5 reasons the Browns are better than you think

So the Brownies are fourth in the AFC North, have a 29-year old rookie quarterback, winter is coming, and their helmets are still logo-less. (Nothing against Paul Brown, but it's probably just as well).

But there's something about these guys. Five things, actually.

1) They're plucky. I mean they made Andy Dalton---the NFL's hottest of hot shots a year ago---look as potent as Gus Ferrotte during his all too brief Bengals era. Remember the infamous left-handed delivery against Cleveland in 2002? Oh, Gus.

2) Coming full-circle, Dalton threw equally awful picks of his own against the Browns in Week 6 of this season, and that's because Cleveland's defense was opportunistic, if not always on pace with Cincy's wideouts. They were excitable and it showed. The Dog Pound was pretty chuffed too.

3) The the Browns offensive line protected their ageing signal-caller, too, allowing him enough time to slap in his dentures, and launch a few. Brandon Weeden catapulted some beauties, in fact, especially the 71-yard score to fellow rookie Josh Gordon over the middle, and suddenly the Browns attack looked formidable.

4) In reality, they haven't been bettered by much over this early phase of the season: The Magnificent Eagles escaped with a single point win, and it's not like Buffalo and Cincinnati were resounding in their victories over the Browns. Let's keep things in perspective. The Browns are decent, and therefore beaming like their namesake for a moment.

5) "This was my best victory," Paul Brown told the Associated Press in 1970, after his Bengals defeated the Browns in the season's rematch. For Cleveland, this rematch win may end up being one of their best for 2012, and a genuine confidence booster in a season of incredible parity. 

Doubling down on quarterbacks

They say fortune favors the brave, and at The Quarterback Casino this week, there were five fearless bidders for Peyton Manning. But there were also four losers at the close, and no matter what you think was whispered behind heavy doors guarded by burly earpiece-toting goons, there was only ever going to be one awarded the spoils. So I think it’s a stretch for some pundits and fans to start tossing their complimentary cocktails at the GMs who sat down at the Peyton Hold ‘Em table and left short of a flush. Cards were dealt, faces turned to stone, and perhaps some Jennifer Tilly-style cleavage was even dropped. But once those cards tumbled, all bets were off. The public went into a frenzy and everyone with a Twitter account was ready to pounce with 140-character assassinations. Sure, it’s human nature to hope for a run of aces in such matters, but really, how often do you land a king? 

The Manning free agency story has reaffirmed an ugly truth about modern water-cooler conversation, and that’s that every opinion, and every warped or misguided piece of gossip is shaping the collective perception about sports stories, even if all the information published is inaccurate. In particular, I take exception to the incessant slaughtering of the Miami Dolphins, as both a brand and an organization, first by a number of columnists, and broadly across social media, as if their current circumstance - being a mid-tier ball club - is the result of a flawed business strategy. This so-called hopelessness, not merely the ups and downs of off-season gambling, is said to have undermined the Fins ability to sign Matt Flynn, and perhaps Alex Smith, too. Seriously? Somebody sound the shark alarm: the Dolphins are in trouble!

Even if the Fish are starting to smell, even if what chronic tweeters like the Steelers' Ryan Clark says is remotely true, we have no real evidence to suggest that it was the basis of Manning’s choice to play in Denver. The fact that John Elway is the head honcho in Mile High would indicate that Manning was hooked on the Broncos from the start. None of the other four teams in play employ Elway either, so in that regard, they were each equally disadvantaged, and equally flawed in their chase. But because Miami so hastily pursued Flynn after Manning, and missed there as well, the stink of the initial miscue is more pungent, at least in the public arena, where apparently opinion now trumps fact. That little context is provided to the endless vitriol of rumor spewed across the web, and that only a tiny percentage of people – usually players, agents, and some reporters are actually informed about these dealings – makes it implausible that we consider it, or that so many columnists fuel the fire further. In some cases, it seems, the players don't even know the truth themselves, as we saw with Smith traveling to Miami in search of new options.

And now the online consensus is that Miami's signing of David Garrard was a desperate and floundering move from an organization is complete disarray, due mostly to the perceived ineptitude of GM Jeff Ireland. Heck, fans in Miami have taken to the streets over this. My question to those spinning this agenda, including the Tweeters, Commenters, and News Churners, is what is the club supposed to do at this juncture? If they do nothing, after missing on two quarterbacks, one of whom hasn't proven a thing outside of playing well in two NFL games, then certainly their inactivity would be ridiculed. By inking Garrard, who has played well in recent seasons, including 23 touchdowns for a 90.8 QB rating in 2010, they at least have an additional QB option. If the team signed him after 2008's AFC Wild Card Game it would be regarded as genius. Instead, now, it's a major risk because what you did five minutes ago isn't just fresh in the mind, it means the world. In this light, Matt Flynn is a superstar because he won a meaningless game late last season.

Hey here's something to tweet: Matt Moore won six games last year as the Dolphins starter, and was a play away from beating both the Cowboys and Giants too.

This article first appeared on Technorati as Broncos Strong Hand, While Dolphins Go Fish 

The Peyton Problem

Come on now. This is becoming more excruciating than the Favre Fiasco. More intriguing than Maria Menounos' bikini bet. More persistent than the questionable sanity around the Lin phenomenon.

Where on earth is Peyton Manning playing next season?!

We all expect the Colts to sacrifice their franchise quarterback rather than pay him $28 million, which means there hasn't been this much speculation about a worn out 36-year old since Angelina Jolie's rakish appearance on the red carpet last week.

So what next?

Well...

The Stampede Blue blog has an interesting breakdown of Peyton's contract in Indy.

Revenge of the Birds take a look at the top contenders in the Manning sweepstakes, outlining the pros and cons of signing No.18. Interestingly, the reader poll below this post significantly favored the Arizona Cardinals.

The National Football Post's Andrew Brandt blogs for The Huffington Post this week, covering some of the trickier financial angles of the Colts dumping Peyton.

But if you're just over the whole thing and would rather some Manning-infused comedy relief, look no further than  Dave's Art Locker friends. Dave works Peyton's infamous frown into all 32 NFL logos. Nice job Dave.

Audibles: Manning and his future

So I'm introducing a new segment this week called "Audibles", where I post some worthwhile commentary from other blogs.

First up, Yahoo's Shutdown Corner ran a good piece today summarizing the agitated relationship between Colts owner Jim Irsay and quarterback Peyton Manning, with Irsay choosing the path of most resistance. Simply, Irsay places the "horseshoe" ahead of the player.

Enough quips have been made about Irsay's fashion sense so I won't try and articulate how he clearly places the pinstripe ahead of common sense. However, I will say that this kind of statement, whether you deem it to be fair or not, is so typical of a person preoccupied with business, and less vested in football and the people who make the game what it is. Maybe Manning does retire, and as fans we'll all be worse for it. But at some point the players responsible for making your club relevant again - after years of sheer wretchedness - deserve a morsel of respect. And perhaps Mr.Irsay, in this instance, Manning - the person - should come before your proverbial horseshoe.    

Swimming against the current on Andrew Luck

"Fish, I love you and respect you very much. But I will kill you dead before this day ends."

- The Old Man and the Sea

The Miami Dolphins have scuttled their chance at Andrew Luck, and how do you think Fins Nation is coping? I guess they're feeling betrayed or bewildered, to paraphrase Nathan Lane's Birdcage alter ego.

But unlike most Fish fans, I'm actually on board with Miami's new penchant for victory. Am I Ray Finkle crazy, you ask? Just maybe. But there's something about winning that defuses all pessimism, chases away the bats in the belfry, and turns the masochistic notion of self-inflicted defeat on its head.

Why - no matter what's at stake - would anyone want to lose professional football games anyway? Don't we have any pride or integrity anymore? Apparently, the alleged "Suck for Luck" campaign is far more enticing than doing the right thing. And, I guess, Miami haven't done the right thing at quarterback for a long, long time.

So whether the Dolphins intended to suck or not, the Luck conversation has taken its talents from South Beach to Indianapolis, a club whose lack of depth makes Paris Hilton look like Thomas Friedman. You have to feel for Colts fans, right? Without Peyton Manning in the line up, their team looks more like the 1986 iteration that lost its first 13 games than the championship-caliber squad No.18 usually commandeers. You see, so many questions churn through the mind of the hopeless fan: Do I even watch the game on Sunday? Are we really giving up, simply to secure one player in the next draft? Can Peyton and Andrew Luck co-exist anyway?

At least Colts owner Bill Polian appears at ease with the hopelessness: "The bottom line is that if the right person is there (in the draft), and it has to be the right person, then now is the time to make that choice," Polian said on his weekly radio show this month. "Peyton and I have spoken about that, and he's OK with that."

Well sure he is. Nobody's replacing one of the game's greatest ever quarterbacks as long as he's healthy. I don't care if you're Andrew Luck or the second coming of Johhny U. Peyton's job is safe for now, and that might just be enough to keep Colts fans from bolting naked across the prairies. The thing is, we'd get it if the fans surrendered altogether, wouldn't we? If they started burning throwback jerseys and lobbing horseshoes at each other. It's difficult to stay committed to an NFL season once your team is in a 0 - 3 hole, let alone 0-11.

Look, I've also watched my Miami Dolphins spiral this season, from a team that boasted a potential top five defense, and dynamic tailback ready for real superstardom, to an easy 'w’ for every opponent. Three games in, and the Fins were drowning. The offense sputtered, the defense floundered and the team's most important player, its quarterback, never warmed up more than, well, during the warm up. Suddenly, being a Dolphins fan really did suck. While other fans hovered excitedly around TVs and tailgates to cheer on their respective clubs, being a Finatic was nightmarish.

But thanks to the papers, bloggers, and constant chatter of social media, Dolphins fans were invited to rekindle interest in the season by supporting a losing cause. Sucking was the new planking, or something. Problem was, Coach Tony Sparano refused to sleep with the Fishes, and together with his staff, rescued Miami’s season against the odds. Sure, it won't be a playoff year, but suddenly things are looking, let’s just say, respectable.

In week 9, unloved back-up Matt Moore played perhaps the best game of his career in a 31-3 drubbing of the Kansas City Chiefs. Moore was 17 of 23 for 244 yards and three touchdowns, which was good for a 147.5 passer rating - the best in the NFL that weekend. Stats aside, it was Moore's new command of the offense and accuracy that wowed fans. His cross-field toss to Anthony Fasano after a fake roll out to the right was Brady-esque. It was the first win for Miami in 2011, and the onslaught was enough to earn Moore AFC Offensive Player of the Week honors from the NFL.

The consensus is that Moore isn't the long-term solution in Miami, but who cares? In week 10, he completed 20 of 29 passes for 209 yards, en route to a Fins 20-9 defeat of the Redskins. “Dolphans” haven't had this much fun since Chad Pennington showed up Brett Favre in the last game of 2008. Great Miami moments - save Fergie belting out national anthems and the occasional tennis star sighting - really feel like they're every three years or so now. But with Moore in the mix, the optimism needle is on the move. Last week, he kept the pedal down and threw 14 for 20 with three TDs. What's next, jumping the Jets in the AFC East? Well, as wide receiver Brandon Marshall told The Miami Herald after the Skins game, "Anything is possible."

So what if we don't get Luck. We've competed, and yes, conquered. Our season, which was close to being completely void, now has some meaning. Instead of asking what might have been, we can focus on what's happening - today. Our defense alone, led by the rampant Karlos Dansby, is worth the price of admission. In fact, as of Sunday, that group had gone twelve straight quarters without allowing a single touchdown. How do you like that action Rex Ryan?

Real Fins fans, the kind that care about their team each and every contest, are feeling pretty fortunate right now - big shot prospect or not.

So good luck to you Indy. But remember, fortune, as they say, favors the brave.

Article first published as Swimming against the current on Andrew Luck on Technorati.

Cassel: King for a day

Let's be honest, Matt Cassel has never really wowed us. He's more of a middle of the road quarterback - a player with a good arm that isn't always on target, or on time. We saw these flaws during Monday night's game, especially with a few overthrown balls and some poor communication with both team mates and the sideline. As a result, the Chiefs first two drives, which did include some third down conversions, amassed only three points.

But there's something about Cassel and these Chiefs. At least when they play at Arrowhead, with the crowd rocking like its an ACDC concert. Throw on the lights of Monday night, a few salivating maniacs in Halloween costumes, and you've got yourself a recipe for an AFC classic. Cassel threw some tidy balls Monday: there were a few  lasers over the middle, a couple of textbook play actions, some effective lobs out to the flat, and even a few bombs. His first quarter 39-yarder to Jon Baldwin was a beauty.

When Cassel settles in the pocket, loads, steps up and follows through, he looks like Tom Brady. Of course, that doesn't always happen, and it does help to have Jackie Battle ripping holes from the backfield. Good backs can make inept QBs look good. But certainly Cassel can impress when it counts. Maybe it's time we took former Patriots understudy more seriously. He did complete 19 of 32 passes, after all, and rallied the Chiefs to hit 50 per cent on their third down conversions. That meant an additional 20 points and equated to two more key down conversions than Phillip Rivers, who looked a shadow of his former self.

Cassel also kept his eyes down field, sensing the Charger corners pushing up on his receivers and accurately finding aerial paths to launch the ball into. At times, his passes looked high, or too far to the right, but then on second glance they were thoughtfully placed away from swiping hands of defenders.

Cassel isn't perfect, we know this. But he inspires confidence in his peers and is gutsy. His penchant for challenging coach Todd Haley is testament to this. But more importantly, he's a young quarterback who seems to be ascending. He doesn't need to wow us really, as long as he keeps the win column ticking over.

McFadden: Raiding the secondary

Darren McFadden is running wild in this 2011 NFL season, revving his motor in the Raider backfield before breaking to the wing and charging like a '64 Mustang. McFadden was always good - we knew this. But his transition to the NFL has been slow: his transmission, if you will, has gone from five to seven-speed in 2011.

McFadden turned up the turf and churned up the air against the New York Jets in Week 3, making a once stout defense look like the flag wavers at a Le Mans finale. The end result was 171 yards and two touchdowns. It also featured the longest dash of his career, a beautiful 71-yarder that saw the striding 6'2 Raider swing to the outside before flooring it in a series of brilliant bobs and weaves to the end zone.

Then, one week later, McFadden swept through the New England Patriots for 75 rushing yards and further 48 receiving. So in a single month of play, he has amassed 468 yards for a 6.2 yard average and three TDs. All of sudden, the Raiders have a back! - a rampaging and ruthless roadster that blazes across the pitch and turns a game on its head - something they've longed for since the days of Bo Jackson.

And McFadden isn't just any back: he's the type of runner that sees space and punches the gas, blasting into daylight like Andretti on the home stretch. It's that "next gear", as they say, which differentiates him from the plough horses and Clydesdales. In fact, McFadden's energy is more akin to a mustang: swift and untamed. But his technique is splendid: upright, pumping and purposeful. It's the sort of running we long for as fans but are so often under supplied. Adrian Peterson and Arian Foster break off these types of scampers, but somehow they haven't been as interesting lately. McFadden, by contrast, is grounding up the grass, and then bolting past the line, and Oakland's offense is immediately exciting.

With several of the NFL's worst rushing defenses to come, including Houston and Kansas City, there's potential for McFadden to log 1,500 yards this season. As Howard Cossell might have said: "He straightened, legs powering up to the mid-rift, and just like that, a silver and black blur left opposing defenders in a cloud of dust."




Article first published as McFadden: Raiding the Secondary on Technorati.