On Monday night, amid rumors and reports that Browns G.M. George Kokinis had been let go, the Browns said nothing for several hours.
In the interim, however, they distributed a transcript of coach Eric Mangini's press conference from earlier in the day. There's only a slight hint in the extensive remarks from Mangini regarding the fact that a major change in the organization had occurred before Mangini met the media.
"We talk about all the different things that involve, not just the football side, but the organizational side, or the organization side of things," Mangini said of his discussions with owner Randy Lerner. "As I said, the objective is the same for both of us, it's to improve from a football perspective. It's to improve from an organizational perspective and to analyze every opportunity, to look at every opportunity to do that. It's no different organizationally than it is in building a team. If you can add quality people that can help you get better, than you do that. You're always searching for opportunities."
Surely, Mangini was aware at the time of the "opportunity" in the position of General Manager. And that's ironic, to say the least. Earlier this year, conversations between Jets owners Woody Johnson and Jets G.M. Mike Tannenbaum regarding opportunities for improving the team resulted in a decision that Mangini was the one who needed to go.
As to changes in the coaching staff, Mangini said he has no plans to part ways with offensive coordinator Brian Daboll. Asked specifically whether he has given any thought to dumping Daboll, Mangini said, "No."
"I think that there have been things that we can improve offensively," Mangini said. "[Quarterbacks coach] Carl Smith is a guy that has a lot of experience. One of the reasons I wanted Carl to be a part of this staff, I think it was 11 years at New Orleans as the offensive coordinator, is to have a guy who's called a lot of plays in the NFL to be able to provide insight into game planning, into play calling. Obviously there are things from a play calling perspective, from a scheme perspective, from a coaching perspective that we can improve, but that goes hand-in-hand with execution and individual performances as well."
Mangini also suggested that he'll spend the bye week looking at the quarterback position. Now that Derek Anderson has taken the snaps for 5.5 of 16 games, Brady Quinn has little or no chance of triggering $10.9 million in 2010 and 2011 escalators by participating in 70 percent of the snaps.
Mangini dropped very subtle hint on Monday about Kokinis
Posted by Mike Florio on November 3, 2009 7:27 AM ET
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Anderson and Quinn are both bad. Go with Cribbs/Ratliff the rest of the way and pick up a guy next spring.
The Bears beat the Browns 30-6, and a good team would have beaten them 50-0. The Browns are simply terrible. like a car wreck you can't take your eyes off of. The QB situation is not to be believed. Putting Brady Quinn in the game with 3 minutes to play is inexcusable, considering Anderson appears to be historically terrible. Firing anybody and keeping Mangdummy is another huge mistake.
Does anybody really care?
If Daboll, aka The White Maurice Carthon, isn't fired that should be "cause" enough to fire The Stay Puff Marshmallow Man. Honestly, the MOST uncreative offense I have ever seen.
So let me get this straight... MangIdiot recommends Kokinis in his very first interview with Lerner... later Lerner makes Mangini the defacto GM and Mangini hand-picks Kokinis, his one time roomate when they were both Interns with the Browns....
Are we supposed to believe that it was Kokinis who swapped out the few talented players that the Browns had for throwaway former Jets players over MangIdiot's protest when MangIdiot himself had the final call on all personnel?
And as of mid season, when there is no draft and the trading deadline has passed, how is a different GM going to provide any help to this team?
MangIdiot lost the players and control of the team a long time ago, and bringing in Kokinis and all the bad former Jets was his decision - not Kokinis...
If MangIdiot threw his one time friend and hand-picked Lieutenant on a grenade to protect his own job, that's even lower and more classless than stabbing the head coach who gave him his shot in the first place in the back.
So let me see if I have what Mangini is saying correctly. He wants to improve the orgnaization of his team and front office, but heading into week 10 he still is not sure fo who the team's QB should be moving on into the future? That's pretty hypocritical if you ask me.
And talk about jumping on opportunities that present themselves, it would have been much easier on his team had he decided which guy he was going with to start the season and standing by him. Instead, Mangini tried to play the guessing game with other teams, in attempts to be mysterious and tight lipped with his deicisions like BB in New England. That's great and all, but when your players don't quite buy into your system yet, there must be stong leadership present in that locker room in order to get everyone on board. The best guy to do that with would be the quarterback seeing how his job is to manage the game on the field and be the leader of the team. But Mangini went a completely different direction and now everybody can see the results.
There is a reason why people around the league don't like this guy, just ask his players.
I can play quarterback, please pick me, please. I will do it, I will do it. Mangine can have teh credit for my success, like he can take from Quinn's and Anderson's. Has anyone given any thought to what this guy has done that was successful. I just don't get it, I guess be a sarcastic little biatch to the head coach in New England, get run out of New York and land in Cleveland where he can practice his undermining deflection on everyone else. (Finger point behind one's back.) The team is bad, say it and rebuild, but just tell everyone that there is little hope, tell everyone that you are not messionic, tell everyone that you need time, oops, too late.
Brady Quinn doesn't take as many chances with the ball as Anderson. He throws much shorter passes. He *should* have significantly more snaps in the same amount of opportunity due to style of play.
If Quinn starts the rest of the season there is still a chance he can get 70% of the snaps.
Better start Anderson one more game to be sure.
I think if Mangini starts Anderson one more game, he should have his bags packed and on the sidelines with him.
It really, really, really doesn't matter who's QB. There's no receivers, no running game, only half an offensive line. No quarterback is going to be successful with this situation. This IS a team sport.
I am really curious as to why Kokinis was let go. Any deals he made were probably the brainchild of Mangini. How can you recruit new people when you treat the old ones so poorly?
Is this the same Carl Smith who coached at N.E. and Jacksonville? If it is just look at the damage he did to the quarterbacks of those teams. When Drew Bledsoe needed discipline and better fundamentals after the Big Tuna's crew left he ended up getting a new pal and not a coach. Drew began his slide into the middle of the QBs pack. When he lost Ben Coats, his outlet on every pass, he was awful. Bledsoe could not read a defense or go through his progressions. Forcing the ball into coverage was normal. Fumbles became routine as he held the ball below his belt. When the Pats played the Jets over the next two years Tuna and BB ate him up. Smith is not a good coach and it is a wonder he has been around this long.
I am not a Browns fan but live in the Cleveland area. This team is a joke from top to bottom. I'm glad I have DirecTV so I can watch some real football on Sunday's.
"I think that there have been things that we can improve offensively . . . Carl Smith is a guy that has a lot of experience. One of the reasons I wanted Carl to be a part of this staff, I think it was 11 years at New Orleans as the offensive coordinator, is to have a guy who's called a lot of plays in the NFL to be able to provide insight into game planning, into play calling."
Which 11 years in New Orleans?
That team was HORRIBLE for a long time. The workforce has a surplus of people who are bad at doing their jobs, but very good at keeping them. If Carl Smith was in New Orleans for over a decade and the team wasn't any good, how does that make him a benefit to a team?