Speaking of Football and Unspeakably Horrible People...

Art Modell has been left off the list of the 15 finalists for the Football Hall of Fame. That sound you're hearing is the city of Cleveland laughing.

Behold - the Wisdom of the Mangenius!

I've been steering the "fire Eric Mangini" bandwagon weeks before the NFL season even started; I secretly hoped I would be wrong, but I haven't been (and when Lyrad predicted the Browns would go 5-11, I said he was dreaming, and 3-13 was likely, and I might have overestimated the Browns). The season has quickly become a weird kind of sports-depression I've never experienced before. It's not that I'm down, or even despondent - those conditions would have required some sense of expectation of some success coming into this year, and I really had no expectations of any successes. Still, the speed at which Mangini has absolutely destroyed this team is mind-numbing. I didn't think they'd be good for at least 3-4 years coming into this season, but seeing the wrecking ball that is the "Mangenius," I don't think they'll recover for at least 5 years after Mangini's gone, and while it would be nice if that happened this offseason, it may not. Cleveland fans are used to "waiting for next year," and even when "next year" wasn't too likely (as with the Indians for 2010), at least you could hope they were building something good. But there's none of that here. Mangini isn't driving the team off a cliff - the stagecoach went over the cliff 10 miles back, and we're somehow still falling.

I'd take joy in my accuracy on the disaster of Mangini, but I don't - they're just terrible, and he makes some of the worst decisions I've ever seen in any professional sport and carries himself in one of the most appalling ways of any coach I've ever seen on any team. But I don't need to cite any examples - the snark over at this post at Waiting for Next Year hits it perfectly:

Once again, not only does [Mangini] leave the media guessing, but his two QB’s didn’t even know which way he was going. Brady Quinn, when asked if he was knew what his status for Monday Night, told the media he had “no idea.” Mangini claimed he would tell everyone Wednesday (today) what his plans are. “I haven’t sat down with the quarterbacks about it yet, so that’s part of it. We’ll talk about that in conjunction with our work on the Ravens.”

That’s exactly the way to run your team. Keep the QB’s in the dark when you had a bye week to prepare your chosen guy.

*Sigh*.....there's just nothing to hope for here, save for the removal of Mangini, and even when he's gone, it's going to take years to overcome the damage. I'd hope that the Cavs could keep LeBron, but fortunately, I'm a Cleveland sports fan. We had the audacity of hope mercilessly beaten out of us years ago.

Stop the Presses!

Derek Anderson has thrown a touchdown, making it two for the season!

Now, back to your regularly scheduled internet-surfing.

Just Wait Until 2056!!!

I sure am glad Mangini waited until right before week 1 to decide who his starting QB would be. Clearly, it was a decision he felt he could stick to.

Looks like my "fire Mangini" bandwagon is already getting pretty crowded...


....and now that Wedge is gone, Mangini can look forward to being the only Eric in Cleveland who has to worry about his job.

*sigh*

Go Cav.....oh, hell. Why even bother?

Eric Mangini Thinks He's More Important than the Browns

Eric Mangini is apparently dissatisfied with the Browns' continued survival, and is trying to run them into the ground once and for all with his egoism and his stupid decisions. Have I mentioned I hate Scamgini, er, Mangini? Even if he wins a title with the Browns (which he won't), I will never support this style of coaching.

Go Cavs/Tribe!

For the Record....

I remember numbers 8, 7, and 5 through 1, and each one still stings. But when I get to number one, it's still a pain you can't even begin to describe - I still fill with a wistful, morose perspective, pondering what could have been if Fernandez hadn't committed that error...(which speaks to how much I love baseball, how much an Indians championship would mean to me, and how pathetic my life actually is).

*Sigh*...............

Random Sports Tidbits

-While Bernie Kosar was the first football player I remember loving (and the '87 and '88 Browns my first of many experiences with Cleveland heartbreak - damn you, Elway! damn you, Byner!), and I hope he gets through this, I at the same time have a hard time feeling bad for somebody who had the chance to lose tens of millions of dollars.

-I also remember Mel Hall from that time in my life, as he (along with the likes of Greg Swindell, Joe Carter, Brett Butler, Brook Jacoby, Cory Snyder, Andre Thornton, Phil Niekro, and so many others) was a member of the Indians when I first got into baseball as a kid. Now, more than 20 years later, I can remember for something far more criminal and disgusting.

-I really look forward to watching Red Sox nation have an absolute aneurysm over this. Heaven forbid a baseball player look at his job with the same cold, financial professionalism and realism that the owners have.

The Closest the Browns will get to the Playoffs for Awhile...

Funny because it's true.