Category: Cleveland Browns (Page 85 of 114)

Why is this man a starting QB in the NFL?

“It just got knocked out from behind me,” he said. “I was trying to step over a guy and get up to the line of scrimmage as much as I could. I’ve never fumbled a lot in my career, and this year I’ve had a couple knocked loose, so I need to grip that thing a lot tighter in there, I guess.”

Why?

PRE-GAME TAKE? Shoot me now. The only reason to watch this game is the off-chance you might see Charlie Frye. Texans favored by 2 says it all.

FINAL SCORE – BROWNS LOSE 19-16. TIM’s TAKE? Another nail in Trent Dilfer’s coffin. Despite a typically mediocre performance bordering on terrible, he still had the chance to be a hero at the end, only to take a stupid sack, then underthrow the game-winning TD pass on 4th down. Droughns again proves he needs to be on the field every down. Browns defense probably should have given up more points, Houston’s play calling let them off the hook. Bottom line…Browns are not a good football team, and cannot win with Dilfer at QB.

11.00 1st – Texans 7 Browns 0 – Browns go 3 & out on first possession. Give up TD on deep ball. Did we send a football team to Houston for this game?

5.05 1st Browns 7, Texans 7 – Nice play action call on 4th & 1 to the TE. Dilfer nearly missed him, he was wide open. Good drive, mostly running Droughns and Green. They looked like an actual offense.

4.16 1st BROWNS INT – Carr throws ill-advised pass on ensuing drive, tipped, picked by Bodden, Browns take over. Nice concentration by Bodden.

0.09 1st Browns 10, Texans 7 – Red zone collapse results in field goal. Why was Droughns on the sideline? 1st & goal, two runs by Green instead of Droughns get zero yards, followed by a play action to Green that fools precisely no one, Dilfer has to throw it away under pressure.

END OF 1st, Browns 10, Texans 7 – TIM’s TAKE? Not bad, actually. Offense looks OK, but Dilfer looks shaky.

8.02 2nd qtr – Game settles into the mediocrity we all knew was coming. Dilfer throws some terrible passes, Carr gets sacked, couple 3 & outs. Browns run blocking looks good. Droughns again best player in the game.

4.15 2nd, Browns 13, Texans 7 – Great slant for 54 yards to Bryant wasted by, what else, mediocrity. End up with a field goal. Can’t blame Dilfer, really, but he did throw two pretty bad passes.

0.10 2nd, Browns 13, Texans 10 – Pretty good drive to get a Texans FG. Leigh Bodden breaks up 3rd down throw into the end zone. Bodden having a great game.

HALFTIME – Browns 13, Texans 10 – TIM’s TAKE? As advertised. Dilfer just looks like a guy who knows he’s gonna get yanked at some point, none of his throws are sharp, and he’s throwing a lot of balls away or underneath to the check down. Droughns looks real solid, as usual. Browns defense bending, not breaking.

11.09 3rd – Dilfer fumbles under pressure, deep in Houston territory, Texans ball. Wastes another good series of runs by Droughns. Dilfer clearly nervous. This team needs a change at quarterback BAD.

3.48 3rd – Texans 13, Browns 13 – Houston ties it up on a good drive after Dilfer fumble. Browns bend again, but don’t break. I’d pull Dilfer on this next possession.

END OF 3rd, Texans 13, Browns 13 – TIM’s TAKE? Ugh. Droughns fumble sets up Texans deep in Browns territory. Even our bright spots go sour. Texans should take the lead shortly. Browns still in it.

14.08 4th – Texans 16, Browns 13. Browns still got a shot. Charlie, where art thou.

9.35 4th MISSED FG – Browns still down by 3. Still in it. 10 yard shank punt put Texans in business, they blew it. Please put in Frye.

COACH’S CHALLENGE – Dilfer to Bryant in the end zone, looked like he had a foot out of bounds, Romeo throws the red flag. Is that Romeo’s first ever challenge as a head coach? I think he was out of bounds, certainly not enough to overturn the call on the field, which was “incomplete”. CHALLENGE FAILS. 4th down, FG unit comes in.

5.06 4th TIE GAME, 16-16. Do we really want overtime?

KO return puts Houston at Browns 40.

2.45 4th Texans 19, Browns 16. Looked like Browns got away with a pass interference on the 3rd down. Texans had some bad play calling, rolled out Carr, he ran out of bounds to stop the clock on 2d down, then threw deep ball incomplete to stop the clock again on 3rd down. They’ve left the Browns a lot of time…but then again, the Browns stink.

2 MINUTE WARNING – Browns down by 3 – Browns got the ball, 1st down, near mid-field, two good runs by Green. They got a shot here.

0.43 4th – Agonizing drive loses the game. Dilfer has a great throw to Braylon Edwards for 26 yards, then proceeds to (A) take a sack on 3rd down putting them out of field goal range, then (B) underthrows an open Antonio Bryant who would have had a game winning TD.

If I have to read one more story about how Trent Dilfer is co-miserating with another struggling QB, I might implode.

Carr was asked if he’s compared his situation to that of former No. 1 pick Tim Couch, who’s out of football after starting with a bad expansion team. “Not really,” he said. “I understand what I can do on the football field. I’ve been doing it my whole life. At quarterback, there are 10 other guys around you. We have to get on the same page. When we do, we’re going to be all right. We’ve done it a couple games. We’ve shown signs. We just aren’t quite there yet. Once all 11 and all 22 of us get going, we’re going to be good.” His mentor could say the same thing.

Sounds like a career to me…mentor to mediocre QBs. There’s gotta be money in that. How much did Couch get in his first contract? Six quintillion dollars? Must be some of that left layin’ around for a therapist.

So I’m lookin’ at this poll in the corner about whether or not to pull Dilfer, and it looks like most people either say pull him now, or pull him if he struggles on Sunday. OK…how about taking a stand here people. Enough of this mealy mouthed baloney.

PULL HIM. NOW. I can’t believe the guy is starting one more week. I have this odd feeling that when Charlie Frye takes over, this will be such a different team, from top to bottom, Trent Dilfer’s career will be over, and we’ll wonder why the hell we stuck with him for so long, and the Browns will be competitive. Instantly.

Halloween must be closing in…all these ghosts from Browns’ seasons past are popping up. First Modell shows up on the Hall of Fame ballot, now Bill Livingston writes about what I consider my darkest days as a Browns fan.

Pro Bowl defensive lineman Michael Dean Perry told me then that the veterans knew they could not win with Philcox, who was the only option after Belichick cut Bernie Kosar while his real choice to play QB, Vinny Testaverde, was hurt. When Seattle scored on Philcox’s fumble on his first snap in the first game after Kosar’s firing, the Browns were doomed. A 5-2 season crash-landed at 7-9.

Reminds me of a Seinfeld moment. I was dating some girl in law school the day Bernie got cut, and when she saw me sitting with my head in my hands, speechless, she was like, “I can’t believe you’re so upset about this…what’s wrong with you?” That was the end of that “relationship”.