The Browns Ballin and Bloggin!!

Is it even a question as to where this entry is headed? I hope you all enjoyed your few days off. I am currently on spring break here in good ole Mentor, Ohio. Keep the questions coming. I love waking up in the morning and checking the comments section to see a plethora of different reader’s thoughts. Today I am going to talk about the Cleveland Browns, the Cleveland Cavaliers, and also give you all a new top 5 list. Today’s list is going to be a fun one, and I hope you all enjoy it. Have a good week, and please check back Wednesday and Thursday for my latest entries.

Super Bowl Browns

Danny Ferry and Phil Savage might be my two favorite people in the city of Cleveland at the moment. Phil Savage wasted no time making a splash in free agency. Savage didn’t just hop into the water; he came off the high dive, cannonball style. I am going to breakdown each individual move and then give my thoughts on each transaction.

Derek Anderson signs 3 year $24 million contract, with $13 million guaranteed.

Initially, I wasn’t pleased with this deal at all. I lit all of my Browns merchandise on fire, and cried over the fact that the Browns made such a huge blunder. They signed a quarterback that beat one winning team last season, and also single handedly cost his team a trip to the playoffs. Then I really thought about what was taking place. How could the Browns get rid of a quarterback that is unarguably the best since the return of the new Browns? How could they toss away a quarterback that won ten games last season? How could the Browns put all that offensive talent on the shoulders of an unproven second year quarterback? After a little bit more thought, the Browns are in the driver’s seat at the quarterback position. If Derek Anderson does not work out this season, Brady Quinn will be able to step in and hopefully get the job done. There will be no searching for a new quarterback if Anderson does not work out. I am not going to take sides on the quarterbacks either. I can already see the controversy that will take place in Cleveland. People are going to be complaining that signing Anderson was huge mistake. Although I do not agree with signing Anderson, I think he is going to struggle facing a schedule full of good teams, I am going to be rooting for him 100%. Face it Browns fans, Anderson is the present. He might not be the future, but his shoulders will be the ones that this cities dream rest upon this season.  Maybe I will get lucky and my wish will come through. Brady Quinn clearly beats out Derek Anderson in pre-season.

Donte Stallworth signs 7 year $35 million contract, with $10 million guaranteed.

This move was more of a shock to me than anything else. I didn’t really think that the Browns were desperate to add another wide receiver to their mix of offensive studs. Stallworth can be looked at as the chrome rims to the Cadillac. The Browns decided to get their newly signed quarterback some toys to play with. Stallworth is going to be the speed guy in this explosive offense. Not only can Stallworth blow by defenders, but he can also be another deep threat for Derek Anderson to utilize. Can someone tell me a better receiving core in the NFL than the Browns? Winslow, Jurevicius, Edwards, and Stallworth are going to be nearly impossible to match up against. The Stallworth signing is the icing on the cake for me.

Cleveland trades 2008 3^rd round pick and Leigh Bodden to Detroit for DT Shaun Rogers.

Leigh Bodden has been one of my favorite players of the new era Cleveland Browns. I am really sad to see him leave the town that he made a name for himself in. I wish Bodden all of the best, and hope to see him make the pro bowl this season. Although I was devistated (Haven’t left room since Friday night), I think that Bodden was just as beatable as any of the other Browns defensive backs. Phil Savage basically said, if I don’t have a lot of picks, I don’t want any. Shaun Rogers is nothing less than a big monster. The two time pro bowler is a six foot four, three hundred and forty pound mammoth. Although Rogers is a bit lazy at times, he is capable of causing major problems for offensive fronts. Who wouldn’t have been lazy playing for the Lions? The Lions haven’t made the playoffs in 9 years, and haven’t won a playoff game since 1991.  As long as Rogers comes to camp in shape and ready to play, this could literally be a huge pick up for the Browns defense. The Browns are coming into the 2008 season with a new mentality on defense. One word describes it…PRESSURE! The Browns are going to try and force sacks and bad passes, rather than playing more coverage based schemes.

Cleveland trades 2008 2^nd round pick to Green Bay for DT Corey Williams.

This was the first step to building a solid defense for Phil Savage. I can’t lie, I don’t know much about Williams. After reading Packers message boards, I have the impression that Williams is an established defensive lineman with plenty to offer up front. His speed and strength rank amongst top in the NFL at the position. I liked this move because Phil Savage was really using his head here. The Browns were going to draft a defensive tackle in the 2008 draft anyways. Why take the risk of drafting a player that could possibly be a bust, when Savage knew what he is getting out of Williams? Unless your name is Warren Sapp, a defensive tackle can only do so much for a team. He isn’t going to lead the team in forced turnovers, touchdowns, or sacks, he is going to get pressure on the quarterback and clog holes to stop the run.

Moves We May See in the Days to Come

Tennessee defensive end Travis Laboy has been visiting the city this past weekend.

Ty Law – Why not add an established veteran to the core of young defensive backs?

Overall, I really like the moves that the Browns have made. Phil Savage looked at this years draft as a joke. He thought that the talent pool wasn’t as strong as in previous years. Instead of forcing picks, Savage improved the Browns via free agency. Phil Savage is a very brilliant man that has an amazing skill of assessing talent amongst football players. I think that this is one of the first times that I have ever completely agreed with the choices a general manager has made. There is a reason that Savage gets paid millions to do what he does, and in this situation, I am going let Savage do his job. I trust this guy and where he plans to take the Cleveland Browns. Offensively, the Browns are definitely one of, if not the most powerful offense in the NFL. I think that I might be able to step in under center and do some damage. How are teams going to be able to stop the cluster of weapons the Browns have? Defensively, the Browns are going to be tough up front. These additions are going to be quickly noticed by Browns fans. There are two problems that I can foresee with the defense of the Brownies. The first comes with pressure. If the Browns can’t get pressure on opponents, they could be in for some long Sunday afternoons. Cleveland defensive backs are average, but definitely beatable. Holly, McDonald, and Wright are all so young and inexperienced at the position. If opposing quarterbacks get a lot of time to throw, the Browns could be giving up plenty of points this season. I am also not the biggest fan of the linebackers. The Browns need a speed rusher at the linebacker position. Willie McGinnest is not going to cut it for me. The Browns lack speed at the position, and also have trouble in coverage. Overall, the moves that Phil Savage made this weekend have made the Browns the favorite to win the AFC North.

Cavs Talk

Although a bit sloppy, the Cavs are slowly starting to look a little bit better. The chemistry is going to take time. As I say in every entry, we will not know everything about this team until playoff time. How about The King? LeBron James is hands down the most deserving player for the MVP award. The sad part is that he isn’t going to get it. The media seems to want to hype Chris Paul and Kobe Bryant.  Kobe Bryant is my favorite NBA player,  but James is the most deserving of the award right now. He means more to his team, and performs better than any of the other possible MVP candidates. The Bulls game was excellent for the psyche of the Cavaliers. The Cavs learned that later in the game, they are still capable of pulling away from teams, and putting the nail in the coffin. I know James made some huge shots down the stretch, but Wally, Joe Smith, and Damon Jones all contributed to this victory. I am a bit worried about Z’s back. At his age, a back injury is a big scare. I pray this is not a lingering injury that hampers the play of the big man. The Cavs have a lot of work to do if they plan on being able to play with the Lakers in the NBA Finals.

Thrive, Strive, Alive… This is a New Top Five

I thought long and hard about what I was going to do for this section. I came up with an awesome idea that I think many of you are going to enjoy. Do you all remember regular Nintendo? What an awesome system this was. NES was the first video game system that I ever owned, and I think we need to make a top five out of it. I know you all remember blowing into the broken games until your head hurt. This system is so legendary, that I think it is very deserving of its own top five list. Today I am going to talk about my top five games for regular Nintendo.

1. Tecmo Bow

READY? DOWN. HUT HUT HUT HUT HUT. I won’t forget that until the day I die. There is no better video game ever made. As a little tike, I spent too many hours trying to beat all of the teams in one sitting. I think that I ran one of the better offenses ever created when playing Tecmo Bowl. Pass 1, Pass 2, Run 1, and Run 2, made up my playbook, and I think that I used them about as effectively as anyone.

2. Super Mario Brothers

I mean come on. This game was one of the best ever simply because Mario could fly. I loved having the luxury of grabbing the wings icon, and testing out each level via the air. This game also introduced a bunch of new levels, warps, and powerups to the Mario Brothers series.

3. Contra

Up, up, down, down, left, right, left right, B, A, start. Just in case you need some more lives while playing the game. This is one of my favorite games for two reasons. One was that I was able to play it with a buddy, and the other is the spray gun.  I used to love running through level with the spray gun.  If you have never played this game, do yourself a favor and find your closest video game store.

4. Mike Tyson’s Punch-Out

I still struggle to beat Mike Tyson consistently. This game still has some appeal to me because it is still so damn hard to beat. This game taught me timing in video games. Between dodging, blocking, and throwing hay makers, this game will never get old to me.

5. Duck Hunt

Think about the difference in times. Nintendo would never give you a gun to shoot ducks with these days. I used to love to cheat playing this game by putting the gun real close to the screen and blowing the ducks brains out. I don’t think that I ever tried to shoot the clay pieces, ducks were way cooler to kill. What was the plot to this game? Why were we shooting ducks? No reason, no plot, just shoot the ducks. Oh, and that dog. I wish I could have shot that dog for the amount of times he laughed at me.

Money Music From Me

Rick Ross – Prayer

This is my favorite song made my Ricky Ross. Ross’s new CD, Trilla is set to be released March 11th. It should leak relatively soon. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_LzkDwsDymM

The Postal Service – Such Great Heights

I know this is an old song, but seeing that UPS commercial 55 times a day gave me good reason to put this song up here. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMOkfI7wCrI

Dave Matthews & Jimmy Buffet – Heart of Gold

Two legends cover another legends song in this mind blowing performance. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4tdahIZdqc

 

Bush – Greedy Fly

As a young child, I dreamed of being Gavin Rossdale. This is my favorite song by this band. I know we do not hear much from them these days, but this song is definitely a gem. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jc50xF6E7-8

Bone Thugs and Harmony – Mo Murda

These guys do not have a better song. In my opinion, this song represents what Bone Thugs were all about as a complete group. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j4M8022TsYw

 

YOUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU

So it isn’t funny, but this video should make you at least smile. This is one of, if not my favorite commercials ever made.