department has a better feel for who we are and what we’re looking for, I just feel we’re a lot more together on the perspective draft picks.”

On if the chain of command will be any different for the NFL Draft this year:“No, that’s a better question for Ray. Coaches are very much involved in it, but there’s no…Ray’s in charge of the draft. He’s in charge of the 53-man roster and the practice squad, but I don’t think he sees it that way. I know he’ll say its final call on it, but coaches are very involved in it. I think that’s a big part of the process is making sure that we are on the same page and we view players the same and that we all feel good about the players that we select and add to this roster.”

On if he has a different opinion on Shaw as a future quarterback after seeing him play in the final game of the season last year and where he is in the order of quarterbacks on the roster: “He’s definitely in the mix, and he proved it because he went out on a Sunday in the NFL and he performed. It didn’t come as a big surprise that he was able to do some of the things that he did because he had shown it on the practice field. He’s easy to overlook, very quiet, doesn’t say a lot. It’s like he’s on a budget for words for the year. I thought he did a good job that week. I think he spoke more that week than he had all season because he actually had to call plays in the huddle instead of working them off a scout card. I think that’s just kind of how he’s been his career. He’s not the tallest and he doesn’t have the biggest arm from a measureable standpoint, but in his own way he’s got a very subtle ‘it’ factor to him. I think guys responded to him that week, and he certainly – through that week and how he played – has earned the right to be in that quarterback room this year and be a part of it.”

On if he's seen Haden grow as a leader in the past year: "It's hard to say because I wasn't here before to know how vocal he was or what kind of leader his was, but Joe has been great for us. It's nice to have that kind of personality in the room. I think you need a couple of those guys. As you probably know, it's hard to be in a bad mood around Joe. He just always has a smile on his face, always very positive – kind of like me. But he's been great. I think a big part of it, too, is because I think his confidence has grown. I think one of the reasons why is the guys that we have coaching him are outstanding. He realizes that and he's bought in. I think he made some subtle improvements to his game, his technique and has raised his game to another level. I don't know if you asked him this or not, but I think when he got his contract, he felt some of the responsibility there of, 'Hey, listen, this team has invested in me; that's a two-way street.' I think he took it upon himself when he saw some young corners in that room and some of the other DBs to kind of step up, he and Whitner, to lead them.

On if he was surprised that Haden invited defensive back Justin Gilbert to work out with him in the offseason: "No, not at all. It would have surprised me if he hadn’t.”

On if trading up in the draft to select a quarterback is still a possibility: “I think everybody’s at the point where all the teams call around. They call each other. I think everybody says, ‘Hey, we’re looking to trade up. We’re looking to trade down.’ I think you never truly know until you get close. I think people naturally assume that we can be a part of it because of having the extra pick, maybe having a little bit more ammunition then some other teams would. Just makes for good filler material for you guys, good draft talk.”

On if the Browns are getting extra calls from teams: “I think all the teams communicate. I think we showed last year that we’re willing to move. I think when you get that reputation of moving either way that…because it always takes two. You’ve got to have a willing trade partner, and we showed last year that we were willing to move. I’m sure given the picks that we have this year that Ray’s phone will be ringing.”

On if the Browns are still open to the option of trading up in the draft to select quarterback Marcus Mariota: “Sure. Why not? (joking with a big grin on his face) As we get closer, we’ll really hone in on the draft strategy stuff. In my opinion – and I talked about it last year – it’s all about value, making sure that you’re getting value for the pick and you’re adding value to your roster and players that can help in the short term and in the long term.”

On the chance that Taylor is the answer at nose tackle: “I think he flashed last year, his ability in this system to make plays. We’re optimistic that he’s going to recover fully from the injury and be a big factor for us.”

On how DeFilippo has done so far in the first two days and what Pettine has done with the offense: “I’ve sat in the back of the room with my notebook and been like a rookie quarterback. I’ve taken a lot of notes and sat in a quarterback meeting, as well as his install meetings. I thought Flip was outstanding. It was a day – and he’ll tell you – he’s prepared for this day for a long time. He hit it out of the park. I told the players in the team meeting that, ‘I can tell you why I hired the guy, but when you have your first meeting with him you’ll see why.’ To me, it comes down to it’s passion and it’s energy. He was great. It would be difficult to dose off in one of his meetings. I’ll put it that way.”

On experimenting with Armonty Bryant at outside linebacker and why he thinks that might work: “I just think his skill set…If we do put him there I don’t know how much we’ll drop him. I think it also falls back on the concept of you fit your system to your players not your players to your system. We talk about wanting to get our best 11 out there. If he shows that ability to rush the passer, especially on early downs, it makes sense to get him out there. When I was in New York and we had (linebackers) Bryan Thomas and Calvin Pace – were really mirrored guys and they both could rush, they both could drop – we played a certain way. Then when we went to Buffalo and had a (defensive end) Mario Williams, we wanted him going at the quarterback and very few times going the other direction – adapted it to take advantage of that skill set. I see this as a very similar situation.”

On how beneficial it is for the terminology of the offense to be similar to last year, especially for a young quarterback like Manziel: “I think it’s helpful because I think we all know kind of the history of offensive coordinators and the number of systems that our veteran players have had to play in. For us to carry over not just the terminology, but like I said, half that coaching staff, as well. Having (running backs coach) Wilbert (Montgomery) and (tight ends coach) Brian Angelichio and Andy (Moeller) and George (DeLeone) who I already mentioned – I think that’s been a big plus. I think it was kind of like best hits. They took what they liked from the previous system, and then built it around what Flip wanted to bring to the table, as well. I think they did a good job of kind of building it from scratch and making it much more of a logical teaching progression. Certain letters, words that start with certain letters meant certain things. I thought they compartmentalized it really well and, I think, made it very player-friendly from a learning standpoint.”

On if he believes that Manziel is worth everything that the Browns have to go through with him: “I don’t know if I can answer that question. I don’t see it as he’s putting us through something or it’s been a huge negative. This is a guy that’s had some off-the-field…As any other player, if they had other off-the-field issues we would handle it the same way. We’re going to coach him hard. We obviously saw a lot of ability in him last year to draft him where we did. We’re just very much looking forward to getting him back out there on the field. I know he’s looking forward to it, as well.”

On defensive back Tashaun Gipson regarding his contract situation: “I don’t like talking about that stuff. I tell the players this too that you never want the business side to affect the football side. It’s obviously a very positive thing, in my mind, that we had a player…Here’s a guy that was undrafted that played well enough to warrant getting himself going into that second contract a sizeable second contract. I see that as a positive, and I think we’re very optimistic we’ll get that worked out. ‘Gip’s (Gipson) a guy that this is all voluntary. He does not need to be here. I don’t have much of a comment on that other than we’re very hopeful that it’ll get done. That’s a good problem to have – when you have a good player and you’re wanting to pay him.”

On the vibe that he’s getting from McCown: “I think he spoke today. Josh, he’s very positive. He sees himself as a leader, but also sees himself as part of that leadership is helping the younger players. This is a guy that’s been a lot of places, has seen a lot. Like I said, he’s very positive. He’s going to be an asset for the Browns, both on and off the field.”

On if any players other than Gipson have not attended voluntary workouts:“We had a handful of guys that was not here. I’m not going to say excused because it’s voluntary, but it was all personal reasons. They’ll be here. Some will get here today, some tomorrow. They were all guys that reached out to me that I was well aware of. It was just maybe three or four guys.”

link

Good words from Pettine. Gives us a reason for optimism...

Shortly after that, he said something like "I'm not sure you could doze off in one of his meetings", I like high energy guys. If Flip has 1/4 of energy as that Jim O'Neil, then we can say we have two highly energetic coordinators.


PS, I'd recommend everyone goto Cleveland Browns.com and watch the 16 min Pettine presser. Great presser IMO.

Sure is. I'm not sure when I felt this positive towards our head coach. Haslam, IMO, made the right call! IMO, I think other teams that needed a head coach at the time we was shopping would have gobbled Pettine up if they knew the future of what he's doing here n how he goes about business.

I hated it when Chud was fired. I liked him as a coach, and I still think that he is a very bright and capable coach, who will get another chance, and who will be a very good head coach in the NFL. However, we appear to have got very, very lucky with Pettine. He has some room to grow, but he has the leadership and delegation aspects down pat.

Same thought chud had his legs chopped off then fired because he couldnt run fast enough but with that said, I think Pettine is the right man for the job.

IMO, Chud is an offensive coordinator and there is where he can flourish. Assistant coach could help him later on down the road to be a real head coach and maybe it will, but I always felt Chud was too much a players coach and, bluntly saying, just too soft. Like Romeo.

Plus, I'm a fan of "may the best player win the job" motto, Chud didn't abide by that.

It would of been messy watching Chud handle the JF fiasco and etc. We'd likely never even know who or what Kuan Williams is because Chud would have started Gilbert regardless of how bad or unprepared he was (bumping Buster to nickel).

Hate ripping Chud, I loved the hire at the time it was announced and being a Ohio native, but yeah he did minimal to win my faith when he was the rookie head coach here. All just my opinion / perspective.