there was a discussion that happened on I think a text
thread with Chris Simms Peter mellitus and Matt Casey
regarding the connection between football football
movies boxing boxing movies like the better the sport in
real life the worst the movies are so the boxing movies
are really good cuz boxing champion football movies are
really bad because real football is
call and I would argue that baseball movies are very good
too I mean you think of three or four that were outstanding
baseball movies it's a great point I don't know if there's
a football movie that I am just completely in love with that
I would
want to go watch over and over and over again but there are
baseball movies there are boxing movies Rocky of course
and none in football great point of the Titans is one that
I can watch once a year in
comparison to most of the other football movies that are out
there all right no Segway possible into this reality for
the Cleveland Browns although they thought it was going to be
a Hollywood type of a season it's anything but and they won
on Sunday over the
Detroit Lions but it doesn't feel like a wimp because
the lions are horrible they were start all didn't they know it
at this point they started Tim Boyle instead of Jared Goff at
quarterback and even then
the Browns only beat Detroit by three points Baker Mayfield who
didn't meet with reporters yesterday and let's just start
there before we hear from him today
I have said from time to time that
the idea of frosting. If we're going to be sensitive to
the mental health of athletes the idea of mandating the guys be
available after every game after every performance no
matter how they're feeling it's hard to reconcile the two but
until the rules change
those are the rules just liked awning we don't like the role
but until it changes that's the rule I'm sure plenty of guys
would have preferred not to talk to reporters yesterday
Mayfield decided not to do it and I'll be interesting to see
Shireen whether or
not there's any type of a penalty for
yeah it was president of pro football writers of America for
two years and that was one responsibilities was making
sure guys talked and when they didn't I can get those emails
or phone calls or texts saying hey so I didn't talk after
the game Larry Fitzgerald
who as we know it's as media Savvy as any player in the NFL
has ever been kept leaving after games and wouldn't talk
when we talk when talk and so we got involved in that one and
he got a assess a fine I used to get
a letter first and I am guessing that Baker Mayfield
will get a letter first and that will kind of middle ground
because the Browns could say he was seeking treatment on his
injuries but I would argue that because stefanski keeps saying
after games and he said
it again yesterday that Baker Mayfield is healthy enough to
play so if he's healthy enough to play is healthy enough to
talk after games and as you said Mike until the rules
changed the rules of the rules and that's the rule they have
to talk after
games and they have to talk at least once during the week and
so he bypassed that I'm glad they got him today very good PR
staff in Cleveland I'm glad they got him before the media
today
what is that that's the the struggle I always have on one
hand I don't like it when guys Heidi injuries but on the other
hand sometimes they use their injuries as an excuse for
a level performance is unacceptable but sometimes it
is an excuse for a
level of performance that is an acceptable and as we engaged in
the process a few weeks back when you look at Baker Mayfield
at whatever / said he's at versus Case Keenum it 100 it's
in the best interest of the team to go with the guy
who's at a hundred because his total overall quality
performance is going to be better and I think Baker
Mayfield is struggling with that now that maybe he's right
on the borderline of not being healthy enough to play but he
says he's healthy enough to play so
fine the consequences of for performance are on him
the reality is he probably is having his performance compared
and it's a decision that the Browns have to make as to
whether or not they want to continue to let him play
through these injury Mayfield said today
he expects to be healthy and to play on Sunday against
the Ravens he still got the left shoulder pain at one point
I think they were trying too hard to hide the harness it sits
there now you see the harness on the left sure he's got
the knee injuries got a heel injury he said last week he's
never been as banged up as he is now and again it's it's
a decision for someone in that organization to make Baker
Mayfield a few weeks back was trying to make the decision for
himself
he did a 180 between like a Tuesday and Wednesday press
conference and it may be that somebody got to make that
decision as we get ready for a pretty big game they've got
the Raven sandwich coming up they've got Ravens By Ravens
the next three Sundays
that they better be ready to make a good decision about who
they're going to entrust the quarterback position to
oh and I'm sure it's a hard decision my keys are starting
quarterback but you have a decent backup behind him in
Case Keenum so your playoffs are on the line here you have
to make that decision it's a hard decision to make but I was
surprised
at Baker Mayfield played as well as he didn't week 9 but
that's been his one good game since these injuries of
piled-up they beat Cincinnati just kill them and that game
4116 but aside from that he's not played well and I have no
doubt it's the
injuries despite what they say they can say it's not injuries
not in it is in is he he's hurt he's he's nobody questions his
toughness he is as tough as they come I get it but it's
some point my new organization has to step in and
say hey we get it you're tough if you want to play but our
best bet is to go with the backup Case Keenum let you heal
a little bit shoulders not going to get any better but
maybe his other injuries get well enough that he can
go out there and execute
he did against the Bengals and like we know games we've seen
that he plays really well because he hasn't played well
of light
and this is
what we hear over and over again this time of the year
nobody's hundred percent now everybody's backed up to some
extent and so other players don't necessarily want to hear
it but it is part of the reality we all focus on
the health of the quarterback
is its most important player on the team mean the Aaron Rodgers
toe is going to be a point of focus and discussion and
scrutiny and concern as he continues deeper and deeper
into the season because it's getting worse not better and
things typically don't get a
chance to heal on the Fly it's good the Browns have their bye
week coming up just like the Packers have their bye week
coming up and we'll see how healthy it makes Baker Mayfield
but the reality is
you going to get hit you going to get heart and your injuries
aren't going to heal if you continue to get hit while
you're trying to heal and of course it all goes back to
conversation
know when did not put yourself In Harm's Way and don't go make
a tackle after you throw an interception that was the
the first Domino the Begin to Fall for Baker Mayfield way back in
week 2 back when everybody's 100% in the best shape they've
ever
been in they throw themselves into that Fray if you're not
careful you start down this path it gets you to the point
where you're falling apart by Thanksgiving
yeah and my kids to 300-yard passing games this season one
came and Week 1 when he played really well against Kansas City
didn't pull that one out but he played pretty darn well and
that game 321 passing yards and no touchdowns and
an interception but I
thought we played pretty well completed 75% of his passes and
you didn't come back until week 5 against the Chargers and has
his second 300-yard game and two touchdowns in that game but
he hasn't had one song with artist does Case Keenum give
fully healthy Case
Keenum give them the best chance to win right now yes yes
look I'm a big believer in I thought the Viking should have
kept him after the 2017 season he's a guy who can throw
accurately when the pocket is intact and he's a guy who has
the mobility to slide out of the pocket and by time and set
his feet again and look for another guy opened down
the field as well the reason why the Vikings win on that hot
streak in 2017 and Kevin schapansky was there with him
as the
quarterbacks coach so I think it makes a ton of sense in
the subtext of all of this is Baker Mayfield doesn't his contract
and even though Andrew Berry the GM of the team tried to say
in the offseason at the Jared Goff and Carson
Wentz deals aren't cautionary tales
they are cautionary tales and when you pay that guy when you
go all-in you're tied to him for a certain. Of time for
better or worse and unlike the normal situation where people
say for better or worse there's a way to get
a divorce the cap charge it doesn't apply to a marriage
different kind of financial consequences there's no cap
charge that keeps you from getting a divorce as
a quarterback and a team sorry for the metaphor but that's
kind of what it is if you get to
the point where it's over you can't walk away so you better
be damn sure if you're going to pay that quarterback that he's
your guy and I think that's the problem now and even though
they won't come out and admit it because they don't want to
piss him off any more than he's just kind of already got that
Baseline pissed-off attitude which is good at times bad at
others at some point the rubbish got any the road here
at some point the Browns going to have to say hey Baker we'd
like
to keep you on the team but she ain't getting 40 million a year
a picture getting 40 million a year are you going to go try to
get it somewhere else and he's not at this point in his career
he's just not sharing
no he's absolutely not Mike and I think he's making things
worse playing through all these injuries in playing badly and
everyone coming out and say well he's healthy enough to
play Because as I've said a million times that she speaks
the poor performance if that's the
case it's just flat out for performance and you certainly
don't deserve 40 million we're going to hear after the season
when this thing's over how banged up he was how tough he
was he played through all these injuries and go Baker wait wait
to be tough
but that doesn't help the Browns cause that doesn't to me
help his calls and trying to get a new contract I think at
this point it's up to the Browns because it's not going
to be up to Baker We already know as you talk about that
week you said off I'm playing and then of course doesn't play
it's going to be up to the Browns to step in and say we're
going to give you the next two weeks off we have a bye you're
not going to play this week we're going
to go with Case Keenum and see what happens and that's what
it's going to take Mike but it's not doing anybody good
it's not doing him his contract cause any good it's not doing
the Browns any good in there they're called to try to make
the
playoffs he's got that feisty attitude that I actually like
it's an attitude to which I can relate but when it comes to
a quarterback like an Aaron Rodgers type of an attitude to
pack it up if you're not backing it up with your
performance it's not
going to win you any friends it's not going to do you any
favors when you don't show up to talk to the media after game
that you want because you don't like the fact that you got
booed because you didn't play well that's not going to
endear you to the powers-that-be or the fans
the ones who could make it a political necessity at
the Browns have to pay something that they don't want to pay him
I mean if Cleveland is fully and completely in love with
Baker Mayfield He's getting 40 million
a year even if he doesn't deserve it from an X's and O's
and production standpoint it's it's not the way to endear
yourself if you're going to not take it on the days when you
deserve to hear it from the paying customers let's hear
from Baker
Mayfield who didn't speak to the media yesterday but was
available one daylight
make a what did you make of of some of the buoy in there in
the second half from the fans those are probably the same fan
that won't be quiet while we run offense and trying to
operate so don't really care you look frustrated coming off
the field yesterday is that why we didn't hear from you
oh yeah I was frustrated among other things
I mean I've never dodged any questions or hit away from that
so sad about that just frustrated removed emotions and
all that from it just decided it was best to to whiten
I think that's what surprised us all Baker is that you pride
yourself on I'm being that guy and being accountable and
stepping forward and that one part that's not being
accountable I'll be the first to tell you I played like so
it's not about accountable and
I don't owe you guys any of that I owe that's my teammates
and I talked to them so that's what matters
see that that attitude I don't like that's where you go too
far your play doesn't back it up you haven't done enough in
the NFL to justify that effort to say all I didn't dodge any
questions but I don't know anything to you people you did.
Questions you guys all the questions by not showing up and
I think deep down he didn't trust himself to not
do more harm than good by showing up yesterday maybe he's
got to the point where he's sufficiently self aware cuz he
had some bad press conferences in 2019 when things were not
going as well as they were supposed to and so instead of
putting himself in
a spot and I got to give him points for being self-aware
instead of putting himself in a spot where he was going to say
something it was going to cause a problem he just said nothing
and we got to make an involuntary contribution to
the chair
to the NFL's choice so be it it's better than him creating
a sound bite that would have gotten everyone up in arms and
today
today was bad enough I think the attitude was bad enough it
probably would have been a hundred times worse yesterday
somewhere between 10 and 100 times worse
yeah there's no doubt my 50 he obviously would have ripped
the fans and and no telling said what because we know Baker is
outspoken so he probably did the right thing by not coming
on yesterday but it is in his cause I don't think it was
the right thing because I think you have to adhere to the rules
but because he would have said the wrong thing yesterday was
probably the right thing for him to do because as you said
like it was bad enough today with what he said if you
could just see his attitude in those comments and it's playing
is not back what he said all season and the biggest part of
the problem the Browns you look at them when they've had
expectations this year in two years ago haven't played up to
him expectacion
last season and they played really well so maybe they just
don't need expectations anymore
well it it look that they have not handled well being a good
team being a team that much is expected from we saw in 2019 we
saw it again this year this is more of a surprise this year in
2019 it was kind of Freddy
kitchen should have been the head coach he was over his skis
he was so far over his skis you didn't know he was wearing skis
frankly Kevin stefanski with coach of the year last year and
they got to the round of eight and now this year
they're in a fight just to get back to the hospital yesterday
1 yesterday even though they barely won