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Cleveland Browns News

Mike Holmgren affirms his confidence in new offensive coordinator Brad Childress
February 9
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
"Mike Holmgren is confident that former Vikings head coach Brad Childress is the right man for the Browns' offensive coordinator position. "Brad's an outstanding coach," the Browns' president said on the team's radio show Wednesday night on ESPN850. "I've known him a long time. When I first met him, I had just arrived in Green Bay and Brad was on the staff at the University of Wisconsin with Barry Alvarez and he had been friends with [Eagles coach] Andy Reid and so we knew some people and became pretty close. So that's about 20 years ago. [We had a] connection over the years because he worked for Andy in Philadelphia and Andy and I are very close. "I thought he did a really great job in"
Giants aren't a Super blueprint for the Cleveland Browns
February 9
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 columnist Bud Shaw
"New York, New York, a team so unimpressive in 2011 they lost seven times... The New York Giants aren't the greatest Super Bowl champ we've seen. Not close. They are, however, the most appropriate. Thanks to labor strife, the 2011 season was a rush job. Who better to prevail than the first 9-7 Super Bowl winner in history, a team that spent most of the season looking like strangers stuck in an elevator together, a team that won it all in part because it overcame even more fumbling against the surprisingly skittish Patriots. What helped the Giants in their own division is that the Philadelphia Eagles' "Dream Team" appeared to leave meetings at the team hotel and take 53 separate elevators to"
Cleveland City Council OKs $5.8 million for stadium repairs
February 7
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"The city has agreed to give the Cleveland Browns a $5.8 million lump sum for stadium repairs, but public officials worry about the source of such payments after a countywide tax for maintaining the building runs out in 2015. City Council voted 16-2 Monday to let the team take the money from a city-administered tax on alcohol and tobacco sales. Cleveland, which leases the stadium to the football team, is required to provide only $850,000 a year for major improvements. Browns general counsel Fred Nance, who represented the city when the lease was negotiated, said $850,000 was a compromise at the time the agreement was drawn up. He said the amount, equal to less than 1 percent of the"
On Super Sunday, do the Cleveland Browns have a super plan to get their QB?
February 6
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
"Fifteen years ago, Mike Holmgren and his quarterback shared the cover of Sports Illustrated's Super Bowl XXXI preview edition. Above the headline, "The Missing Links," Holmgren was pictured stabbing a sausage (get it?) while seated next to Brett Favre at a landmark Green Bay diner. Inside told a story of how Green Bay landed its franchise quarterback, how it almost tossed him aside and how patience (and talent) won out. In the retelling, you could find reasons to draft Robert Griffin III, chase Matt Flynn in free agency or stick with Colt McCoy. There is something for everybody, except the definitive answer necessary for this franchise to get out of first gear in its drive to anything"
Griffin tells SI, NFL Network he wants to go to Colts
February 6
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
"Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III, who was in Indianapolis all week participating in Super Bowl events, told two national media outlets he would like to be selected No. 1 by the Colts. Some draft experts, including Mel Kiper Jr., predict the Browns will draft Griffin, even if they have to trade up from No. 4 to No. 2 get him. "Hopefully I'll end up [in Indianapolis] via the draft, but I have no control over that," Griffin told Sports Illustrated on Friday. "All I can control is what I say and what I do, and I plan on saying the right things and just being myself, and doing everything I possibly can to show everyone I am the best.""
Browns not on Manningham's mind, especially today
February 5
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
"When Warren native Mario Manningham was a toddler, his grandfather, Gerald Simpson, tried to mold him into a Browns fan. "I was about 4 years old, and he used to put me in this too-small Browns outfit," said Manningham. "Even after I grew out of it, he used to tell my mom to put it on me on Sundays. He really wanted me to like the Browns, but I didn't." While his grandfather was a diehard Browns fan, his grandmother, Dea, was a Steelers fan. "Most of the time, my grandmother won the bets," he said. With Manningham's contract up after this season, would he like to end up in Cleveland? It would certainly make grandpa happy. "I don't know where I'm going to end up," he said. "I'm not really"
Bill Belichick planted seeds of success with Browns in Cleveland
February 4
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
"Covering Bill Belichick in the Super Bowl here this week transports me back to the five years I covered him in Cleveland (1991-95). They were some of the most difficult years of my life -- and some of the most rewarding. Belichick was a first-time head coach, and I was a first-time Browns beat writer. We both made plenty of mistakes, but we both learned a lot during those years. If you can survive covering Belichick your first time up, you can handle almost anything on a beat. In fact, the writers during those years bonded through our adversity and still laugh about it. There was the time Ed Meyer from the Akron Beacon Journal tried to get to the bottom of why Belichick replaced the"
NFL expands Thursday schedule
February 4
New York Post
 
"Are you ready for a lot more prime-time football? NFL commissioner Roger Goodell used his annual Super Bowl news conference yesterday to reveal the league is dramatically expanding the Thursday night package on its own network starting this fall. In what appeared to be a way to up the pressure in its long-running dispute with Time Warner Cable and Cablevision over New York-area carriage of the NFL Network, the league said that channel will now show Thursday games from Week 2 through Week 15. The NFL Network previously broadcast Thursday games the final eight weeks of the season, but Goodell said the expansion resulted from a desire to guarantee every team in the league at least one"
Haden is confident secondary will thrive
February 3
Akron Beacon Journal
 
"Browns cornerback Joe Haden didn't learn the name of his new defensive backs coach until Thursday, more than a week after Tim Hauck was hired to guide the organization's young secondary. Hauck has replaced defensive backs coach Jerome Henderson, who left the Browns in January to fill the same role for the Dallas Cowboys. Adjusting to life without Henderson could prove to be a challenge, but Haden is confident the Browns' pass defense, which ranked second in the NFL during the 2011 regular season, will continue to thrive. Haden doesn't need to meet Hauck to believe it. He can already feel it. "In the secondary, I feel like we want to be one of the focal points of the team," Haden said"
Browns 'flop' Gerard Warren remembered as player with heart by former coach
February 3
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
"Former Browns interim head coach Terry Robiskie watched Patriots and former Browns defensive tackle Gerard Warren drill Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco during the AFC Championship Game to help New England reach the Super Bowl, and it took Robiskie back. It was during the 2004 season, when Robiskie tried to find Warren's heart under all his bling and attempted to convince the Browns and the fans that "Big Money" was worth more than a hill of beans. "I discovered that season that Gerard Warren had an unbelievable passion for the game and a desire to win, and he just needed somebody to believe in him," said Robiskie, now an assistant with the Falcons. Robiskie was named interim coach Nov. 29,"
Goodell: If NFL expands, it'll add two more teams
February 3
CBSSports.com
 
"It's no secret the NFL wants to expand to Los Angeles. And while so much of the attention has been focused on which franchise would relocate to L.A. -- whether it's the Chargers, Vikings, Jaguars or Rams -- we haven't discussed much the possibility of the NFL expanding. Apparently, that's an option. Commissioner Roger Goodell said Thursday on Costas Live on the NBC Sports Network that if the league places a team in L.A., the NFL probably would add two more franchises to make it an even 34. Goodell said the league "doesn't want to move any of our teams" and "we probably don't want to go to 33" if the NFL decides expansion is a good choice."
Former Eagles Westbrook, McNabb endorse Childress
February 2
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
"Former Eagles Super Bowl quarterback Donovan McNabb strongly endorsed former Eagles assistant Brad Childress as the Browns' new offensive coordinator on Wednesday. "I think he'll do a good job with Colt McCoy and the rest of the quarterbacks that he has," McNabb said Wednesday on Radio Row in Indianapolis. "He'll cater to their strengths and put [McCoy] in a great position. They have a lot of young talent. I'm sure they'll build the offense and defensive lines throughout the draft. That's sort of what Brad is all about. It's going to be a fun time for Brad and Pat [Shurmur] both." McNabb went to four straight NFC championship games and a Super Bowl with Childress as his quarterbacks coach"
Cleveland Browns have renewed interest in keeping Peyton Hillis?
January 31
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
"The Browns would like to re-sign running back Peyton Hillis, who worked his way back into the team's good graces over the final six weeks of the season, a league source said. Hillis, who becomes an unrestricted free agent March 13, showed the Browns enough over the final six games -- both on and off the field -- that they'd like to have him back at the right price. The Browns can re-sign their own free agents at any time. General Manager Tom Heckert said at the end of the season that the Browns would talk to the agents for all of their free agents and hoped to re-sign some. He cited D'Qwell Jackson and kicker Phil Dawson as two the Browns would pursue."
Brad Childress returns to coaching with Browns
January 28
Minneapolis Star Tribune
 
"Brad Childress' return to the NFL will come as offensive coordinator of a Cleveland Browns team that scored only one more point (218) than it did as an overmatched first-year expansion squad in 1999. Fired as Vikings head coach after a 3-7 start in 2010 and out of football for the first time in 33 years in 2011, Childress was reunited with fellow former Eagles assistant Pat Shurmur, who is coming off a 4-12 season in his first year as an NFL head coach. It's unknown whether Shurmur, who went without an offensive coordinator in 2011, will hand over the play-calling duties to Childress, whose only experience with calling plays came as a first-year head coach with the Vikings in 2006. "I know"
Browns hire Brad Childress as offensive coordinator
January 28
Akron Beacon Journal
 
"The Browns hired Brad Childress as their offensive coordinator Friday, a move they hope will give coach Pat Shurmur the support he needs to spearhead a turnaround. Childress, a former head coach of the Minnesota Vikings, will be expected to help reverse the fortunes of a dismal offense. With Shurmur juggling the duties of a rookie coach and an offensive coordinator, the Browns ranked 29th in offense (288.8 yards per game), 30th in scoring (13.6 points per game) and finished the 2011 season with a record of 4-12. Shurmur vowed to hire an offensive coordinator and even suggested he might forfeit his play-calling duties during his season-ending news conference this month. Shurmur will retain"
Brad Childress will help with plays and in other ways
January 28
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 columnist Bud Shaw
"Don't expect instant wizardry with Brad Childress as the Browns' offensive coordinator. The clamor for Childress to inherit the play-calling from head coach Pat Shurmur will be loud. Understandable, too, given that the fans of sad sack franchises as offensively challenged as the 2011 Browns would prefer a Ouija board or Magic Eight Ball to whoever authored last season's mess. Just know that when they hear the clamor in Minnesota, some will be waiting for the punch line. Childress didn't call plays for Andy Reid in Philadelphia. He did as head coach of the Vikings. The results, as the saying goes, were "mixed." Shockingly to no one, his plays worked better when he had Brett Favre throwing"
Eagles coach Andy Reid is confident Brad Childress and Pat Shurmur will make a great combo for the Cleveland Browns
January 28
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
"Philadelphia Eagles coach Andy Reid collaborated on a lot of play-calling over the years with new Browns offensive coordinator Brad Childress and coach Pat Shurmur, and he's confident they'll be successful together regardless of who handles that chore. "Pat's a heck of a play-caller, and Brad's a heck of a play-caller, and I think that's a heck of a combination," Reid told The Plain Dealer. "Both of them can bounce things off of each other. That's what Brad did here with me, and that's what Pat did here with me. So, whether I was calling the plays or they were calling the plays, we had an open communication where we could talk and make the best of whatever situation there was." Childress,"
Browns hire Brad Childress as offensive coordinator
January 28
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
"Brad Childress has been hired as the Browns new offensive coordinator, the Browns announced today. The Browns had narrowed their choices to Childress and Mike Sherman, a league source told The Plain Dealer on Thursday. Sherman was named offensive coordinator of the Miami Dolphins on Friday evening. Browns coach Pat Shurmur retains playcalling duties for now, but a lot of conversation will take place regarding that issue, and final plans have yet to be determined, a league source said. Childress, the former head coach of the Minnesota Vikings, worked with Shurmur for seven seasons in Philadelphia under head coach Andy Reid. Childress, 55, was quarterbacks coach from 1999-2001 and offensive"
Fausto Carmona on restricted list
January 27
Akron Beacon Journal
 
"The Indians placed Fausto Carmona/Roberto Hernandez Heredia on the restricted list Thursday. What does that mean? The club applied to the Commissioner's Office to have Carmona placed on the list because he is stuck in the Dominican Republic, unable to obtain a work permit to return to the United States. Carmona was arrested in the Dominican last week for using a false name. At the time of his arrest, he was attempting to obtain a visa at the U.S. consulate in Santo Domingo. Carmona's real name is Roberto Hernandez Heredia, which he abandoned as a teenager in order to appear younger to major-league scouts. Because of the identity change, Hernandez lopped three years off his age (he is 31)."
Browns seemingly in line to hire Brad Childress as offensive coordinator
January 27
Akron Beacon Journal
 
"The Browns' search for an offensive coordinator has been relatively quiet, but that changed tonight. With the NFL's head-coaching vacancies filled and former Green Bay Packers and Texas A&M coach Mike Sherman expected to be named the offensive coordinator of the Miami Dolphins, the Browns appear to be in line to hire former Minnesota Vikings coach Brad Childress as their offensive coordinator. Although nothing is official, NFL Network's Jason La Canfora reported today that either Sherman or Childress would "land in Cleveland almost certainly" as an offensive coordinator. Sherman is reportedly on the verge of replacing former Browns offensive coordinator Brian Daboll in Miami, so Childress"
Former NFL scout suggests Matt Flynn might be the Cleveland Browns' best QB option
January 27
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
"Dan Shonka has a theory about the Browns, and it starts with Matt Flynn. The former scout for three NFL teams now runs Ourlads.com, which handicaps the draft each year. Shonka has quarterbacks Andrew Luck and Robert Griffin III rated as the top two players in the draft -- and he believes they are likely to be the first two picks, with someone trading up with St. Louis to grab Griffin. So where does that leave the Browns? "Let's start with the fact that I think RG III has played almost all of his career in the [shot]gun," said Shonka. "But he's a rare individual. He can learn to take snaps under center. He has the intelligence and ability to learn any system. He's an excellent athlete, he"
Brad Childress closing in on Cleveland Browns' offensive coordinator position, says NFL source
January 27
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
"With Mike Sherman close to becoming offensive coordinator for the Miami Dolphins, former Vikings coach Brad Childress is the frontrunner for the Browns' vacancy at that position, a league source told The Plain Dealer. The Browns had narrowed their choices to Sherman, the former Packers coach, and Childress, the former Vikings coach, the source said. But Sherman spent Thursday with the Dolphins and came close to taking the job, where he would replace former Browns coordinator Brian Daboll. That means Childress -- the offensive coordinator in Philadelphia from 2003-05 when Pat Shurmur was quarterbacks coach there -- will likely become the Browns first coordinator under Shurmur. The hiring"
Cleveland Browns hire former Titans assistant Tim Hauck as DBs coach
January 24
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
"Tim Hauck made a lasting impression on Browns President Mike Holmgren and defensive coordinator Dick Jauron when he played safety for them in Green Bay. Hauck, who was hired Monday as defensive backs coach to replace Jerome Henderson, played four of his 13 NFL seasons in Green Bay (1991-1994), where Holmgren was head coach and Jauron was defensive backs coach. Hauck was a hard-hitting safety who played for seven NFL teams after signing with New England as an undrafted free agent out of Montana. From 1999-2001, Hauck played in Philadelphia, where Browns head coach Pat Shurmur was tight ends/offensive line coach during those years. Browns General Manager Tom Heckert also spent the 2001"
Browns trading up in NFL Draft wouldn't fit Tom Heckert's profile
January 23
Akron Beacon Journal
 columnist Marla Ridenour
"Could the Browns trade up to draft Robert Griffin III? Browns General Manager Tom Heckert would never say never, a phrase he usually utters at least once per news conference. But I'm not buying what Steve Wyche of NFL.com suggested last week in his first mock draft. Wyche predicted the Browns would move from No. 4 to No. 2 on the first night of the April 26-28 NFL Draft to select the Heisman Trophy winner from Baylor."
ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. believes Browns buying into RG3 mania, will 'probably kick Colt McCoy to the curb'
January 20
Akron Beacon Journal
 
"ESPN NFL Draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. believes a duo from Baylor could help revive the Browns' inept offense. In his first mock draft of the year, Kiper has the Browns selecting the Baylor tandem of quarterback Robert Griffin III and wide receiver Kendall Wright with the fourth and 22nd overall picks, respectively, on April 26. The Browns have two first-round picks in 2012 because of their draft-day trade last year with the Atlanta Falcons. Of course, Kiper's projections will change after the NFL Scouting Combine, which begins Feb. 22, and free agency, which starts March 13. Still, Kiper is convinced the Browns must acquire a quarterback and a wide receiver they can plug into the starting"
Browns add Nolan Cromwell to coaching staff as senior offensive assistant
January 19
Akron Beacon Journal
 
"The Browns have hired Nolan Cromwell as a senior offensive assistant, the team confirmed Wednesday. Cromwell, 56, will replace Keith Gilbertson, who retired after holding the title of senior offensive assistant last season with the Browns. Cromwell spent the past two seasons serving as the St. Louis Rams' wide receivers coach. Cromwell's first season with the Rams was also Browns coach Pat Shurmur's last as the Rams' offensive coordinator. From 2008-09, Cromwell served as an offensive coordinator for Texas A&M under coach Mike Sherman, who has reportedly interviewed for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' coaching position. Sherman would be a logical candidate to fill the Browns' offensive"
Cleveland Browns want city to spend $5.8 million for stadium repairs
January 19
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
"The Cleveland Browns want the city to give the team seven years of football stadium repair money -- $5.8 million -- right now. The team contends the work is necessary to maintain a 12-year-old stadium battered by a sometimes harsh northern climate, and it has asked for an exception to a 30-year lease that calls for the city to set aside $850,000 a year for major repairs. Under the complicated proposal, the Browns would get this year's $850,000 plus $5 million from the next six years of repair money drawn from the tax revenue collected countywide on alcohol and tobacco sales and administered by the city. In exchange, the city would not have to make its annual contributions from the tax"
Playoffs reaffirm West Coast is right direction for offense-hungry Cleveland Browns
January 19
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
"Blaming the Browns' season on the West Coast offense is like blaming "Jack and Jill" on Al Pacino... The West Coast offense has a track record. It's looked good when displayed on wide screens in other cities. It has played to adoring crowds. Just because it fell into disfavor around here as something not quite manly enough at worst, or simply poorly paced and outdated at best is no reason to question the chosen script in Berea. Jim Harbaugh's fire and the 49ers' running game won rave reviews as a sequel to Bill Walsh's critically acclaimed West Coast offense in San Francisco, even while people were walking out on the Browns' version here. If the fact that it's worked in Green Bay, among"
Cleveland Browns adding Nolan Cromwell to coaching staff -- source
January 18
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
"The Browns have added former St. Louis Rams receivers coach Nolan Cromwell to Pat Shurmur's coaching staff, according to a league source. Cromwell joined the Rams in 2010, Shurmur's last season in St. Louis as Rams offensive coordinator. Cromwell also has extensive experience working under Mike Holmgren in Seattle and Green Bay."
Goodell: NFL to consider some full-time officials
January 16
Chicago Tribune
 
"Aiming to ensure NFL rules are enforced the same way from game to game, the league will consider making about 10 officials full-time employees next season. As of now, all game officials are part-time employees. Responding to a question about consistency in officiating while speaking to a group of about 75 fans before Sunday's playoff game between the Baltimore Ravens and Houston Texans, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said the proposal would bring a group of officials to the league offices in New York to help review game films and evaluate the calls. They then would be spread out among the crews at games."
Browns facing five important free-agent decisions
January 15
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
"Before the Browns can plot their strategy in NFL free agency, which begins on March 13, they have to finalize decisions on their own potential free agents. They have five key players who will be unrestricted free agents if they don't re-sign. Here's a look at each and the circumstances that may influence the Browns' decisions. Running back Peyton Hillis: Each of the Browns' top decision-makers has repeatedly declined to say he wants Hillis back. At his season-ending press conference, coach Pat Shurmur said, "That's one of those questions I really can't answer at this point." President Mike Holmgren said at his season-ender, "That's one of our players that is a free agent and we're not"
Is there a secret recipe for turning around an NFL franchise?
January 15
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
"There was a time when the Pittsburgh Steelers stunk. Perennial Pro Bowl linebacker Andy Russell remembers it well. The players would call meetings to try to figure out why. They wondered whether they suffered flawed psyches. They talked about whether they were playing hard enough. From 1964-68, the Steelers won no more than five games in a season. They won just two games twice. Then coach Chuck Noll arrived. "He's the guy," Russell said, "that changed the entire mind-set." How Noll and other NFL coaches and executives who built reputations as turnaround specialists reversed the culture of losing can provide a road map for the Browns. Names such as Marv Levy with Kansas City and Buffalo;"
Why Jerry Jones the GM is like an 'addicted gambler'
January 14
Dallas Morning News
 
"Maintaining a reputation as America's Team isn't an easy task for any sports franchise. Expectations are always through the roof, even when it's closed. But in the land of opportunity, the Cowboys have managed to accomplish the feat. They're at the top of the list in terms of highest-valued NFL teams, best-ratings draw and merchandise sales. Cowboys fans get to enjoy football in a $1.2 billion stadium that is by far the NFL's best venue. All this despite an owner who refuses to change his ways because of the Super Bowls the Cowboys won in the 1990s. Whether it is stubbornness or ego that plagues Jerry Jones – perhaps both – he won't back down from his belief that his being the Cowboys'"
Other job openings could be affecting Browns' search for offensive coordinator
January 13
Akron Beacon Journal
 
"Browns coach Pat Shurmur has been talking to offensive coordinator candidates, mostly by phone, though it's unclear whether any formal interviews have taken place. "Candidates with options and deadlines" have been communicating with the organization, a league source said. The Miami Dolphins, Oakland Raiders, St. Louis Rams and Tampa Bay Buccaneers are looking to hire a coach. Those teams are expected to be in the market for a new offensive coordinator along with the Atlanta Falcons, Jacksonville Jaguars, Kansas City Chiefs and San Diego Chargers. Shurmur juggled the roles of a first-year coach and an offensive coordinator during the 2011 season. After the Browns finished with a record of"
Perhaps Romeo Crennel has found an NFL team to match his own character
January 12
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 columnist Bill Livingston
"Romeo Crennel's Kansas City Chiefs gave the Green Bay Packers their only defeat this season with Kyle Orton at quarterback. Which seems impressive only if you don't remember that Crennel won 10 games with the Browns with Derek Anderson at quarterback in 2007. That was the highlight of Crennel's four seasons here. Maybe the Packers game will be the same for him in Kansas City, where he is now the head coach. But I hope not. Crennel had a 2-1 record as the interim coach with the Chiefs after replacing Todd Haley. Even with the brief lift in passion a coaching change usually creates, interim coaches typically make no mark because their players see them as lame ducks. Instead, Crennel's Chiefs"
Cleveland Browns lose defensive backs coach Jerome Henderson to Cowboys
January 12
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
"Browns coach Pat Shurmur said he didn't plan any changes on his coaching staff unless someone decided to leave. Somebody did. Defensive backs coach Jerome Henderson is heading to Dallas to rejoin former Browns coordinator Rob Ryan with the Cowboys, the Dallas Morning News reported. Henderson joined the Browns in 2009 when Eric Mangini was named head coach. He was one of five Mangini assistants retained when Shurmur succeeded Mangini in 2011. In three years with Henderson as defensive backs coach, the Browns improved from 29th to 18th to second in pass defense in 2011. Opponents had 16 touchdown passes against the Browns in 2011, the fewest allowed by the club since 13 in 2003. On the other"
In the NFL's quick-fix highway, the Cleveland Browns stay in the slow lane
January 12
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
"C'mon in, the door's always open...not you, Cleveland... Spin has hired out-of-work historians to research whether the NFL existed before Tim Tebow. Early findings suggest it did, but that God didn't watch. In fact, two statistical trends have been uncovered in the extensive fact-checking -- one dating to the beginning of the Dark Ages in Cleveland football (1996) -- that relate directly to the popularity the league enjoys in all games played today, not just those divinely orchestrated on behalf of the Denver quarterback. In 2011, for the 16th consecutive season, at least five teams made the playoffs after failing to qualify the season before. Thanks to The Nap and other odd turns of"
Mike Holmgren's track record in finding QBs doesn't lead to the NFL draft
January 11
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 columnist Terry Pluto
"When Mike Holmgren was the coach in Green Bay, it was Brett Favre who was the game changer for the Packers. The future Hall of Fame quarterback was not drafted by Green Bay. Instead, General Manager Ron Wolf obtained Favre in a trade from Atlanta, where he was a backup. Holmgren's next coaching stop was Seattle, where he inherited quarterback Jon Kitna. After 9-7 and 6-10 seasons, he dumped Kitna and added two quarterbacks -- Matt Hasselbeck and Trent Dilfer. Also serving as Seattle's general manager, Holmgren signed Dilfer as a free agent after the quarterback had won a Super Bowl for Baltimore. He also made a deal with his former team -- Green Bay -- for Hasselbeck, who was a backup to"
Cleveland Browns on verge of losing defensive backs coach -- report
January 11
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
"The Browns may soon be in the market for more than an offensive coordinator. The Dallas Morning News is reporting that Browns defensive backs coach Jerome Henderson will rejoin former Browns defensive coordinator Rob Ryan and take a similar position with the Cowboys. Henderson joined the Browns in 2009 when Eric Mangini was named head coach. He was one of five Mangini assistants retained when Pat Shurmur succeeded Mangini in 2011."
Cleveland Browns' draft projections: Can we hold off, please?
January 10
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
"A dose of news and views on the Browns and NFL ... * Browns draft fourth, 22nd and 37th: I'm getting lots of Tweets and emails proposing GM Tom Heckert use his top three picks on a wide receiver, quarterback, running back ... or on a quarterback, running back, wide receiver, ... or on a right tackle, wide receiver, linebackers ... or on a cornerback, wide receiver, right tackle. And then there's a bunch of Browns fans who want to know how I would divvy up the top three spots. And when I respond that it's way too early to project, they rip me for not having any insight. Here's the truth: The first round of the draft on April 26 is 107 days away. This is the beginning of the draft"
Browns have fourth and 22nd overall picks in 2012 NFL Draft
January 9
Akron Beacon Journal
 
"The Browns have the fourth and 22nd overall picks in the 2012 NFL Draft. The position of the Browns' second pick of the first round was determined today after the Atlanta Falcons were eliminated from the playoffs as a result of their 24-2 loss to the New York Giants in an NFC wild-card game. The Browns acquired the Falcons' first-round pick last year in a blockbuster deal. After the Falcons lost to the Giants, the Browns could have received either the 22nd or 23rd pick. The Browns secured the 22nd pick tonight when the Denver Broncos captured a 29-23 overtime victory against the Pittsburgh Steelers in an AFC wild-card game."
Sure, it was a rough season, but Pat Shurmur deserves more time with Cleveland Browns
January 9
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 columnist Bud Shaw
"Pat Shurmur's first season could be termed "challenging" in the same way, say, winter mountain climbing in flip flops could. So let's be generous and recall a rousing endorsement Shurmur received when he left St. Louis last January before the lockout, truncated off-season and other adversities (including those self-created). Saying he knew becoming a head coach was only a matter of time for Shurmur, Rams running back Steven Jackson said that "on Sundays, he got the most out of his players and always had us in a position to win the game." You can debate how often that was the case in Shurmur's first year and how many players are adamantly in his corner. What we can probably say is that"
Browns could trade down
January 8
Akron Beacon Journal
 columnist Marla Ridenour
"Twice in the past three years, the Browns traded down in the first round of the draft. That trend has frustrated at least one season-ticket holder, who emailed a beat reporter recently and said if it happened again in 2012, he was through with the team he loves. When that message was relayed to General Manager Tom Heckert on Thursday, Heckert's reaction might not bode well for the disgruntled fan's renewal. "Geez. Now that's pressure there," Heckert said. Heckert has traded down in the first round once in his two drafts, the other coming during the regime of former coach Eric Mangini. In 2009, Mangini slid from No. 5 to No. 21 in deals with the New York Jets, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and"
Pat Shurmur's first season as Browns' coach will be remembered for bizarre twists, disappointment
January 8
Akron Beacon Journal
 columnist Nate Ulrich
"Cue the circus music because it's time to relive the Browns' 2011 season. From the NFL's lockout preventing rookie coach Pat Shurmur from meeting his entire team until late July to the Cincinnati Bengals' quick-snap touchdown in the regular-season opener to the soap opera starring running back Peyton Hillis to the meltdowns on special teams to quarterback Colt McCoy's concussion to the offense's clock mismanagement on Christmas Eve, it was a wacky year of football to say the least. Mercifully, it ended. The Browns lost eight of their final nine games, including six in a row, and finished with a record of 4-12. While the Browns lick their wounds, let's review another absurd season: OFFENSE"
The future turned a bit darker with loss to Rams
January 8
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
"The Browns have only themselves to blame for the quandary at quarterback they face this off-season. They didn't need to tank their season and lose more games to get a legitimate shot at Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck, the consensus prize of the 2012 draft. They simply needed to take care of business on Nov. 13. On that day, the Browns lost to the St. Louis Rams, 13-12, on a series of late-game sideline and special-team blunders. The game defined their season and muddled their immediate future. Had the Browns not given away the game, St. Louis would have finished with a 1-15 record. They would have moved in front of the Indianapolis Colts (2-14) and "earned" the No. 1 pick. Instead, the"
Mike Holmgren promises Cleveland Browns will 'stay the course,' but how much progress have they made?
January 7
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 columnist Bill Livingston
"Staying the course, the rebuilding procedure prescribed by Admiral Mike Holmgren, requires a compass to indicate the course is correct. It is fair to say that, at best, signs are mixed for the Browns. The North Star of the NFL, the one fixed reference point, is stability at quarterback, the most important position in the game. The evasions offered by Holmgren this week when he was asked for an endorsement of second-year quarterback Colt McCoy were telling. He won't "anoint" McCoy yet, but he "loves" him. Much talk centered on McCoy's "intangibles," which, being unseen and unmeasured, went unspecified. In the actual tangibles -- a passer with a strong arm, receivers with good hands, a right"
Browns left tackle Joe Thomas voted first-team AP All-Pro third straight season
January 7
Cleveland Plain Dealer
 
"Left tackle Joe Thomas' goal of helping the Browns to a Super Bowl will have to wait, but he's been hitting his individual goals during his first five seasons. Thomas was voted a first-team Associated Press NFL All-Pro for the third straight season by a panel of 50 media members Friday. He received 19 votes. The Philadelphia Eagles' Jason Peters, the other first-team tackle, received 27. Thomas was the only Browns player named to the team and one of two to receive votes. Linebacker D'Qwell Jackson received two votes. The honor came less than two weeks after Thomas was voted to his fifth straight Pro Bowl -- the first Browns player since running back Jim Brown to make it in each of his"
In aftermath of 4-12 season, Browns vow to stay course
January 6
Akron Beacon Journal
 
"President Mike Holmgren conceded he's "a little ticked off" about the Browns finishing the 2011 season with a record of 4-12, but he warned fans not to expect the organization to radically change its plans for rebuilding. "We know what we have to fix," Holmgren said. "But we're not going to blow it up and start all over." Instead, the Browns will stick with their philosophy of constructing a roster through the draft. They won't rely heavily on free agency. And they will remain committed to coach Pat Shurmur, who will hire an offensive coordinator after encountering plenty of adversity and heartbreak in his first season with the franchise. At least those were the main messages Holmgren and"
Browns should target Packers backup quarterback Flynn
January 6
Akron Beacon Journal
 columnist Marla Ridenour
"There's no need to force RGIII into a system he doesn't fit. Instead, Browns fans should be obsessing over Green Bay Packers backup quarterback Matt Flynn. It's going to be costly to sign the soon-to-be unrestricted free agent, especially after Flynn set the Packers' franchise records by throwing for 480 yards and six touchdowns Sunday in a 45-41 victory over the Detroit Lions. But if the rebuilding Browns are searching for the fastest track to the playoffs, it would be with Flynn, not with a rookie like Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III of Baylor. As Flynn's touchdowns piled up against the Lions, so did the millions he should reap. He became the fourth quarterback in league history"