Written by Brian McPeek

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Epic.

No one loves a great rant or melt down like I do. Maybe it’s because I’ve had a few myself and maybe it’s because I just love seeing adults reduced to the emotional age of a 5-yr old child that gets her favorite doll taken away.

That’s pretty much the reaction to the Browns losing out on the Robert Griffin III sweepstakes. Whether it be blow hard talk show hosts or otherwise rational human beings, the overall reaction from Cleveland sports fans has been entertaining at the very least. 50-yr old men threatening to turn off their loyalty, close their eyes and hold their breath is the norm.

This angst is all over the right to draft a draft a guy with ridiculous athletic ability, charisma and potential. Of course, he’s never played a down in the NFL and the career graveyards are filled with charismatic college players with potential, but this one has Browns fans in a tizzy.

The same fans who bitch and complain about PSLs are complaining that the Browns didn’t pay enough to secure their seat around the RG3 wishing well.

Who wouldn’t love to have the kid here? Who wouldn’t give a reasonable amount to secure his services and hope he’s all that he’s hyped to be? It’d be fantastic. It would be tremendous to hit that lottery ticket and set yourself up for ten years of elite QB play.

But how much is too much for that lottery ticket? How much would you pay for a ticket where three of the six numbers have been handed to you and “all” you need are the other three numbers and the powerball kicker? How much would you pay for that ticket if five of the numbers were provided and you just needed one more number plus the power-ball kicker? Would you give up three years of your current salary to wager on those tickets? Would you give up more than three years of your salary to take a chance on that ticket?

We can wring our hands and curse the fact that the Browns came up empty in the RG3 lottery. We can do so and be right about it because at the end of the day they went pretty much all-in on the kid and walked away with no chips.

But they somehow went all-in, lost and still walked away with their cash, in this case their full complement of draft picks. That’s not a consolation prize.

Don’t be fooled: the Browns told you this past week that Colt McCoy is not and will not be their QB for the future. You do not get that deep in trade conversations to the point where you’re willing to give up three first round picks for the right to choose a QB if you’re happy, content or okay with your starting QB. The Browns showed their hand. I told you that after he was knocked silly against Pittsburgh, his dad whined about it and then Mike Holmgren played petulant papa with him by not even calling to check on him. Colt was never in danger of playing another game in the 2011 season after that and he’s not likely going to be under center in 6 months.

The Browns were sold on RG3. That’s despite the front office claiming otherwise. They were ready to give up the farm for the cow and thought they had a deal, only to see the NFL equivalent of a drunken soldier, Dan Snyder, throw more money in to the pot and buy it.

But now we’re stuck listening to just how ineffective the front office is in not getting the deal done. And maybe this front office is ineffective and will leave here in a year or two having done nothing other than rob Randy Lerner’s money while employing every Bob Lamonte client on his books.

But their ineffectiveness shouldn’t have much to do with this RG3 thing. Not even if the kid goes Cam Newton or beyond. They were in the game against a crazy man with a bottomless check book who was never going to walk away without buying what he wanted. The Browns weren’t going to win that war. And they got out at the right time.

Prospects are prospects regardless of how highly acclaimed they may be. And there’s a tipping point somewhere here the price gets just too stupid for the risk. You can kill the front office for a lot of things, and I have, but this isn’t one. I think they walked away (or were pushed away) just in time.

Now What?

That’s the key question, right?

The Browns have communicated to anyone not covering their ears with a #12 McCoy jersey that Colt isn’t their guy and that they don’t have the faith in him that they had in a college kid from Baylor. That’s the key takeaway.

I don’t see any way that the Browns don’t look to replace McCoy in the next 6 weeks. And I think that public perception probably causes them to make a big play for Matt Flynn in the coming weeks but where Peyton Manning lands will really be the key to all of this.

Why?

If Manning goes to Arizona then Miami still needs a QB and Flynn is a natural fit there given his former OC is now the Dolphins Head Coach. If Manning ends up in Miami (as I believe will happen given Miami has a #1 receiver in Brandon Marshall, solid #2 and #3 receivers in Davone Bess and Brian Hartline, they have Reggie Bush and, most importantly, they have Jake Long, Mike Pouncey and John Jerry to protect him) then Flynn’s suitors drop significantly, as does his potential price tag. Then the Browns could be in play.

If Manning ends up in Arizona and Flynn ends up in Miami then the Browns will likely look at current Cardinals QB Kevin Kolb (as Arizona wouldn’t pay him the $7million he’s due come March 17^th, thus making him a free agent requiring no draft pick compensation) as a potential starter and Mentor to…. Ryan Tannehill or Brandon Weeden.

The Browns are smitten with both Tannehill from Texas A&M as well as the soon to be 29-yr old Weeden from Oklahoma State. If you’d like to see why the Browns are enamored with Tannehill then take a look at this video package of all of his throws against Northwestern. You’ll see what intrigues teams about the kid and you’ll get  TCF’s NFL Draft expert Jason Askew’s thoughts as well.

The issue with Tannehill (if you’re sold on him) is that regardless of who Miami ends up with as their 2012 QB, Tannehill isn’t likely to get past them and last outside of the top ten. QB contracts are cheaper, Miami’s OC is Tannehill’s former college coach Mike Sherman and the Dolphins would likely be fine paying Tannehill basically backup money to sit and learn for a couple years behind either Flynn or Manning.

What’s the deal with Weeden? Well, if he was 5 years younger he might be valued on a comparable level to Andrew Luck and RG3. He can make every throw, he’s smarter than hell and he’s played with an NFL-caliber WR in Justin Blackmon, meaning he’s thrown balls into NFL-type windows for Blackmon to make plays on already.

Is age an issue? Sure. Weeden played minor league baseball before going to Oklahoma State. He’s going to be 29 before the next NFL season starts. That’s a concern.

But how big an issue is it? Well, it depends on how advanced Weeden is in terms of reading NFL defenses and making NFL throws today. Aaron Rodgers didn’t start until he was about 27. Matt Flynn will be about that age when he gets his first starting gig. I wouldn’t be concerned about the physical side. The NFL is clearly a QB-driven league and you can barely touch these guys any more. That trend will continue. If you believe that then you should be fine taking a legitimate ‘elite’ NFL QB prospect even if he will be 29. Because I doubt any of us would throw away ten years of elite QB play just because it would be coming from a guy who’s six years younger than Tom Brady is today.

The Browns have options. The fact the option isn’t RG3 may be disappointing, but it’s hardly worth the discord and crying it’s generated in the past three days. Clean yourself up ladies. Dry the tears, get out of your robes, shave, shower and deal with it.

The good news is there will be another Flavor of the Day next year. Change ‘RG3’ to Matt Barkley or Tyler Wilson and let’s do it all again in 12 months.

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

With apologies to Christmas, this is the best time of the year. At least it is for a sports fan.

Consider the following that are all going on right now:

Conference tournaments and March Madness, NFL free agency beginning Tuesday at 4pm, the NFL draft talk is in high gear and baseball is set to follow right on the heels of the NCAA tournament.

Love it.

Low Expectations

Great run for the Buckeyes over the last week. Beating Michigan State last Sunday and then crushing Purdue and Michigan to reach the Big Ten Tourney title game warmed the soul. But I’m still not buying big on the Buckeye tournament stock. The team is soft mentally. They’re gifted physically and they could have a run in the tournament that’s indicative of their talent but this team just hasn’t shown me the willingness to work and grind through adversity too often. Last Sunday against Michigan State was a nice exception, but far too often Jared Sullinger and the boys have ceded defeat too easily.

Teams that aren’t mentally tough crumble at some point in the tournament when they face adversity and, sadly, that’s what I expect from this Buckeye squad. I hope I’m wrong. But they’re going to have to have a motivated Sullinger and they’re going to have to have the William Buford who carried them last Sunday against MSU for six straight games. If they get the William Buford who wet the bed against Kentucky last season they, in all likelihood, are done. Hell, Buford was Sybil against Michigan State in the B1G championship game Sunday when he scored 10 points in the first half and then nearly got blanked in the second half.

That just can't happen.

Again, this is the NCAA tournament and you need look no further than how UConn got hot last year and went crazy on their title run to see it can happen. But that’s the kind of focus and performances it’s going to take and Sullinger and Buford are the keys. If they’re dominant for six games then it could be a ridiculous run. If they fall on their face in any single game (or half) the Buckeyes are probably done.

 

 

 

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