CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Hmmm, what could we possibly be talking about this weekend?
Something for a new Browns coach to consider ...
At the Rob Chudzinski news conference, he didn't want to talk about individual players, which makes sense since he hasn't met most of them. But I can pass some thoughts on to the coach:
1. Hope you can make it work with Brandon Weeden. The Browns don't need another quarterback change, especially since there doesn't appear to be many top prospects in the draft. All fans ever see is a new coach and a new quarterback. Weeden has some talent, bring it out.
2. You probably have two quality backup quarterbacks in Colt McCoy and Thad Lewis. Look closely at the final game against the Steelers and some preseason games ... Lewis may surprise you.
3. Please don't go to a "pure" 3-4 defense. The Browns have spent three years adding linemen who play the 4-3, and are weak at linebacker. Not sure what a "hybrid" means when it comes to your defense, just make sure you don't waste the line's depth. You have talked about being able to adapt to talent on offense; do the same on defense.
4. Never thought I'd write this, but consider keeping Chris Tabor as special teams coach. He had a miserable rookie season in 2011, but the Browns ranked No. 2 (behind Baltimore) in the NFL this year, according to Football Outsiders. Late in the season, kicker Phil Dawson raved about Tabor, saying how he's grown as a coach and done an excellent job with a very young special teams unit.
5. Keep Dawson. There should not be any discussion about retaining the free-agent kicker.
6. Cornerbacks and safeties. You need both. You have two starters -- Joe Haden and T.J. Ward. The rest are backups.
7. Hope you add a veteran receiver to join Josh Gordon and Greg Little. Pay special attention to Little, who really improved the second half of the season. Travis Benjamin can be a deep threat as a part-time receiver and return man on special teams.
8. You are a former tight end coach. See if you can get more out of Jordan Cameron, who seems to have the ability to be an impact receiver. With Alex Smith and Ben Watson as free agents, he's your only tight end.
9. Mohamed Massaquoi is a free agent. Let him go. Yes, he will be the final member of the 2009 lost second-round draft -- the others previously released were Brian Robiskie and David Veikune. You can't allow three second-round picks to be wasted like that.
10. Correction: I was wrong when I wrote that Mike Lombardi played a role in drafting JaMarcus Russell with the Oakland Raiders. Lombardi was leaving the organization as the 2007 draft was unfolding, and had no influence on that disaster of a No. 1 pick. Lombardi still seems to be in the running for some type of position with the Browns in the player personnel department.
About Bernie Kosar ...
I'm not going to enter the debate about Dr. Rick Sponaugle, who is treating Bernie Kosar. He runs the Florida Detox and Wellness Clinic, which treats people with addiction problems, head injuries and other issues.
I do know I wrote a story in April 2010, when Kosar revealed his problem with concussions for the first time. Find the story at tinyurl.com/279fwfa
I do know Kosar is doing much better now than even a month ago. His longtime friend, Tami Longaberger, told me, "He has been like a new man lately." Losing almost 40 pounds helped, as did the vitamins he's now taking. But he believes the treatments are a major factor.
This much is certain. Kosar took a tremendous beating playing quarterback for the Browns. He estimates at least a dozen concussions, his doctors believe it was even more. And the struggles of Kosar and others show that we simply can't say, "He just got dinged," when a player is hit in the head.
About the Tribe ...
1. Last week, I failed to mention Trevor Bauer as a candidate for the Tribe's rotation coming out of spring training. He is in the mix, but one of the reasons the Tribe signed Brett Myers is so they don't have to rush Bauer into the rotation. He's pitched only 172 innings, 161/3 innings in the majors. He'll turn 22 on Jan. 17.
2. Tribe manager Terry Francona and General Manager Chris Antonetti watched Bauer's workouts at a training facility in Texas last week. They didn't see anything that was especially extreme, and they had some in-depth talks about his training techniques. They don't think his approach to training will be an issue, as it was with the Arizona Diamondbacks.
3. The Tribe learned that Bauer was bothered by a groin injury for most of the second half of last season. That is part of the reason he was 1-2 with a 6.06 ERA for Arizona in four starts. He was 12-2 with a 2.40 ERA at Class AA and AAA last season.
4. So the rotation has three spots set -- Justin Masterson, Ubaldo Jimenez and Myers. Competing for the final two spots are Zach McAllister and Carlos Carrasco -- both likely to make the team -- followed by Corey Kluber, Scott Kazmir and Bauer. The Indians expect Bauer to be in the big leagues at some point in 2013.
5. Russ Canzler is now with the Yankees, who claimed him off waivers from the Tribe. After signing Nick Swisher, the Indians said they had to decide between Canzler and Cord Phelps for the final 40-man roster spot. They thought Phelps (.276, 16 homers, .820 OPS at Class AAA) was more likely to be claimed on waivers. Phelps, 25, is a second baseman. Canzler, 26, plays first and the outfield, but struggles defensively. He hit .265 with 22 homers in Class AAA, then .269 with three homers for the Tribe in 93 at-bats.
6. This winter, Canzler has been put on waivers by the Tribe and claimed by Toronto, waived by Toronto and claimed by the Tribe. The Indians thought no one would claim Canzler this time -- because only Toronto put in a claim during the first waiver period. The Tribe's goal was to slip Canzler through waivers, sign him to a minor-league contract and bring him to spring training.
7. The other problem with the Tribe's roster is they have three pitchers (Josh Tomlin, Brandon Wood and Chen Lee) all recovering from arm surgeries. They won't be ready for the opener, but the Tribe likes all three and didn't want to risk losing them on waivers to a team that would keep them on the 40-man roster as they recover.
8. The Yankees are looking for a right-handed hitter (partly to replace Swisher, a switch hitter) and Canzler has a decent chance to make their team.
9. While left-hander David Huff would like to start, the Indians plan to stress to him that he's out of minor-league options. With Tony Sipp and Raffy Perez gone, they need lefties in the bullpen. A job is waiting as Huff will compete with fellow lefties Nick Hagadone and Scott Barnes for two spots. Huff is 28, so now is the time to find a role that keeps him in the majors.
10. In another roster decision, the Tribe kept Huff over Jeanmar Gomez, who was traded to the Pirates for Class AA outfielder Quincy Latimore (.252, 15 HR, 71 RBI, .754 OPS). He is 23, a right-handed hitter and considered a so-so prospect. The Tribe is desperate for outfielders at the upper levels of the farm system.
About the Cavaliers ...
1. Heading into the season, the Cavs thought they could end up with their first-round pick (probably will be high) and perhaps a pick in the 15 to 22 range from the Lakers. It's complicated, but the Cavs have a deal where they either receive the Lakers' pick or Miami's pick. But if the Lakers miss the playoffs -- something no one imagined -- then the Cavs get Miami's first-round pick.
2. The Lakers were five games out of the final Western Conference playoff spot heading into the weekend. They are horrible defensively, and new coach Mike D'Antoni is not a coach who stresses that part of the game. Guess firing Mike Brown after that 1-4 start didn't fix things. At this point, the Lakers are heading to the draft lottery.
3. There is a complicated stat called "Defensive Efficiency." The bottom line is that the bottom six teams in this category (25 to 30) are Dallas, Phoenix, New Orleans, the Cavs, Sacramento and Charlotte. The six teams entered the weekend with a combined 67-143 record, the best was Dallas at 14-23. So the fact that the Lakers rank 21st in defensive efficiency shows they are in huge trouble -- and so are the Cavs, in terms of securing the higher pick.
4. The Cavs will have their own first-round pick, and (assuming the Lakers miss the playoffs) a first-rounder that belongs to the Heat. With Anderson Varejao out for at least six weeks with surgery on a "split" muscle of his leg, winning will continue to be difficult. But just as damaging, the Cavs probably can't trade Varejao near the Feb. 21 deadline -- as this is his third serious injury in the past three seasons.
5. You can argue they should have traded Varejao in the summer -- in case he was injured again. The Cavs thought Varejao was headed for a big season. He was averaging 14.4 rebounds (still No. 1 in the NBA) and 14.1 points, so the Cavs were right about him being productive. But he needs to be on the floor to do so.
6. So the Cavs will probably go into the off-season with Varejao on the roster. The reason for the delay in the surgery is that the first MRI exam did not show a significant split in the muscle because of the swelling around it. A second MRI taken six days later when the swelling had gone down revealed the need for surgery.
7. It's hard to know if Tristan Thompson's rise (13.1 points, 11.5 rebounds) is purely a product of him playing without Varejao. Yes, more rebounds are available, especially since starting center Tyler Zeller needs to work on his rebounding.
8. But the Cavs also believe all the hard work Thompson put in is paying off. He usually is one of the last to leave the practice floor. It has helped to sometimes practice against 7-3 Zydrunas Ilgauskas, who is the team's assistant general manager. After facing Ilgauskas in some 1-on-1 teaching sessions, other centers look smaller. If Thompson turns into the 12-point, 10-rebound man the Cavs hope he can be, it enables them to consider trading Varejao this summer. After this season, Varejao has two more years left on his contract at $9 million and $9.7 million. Those are very reasonable numbers for a big man who can rebound and defend.
I will be speaking at The Plain Dealer on Wednesday from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. during a program called "Faith and Dessert." I will be talking about my faith writing, including my new book, "Faith and You -- Volume 2." And yes, there will be dessert. Also, there will be some free books given away. The cost is $10 per person. For information, call 216-999-4028. Or check plaindealer.com/terry
Source: http://www.cleveland.com/pluto/blog/index.ssf/2013/01/terry_plutos_talkin_about_sugg.html
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