Is it time to start considering Justin Gilbert as a viable corner?
-
Recently the media has gone out of their way to print as many stories about Justin Gilbert as humanly possible AND the coaches have made every effort to make sure he knows that he has a "clean slate". Many of the stories mention the previous regime's method of "tough love" and how it didn't work, and how some of the departed veteran players practiced a similar style of trying to whip him into shape.
But here's the thing, where there's smoke there's fire. I've read multiple reports of Gilbert adjusting his stance to help with his back-peddling skill, and Gilbert appears to be taking to his new coaches like he never did with the others. Perhaps the only good thing to come out of Joe Haden's unforeseen ankle surgery is the fact Gilbert gets to take virtually ALL of the first team reps and gets to work against the best WR's we have (which isn't saying much at the moment). It's safe to say that our new GM and coaching staff isn't keeping players that they don't think help our team in the long run, so if they REALLY didn't feel Gilbert had potential, you have to think they would have cut him long ago. They have made multiple mentions of Gilbert's attitude and work ethic, and said that he has done "everything that we have asked him to do." No reports of being late, nothing about a bad attitude, and virtually nothing negative at all.
Gilbert isn't our new regime's boy, and they have no reason to pump him up. I'm starting to think the reports are true, and the kid actually has a chance. Nobody ever doubted his physical skill set, and the popular opinion is that Gilbert now feels loved and part of the team. Just think about what Gilbert could actually mean to our team for a moment. The #8 pick of the draft that basically provided nothing last year, but could potentially START this season. It would be like getting another first round pick this year because let's face it...most if not ALL of us wrote him off after last year...and why wouldn't we?
We still have much to prove at the safety position, but if Gilbert can progress, we start to get some depth at a VERY important position (CB). All of the sudden we have K'Waun Williams, Joe Haden, Tramon Williams, Justin Gilbert, Pierre Desir, Gaines, and a free agent that escapes my memory. We obviously need Haden to make a strong comeback, but it's not like that is impossible.
Listen, we've all heard this rhetoric before, and we Browns fans are rightfully in a place of "show me before I believe". But this feels different. I'm reading too many articles, too many quotes, and hearing too many good things about Gilbert for it just to be "preseason bluster". He must really be showing something, and lord knows we need a boost. This kind of thing is how bad teams start to make the turn. They have several things go their way at once, and different aspect of the team begin to come together. For us, it could be the triumphant return of Joe Haden coupled with the emergence of Justin Gilbert and K'Waun Williams able to avoid concussions. That has the potential to be one helluva corner trio.
I know we're all sick of hearing things like "potential" and "there's a new attitude in Cleveland". I am too, but I just don't feel like being negative right now. We need an astounding amount of different team dynamics to change and go our way before we're competitive this year, and we all realize that. What I don't think people realize is, those dynamics CAN GO OUR WAY. Gilbert CAN turn into the corner we need, Pryor CAN develop into a red zone target that we sorely lack, Orchard, Ogbah, Kruger, Nassib, and Dez Bryant CAN GET TO THE QB, and RG III or McCown CAN get us enough points.
A new coach can go a long way in terms of reaching players, and Gilbert appears to be a guy who needed someone like Hue Jackson. Our team getting a new talented cornerback basically out of thin air would go a LONG way in helping a defense with a ton of needs. We won't know a damn thing until the pads come on, and we have a LONG time to wait for that. But I have a feeling that Gilbert has a new lease on life, and while I admit to being skeptical, I have to admit that my feelings are changing. Do not be surprised to see Gilbert play well in training camp. I'm NOT saying the guy will be picking off every pass and turn into Deion Sanders, but I'm fairly certain Gilbert will be a guy we can count on this year.
from St Louis and don't follow the Browns as a fan..but do follow the draft very closely...your x-hc WAS the problem...period
The problem was the Pettine/O'Neil defense.from St Louis and don't follow the Browns as a fan..but do follow the draft very closely...your x-hc WAS the problem...period
The root cause of the problem was Ray Farmer impersonating an NFL caliber GM.
After 2 years, 22 draft picks, and nearly $15 million in cap space, he handed Pettine a shit sandwich.
Which the Brown's fans were forced to eat.
-
Pettine was the problem..watched the Rams play the Browns and was shocked at how slow/poorly coached the Browns were when the Rams played them
his my way or the highway bs went out 3 decades ago...Carroll has them doing tm before games why Pettine refuses to play the players who are athletic enough to actually have a chance of winning....Madden would play the crazies who were cut from other teams as long as they weren't in jail on Sunday
good news is Jackson will play the crazies...and the Browns will win
-
Pettine was the problem..watched the Rams play the Browns and was shocked at how slow/poorly coached the Browns were when the Rams played them
his my way or the highway bs went out 3 decades ago...Carroll has them doing tm before games why Pettine refuses to play the players who are athletic enough to actually have a chance of winning....Madden would play the crazies who were cut from other teams as long as they weren't in jail on Sunday
good news is Jackson will play the crazies...and the Browns will win
Pettine was the problem.. shocked at how slow/poorly coached the Browns were when the Rams played them
Pettine refuses to play the players who are athletic enough to actually have a chance of winning....
good news is Jackson will play the crazies...and the Browns will win
Back into your Rams Cave... We played everybody we had. Did you see any of our Talent to match Rams? Have a Farmer's Shit Sandwich & enjoy the Jackson 5 Crazies. But am telling you,We got no crazies that the FO of Harvard would approve of.. slow/poorly coached, Yes, Jeff Fisher is slow but DC Greg Williams is surly holding his pants a job with that defensive personal..
-
Pettine was the problem..watched the Rams play the Browns and was shocked at how slow/poorly coached the Browns were when the Rams played them
his my way or the highway bs went out 3 decades ago...Carroll has them doing tm before games why Pettine refuses to play the players who are athletic enough to actually have a chance of winning....Madden would play the crazies who were cut from other teams as long as they weren't in jail on Sunday
good news is Jackson will play the crazies...and the Browns will win
Don't forget Pettine's first year as HC the Browns had a 7-9 season (nothing great but it's the high water mark in recent memory).Pettine was the problem..watched the Rams play the Browns and was shocked at how slow/poorly coached the Browns were when the Rams played them
his my way or the highway bs went out 3 decades ago...Carroll has them doing tm before games why Pettine refuses to play the players who are athletic enough to actually have a chance of winning....Madden would play the crazies who were cut from other teams as long as they weren't in jail on Sunday
good news is Jackson will play the crazies...and the Browns will win
Also, keep an eye on the Farmer draft picks and see how many of them have a great career in the NFL.
Most of them will be selling insurance soon.
-
Don't forget Pettine's first year as HC the Browns had a 7-9 season (nothing great but it's the high water mark in recent memory).Pettine was the problem..watched the Rams play the Browns and was shocked at how slow/poorly coached the Browns were when the Rams played them
his my way or the highway bs went out 3 decades ago...Carroll has them doing tm before games why Pettine refuses to play the players who are athletic enough to actually have a chance of winning....Madden would play the crazies who were cut from other teams as long as they weren't in jail on Sunday
good news is Jackson will play the crazies...and the Browns will win
Also, keep an eye on the Farmer draft picks and see how many of them have a great career in the NFL.
Most of them will be selling insurance soon.
Don't forget Pettine's first year as HC the Browns had a 7-9 season (nothing great but it's the high water mark in recent memory).
Also, keep an eye on the Farmer draft picks and see how many of them have a great career in the NFL.
Most of them will be selling insurance soon.
other then Manziel(had as a 2nd rd pick) thought Farmer ,made solid picks
like I said you x-coach sucked
-
Don't forget Pettine's first year as HC the Browns had a 7-9 season (nothing great but it's the high water mark in recent memory).Pettine was the problem..watched the Rams play the Browns and was shocked at how slow/poorly coached the Browns were when the Rams played them
his my way or the highway bs went out 3 decades ago...Carroll has them doing tm before games why Pettine refuses to play the players who are athletic enough to actually have a chance of winning....Madden would play the crazies who were cut from other teams as long as they weren't in jail on Sunday
good news is Jackson will play the crazies...and the Browns will win
Also, keep an eye on the Farmer draft picks and see how many of them have a great career in the NFL.
Most of them will be selling insurance soon.
I'll have to disagree here. Farmer picked some defensive players that I believe will be cornerstones of this team (especially if Gilbert can turn it around).Don't forget Pettine's first year as HC the Browns had a 7-9 season (nothing great but it's the high water mark in recent memory).
Also, keep an eye on the Farmer draft picks and see how many of them have a great career in the NFL.
Most of them will be selling insurance soon.
Shelton, Orchard, Cooper, (expect a strong sophomore campaign from these three) Williams, Desir and Campbell all belong in the league and most of them will represent very good value imo. The defense last year was poorly coached. They looked like a team that wasn't ready to play and missed tackles like there was a bonus in it for them.
The Offense clearly wasn't as much of a priority to Ray, but he still produced Bito, Crow and Duke, again at good value. Farmer's biggest shortcomings were obviously text gate, and his incompetence at the WR position. the local media believing you can accurately grade a draft class after one year didn't help him either. (Yes I have placed the manziel fiasco on Haslam)
Pettine's first year "success" was mostly taking advantage of a weak schedule with shanny's run scheme and a veteran QB who hadn't yet started shitting the bed. I'd still put my money on the roster being underutilized by poor coaching as opposed to a good coaching staff sabotaged by a bad FO.
-
Until I see different, I would expect Campbell and Moore as our starters.
Not necessarily inspiring confidence but Horton did help launch Tashaun's career.
-
Pettine was the problem..watched the Rams play the Browns and was shocked at how slow/poorly coached the Browns were when the Rams played them
his my way or the highway bs went out 3 decades ago...Carroll has them doing tm before games why Pettine refuses to play the players who are athletic enough to actually have a chance of winning....Madden would play the crazies who were cut from other teams as long as they weren't in jail on Sunday
good news is Jackson will play the crazies...and the Browns will win
Pettine was the problem..watched the Rams play the Browns and was shocked at how slow/poorly coached the Browns were when the Rams played them
his my way or the highway bs went out 3 decades ago...Carroll has them doing tm before games why Pettine refuses to play the players who are athletic enough to actually have a chance of winning....Madden would play the crazies who were cut from other teams as long as they weren't in jail on Sunday
good news is Jackson will play the crazies...and the Browns will win
What is tm?
-
Pettine was the problem..watched the Rams play the Browns and was shocked at how slow/poorly coached the Browns were when the Rams played them
his my way or the highway bs went out 3 decades ago...Carroll has them doing tm before games why Pettine refuses to play the players who are athletic enough to actually have a chance of winning....Madden would play the crazies who were cut from other teams as long as they weren't in jail on Sunday
good news is Jackson will play the crazies...and the Browns will win
What is tm?
What is tm?
Transcendental meditation?
-
I'll have to disagree here. Farmer picked some defensive players that I believe will be cornerstones of this team (especially if Gilbert can turn it around).Don't forget Pettine's first year as HC the Browns had a 7-9 season (nothing great but it's the high water mark in recent memory).
Also, keep an eye on the Farmer draft picks and see how many of them have a great career in the NFL.
Most of them will be selling insurance soon.
Shelton, Orchard, Cooper, (expect a strong sophomore campaign from these three) Williams, Desir and Campbell all belong in the league and most of them will represent very good value imo. The defense last year was poorly coached. They looked like a team that wasn't ready to play and missed tackles like there was a bonus in it for them.
The Offense clearly wasn't as much of a priority to Ray, but he still produced Bito, Crow and Duke, again at good value. Farmer's biggest shortcomings were obviously text gate, and his incompetence at the WR position. the local media believing you can accurately grade a draft class after one year didn't help him either. (Yes I have placed the manziel fiasco on Haslam)
Pettine's first year "success" was mostly taking advantage of a weak schedule with shanny's run scheme and a veteran QB who hadn't yet started shitting the bed. I'd still put my money on the roster being underutilized by poor coaching as opposed to a good coaching staff sabotaged by a bad FO.
I'll have to disagree here. Farmer picked some defensive players that I believe will be cornerstones of this team (especially if Gilbert can turn it around).
Shelton, Orchard, Cooper, (expect a strong sophomore campaign from these three) Williams, Desir and Campbell all belong in the league and most of them will represent very good value imo. The defense last year was poorly coached. They looked like a team that wasn't ready to play and missed tackles like there was a bonus in it for them.
The Offense clearly wasn't as much of a priority to Ray, but he still produced Bito, Crow and Duke, again at good value. Farmer's biggest shortcomings were obviously text gate, and his incompetence at the WR position. the local media believing you can accurately grade a draft class after one year didn't help him either. (Yes I have placed the manziel fiasco on Haslam)
Pettine's first year "success" was mostly taking advantage of a weak schedule with shanny's run scheme and a veteran QB who hadn't yet started shitting the bed. I'd still put my money on the roster being underutilized by poor coaching as opposed to a good coaching staff sabotaged by a bad FO.
I almost hesitate to say "poor coaching"..."non existent coaching" comes closer.
Even with Farmer's mistakes, we have some viable talent that will now be coached up.Just my opinion, but we'll see what happens.
Mike
-
Don't forget Pettine's first year as HC the Browns had a 7-9 season (nothing great but it's the high water mark in recent memory).
Also, keep an eye on the Farmer draft picks and see how many of them have a great career in the NFL.
Most of them will be selling insurance soon.
other then Manziel(had as a 2nd rd pick) thought Farmer ,made solid picks
like I said you x-coach sucked
Well in that case, how many Pro Bowlers has Farmer graced us with?other then Manziel(had as a 2nd rd pick) thought Farmer ,made solid picks
like I said you x-coach sucked
BTW, PFF has the Browns roster ranked at #31...great job by Ray Farmer!
-
I'll have to disagree here. Farmer picked some defensive players that I believe will be cornerstones of this team (especially if Gilbert can turn it around).Don't forget Pettine's first year as HC the Browns had a 7-9 season (nothing great but it's the high water mark in recent memory).
Also, keep an eye on the Farmer draft picks and see how many of them have a great career in the NFL.
Most of them will be selling insurance soon.
Shelton, Orchard, Cooper, (expect a strong sophomore campaign from these three) Williams, Desir and Campbell all belong in the league and most of them will represent very good value imo. The defense last year was poorly coached. They looked like a team that wasn't ready to play and missed tackles like there was a bonus in it for them.
The Offense clearly wasn't as much of a priority to Ray, but he still produced Bito, Crow and Duke, again at good value. Farmer's biggest shortcomings were obviously text gate, and his incompetence at the WR position. the local media believing you can accurately grade a draft class after one year didn't help him either. (Yes I have placed the manziel fiasco on Haslam)
Pettine's first year "success" was mostly taking advantage of a weak schedule with shanny's run scheme and a veteran QB who hadn't yet started shitting the bed. I'd still put my money on the roster being underutilized by poor coaching as opposed to a good coaching staff sabotaged by a bad FO.
Pettine's first year "success" was mostly taking advantage of a weak schedule with shanny's run scheme and a veteran QB who hadn't yet started shitting the bed. I'd still put my money on the roster being underutilized by poor coaching as opposed to a good coaching staff sabotaged by a bad FO.
I'll credit Pettine's first year succes to a cupcake schedule, I'll blame Pettine's second year failure on a very tough schedule (8 games vs playoff teams). Naturally I expect a better season this year because we actually have some experience on the coaching staff. Not to mention an easier schedule than last year.
-
Pettine's first year "success" was mostly taking advantage of a weak schedule with shanny's run scheme and a veteran QB who hadn't yet started shitting the bed. I'd still put my money on the roster being underutilized by poor coaching as opposed to a good coaching staff sabotaged by a bad FO.
I'll credit Pettine's first year succes to a cupcake schedule, I'll blame Pettine's second year failure on a very tough schedule (8 games vs playoff teams). Naturally I expect a better season this year because we actually have some experience on the coaching staff. Not to mention an easier schedule than last year.
I'll credit Pettine's first year succes to a cupcake schedule, I'll blame Pettine's second year failure on a very tough schedule (8 games vs playoff teams). Naturally I expect a better season this year because we actually have some experience on the coaching staff. Not to mention an easier schedule than last year.
FWIW, the 3 opponents in our division we played twice - all made the playoffs in 2014. Carolina made the playoffs. Indy made it to the AFC Championship. We lost 2nd half leads to Carolina, Indy and Baltimore (once or twice). I think we also knotted the score with Pittsburgh in the opener after a huge halftime deficit before Pitt faked a punt inside their own 20 to drive for game winning points.
For a team coming off 4-12 football in 2013 with a ton of injuries in 2014 and another long suspension to Josh Gordon, we started off 7-4 - including victories over Pitt and Cincy.
Never in my wildest dreams did I think all this would add up to a 2015 flatline.
Hello! It looks like you're interested in this conversation, but you don't have an account yet.
Getting fed up of having to scroll through the same posts each visit? When you register for an account, you'll always come back to exactly where you were before, and choose to be notified of new replies (either via email, or push notification). You'll also be able to save bookmarks and upvote posts to show your appreciation to other community members.
With your input, this post could be even better 💗
Register Login