Wondering about the Wonderlic....

Nolan Nawrocki from Pro Football Weekly posted a recent article chock full of some eyebrow-raising Wonderlic scores of recent draft picks.  From the article:

"Two of the NFL's brightest future stars, LSU CB Patrick Peterson and Georgia WR A.J. Green, registered among the five lowest Wonderlic scores of the 330 participants at this year’s NFL scouting combine.

Peterson was one of four prospects who recorded a dreaded single-digit score, which NFL teams often equate with getting their name right, tying with South Carolina's Chris Culliver for the lowest mark among all defensive backs as both correctly answered only nine questions on the 12-minute, 50-question test.

Green registered the lowest score of all receivers, answering 10 questions correctly."

What History Tells Us About Drafting Wide Receivers

As mock drafts continue to pour in, there is near consensus among draft gurus and sportswriters that the Browns will draft A.J. Green if he is available with the #6 pick in the 2011 NFL Draft.  With that in mind, let's take a look back at some draft history:

Labor Pains

Well, the expiration of the current NFL collective bargaining agreement ("CBA") is upon us.  Most sports writers agree that if a lockout or union decertification is implemented, the work stoppage will last until at least the brink of the regular season. 

According to the Plain Dealer, the Browns were warned about coaches meeting with Colt McCoy or other players right now.  Apparently, Colt's round of interviews surrounding the Super Bowl revealed that he had been speaking with Coach Shurmer and prompted the league warning.  As discussed in earlier posts, the Browns and other teams with new coaches and new schemes are going to be hit the hardest by any work stoppage.  They'll have more work to do and less time to do it than other more established teams once a work stoppage is over. 

Here are some of the facts of life if the deadline passes with no new CBA:

Defensive

If you don't already read Peter King's Monday Morning Quarterback column at Sports Illustrated, you should start.  He gets great inside information and offers very reasoned opinions on lots of NFL topics.  For some reason, lots of players, GM's, and league executives are willing to tell him things they won't say to anybody else. 

Back in the summer before coach Mangini's first season, Mr. King visited training camp in Berea and quickly predicted the Browns would go 2-14 that season due to a lack of talent and play makers.  I was shocked, angry, and thought, "this guy doesn't know what he's talking about - he probably doesn't pay attention to the Browns."  But, he was right on the money - until the December heroics of the defense and running game saved the season from Detroit-like dismay. 

Anyway, in today's Tuesday Morning Quarterback edition (an abbreviated version of the Monday column mostly made up of responding to reader emails), Mr. King offers the following thought on the Browns:

Mock Draft Round Up

Well, the NFL combine will take place later this month and soon after, mock drafts will start springing up.  Then once all the college's pro days are complete, a more detailed set of mock drafts will arrive.  Before the combine takes place, many web sites and draft gurus take a stab at the first round.

I've rounded up as many mock drafts as I can find to tide you over until the riveting coverage of the NFL combine takes place (actually, I enjoy watching it on NFL Network, but I know most people find it boring.)  After all, as Browns fans, all we really have to look forward to is the eternal hope and promise of another off season. 

The Superbowl Measuring Stick

So most of us witnessed the Packers beat our vaunted rivals, the Steelers, in last night's Superbowl.  In many ways, the Packers can serve as a measure of how far off the Browns are from competing at a championship level.  There are some similarities between the Packers and Browns in terms of how they remade their coaching staff and offense.  The easiest to analyze, and perhaps most important similarity, is the Packers use of the west coast offense and how it fared against the Steelers' defense, one of the best in the NFL.

Something To Be Said For Consistency:

As of today, coach Shurmur hired Mark Whipple to be quarterbacks coach, Mike Wilson to coach receivers, Bill Davis to coach linebackers, and Dwaine Board to coach the defensive line. The four have strong ties to either Shurmur, Browns President Mike Holmgren or General Manager Tom Heckert.  It appears that the Browns will not be hiring a true offensive coordinator. 

Since the return of the team in 1999, there have been many poor combinations of front office and team executives with coaching staffs.  These all eventually led to power struggles or a falling out which led to some one's ouster.  Let's review:

Why I Am a Browns Fan, ...Still.

Why would anyone in their right mind continue to be a "fan" of an organization mired in total failure for the last 10 years?  Why would anyone - regardless of team success - waste an ounce of energy or emotion on a excessively capitalistic endeavour such as the modern NFL, full of childish millionaires? 

I suppose I could say something about tradition, entertainment value, or love of the sport, but that doesn't fully describe why I am and continue to be a fan.  I do love the game of football and I occasionally find NFL games entertaining.  But none of that describes why thousands of other people pour so much passion and energy into being fans of a franchise that gives them so little gratification in return. 

Like many Browns fans, I blame my father.

Cheaters Never Win.....Right?

Charlie Casserly of the NFL Network recently shared some interesting perspective on the upcoming off season.  He recounts when he worked for the Redskins during the labor shortened seasons of 1987 and 1982.  Those two years the Redskins won the Superbowl.  Casserly basically implies that the players and coaches cheated.  Before the players and coaches departed for the season, the coaches gave certain players very detailed offseason workouts, drills, and practice routines to follow....you know, if they felt so inclined. 

Off Season A Little Off.......

As of the date of this post, there are several mock drafts on the interwebs.  In my opinion, most of the writers doing the drafting have no clue what they are talking about.  Especially in regard to the Cleveland Browns.  Various mocks have the Browns taking one of the top rated defensive ends, but most have them landing wide receiver A.J. Green from the University of Georgia.  Green is a 6'4", 212-pound catching machine who missed part of this past season due to a suspension.