THURSDAY GOES, AND PIOLI REMAINS A CLEVELAND CANDIDATE

One of the more bizarre developments of New Year’s Day arose in connection with the ongoing courtship of Pats V.P. of player personnel Scott Pioli by the Cleveland Browns. The Boston Herald trumpeted that the Browns had given Pioli a deadline of Thursday. The Cleveland Plain Dealer responded by reporting that no such deadline applies. So it’s now Friday, and Pioli has yet to accept the job. And the Browns have yet to pull the plug on the discussions. So the Herald was wrong. And, amazingly, the Friday item from the authors of Thursday’s piece, Ron Borges and Karen Guregian, fails to acknowledge the fact that the Thursday story was flat-out incorrect. Instead, they speculate that the postponement of Falcons president Rich McKay’s interview is a “telling sign” that Pioli and the Browns are “continuing to iron out differences and forge a union.” Um, no. The reality (as we’ve pointed out twice now) is that McKay can’t interview with the Browns until the Falcons’ season ends, since McKay is a high-level employee of the Falcons. Why did the Herald famously retract its February 2008 report of Patriots spying at Super Bowl XXXVI but then ignore its more recent error? Well, the last time around, they faced real and substantial legal liability. This time, they only face embarrassment -- if, of course, anyone realizes that the Thursday report was so grossly wrong. So that’s the lesson, kids. Only admit you were wrong when necessary to do so in order to avoid being sued. In every other instance, shut up and hope no one notices. Meanwhile, the folks who pound the keys at ESPN.com continue to perpetuate the notion that the Browns have given deadline, via this headline: “Report: Browns want Pioli decision soon.” And yet there’s no reason to disregard the Plain Dealer report that the Browns have not imposed any deadline, whether it be Thursday, Friday, February 1, or the vague notion of “soon.” Meanwhile, there’s growing speculation in league circles that misinformation regarding Pioli’s status and his supposed demands is coming either from Browns employees who fear losing their jobs -- or from Patriots executives who fear losing Pioli.