SORRY PETTINE YOU CAN'T FOOL US: TOO MANY GARBAGE TIME SITUATIONS ON THE SHORT END

jimmythegreek

The opening odds start here
Pettine on Manziel: Could be 'scenario where he doesn't play this year'

By Ryan Wilson | CBSSports.com


August 21, 2014 10:41 am ET
First-year coach Mike Pettine could have done better with the Cleveland quarterback situation in recent weeks, but he seems to have learned from his mistake. After naming Brian Hoyer the starter, Pettine put to rest the idea that rookie Johnny Manziel could see the field in specialty packages or otherwise.
"This is Brian's job," the coach said Wednesday, via ESPN. "I never think of it as it's a leash or we want a guy to be a game manager. We want him to be confident and go out and play."
So, under what situation might we see Manziel?
"Give me a crystal ball and I'll give you that answer," Pettine said. "The season is so long. So much can happen, and we don't want ... Brian looking over his shoulder thinking, 'Hey, I make one bad throw and I'm out.' But over time, if you feel you need to make a change -- it's not just at quarterback, it'll be at other positions as well. You have guys that you have penciled in that you hope can be that guy for you for the year, but that rarely works out in the league. Time will only tell.

"You could see a scenario where he doesn't play this year, and then there are other scenarios that are absolutely possible as well. It's hard to tell."
The scenario where Hoyer keeps his job will almost certainly include the Browns avoiding an 0-3 start. They face the Steelers, Saints and Ravens in those first three games before a Week 4 bye. We're guessing there will be loud, frequent calls for Manziel to take over at that point because, well, why not?
For now, though, Johnny Football accepts his role.
"I need to earn everything for me to get in," he said. "Nothing should be given to me, I completely understand that. I need to continue to come in here every day and get better and be around these guys and let them know who I am and how I am."
Manziel even thinks a year on the sidelines could be in his long-term best interests.
"I think it will be great," he said of possibly redshirting his rookie season. "When I first got to (Texas) A&M, if people had seen me they'd say no way this guy goes on to do what I've done the past two years, three years. When I had to redshirt at A&M, it was hard, it was frustrating, but at the same time I got a lot better in that year and a half that I had to sit and watch. Whenever my number is called and it's my time, I'll be ready."
 

John Kelly

Born Gambler
Staff member
Re: SORRY PETTINE YOU CAN'T FOOL US: TOO MANY GARBAGE TIME SITUATIONS ON THE SHORT END

Manziel is fortunate to be on the sidelines in Week 1.

Longtime defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau of the Steelers would have confused Johnny Football to no end.
 

Discreet Cat

EOG Dedicated
Re: SORRY PETTINE YOU CAN'T FOOL US: TOO MANY GARBAGE TIME SITUATIONS ON THE SHORT END

Two things are becoming clear to teammates watching the situation play out:

1) When Manziel isn't rolling up dollar bills in bathrooms or hanging with Floyd Mayweather, he is incredibly studious. Players say that he doesn't party and that, of all the Browns' rookies, he studies the most. He's actually fairly quiet in the locker room, even laid back, two players said.

"None of us have seen the crazy Manziel," one player said. "All we've seen is the professional Manziel."
"He's the fastest learner I've ever been around," another said.

"It looks good," said wide receiver Nate Burleson, when asked if Manziel is grasping the playbook. "I came in early because I was injured over the summer. Injured guys and rookies got a couple practices in before everybody else. He was looking like he's looking now. He's whipping that ball around. He knows what he’s doing. He's a rookie, so he's going to make a couple mistakes here and there. You can't expect the guy to be perfect. I'm in Year 12 and make a mistake or two. He looks good and he knows the playbook. He's just in a position where everything is over-exaggerated, but he's handling it well."

"I think Coach [Mike] Pettine and the staff here have called this an open competition, and I believe that it is," Manziel said. "I'm just trying to get in here every day and try to be better as a player, as a teammate, really hone in on my craft and try and make this football team as good as I can. Whatever my role is on this team, I think that will be decided with play within these next few weeks. At the end of the day, what I want is what's best for this team, what's best for this organization, because this is about the Cleveland Browns. This isn't about me. This isn't about [Hoyer]. This isn't about just the quarterback position. It takes 22 positions on the team to make this whole thing work and come together, so it's not just about us."

Pettine said Manziel's attitude has been "great. From the day he walked in here, he's been extremely coachable. It's been great to meet him. He asks the right questions. He's been fine."

All of that is the good news. His professionalism in the locker room, away from the paparazzi, isn't a question.

2) The more-surprising thing that players and others in the organization have noticed, is that Manziel hasn't displayed the dazzling abilities that he did in college. They don't see extraordinary quickness or arm strength that amazes.

"I haven't seen anything that makes me go, 'Wow,' " one player said.

Wide receiver Andrew Hawkins, 28, while praising Manziel's competitiveness and swagger, also said: "I don't care what the job is, you can tell the difference between a 28-year-old and a 21-year-old."
I checked with players early in camp and then weeks later, and the message was the same. Manziel's skill level hasn't stood out.

One player explained that this is creating a pseudo-divide in opinions: Some of the younger players want to roll with Manziel, while older ones like the stability Hoyer provides and believe that stability will help them push through a brutal season-opening schedule.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/...el-era-but-his-browns-teammates-arent-so-sure
 

papa 5

EOG Veteran
Re: SORRY PETTINE YOU CAN'T FOOL US: TOO MANY GARBAGE TIME SITUATIONS ON THE SHORT END

Interesting thanks for the read
 

railbird

EOG Master
Re: SORRY PETTINE YOU CAN'T FOOL US: TOO MANY GARBAGE TIME SITUATIONS ON THE SHORT END

Manziel is fortunate to be on the sidelines in Week 1.

Longtime defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau of the Steelers would have confused Johnny Football to no end.

Kyle Shannahan the dumbest off coor vs smartest def coor lebeau is a mismatch regardless of any personell
 

Valuist

EOG Master
Actually found a thread re: Mike Pettine.

So why would a one time NFL head coach, and most recently a DC, take a "Senior Defensive Assistant" position so soon? I guess he saw the handwriting on the wall. And if you are Desai, a first time DC, aren't you always looking over your shoulder getting second guessed by Pettine?
 
Top