Sgt Schultz

Our backup QB position has been frightening since Anderson hung them up. We now have now two guys who statistically like to throw the ball to defenders. Darnold ranked 30th worst last year in interception percentage, and his number last year was right at as his career average. Walker's career number is twice Darnold's, and his best year (last year) made Darnold's 3.2% look like a good goal to improve to.

Yeah, nobody is saying Mayfield is not smart. I was just acknowledging that Brees processed information on the field very well, and that was one of his assets. Brees also played in an offense that was perfectly suited to his strengths. That was probably by design, but it had the impact of maximizing his performance and numbers. Most likely, Mayfield is going to be throwing the ball downfield more often by comparison, which will have an impact on his completion percentage and interceptions. I expect he will be earning his living with a lot of medium-range passes. Truth is, I don't think I want Mayfield in the offense Brees mastered. It would be about like putting Jim Kelly in a WCO. He can probably do it, but it does not take advantage of his strengths. If Mayfield can do well in the medium-range passes and take an occasional shot downfield, that will prevent opposing defenses from crowding the line and should open up a number of things, including the run. It has been a few years since our opponents have had to fear anything down the field.

I don't expect Mayfield to rival Brees, especially in completion percentage. They are very different QBs in very different offenses, thus far at least. Brees was smart and accurate. He didn't have the biggest arm. He played in an offense that was designed around accuracy and getting receivers the ball and letting them run. His offense in San Diego was certainly not wide-open (Marty Schottenheimer was his coach for his 4 seasons as the starter there), but it was not a precision-based passing game. Mayfield has a bigger arm and has worked in offenses that, when they were not running the football, were also more inclined to take downfield shots. That leads to a lower completion percentage and more picks. Mayfield is more of a gunslinger, although not purely so. None of that is a knock on Mayfield. But about their only similarities are size and the fact they are both QBs.

OK, I am missing something in this conversation. Cleveland sits right on the south shore of Lake Erie. The field in FirstEnergy Stadium is about 1,000 feet from the water. And you are correct, the wind, both velocity and swirling, can greatly handicap passes and kicks. Remember, the new stadium sits on the same site as Municipal Stadium did, or as it was lovingly known "the mistake by the lake."

We are set up like a miniature bureaucracy: it is next to impossible to figure out who is actually responsible for what. I hope things are clearer inside the organization than they are outside, but who knows?

If we don't do something to screw it up and can stay away from big or lingering injuries, our OL could be very good for a while. We need to get the center slot solidified, but otherwise they should all be somewhere in the good - very good range and are young.

Part of our problem the past two seasons was our regular season playcalling was about as vanilla as that in the preseason. Then add Brady's answer to something not working seemed to be to continue to do it until it did or the game clock finally put an end to things. Like you, I chalk that up to inexperience on his part, although we have seen coaches come through the NFL ranks that were just so married to "their system" they could not adjust to anything else. It was like a personal affront to switch away from it, even for a half. I tend to think McAdoo is not as good as his supporters claim nor nearly as bad as his detractors claim. But, if he just adjusts his game plans to the opponent each week and then can make more adjustments to what they are doing once the game starts, it has to lead to improvement even if everything else remained the same......which we hope it didn't.

That is the very problem that throttled our LBs in the past year or two. If the opposing OL can get to them, their ability to read and react goes in the tank. They can still read, but are in no position to react. I'm cautiously optimistic about our LBs talent, but they have to be kept clean by the DL.

Given what we have seen out of the NFL's discipline, I could see Sam Darnold being suspended two weeks because Aaron Donald was swinging helmets.

Apparently ESPN does not have great expectations for our season given the #7 draft pick. Given my thoughts on ESPN, that means we are in for a good year and will be drafting around #25.

I read their cap situation pretty much the same way. Shaq's number sticks out, as does Robbie's as "low hanging fruit." We brought Mayfield in on a one-year "show us" deal. If he shows us, he's done his part. Also, remember that beyond this year everything is a projection on what the cap will be. Somehow, the NFL usually squeezes a few extra million into that, it seems. A few million does not sound like much when you are looking at a cap of around $230M, but when you are up against it, every penny counts.

I can't tell, are there heads still in those helmets?

I don't buy it, either. The fastest way for a QB to win over a new team is to produce, gain their confidence, and show leadership in the huddle. How they got the job at that point is irrelevant. How he got the job is only an issue if he fails to produce, blames everybody around him for the failures, and can't lead buzzards to a corpse.

Nah, he's failing miserably. He's citing facts.

Geez, you guys are grasping at straws. The guys you cited all have NFL pedigrees before becoming HC’s. Zac Taylor spent 4 years with the Dolphins, then a pair of seasons with the Rams. Chuck Noll spent 5 years with the Chargers, then 3 as the Assistant HC to Don Shula with the Colts. Bill Walsh spent a year with the Raiders, 8 with the Bengals, then another year with the Chargers. These guys knew full well how to coach in the NFL. They were not busy trying to apply college techniques to professionals.

Chip Kelly took the Eagles to the playoffs his first year as HC with a 10-6 record. They were 4-12 the year before.

Me too. I should have known better. We spent our time evaluating how he was doing in competition with Walker rather than developing and evaluating, in that order of importance.

The benchmark for that is units looking like they are in sync (no gaffes about assignments that leave people unblocked) and just how rusty they look. Other than obvious screw-ups, if the OL picks up blitz assignments well (other than maybe the occasional delayed blitz), that is probably a decent indication. I keep pointing at the OL because that is where repetition as a unit is most obvious. But it can also be the back 7 on the defense. For whatever reason, I read an account of the Rams adjustments on the field for the final play of their Super Bowl win against the Titans eons ago, and it makes one appreciate the reads and communications on the field (in that case, adjustments called by the MLB and S). That stuff won't be perfect in September, but what we are looking for is groups that are familiar with what each other will do. A lot of this does not appear in the highlights or stats. It is underlying things that have to be seen by eye, and often after the fact. In short, "are they ready as units?" It does not quantify well. So, the debate will likely continue unless they are very polished or just horrible.

I do not see the Browns game as a huge benchmark of anything, unless it is a rout one way or another. My reasoning has nothing to do with reps, Rhule's playing checkers on the chess board, the phase of the moon, or much of anything else that has been discussed here. Increasingly over the years, the quality of play in the NFL is rough in September. The first four weeks of the season are about like two boxers "feeling each other out" in the opening rounds. There are teams that have been notoriously good in September and then flew south and became what everybody expected later. Likewise, there have been teams that have struggled in September, then found their legs and charged on. Our problem is that for the second consecutive year, we have three (or four if you count Arizona who has mailed it in against the Panthers since that infamous playoff game following the 2008 season) games that are easier potential wins than the bulk of our schedule. It does not bode well if we don't collect those wins, but in terms of "style points," I don't expect a lot from us or anybody else, nor do they mean much at that stage of the season.

We've been down that road before. We fans have a history of doing touchdown dances only to realize we are standing at the 25 yard line. Sometimes our own 25.

The heat certainly goes up if they lose both of those games. Once again this year, they have a chance to start out 3-0, maybe 4-0 if Arizona decides to lay another egg against the Panthers. That is a big opening stretch for them because the schedule does not get easier. I've said this before, I'm not sold on the Steelers and the Seahawks are in full rebuild mode. The problem is we play both of those teams late in the season, when their experienced coaching staffs had have a chance to steady things. But, yeah, some home wins would be rather important. Especially since 4 of the first 5 are at home, and 5 of the first 7.

I about choked on my tongue last night when I read somebody post that he had more wins his first two years than Jimmy Johnson. Yes, he did, true enough. The difference is Johnson took over a 3-13 team, led them to 1-15 his first year and turned them into a 7-9 team in year two and won Coach of the Year in doing so. We know where it went from there. Rhule took a 5 win team, led them to 5 wins in his first year and took them to......a 5 win team in his second, and they looked significantly less competitive in year two. Rhule either establishes an upward trajectory this year or Tepper needs to put an end to "the process." I can also see a scenario where he does not shake out of this, but he just restrains himself enough to not undo what the coaches around him are doing to achieve wins. Sort of Barry Switzer Lite. Not sure why we would continue to pay him $8.5M a year to NOT screw things up, but that is Tepper's call. And you are not giving Meyer enough credit. He was not just the mere #1 place holder. He is probably the #1 NFL buffoon of all times. All future coaching debacles will be judged against him.

I have no idea how this team will do this year. I have hope. That said, the only way Rhule is fired mid-season is: The team is 0-9 and generally not competitive He is caught embezzling team funds He is caught in a compromising position with Tepper's wife. I'm not so sure the third one gets him fired. Otherwise, if he warrants firing, it will be late in the season or once it is over.

FedEx Field must be build on the site of some ancient burial grounds. Between that curse and the walking curse named Daniel Snyder, they can't catch a break.