Bengals Fans: The World Is Against Us!

The NFL Free Agency period is off and running. I could attempt to recap what went down this past weekend, but a quick Google search or a trip to NFL.com can give you all of the details. But with that said, one deal has stuck out so far: That involving defensive tackle Shaun Rodgers.

You see, Rodgers was supposedly all but packed for his relocation to Cincinnati, but the NFL had other ideas. The defensive tackle was going to be dealt to Cincy for a third and fifth round draft pick, but the office of the NFL rescinded the offer - with the sticking point having something to do with Rodgers' roster bonus?

Either way, the big man is on his way to Cleveland for a third-round selection, and cornerback Leigh Bodden. And Bengals fans are not happy.

Here's just a snippet of the comments that could be found at the Bengals Blog over at the Cincinnati Inquirer:

at 2/29/2008
10:35 PM Anonymous said...
Just an excuse for the NFL to get back at the Bengals for past problems.

at 2/29/2008
10:36 PM Anonymous said...
There's only two scenarios here and both are horrible:
1) Bengals front office works on a trade all day and doesn't make it work under league ules. So in this case they are overmatched and incompetent. 2) The league really does have it out for the Brown family and Bengals (handling Odell, unfair suspensions, this trade) Either option makes me want to give up the NFL.

at 2/29/2008
10:45 PM John said...
Ah, the Bungles strike again. If the Browns signed Rogers this will be very bad. If so Goodell, the NFL and the rest for nixing the deal. Looks like 1 more year of false hope. thanks Roger, u b@stard.

at 3/01/2008
8:02 AM Anonymous said...
You state that the trades can only involve draft choices, how can the Browns deal involve a current player and be valid? Not being a conspiracy theorist, but it seems like the commissioner's office has gone out of its way over the last year to screw over the Bengals at any opportunity. Didn't know the commissioners office was on the schedule every year.

So, just to recap a few of these...

Roger Goodell obviously has it in for the Bengals because of a few character issues that can be found on their roster. In fact, he's their 17th game - believe it or not.

Thus, he nixed a trade that would benefit the team to even up the score a bit. A score set by guys like Chris Henry and Odell Thurman. Speaking of Thurman, the handling of his off-field issues is apparently "unfair," as well as other suspensions handed to the team. Evidently, multiple arrests and drug issues are just par for the course. And if they aren't, the Commish will find a way to "get back" at whichever teams employ players that "lack judgment."

Jeff Fisher may want to keep his eye out for this. You never know when further Pacman-related punishments will go down.

League Stops Rogers Trade To Bengals [Cincinnati Inquirer]

Weekend Warriors: Link Dump

It's that time of the week again. A crisp 30-something degrees outside in Cleveland with nary a football game to watch. And I guess I have to count that whole Pro Bowl game as something to watch for tomorrow as there are a handful of my Browns "representing" the AFC. But until then, check out some of these places in the meantime...

- Someone obviously isn't as excited to watch the Browns in the Pro Bowl as I am. Understandably. [Rumors and Rants]

- S2N is holding down SportsByBrooks during this lovely Saturday. Pay him a visit. [SportsByBrooks]

- While I didn't touch on the discovered treasure that was the Chris Berman video (as about 100 other blogs did), there are a few more that are worth some attention. BallHype has the goods here, here and here. [BallHype]

- KSK digs up an actual petition from Pats fans to replay the last 1:40 of the Super Bowl. And boy do they ever. While Pats fans should be ashamed of themselves, they got what was coming to them by these guys. And Hines Ward. [KSK]

- And finally, the story of the Giants fan that got into the Super Bowl party. Needless to say, he was pretty excited. [Deadspin]

-

Spagnuolo to Washington: Crossing Boundaries, Again?

If you have ever visited any of the key NFC East blogs (i.e. The 700 Level, Mr. Irrelevant), you're likely aware of the disdain that these fans have for the other three teams within their division. In fact, even when they are happy for the other team, they still find a way to crowbar in a little backhand or two. All of us football fans do it, it’s in our blood.

Which is why this piece from the New York Daily News caught my eye. No unit was more heralded in this past weekend's Super Bowl than the defense of the New York Giants; led by defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. Why it was news that the championship team's defensive coordinator was at their celebration parade is beyond me. But the part that followed rang even louder.

Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo was at the parade, but afterwards he was expected to board a flight to Washington where he will meet with Redskins owner Daniel Snyder tonight. He’ll meet again with Snyder and his lieutenants tomorrow morning before returning to New Jersey.

Oddly enough, Spagnuolo was with the Philadelphia Eagles as a linebacker coach before taking the gig with the Giants. Its one thing to take advantage of success, but when curious to see what Giants fans think of this development regarding yet another NFC East team, I put on my detective hat and went to work. Big Blue View, a Giants fan blog had the following to say:

Losing Spagnuolo, whose passion, energy and aggressive style turned a porous defense into a dominant, championship-caliber one, would be a devastating blow
to the Giants. The Giants' defenders, who took so well to his aggressive style and executed his complicated blitz packages to perfection, certainly don't want to go into next season without him.

And the Giants General Manager agrees.

Giants GM Jerry Reese understands what he has in Spagnuolo. "We’ll make every effort to keep him," Reese said. "We sure don’t want to play against him with the Redskins because we know what he’ll bring to the table. If he gets a shot at a head coach’s job, Godspeed."

As a Browns fan, I can understand where the G-men are coming from in the fact that it was rumored that Rob Chudzinski was being sought after by the Baltimore Ravens. The quick fix was GM Phil Savage locking Chudzinksi up with a two-year extension, hoping that he can continue to help Cleveland’s assent in the AFC. Perhaps Reese needs to break out the check book, and pronto, if he intends on holding on to the one defensive coordinator that was able to stop the vaunted New England defense. And just happened to do so on the biggest stage possible.

Of course, they can just let him go to the Redskins, only to have him complete the circle by ending up in a front office job with the Cowboys...

An Open Letter To Tony Dungy

Everybody's Working For The Weekend: Link Dump

This may be all you hear from me until Monday. So after you check out my marketing ideas and thoughts on Capitol Hill below, I suggest you scope out some of the better works around the sports blogosphere. After all, this is why we get paid the big bucks. From other places.

Enjoy the game tomorrow. Or the commercials. Or just the beers and taco dip. Your choice, really.

- Jeff George, the Damon Jones of the NFL, has called it quits. But that won't stop him from teaching your kid how to have an incredibly overvalued rookie card. No I'm not bitter. [Sports Agent Blog]

- Deion Sanders can now be found placing his blue snake skin boots firmly in his mouth. Figuratively speaking. They may not be blue. [Rumors and Rants]

- At least I'm not alone in the whole "Bug Off, Congress" camp. [Signal to Noise]

- Chad Johnson keeps mentioning Bill Parcells and Miami. But could he go to Washington? Some fans wouldn't mind. [Mister Irrelevant]

- Get your Ryan Pontbriand Pro-Bowl jerseys at NFL Shop today! [Kid Cleveland]

- And finally, for those that have wondered why the city of Los Angeles is sans football. [On the 205th]

Take care, all.

Derek Anderson: Marketing Opportunity

While MJD continues to have more fun in Arizona than the millions of us bloggers who are stuck in our real jobs, his post regarding Derek Anderson got me thinking.

DA showed up in his own, self-scripted bowling shirt and promptly whooped the Yahoo! blogger 60-45. Anderson admitted to owning a version of the "Horse Balls" shirt that is in proper homage to the former Oregon State quarterback. But how many of us out there would purchase a bowling shirt of the same? I know that I sure would.


Now, just picture this with your choice of "ANDERSON" or "HORSE BALLS" on the back, slap the #3 underneath it and VIOLA!

If anyone decides to roll with this idea, I'm time stamping this puppy right now so I expect some sort of royalties. I bet we could sell a ton of these in the Cleveland area, so if there are any takers - feel free to email this guy.

Want a Contract Extension? Move to Cleveland!

Though it had only been spoken in rumor form since the 2007 season came to an end, the Cleveland Plain Dealer has officially reported that the Cleveland Browns have awarded Romeo Crennel with a two-year contract extension, keeping him with the team through 2011. The deal is said to be in the range of $4 million.

This signing comes not even a month after the Browns offered a two-year extension to their offensive coordinator, Rob Chudzinski. And that signing came not too long after the Indians (Cleveland's baseball franchise) signed their Head Coach in Eric Wedge to three-year extension during the middle of this past season.

While rewarding Crennel for his solid efforts and turnaround of the Browns this season seems just due, I'm on the fence with this one. The Browns had a supposed successor in place with Todd Grantham, who is now the team's former defensive coordinator after he was given the curb following an abysmal defensive season for the team. So while no clear plan is presently in place to succeed the oldest coach in the NFL, giving him an extension after one year of success seems a bit much - especially given the way that other coaches (Nick Saban, Bobby Petrino) have honored their contracts in recent history.

I know that award voting is an awful benchmark to use, but is there a chance that the league was telling Cleveland something by not allocating a single Coach of the Year vote to Crennel despite being one of the biggest surprises in the NFL? The Browns will face an exponentially tougher schedule in the upcoming season, so do not count out good old hindsight come this time next year. General Manager Phil Savage may look like a genius now, but in a world of "what have you done for me lately," a regression will not be tolerated by too many fans in the Midwest.

Crennel Signs Extension [Cleveland Plain Dealer]

Low-Balling Derek Anderson Sessions Have Commenced

All in a season's work, Derek Anderson stepped into the starting quarterback position half way through an opening week debacle against the Pittsburgh Steelers and never looked back. 3,800 yards and 29 touchdown passes later, the restricted free agent would now like to get paid.

You're talking about a guy who couldn't even use his "Player of the Week" spot outside of the Browns' training facility because he and his wife share a car. Not that I can attest, but pulling up between luxury vehicles, only to get dropped off at your place of employment cannot be very uplifting. You would think that the guy could hitch a ride with someone and allow them to park there.

But I digress as the Columbus Dispatch is reporting that the Browns have hit the ground running by offering Anderson a three-year deal, with terms unknown. After a 10-5 season, and becoming a Pro Bowl Alternate, Anderson is said to be looking for a six-year contract, with the obvious goal being job security and cashing in on a solid season. Given the fact that Cleveland also has another long-term answer at quarterback currently sitting on the bench in Brady Quinn, its unlikely that he'll be getting a six-year offer any time soon.

While General Manager Phil Savage has stated that the goal is to have both quarterbacks in tow for next season, it may be the last one as such given that if the two parties cannot agree on an extension, the team can slap a one-year tender on the Oregon native. Leverage will not be Derek Anderson's friend in the upcoming weeks, as these two sides will likely exchange up until the February 29th deadline.

NFL notebook: Browns, Anderson begin negotiations [Columbus Dispatch]

Come With Me...

Alright, folks. Here's the deal.

As many things have cultivated into a lack of time for blogging, this site has turned into more and more of a Cleveland-focused diatribe. Coupled with the winding down of the NFL season, it's just been very hard to keep producing quantity.

With that said, I have decided to do two things:

1) All of the Cleveland-based sports talk will now be done over at The Cleveland Sports Minute. Update your bookmarks, RSS feeds and whathaveyou. In fact, today's "Minute" is right here.

2) The posts here at First and 10 Inches will be fewer and further between, but will be more focused on quality as opposed to quantity.

All in all, this will result in fewer posts per week, as CSM will be limited to one post per day. I simply have to focus my efforts elsewhere - especially in the short term. Combined with FA10I, we'll see where this takes us; but it would be very much appreciated if you can at least give CSM a shot - I aim to not disappoint.

Thanks in advance.


(Editor's Note: I've fixed the links as it was brought to my attention that they were not working properly!)

To Make Matters Worse...

...For Browns fans, that is.

Scouring Rotoworld this afternoon, and I fould this little blurb on (Titans Quarterback, Geico Caveman) Kerry Collins.

Kerry Collins, speaking on WFAN, said that the Titans kneeled [sic] down at the end of the Colts-Titans game because they knew the Colts wouldn't call a timeout.

Collins said that the Titans originally called a running play, but he was told over his headset that the Colts wouldn't call a timeout to potentially force Tennessee to punt with less than 20 seconds left. Pressed further, Collins said the Colts and Titans coaches had "a communication."

"A communication?" The note went on to mention possible collusion. The only question that I have is, possible? How is this considered "possible?" If the Colts let on that they threw in the towel, and the Titans did nothing to continue the game, how is this "possible" collusion?

If you were a bit preturbed by Tony Dungy before this news, you're likely not going to be feeling any better about your 10-6 football team not being in the post season. And don't get me wrong. I do not think that this would have made a difference in the game - it's just some more salt in the wound that was Jim Sorgi's attempt at looking like a real quarterback.

Oh, and don't even get me started about next season's schedule. If you haven't heard, these teams may ring a bell: Colts, Cowboys, Giants, Broncos, Jaguars, Titans, Redskins and Eagles. Yes, the Browns will suit up against each and every one of them. Don't forget those in our division either. Should be fun!

Not So Fast, A.P.

While Adrian Peterson getting the Rookie of the Year award has been pretty much a lock for weeks, those that thought he would be unanymously handed the trophy will be surprised to see that A.P. didn't get all of the votes.

That's right, Peterson had to share a few first place votes with Browns' offensive tackle Joe Thomas.

Of the 50 votes, Thomas mustered 3.5 first-place nods. How one can get half of a vote is beyond me, but the former Wisconsin Badger did just that.

Football Outsiders have Thomas listed as one of the top two tackles in all of football this season, based on one of their in-depth formulas. While he has to sit and wait to see if one of the offensive linemen that were voted to the Pro Bowl dip out, those that followed the rookie know what he meant to the Browns turn-around this year.

A Few Guys You'll Need To Know

With the fate of the Cleveland Browns resting in the hands of the Indianapolis Colts, I thought it would be best to introduce you all to the actual Colts that will be held responsible with the duties this weekend, as a win over Tennessee cements a playoff bid for Cleveland - the first in quite some time.

But no, these will not be your typical Colts featuring Peyton Manning, Reggie Wayne and Joseph Addai. Oh no, you'll have to dig pretty, pretty deep to find the jerseys of the folks you'll be rooting for. After this little exercise is over, maybe we will find that things might not be too bad. Or maybe this is all just wishful thinking. Without further ado, your week 17 Indianapolis Colts.

QB - Jim Sorgi


The Indianapolis Star has already confirmed that Sorgi will play "at least" a half in this week's game. Great news. Sorgi has thrown all of 12 passes on the season, completing seven of them for 64 yards. He has been fairly effective when given the chance to play, and was recently signed to a contract extension through 2010. After the Colts locked up a spot in 2005, Sorgi threw back-to-back games of at least 200 yards and a touchdown. While he won't throw for 300 yards and four touchdowns, all is not lost when Sorgi takes over.


RB - Kenton Keith


It wouldn't surprise me to see Keith carry the load from the second quarter on this week as the Colts will have to ensure that Joseph Addai is good to go for the playoffs. Keith's season as a back-up has been pretty solid thus far, including the week five game against Tampa Bay where he racked up 160 total yards, finding the end zone twice. He has sniffed 100 yard several times this year and even racked up 60 on 10 carries last week against Houston. It could really be a lot worse in terms of a back-up running back. In fact, I'm sure there are teams out there that would love to have Keith as their starter. Yes, I'm looking at you, Chicago.

WR - Devin Aromashodu


Here's where it starts to get fun. Believe it or not, Aromashodu is right behind Reggie Wayne on the depth chart as the "second" receiver. He saw his first action of the season in the week 14 blowout of the Baltimore Ravens, and has recorded a catch in each game since. When Anthony Gonzalez left the game last week, Aromashodu hauled in three passes for 42 yards, making for a respectible game. He'll need to harness some Aretha Franklin this week and keep the respect going - the receiving game depends on it. Otherwise, it's all up to...

WR - Craphonso Thorpe


Good luck finding a picture of this cat in action. Thorpe is listed as "proabable" for this week's game, but will likely see a bit of action against the Titans. He was a fourth round selection by the Chiefs, but never really saw the light of day thanks to their stellar receiving corps. Thorpe caught five balls for 41 yards against the Chargers during week 10, but has not done much since. Here's hoping that one of the greatest names ever can actually ammount to something this week.

TE - Bryan Fletcher


With Ben Utecht not expected to suit up thanks to a shoulder injury, Indy will likely turn to Bryan Fletcher for the majority of the tight end duties. He's coming off of a strong game that saw him haul in five passes for 25 yards - part of his 17 catches and 138 yards on the season. In a game against Tennessee last season, Fletcher caught three balls for 56 yards so it's been done before!


The moral of the story is while this won't be last season's Colts championship team suiting up against the Titans this week, it could be a lot worse. In fact, given the way they played last week, I think this Colts team has a better shot to beat Tennessee than the Browns would at this point. I'm not sure how much that's saying, but Cleveland's fate will be determined soon enough.

The Q&A About DA

I've had some time to mentally digest the whole Browns potential choke as well as the pending quarterback situation. Note that I refuse to call the loss to the Bengals a full-on "choke" until this week is over. If Indianapolis beats Tennessee and the Browns make it into the playoffs, they will be lucky. If the Titans come out on top and Cleveland is sent packing, then I will whip out my best Spike Lee. But until that time, nary a word.

I received an email today asking me of my opinion on the Derek Anderson issue. Let me say first that not only will he start this coming week, but he should. Whether or not the Browns plan on re-signing the quarterback, or offering him up in a trade, you always want to maximize potential trade value. Starting Brady Quinn would not only spur a potential controversy, but it will further depress DA's value - as if the lawn chair job against Cincinnati wasn't enough.

I never thought I would say this, but Braylon Edwards could actually be a voice of reason. From the Plain Dealer:

"I can't see him doing that this late in the season and cause any controversy or anything like that [with] how we've played all year," receiver Braylon Edwards said. "There have been some chances for Quinn to get in, if that were going to be the case. He didn't take them then. I don't see him taking them now."

Now, looking forward to next year a bit - being that this game means relatively nothing in terms of the season as much as it does for individual player value - I say test the waters. The investor in me thinks that no matter what, flipping a sixth round draft pick into an earlier pick (first rounder? wishful thinking?) is a no-brainer. Three years ago, if someone told Phil Savage that he could do this, he wouldn't even think twice. Sell discipline is as key in investments as it is in sports - except there's no such thing as unrealized gains in football. (Eat shit, Uncle Sam!)

The Browns have a future quarterback, yet one of the worst defenses in the game. Yes, it is always great to have depth - just ask the guy who drafted Larry Johnson in fantasy football this year and took a bunch of receivers afterwords. However, you also want to maximize the potential that you put on the field. If the Browns have to settle for starting a defensive line that would struggle to make it on the field at all had they be rostered by a different team, they should reallocate some of their resources - assuming the price is right.

Welcome Back!

I hope everyone had a safe and enjoyable holiday.

A few things I learned this weekend:

1) American Gangster is a pretty sweet movie - even in bootlegged DVD form.
2) Your quarterback can be pretty good all year, but it is always the one game that matters most
3) My sister is pretty freaking creative. More on that later in the week.
4) My fiancee is very generous - even in tough times
5) White Christmas' are nice and all, but man is it great driving to and from holiday get-togethers on dry roads
6) LeBron's kids likely had a decent Christmas

With that said, here's a quick recap of what some others are saying around the net to catch you up to speed...

- CBS, NBC and the Fans: 1. NFL Network: 0 (Signal to Noise)

- A slew of bloggers more important than myself chipped in for a Year-in-Review of sorts. (Yahoo! Sports)

- Philip Rivers apparently forgot that he's not a good quarterback. (NFL FanHouse)

- Maybe the Mario Williams pick wasn't so bad after all. (Jim Rome)

- Another long year for Jerious Norwood on the docket? (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

- Could Derek Anderson be heading to Miami? (PFT via FanIQ)

and finally...

- Thanks for all of those fantasy points down the stretch, Reggie. (The Big Lead)

More to come later.

Thanks, Munch!

Good morning, everybody. I just wanted to give a quick "Thank you" to Mark "Munch" Bishop over at 850 WKNR - Cleveland.

It had been brought to my attention that a caller mentioned Brady Quinn's kind act on the radio a few days back, but it had been discounted a bit due to the fact that the story had broke on a blog.

Understandably so, Mark preferred to fact check a bit before putting 100 percent of his emotion behind the story. Munch was kind enough to correspond with me via email yesterday, and even went as far to mention not only First And 10 Inches, but my name as well - a very classy move.

Of course, none of this would be possible if it were not for Brady Quinn himself. If I ever get the shot to meet him if only for a second, this will be surely conveyed. But for now, a big high five to Munch. Make sure to catch his show if you're in the Cleveland area on 850AM between 3-6p EST. If you're not able to get 850, you can stream the show on ESPN Radio. Whether it is an impromptu Bernie Kosar phone call you want to hear, or even Munch shooting the shit with former Browns tight end Aaron Shea, give it a shot! It is the perfect afternoon drive-time sports show.

Edwards and Cribbs: On to Hawaii

While the Browns still have two [regular season] games remaining, the Pro Bowl rosters that were released yesterday have this fan pretty excited. While I tried my best to lobby for both Braylon Edwards and Derek Anderson to be named to the squad, I will be more than happy to settle for Edwards and teammate Josh Cribbs as they were both named to represent the AFC - and deservedly so.

Yes, it would be nice to have more than two players recognized for the season that the Browns have produced thus far, but let's focus on the good stuff here - we the Browns haven't had a member named to this team since 2001. Kellen Winslow, Joe Thomas, Eric Steinbach and Derek Anderson were all worthy of making the squad. In fact, each of these guys could likely play anyways as they were named as first alternates.

This should be the season that garners the O-Line and our quarterback some recognition. Next year, the media will finally pay attention from the beginning, opposed to just penciling in Ben Roethlisberger and Johnathon Ogden's names out of the gate.

Now let's focus on the Bengals...

(Side note: How stacked is the AFC this season where Wes Welker's 96 receptions for 1,000 yards and eight TDs isn't good enough to make the team?)

No Yelling On The Bus

Apparently, after getting shut out in a must-win game yesterday, the Buffalo Bills couldn't even get out of Cleveland in style. The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports that things didn't go so well for the team plane; some thanks to the weather, other thanks to a poor move by the pilot.

The pilot took too wide a turn from one taxiway to another at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport and the front wheel of the plane got stuck, airport spokeswoman Pat Smith said. The team was not on board the plane.

"It wasn't snowing at the time. We don't know why he did this," Smith said.

If the pilot was making odd turns without the team aboard, it may have been a blessing in disguise that they didn't hop on that plane.

Thank You, Brady

Thanksgiving is typically a time for three things: Family, friends and football. Every Thanksgiving in the past, I can assure you that all three of the aforementioned were fully enjoyed, as fewer things can break up a 40-hour work week better than a shit-ton of food sandwiched between two football games. Unfortunately, this past Thanksgiving was not the greatest, as I had found out that the younger sister of one of my very good friends had been killed that morning in an automobile accident en route to a family gathering. I am very close with the family, and for their privacy I will not discuss names or anything of the like, but the remainder of the weekend was somber at best as we all lost a friend - but they obviously lost much, much more.

One thing that can be said about my friend’s sister is that despite the weather, the record or the outlook of the season, she was one of the bigger fans of the Cleveland Browns that I knew. A bigger fan than most of my male friends, my buddy had actually gotten her to eat a dog bone when she was little by telling her that she couldn’t be a fan without the “rite of passage.” Never saying an unkind word about anyone – although I can remember a few choice thoughts on Charlie Frye, but in hindsight they may have been warranted – she was truly one of a kind.

This past weekend, I received a call from my friend whom I hadn’t talked to in a while, as I wanted things to settle down for he and his family. The conversation was short, but given all of the talks this season regarding Brady Quinn, his antics, and his lack of playing time, I felt that it needed to be shared with the rest of you.

My friend’s sister lived in Dublin, OH – the same town from which Quinn grew up, and his family still resides. While I won’t get into the transgression of how all of this took place, let’s just say that Quinn should be considered a class act on all levels.

Just days ago, my friend was presented with a box. And inside of this box was Brady Quinn’s game-worn jersey from the second week of the season. On it were words that would mean very little to others, but mean very, very much to my friend and his family.

"To the [Redacted] Family, in memory of [Redacted]. – Brady Quinn"

Quinn had caught wind of the story, and hand-delivered this jersey himself. He delivered something that obviously means a lot to him, but handed it over to someone that he had never met in his entire life with the assurance that it would be delivered to my friend and his family.

I hope that I can get a picture of the gift, so that it can be posted in the near future – but for now, you just have to take my word for it.

While things like this tend to be a drop in the bucket of emotion that has transpired over the past couple of weeks, my buddy can rest assured that his kid sister is looking down on this moment as something that happens very rarely, but happened because of what she meant to a lot of people – and this happiness can now be passed on to her family.

Thank you, Brady.

So This Is Legal?

I can probably warn you in advance that there are going to be a decent focus on the Browns today. The Steelers lost, the Browns swept the Ravens on the season, and now they're a game out of first.

All of that talk from Ray Lewis that "things will be different when we play them at home. How's that working for you, Ray?

ANYWAYS, I must draw attention to an altercation that took place early on in the contest yesterday. Yes, all of the focus will be on the field goal that was missed, then (not) reviewed and reversed. But this video that provides the evidence of Haloti Ngata blatently punching Joe Thomas in the head...right in front of a referee.

Did he get ejected? Of course not. He did get 15 yards, so the ref obviously saw the punch. The announcers saw it. The other players saw it. How was he still in the game? Whether I'm a Bronws fan or not, the lack of ejection in that instance was utterly rediculous. If helmet to helmet hits are grounds for automatic ejection, shouldn't swinging at another player - while he's on the ground, no less - be thought of in a similar light?

I'm actually going to be very surprised if the league does not do something about this at some point in the week. Of course, I would be more surprised if anything is said regarding the official who did not eject him, but a fine for the player will more than likely be in order. Paging Roger Goodell.

Pardon the awful paintbrush editing, but you catch the drift.

(Thanks to DCScrap for the clip)

Morning YouTubness: After Further Discussion...

I'm the King of the World!
Wow. That's all I can say.

By now, you have seen the end of the Browns/Ravens game from Sunday afternoon. Phil Dawson said it best when being interviewed, responding to a question with, "The Browns haven't had a call like this go their way in nine years." What is good for the state of the NFL is that the officials got the call correct, "reviewable" or not.

Big thanks to Awful Announcing for providing the video, and the AP for the image. Enjoy. Unless you're a Ravens fan, of course...




Cleveland's Kicker Phil Dawson is a Magician [Awful Announcing]