@texasag1969 said:

He's better at guard IMO.

That's cool.  But he could swing over to RT if needed.  And he's wiley ol' vet who's seen it all before.  It'd be great if he turned out to be an upgrade to our depth.

@orion said:

Here's our 1st round pick 

He's better at guard IMO.

...and probably a lot of Holding calls...which will be nothing new.

@flugel said:

When you factor in the new rule changes to the kickoffs that will significantly increase the number of kickoff returns in all likelihood - perfect timing to add a Pro Bowl STs guy that's good at covering punts/kickoffs.

Yep.  Kickoffs could change a great deal.  In the past speed on coverage units was important.  Now, maybe not as much.  With less ground to cover, it may look more like a defensive team playing against a run play.  We might see more bulk on the field.  These units could see some guards and centers on the return team to set up blocking.

It will be interesting to see how all of this plays out.

@ballpeen said:

A really nice addition to the unit and team.

When you factor in the new rule changes to the kickoffs that will significantly increase the number of kickoff returns in all likelihood - perfect timing to add a Pro Bowl STs guy that's good at covering punts/kickoffs.

@vambo said:

Justin Hardee

Thanks Vambo!   This is a very good pick-up for the Browns.  Here's an interesting article that tells us the type of player he is.  I think we always have room for this...

NY Jets lose key Pro Bowler and team captain to Browns

This is a pretty big loss for the Jets

Justin Hardee / Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

@tiamat63 said:

Foreman has made any mid to late round RB addition likely a complete after thought. All the more reason I believe this draft will be heavy in the trenches. 

I hope it is.  Everything I read is that this is a strong draft in those areas.  Get while the getting is good.  Couple that with we have a lot of trench players on 1 year deals or are starting to get "old" so it makes perfect sense to get a few in here this year to season up so they can play next year.

The Browns are finally in a position where we can use the draft to just pluck the best players we can and or if needs is a consideration we are now drafting for next years needs.

Cleveland Browns

Rugby star Louis Rees-Zammit visits Browns

@dutch-oven said:

The Browns have re-signed kicker Cade York, I'm guessing with the idea of putting him back on the Practice Squad?

Here's what we do...we keep him on the 53 but don't ever use him (maybe for kickoffs)...and when a rival loses a kicker to injury, we put him on the PS.  

@vagitron said:

Outside of that absolutely terrible jeudy extension. I'm not trying to rain on any parades either. Unless he becomes a different wr that was a heinous overpay. 

Yeah, I'm not sure how this one will turn out Vag.  Having said that, here's an example of a HOF RB you're pretty familiar with.  After an impressive rookie year for the Rams averaging 4.9 yards per carry he dropped down to 3.2 ypc with only 3 TDs a year later. The 3rd year resembled the 2nd. Basically, Jerome Bettis needed a fresh start and a better fit.  Jeudy hasn't played up to the expectation of a 1st round WR in Denver; and I'm thinking the Browns are betting on this horse the way Pittsburgh bet on Bettis.  Having said that, I wish the Browns used more contract incentives than guaranteed money. Unfortunately, the stats I cut and pasted below reformatted but it's not too hard to see what matches what.

SEASON	TEAM
1993	LOS
1994	LOS
1995	STL
1996	PIT
1997	PIT
1998	PIT
1999	PIT
2000	PIT
2001	PIT
2002	PIT
2003	PIT
2004	PIT
2005	PIT
Career

 

GP	CAR	YDS	AVG	TD	LNG	FD	FUM	LST
16	294	1,429	4.9	7	71	79	3	1
16	319	1,025	3.2	3	19	53	5	3
15	183	637	3.5	3	41	24	4	2
16	320	1,431	4.5	11	50	76	6	4
15	375	1,665	4.4	7	34	94	6	6
15	316	1,185	3.8	3	42	58	2	1
16	299	1,091	3.6	7	35	64	2	1
16	355	1,341	3.8	8	30	71	1	0
11	225	1,072	4.8	4	48	46	3	0
13	187	666	3.6	9	41	42	1	1
16	246	811	3.3	7	21	43	4	4
15	250	941	3.8	13	29	50	1	0
12	110	368	3.3	9	39	30	0	0
192	3479	13,662	3.9	91	71	730	38	23

@flugel said:

I wonder what Ray Farmer was doing in 5th grade...

@orion said:

He's gotta be though.  He's never got a 1st round pick to work with.  He's gotta fill holes somehow.  And like you say, you know what you're getting...they're pretty much plug & play.  It's the finances of FA that makes it so delicate.  

Exactly!  This seems like a good place to share what AB's wife had to say about him - just click where it says View 26 comments.

@flugel said:

I'm learning how good Berry is at this.

He's gotta be though.  He's never got a 1st round pick to work with.  He's gotta fill holes somehow.  And like you say, you know what you're getting...they're pretty much plug & play.  It's the finances of FA that makes it so delicate.  

@flugel said:

It sure does.  It's a pretty cool way of doing it because proven veterans are easier to coach, teach and fit into the roles we need them at.  They're ready to go without growing pains as we saw last year.  I'm learning how good Berry is at this.

Outside of that absolutely terrible jeudy extension. I'm not trying to rain on any parades either. Unless he becomes a different wr that was a heinous overpay. 

@orion said:

Absolutely.  FA continues to define our draft.  

It sure does.  It's a pretty cool way of doing it because proven veterans are easier to coach, teach and fit into the roles we need them at.  They're ready to go without growing pains as we saw last year.  I'm learning how good Berry is at this.

@tiamat63 said:

Foreman has made any mid to late round RB addition likely a complete after thought.

Absolutely.  FA continues to define our draft.  

@ap1 said:

It needed new horizons and willingly hitches itself to the wagons of Taylor Swift and sports gambling. GMs want/need each because the money will just keep getting bigger and bigger.

Maybe that makes the math less fuzzy, my guess is that it will only make the math more fuzzy.

Well we couda signed Swift but Chicago gave him a 3 year deal on March 13 for $24mil.

@ballpeen said:

Just speaking from a football standpoint, the league has expanded to the point where there aren't enough quality players to fill all the job openings.

@tiamat63 said:

 At any given era, there are only a small handful of QBs able to consistently lead their teams to post season wins as the offensive focal point.  

Good back and forth in the 4-5 exchanges here. This is what analytics brings us. It's all about timing the pendulum and, now, with the fuzzy math GMs can create with contracts, it's going to pad the blow of failure even more.

Missing on a transaction used to seem like such a nail in the coffin now. Now, teams shrug it off, willingly eat the money and jump in line to throw the dice again.

Those analytics have moved to the league offices as well. The NFL knows it has pretty well tapped out it's true, traditional customer base.

It needed new horizons and willingly hitches itself to the wagons of Taylor Swift and sports gambling. GMs want/need each because the money will just keep getting bigger and bigger.

Maybe that makes the math less fuzzy, my guess is that it will only make the math more fuzzy.

@tiamat63 said:

 I think you're setting your sights a bit low. Just watching snaps from Carolina and Chicago last year, DFs screen game work looks so similar to how Chubb catches the ball from the backfield. 

 Dude would be great for 10-12 carries a game beyond just obviously down to move chains.

I didn't mean that was all the Browns brought him in, but even with Chubb on the team Hunt generally was that guy, and Kareem's time in Cleveland is probably done for good. I could definitely see him splitting time with Ford.