As the Cleveland Browns effectively enter year 3 of the Mike Holmgren era, a light bulb finally went off in th
e head of the namesake. Speaking to a collected media that's heard the same old same old for so long that it could write the stories before a word is spoken, Holmgren instead veered off script. Offering a mea culpa of sorts, Holmgren acknowledged what had previously escaped him—that instead of being a steadying influence on the franchise, he was becoming one of its most suspect members.
Holmgren is now going to become the face of the franchise, just as he was hired to be originally. The Big Show is now the Big Face. His general manager, Tom Heckert, is affable but is as dynamic as a librarian. His head coach, Pat Shurmur, is too busy trying to keep his head above water to have time for the external niceties that go along with that job like coddling the media with substantive answers to mediocre questions.
Holmgren admitted that he's heard the criticism that focuses on his shadowy existence in Berea and his penchant for talking to his friends in the Seattle media market while ignoring his obligations locally. As a result the Browns have had a void since Holmgren was hired (to go along with the void that existed before he was hired) that has left the fans disconnected to a team with whom they crave closeness.
The Tribe is in engaged in interleague play after taking two of three from Detroit earlier in the week and Cleveland’s favorite son, LeBron James, dominated games six and seven of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals to propel the Heat back into the Finals for the second season in a row. Other than that? There was white collar robbery in a boxing ring and Kent State was on the precipice of advancing to the College Freaking World Series. It’s the Weekend Wrap.
Last year at this time I was writing about the fire that burns inside Cleveland Browns QB Colt McCoy but, boy, have things changed. I couldn’t help but to feel sorry for the 3rd round pick as I watched him in a press conference addressing the media as the Browns OTA workouts commenced.
All right Browns fans, the emotion of the draft has died and the Browns are coming off of their three day rookie minicamp, they have started their offseason workout program and OTA sessions, and they are nearing their 3 day full team minicamp. What better time for me to shake off my NFL draft hangover and get back on the keyboard?