Rashard Higgins drama confirms Cleveland Browns locker room problems
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wns locker room problems
by Dan Justik 2 hours agoOn Friday, Jason Lloyd of The Athletic reported Higgins did not play against the Seahawks because he refused to play when asked to enter the game (subscription required). Higgins said after the game he did not know why he was not put into the game.
The Browns coaching staff clearly was expecting Higgins to be on the field against the Seahawks. Otherwise, they would not have activated him for the game and instead would have let him miss another game.
This drama with Higgins is just another arrow pointing at the direction of the Browns having issues in the locker room. There does not appear to be much leadership from both the coaching staff and the players themselves because situations like this do not normally happen.
The concern with Kitchens would be if he would demand the respect from his players as the head coach. But as the season drags on and the Browns still resemble an undisciplined team who can not execute, it is clear Kitchens is not doing enough to get what he wants out of the players.
Higgins telling his own head coach that he will not enter a game despite being dressed and apparently part of the game plan is mind-numbing. A coach clearly is not showing enough leadership if his own players are saying they won’t enter games when called upon.
But the issue does not just fall onto Kitchens. It is now a broader issue because there does not seem to be too much leadership in the locker room itself. With the Browns struggling, the players should be demanding the most out of each other. But what they are getting is players who don’t want to play in games despite being ready to play.
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Seems like some kind of depth chart drama..
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I never could figure out why he was active anyway. Dude had a knee injury for 4 weeks and they active him for the game before the bye week. Why? Let him sit that game, and the bye week game and come back 100%
Not to mention he is 3rd maybe 4th on the depth chart anyway.
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I do recall Freddie saying something in the press conference the following week along the lines of "Ask Rashard why he didn't go in to the game"....
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I do recall Freddie saying something in the press conference the following week along the lines of "Ask Rashard why he didn't go in to the game"....
I do recall Freddie saying something in the press conference the following week along the lines of "Ask Rashard why he didn't go in to the game"....
I think it was more like "Go ask Rashard about the Seattle game". And then when asked, Rashard plead the 5th. It's beginning to get weird like the Payton Hillis implosion....
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I do recall Freddie saying something in the press conference the following week along the lines of "Ask Rashard why he didn't go in to the game"....
I think it was more like "Go ask Rashard about the Seattle game". And then when asked, Rashard plead the 5th. It's beginning to get weird like the Payton Hillis implosion....
I think it was more like "Go ask Rashard about the Seattle game". And then when asked, Rashard plead the 5th. It's beginning to get weird like the Payton Hillis implosion....
I noticed that too. This is what happens when the wheels fall off.
Time to make sure they stay on.
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I too, expected to see Higgy get some snaps during the Seattle game..Heck, I drafted higgy in league 4's fantasy league, than just dumped him after the hawks game post game interviews.. I'd file this one under "butt hurt with bad timing for a injury while Cab was suspended".Hig's went out after week 1*. Baker got here, throwing the ball to Higgy as a back-up growing some solid chemistry with Higgins.. Man, has the chemistry & the roster changed since than..If Freddie was Baker's guy as his HC? This can't be sitting well with Bake & Higgy's past friendship..
Flustrating Freddie was waiting on *adversity*..Were getting beyond here!!
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I noticed that too. This is what happens when the wheels fall off.
Time to make sure they stay on.
With all the money dished out to gotta-have players - there's no the behind closed doors (players only) meeting that took place or is set to take place?
Here's an appropriate line from a player in a football movie about bringing players and coaches from different neighborhoods and backgrounds together: "Attitude reflect leadership"
I was wondering WTF is up with a guy like Higgins that helped Baker out in clutch situations when called upon in 2018. But apparently guys like Higgins and Zampese aren't worth the continuity to the #1 overall investment at QB. Yeah, just yank out the rug/foundation and start all over again. And look at all the wonderful alternatives to Higgins while OBJ draws the #1 corner with Safety help. If some of this is Dorsey's ego in the from of "I didn't draft Higgins" kind of thing: then Higgins' reaction to it on the sideline isn't the problem - it's a symptom. We're about 1-2 more disappointing game days from veteran players and their agents wanting out of here asap all over again. Then we get treated to all kinds of mysterious injuries sidelining veterans that were allegedly going to change everything. This puts us right back in the same boat, which is a safety canoe off the ship that just sunk.
With the investments made at DE, they sure have a knack of losing contain and not getting to the depth of the QB dropback before clamping down and in. If they don't get to that depth and they take an inside angle instead - this allows running games to get outside easily rather than funneling everything back inside toward pursuit. When our DEs do get that depth and maintain outside leverage throughout the clampd0wn, now the ball carriers have to belly backward around our DE depth. This gives the pursuit much more time to get there for speedsters like Breida and more recently the Denver RBs that got outside early on. It's especially critical when the defensive scheme only fields 2 LBers much of the time. YES, Garrett gets his sacks and 1-2 pressures a game - but I'm not seeing a guy ready to be the reason we're winning (except for the Jets who everyone else beats). He's a #1 overall pick; but I'm not seeing a guy that dominates or takes over a game like a Reggie White or Bruce Smith (who rarely ever had to complain about being held). Garrett seems like a good kid. But all this hoopla about his fitness routines - aren't showing me the full game motor at all.
All we heard all training camp and throughout the preseason was how GREAT and underrated this defense is. They're pretty amazing when there's no tackling. Having said that, when there is tackling - check out the missing fundamentals and/or how often guys aren't in position to make a tackle. The frequency of missing fundamentals and guys not doing their jobs enough to be in the right place to be helpful is why the volume of penalties persist here. Shortcuts get flagged. And, isn't it fun watching us burn a timeout because someone doesn't know how/where to line up? And how about when we don't have 11 guys on the field? Penalties are just a symptom of the bigger problem at hand - a complete lack of leadership on the field and the sidelines. That's very disappointing. NFL body by Anita Beer...
I welcome the only Defensive Coordinator to earn a Superbowl Ring in New Orleans while understanding Revenge of the Nerds is a sequel. "Come get some!" -
Look Ice! Every time the Browns have a problem - Colin Cowerd gets another under wear change! You see, he really has a Wonderful Life...
I welcome the only Defensive Coordinator to earn a Superbowl Ring in New Orleans while understanding Revenge of the Nerds is a sequel. "Come get some!" -
I noticed that too. This is what happens when the wheels fall off.
Time to make sure they stay on.
With all the money dished out to gotta-have players - there's no the behind closed doors (players only) meeting that took place or is set to take place?
Here's an appropriate line from a player in a football movie about bringing players and coaches from different neighborhoods and backgrounds together: "Attitude reflect leadership"
I was wondering WTF is up with a guy like Higgins that helped Baker out in clutch situations when called upon in 2018. But apparently guys like Higgins and Zampese aren't worth the continuity to the #1 overall investment at QB. Yeah, just yank out the rug/foundation and start all over again. And look at all the wonderful alternatives to Higgins while OBJ draws the #1 corner with Safety help. If some of this is Dorsey's ego in the from of "I didn't draft Higgins" kind of thing: then Higgins' reaction to it on the sideline isn't the problem - it's a symptom. We're about 1-2 more disappointing game days from veteran players and their agents wanting out of here asap all over again. Then we get treated to all kinds of mysterious injuries sidelining veterans that were allegedly going to change everything. This puts us right back in the same boat, which is a safety canoe off the ship that just sunk.
With the investments made at DE, they sure have a knack of losing contain and not getting to the depth of the QB dropback before clamping down and in. If they don't get to that depth and they take an inside angle instead - this allows running games to get outside easily rather than funneling everything back inside toward pursuit. When our DEs do get that depth and maintain outside leverage throughout the clampd0wn, now the ball carriers have to belly backward around our DE depth. This gives the pursuit much more time to get there for speedsters like Breida and more recently the Denver RBs that got outside early on. It's especially critical when the defensive scheme only fields 2 LBers much of the time. YES, Garrett gets his sacks and 1-2 pressures a game - but I'm not seeing a guy ready to be the reason we're winning (except for the Jets who everyone else beats). He's a #1 overall pick; but I'm not seeing a guy that dominates or takes over a game like a Reggie White or Bruce Smith (who rarely ever had to complain about being held). Garrett seems like a good kid. But all this hoopla about his fitness routines - aren't showing me the full game motor at all.
All we heard all training camp and throughout the preseason was how GREAT and underrated this defense is. They're pretty amazing when there's no tackling. Having said that, when there is tackling - check out the missing fundamentals and/or how often guys aren't in position to make a tackle. The frequency of missing fundamentals and guys not doing their jobs enough to be in the right place to be helpful is why the volume of penalties persist here. Shortcuts get flagged. And, isn't it fun watching us burn a timeout because someone doesn't know how/where to line up? And how about when we don't have 11 guys on the field? Penalties are just a symptom of the bigger problem at hand - a complete lack of leadership on the field and the sidelines. That's very disappointing. NFL body by Anita Beer...
He's a #1 overall pick; but I'm not seeing a guy that dominates or takes over a game like a Reggie White or Bruce Smith (who rarely ever had to complain about being held). Garrett seems like a good kid. But all this hoopla about his fitness routines - aren't showing me the full game motor at all.
I've been saying this for a while and we keep hearing about how Myles terrorizes everyone in camp and looks absolutely unblockable, and how he totally wrecked practice and blah, blah, blah.
I don't see THAT level of player in our games. Listen, I LOVE Myles Garrett and he's probably my favorite player on the team. He's a very good player, a terrific teammate, and a better human being. But he doesn't win games. He doesn't get game-altering plays (rarely). He's just a really good player and that's about it.
I 100% agree with virtually EVERYTHING you said, and I'm very worried about the "random injuries" popping up and players sitting out. I also agree with you about the defense sucking and I can't understand WHY we're this bad. Like so many people have said in some way other posts, our offense and defense can be summed up with this statement: "Nobody makes a big play when we need it."
For example, several weeks ago the Ravens played the Seahawks. With the game on the line, the Ravens had a 4th and 2 near the goal line. Now, what do you think happened? Better yet, what would OUR team do? Would we rise up and make a game-winning play? No...no we wouldn't. What did Baltimore do? Well, Lamar Jackson obviously scored. Duh. But that's not all! The Seahawks had plenty of time to score a touchdown and retake the lead. Sound familiar?
Do you think Baltimore's defense choked and let them go all the way down the field to score? Why no...no they didn't. In FACT, Baltimore's defense took the ball away and scored a TD to seal it. Something our defense has never done. (to be fair, the Seattle player literally fumbled the ball to them without being touched, but whatever. We'll never, ever get that break, so we'll have to deal)
I guess my point is that NFL games typically come down to a handful of plays every week. It's UNCANNY how on both offense and defense we routinely fail to MAKE these plays. This game tomorrow is probably going to be very similar to the Broncos game. If we don't make adjustments, the result will be similar too. Oddly enough, I'm betting on the Browns to win. I think we rise up for the home crowd, and I DON'T think Buffalo is a 7-2 team. They're just not.
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I believe it all comes down to this - the defense was keeping us in games just fine, and the offense was pitiful.
Totally out of kilter. I figure, the defense is getting back to a point where it is hopeless because the offense doesn't work.
I think offensive skill players are figuring, the offensive line is hopeless.
Before, the interior of the oline was priceless, best in the NFL maybe? Now, weak at ROG, and our center might try to help him, Bitonio tries to help Robinson... kinda like pinball....
and, Kitchens is a rookie Head Coach who calls his own plays. So there ya go.
I just haven't had my coffee yet.
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I subscribe to the Athletic and read the article. It was like an odd cat and mouse game where the interviewer suspected there was something unsaid about the reason he didn’t play but he didn’t fess up. I guess silver lining, at least it’s not def con 5 where players and coaches are bad mouthing each other to the media, but we might be a step away from that. Either way, not a good look for Kitchens deferring the question to the player because at the very least it makes it harder for Kitchens to control the narrative, and for better or worse he badly needs to be on top of the narrative.
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On Myles-if the rest of his teammates were playing up to his league tying sacks and hurries, we'd all be bragging about him leading this great defense. But they have collectively sucked in support. Change that and suddenly he's a great player again. They are so bad that we have to move him around the line to different positions to try to hide him. That is ridiculous.
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Myles isn’t making as much plays because we are consistently playing from behind.. It’s tough to get strip sacks against the run, PAs(with wide open targets), and screens while the offense isn’t scoring touchdowns..
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I had high hopes for b the front seven this year ?
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Does anyone get the sense that Higgy is trying to pull a Josh Gordon and make his way to NE?
Nickers...."There are no old running QB's in the NFL "~Sam Rutigliano~ -
On Myles-if the rest of his teammates were playing up to his league tying sacks and hurries, we'd all be bragging about him leading this great defense. But they have collectively sucked in support. Change that and suddenly he's a great player again. They are so bad that we have to move him around the line to different positions to try to hide him. That is ridiculous.
On Myles-if the rest of his teammates were playing up to his league tying sacks and hurries, we'd all be bragging about him leading this great defense. But they have collectively sucked in support. Change that and suddenly he's a great player again. They are so bad that we have to move him around the line to different positions to try to hide him. That is ridiculous.
Yes, you'd think if Myles is getting double-teamed someone else would step up.Then again, in the Wilks 4-2-5 there really isn't a blitzing LB. It's kind of a bend-don't break defense IMHO.
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