Talk to a web-geek! It's fun! to email Barry.
12/01/04 AFTERNOON: Wherever there is devastation and carnage, you're
sure to find carrion-munching fowl hopping about, chomping on any biomass
unlucky enough to be around at the time.
Understanding this helps one comprehend why Baltimore re-named Art and Dave's
football team the "Ravens", and also helps to understand why you see so many
vultures wandering around this morning. As you would expect, there is some post-Butch piling-on
today, as the
power of 20-20 hindsight is used to examine the four-year Butch Davis Era.
I'd rather not focus on that as we start up the next wave of CoachWatch
articles. Let's focus on the future.
The future hinges very much on some decisions about to be made by Browns
owner Randy Lerner, who is the subject of many different articles which emerged
today.
ESPN's Len Pasquarelli starts us off, and
doesn't do himself any favors by claiming that Clevelanders frequently use
the term "youse" (um, no), tossing some doubt on whether or not Davis really
resigned (well,
duh) and using the phrase "Mistake on the Lake" (don't say that around me,
pal). He almost balances all this out by saying nice things about how
well-informed Browns fans are.
If you're looking for anything other than uniformed overviews of Cleveland,
Pasquarelli does extrapolate from a lunch he had during a visit to
training camp during the Summer that Lerner is an active and dedicated owner.
The News-Herald talks about the same guy and says he
might be too nice to be an effective owner.
A similar opinion was voiced
by Bernie's Insiders' Les Levine (subscriber story). Bud Shaw hews to the middle
road by painting a picture
of a
publicly-meek but privately self-confident owner.
Onward! Into the Future!
Continuing a tradition that started with my slavish obsession about seeing Jamir Miller leave Arizona for Cleveland in 1999, we will track every news item,
off-hand remark, foul insidious rumor, or promise of free beer. That sort of
stuff, in addition to our
nifty ability to convert oxygen into carbon dioxide, is what we were born to do.
Randy Lerner didn't really limit the scope of the GM and coaching candidates
that we need to monitor. He said he
wouldn't rule out college coaches, and that he probably wouldn't start
interviewing in earnest until the end of the season.
So, let's start talking about some of the GM and Head Coaching candidates
that are showing up on radar. Some I've just listed if I couldn't find info on
them this morning. Feel free to if you think
there's any I've missed.
General Manager Candidates
Terry Pluto put together an excellent overview of the backgrounds on a number
of these possible GMs.
Click here to check it out. Randy Lerner probably already has these names,
as he is
using experienced NFL executives to help him refine his short list.
1. Ozzie Newsome (General Manager, Baltimore Ravens)
Randy Lerner was asked yesterday by WTAM's David Kelly if he would be
willing to give up partial ownership in the team to lure Newsome to the Browns.
Lerner said he would not be willing to give up any ownership to get a GM.
2. Scott Pioli (VP / Player Personnel Director, New England Patriots)
We've actually been tracking Pioli's comments over the last week,
including his recent remarks that he would be honoring the last years of his
contract. Mark Shapiro, Indians GM, told skeptics like yours truly that
Pioli really, truly means it and won't break a commitment. Is this
professional sports? Who da thunk it?
3. Phil Savage (Director of Player Personnel, Baltimore Ravens)
A clear candidate who has already rejected
opportunities from three NFL teams.
4. Randy Mueller, (ex-GM, New Orleans Saints)
5. Ron Hill (VP of Player Personnel, Atlanta Falcons)
6. Tom Modrak (Asst. General Manager, Buffalo Bills)
7. Bobby Grier (Associate Director of Pro Scouting, Houston Texans)
8. James Harris (VP, Jacksonville Jaguars)
Was mentioned this morning
as a possible candidate by Jeff Schudel.
9. Mark Hatley (VP of Football Operations, Green Bay Packers)
Was mentioned this morning
as a possible candidate by Jeff Schudel.
Head Coaching Candidates
1. Terry Robiskie
Robiskie has to be considered on the candidates for the job. After all,
he's the team's interim head coach. Robiskie himself took the opportunity to
talk
about his love for Cleveland yesterday, but denied that he's focused on
getting the job permanently. Roger Brown feels that Robiskie
might just pull off a transition to the full-time gig.
2. Nick Saban
The most interesting news on Saban actually came from
BerniesInsiders.com's Rich Swerbinsky, who reports that Saban, in speaking with
associates, has
expressed a great deal of interest in chasing the Cleveland job. Swerb did a
terrific job in bringing this to our attention.
3. Kirk Ferentz
Steve Doerschuck reports for the Canton Repository that Ferentz's contract
allows him to leave without requiring compensation to Iowa. At the same
time, the Plain Dealer offers up that Ferentz
probably wants to stay in his job at Iowa.
4. Jim Fassel
5. Mike Holmgren
The ex-Packers and current Seattle Seahawks head coach is
mentioned as a candidate by the Canton Repository's Steve Doerschuck.
6. Brad Childress
7. Jeff Tedford, Cal
The best overview of the case for Tedford, can probably be found in the
Watercooler, as
Woof Blitzer makes the case.
8. Charlie Weis, New England Patriots (OC)
9. Romeo Crennel, New England Patriots (DC)
The Boston Herald
talks about both coaches, as well as Scott Pioli, in an article about their
coming to Cleveland this weekend.
10. Bob Stoops, Oklahoma
Coachwatch Archives
11/21 - 11/29 |
1/23/04 - 11/19/04