Red Right 88

Cleveland sports fan and sports writer

Name:
Location: Cleveland, Ohio, United States

quit my job decided to drive west

Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Savage and Browns make a mistake

Count on the Browns to take a bad situation and make it worse. I disagree with suspending Winslow. I believe not only is it a mistake, but it sends the wrong message.

Winslow was wrong with how he handled things after the game. He talked in anger and frustration. But he had a point. You just don't scream at the Gm in front of everyone and then talk to the press.

But to suspend him that is just as wrong. Winslow did not miss a meeting. Winslow did not hit a teammate. Winslow used words. They are just words. The Browns have coddled Braylon Edwards and his actions for years. He has never be suspended. Edwards has yelled at teammates. He has missed meetings. But the Browns have tolerated his actions.

On the other hand, Winslow got a staph infection something that has sidelined several players, spent time in a hospital and a week later was on the field. He runs his mouth and the Browns suspend him. I don't care what the players say but that has to divide the locker room. Winslow got slapped for biting his owner. The staph infection issues have to scare the players. And when Winslow was told to hide it and then talked about it, he got suspended. Phil Savage showed who was boss and made a statement. I don't think it was the right one.

I can't help but feel Savage has been planning to rid of Winslow for sometime. Winslow is right, he is a piece of meat. An affordable one right now but not one Savage wants to pay more. I think Savage knows Winslow and his agent Drew Rosenhaus, possibly one of the most evil and sought after agents in the world, were not going to live up to the next three years of his contract. It is why Savage drafted Rucker and why he is playing the tough guy know. I can see suspending a player who is hurting the locker room with his actions but I don't see Winslow doing that. He yelled at his boss, he should be fined. But Savage is hurting his football team just to hurt a player. And I think that is wrong.

Phil Savage has gotten mostly a free pass in this town since the fans saved his job after his first season. But I think it is time to turn the heat up. His drafts have been questionable. His faith in Edwards and Crennel can also be questioned. And this rash of staph infections is inconceivable and if he asked Winslow to hide it from his teammates, maybe he should be fired. The Browns have a lot of explaining to do and instead they suspend Winslow. Not good.

Sunday, October 19, 2008

The wheels fall off

My boss didn't visit me in the hospital. WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH. The one guy I would have predicted to be the most real man in the locker room moaned after the game against his general manager not calling him when he got a staph infection. Man this team is in trouble.

Turns out Monday night was an aberration and not an adjustment. The old sins came screaming out. Braylon Edwards dropped passes for most of the game. Derek Anderson made poor throw after poor throw which he trumped with several horrid decisions. Yet at the end of the game, they had a chance to win.

And that is the concern. I don't just a chance to win. I want to win. I think Derek Anderson is the perfect back-up quarterback. I have felt that way for almost three years. He has a gun and when forced on the field, he can attack a defense. He can gunsling with the best especially in a comeback effort. But he is not a someone who can follow a game plan. He is not consistent. He is not reliable. He is not a manager of the game. He will make throws that will get scouts to drool but he is a coach-killer. I don't know if the kid back-up is the real thing but I am more than ready to give him the keys. And that isn't a reactionary view. Anderson wasn't very good the first few drives in the Giants win but after the huge bomb to Edwards, his confidence soared and the win was on. But I need consistency in my quarterback. The Browns got ball twice inside the 50 in the first quarter and squandered it. And yes Anderson threw the late touchdown to Edwards but he only got that chance because the defense forced a turnover. His decision making on the goal line on the series before combined with questionable play calling (If I can call out the play four times in a row so can the other team) should have cost the Browns the game right there. And on the final drive when he had to make the throws to get the Browns a few more yards, he fell apart.

I understand Romeo has loyalty but that loyalty is going to get him fired. It is time to play the kid. Anderson will show flashes of brilliance. But he isn't the guy. It is time to find out if the other guy is in fact the guy.

And the Winslow comments really bother me. I don't care if he is right. The Browns have had way too many staph infections. It is a problem and something needs to be done. But to say stuff like I could have asked for a trade or I could have pulled a Chad Johnson, please that is exactly what you just did. I would have chalked about his lack of production in that game to his illness or Anderson but those comments make me wonder about his commitment in the game. And I have never question K2's commitment before. He even got a jab in about his contract. It is that what this is really about. Be leader and stay committed to it. My boss didn't call, really?

Fudge us.