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I don’t know about you, but I’m getting reallt tired of awaiting free agency and instead readiing endlessly worthless reports of owners negotiation with themselves and the NFLPA. Sigh.

Leave it to the PD to finally write a story on the Browns and the whole free agency and labor issues deal, but not really say any anything. Man is this annoying -- where is the in-depth Browns coverage? Anyway, the lede is kind of negative ("Browns are "in limbo") on the Browns although it should be negative on the _leauge_ and rather positive on the Browns within that context since it this free agency season is one of opportunity for the Browns. The rest of the article is more in line with that and is a rather optimistic rehash of the current state of affairs. Anyway...

Ruben Droughns just got a three-year deal. Sweet. That’s about the right length of contract for a decent running back these days. Hopefully the fact that the Browns wrapped him up now indicates they were able to sign him at a dollar amount we should be happy with. And congrats to Mr. Doughns -- you’ve probably earned a nice contract as much as any Browns player of recent years.

I’m looking at the early players who’ve been released so far and I gotta say... no thanks. Hardly any of them seem like good fits for the Browns. I’ll be really surprised if Savage targets grizzled veterans in the last few years in the NFL. I think he’s looking for young veterans who could still have some untapped potential and who could stick around for a while. So Ted Washington, don’t bother visiting Cleveland. Same with Sam Adams, though he can still play a little and he’d immediately have the coolest name in Cleveland sports since the departure of Coco Crisp.

Roger Brown weighs in with the new that John Collins still is associated with Randy Lerner and "lurks behind the scenes." Is this news or not? It’s only news to me if it causes problems with Savage. I’ve long thought Collins was okay on the business side and was intrigued by some of the moves he attemted (although apparently unsuccessfully). He seemed to have an aggressive and creative posture in a business sense. He may not be President of the Browns but it was clear that Lerner still liked him and valued him. So if he sits at the same table as Lerner or acts as Lerner’s envoy in certain matters that doesn’t seem surprising or alarming. As long as he’s doing the owner’s bidding away from Berea that seems okay.

Labor strife has arrived, and we can expect a giant dumping of veteran contracts later today as many teams will have to shave 10 million+ off their cap numbers. Crazy, crazy, crazy. In all this will lie opportunity for the Browns, but frankly I think it’s a pretty hallow situation. Sure, the Browns may be able to snap up some pretty good players for next season. But these guys will at best be one-year rentals, at least if they are any good. About the only way I can see it being a really long term positive for the Browns is if they can stock up on a few young, potential cornerstone-type players and manage to sign them to multi-year deals. That seems impossible, however, since the lack of a CBA will make multi-year contracts very difficult, and other teams are not going to be releasing those types of players.

There seem to be only two good options: 1) this whole mess gets resolved with an agreement on revenue sharing and a new CBA. Soome people are saying no revenue sharing may result in better football, but I’m convinced it will mostly result in higher and higher prices to see games as all costs will be passed along to the fan. And I don’’t buy for an instant that more free agency will give us what I’d like to see a bit more of -- relative roster continuity.

Another potential path lies in what promiinent agents are sayiing:

"It might mean that no rookies get signed because no one is sure of the long-term ramifications," said Tom Condon, the agent for a number of the game’s top players.

This could get interesting if teams that can barely get under the cap will value their current players more than draft picks. That would make high first round picks something of a liability for some teams and the Browns could pick up some 2006 draft picks at bargain prices. The Browns could find themselves one of the only teams who could potentially pay first-round rookie contracts and still get under the cap. I know this is a pipe dream but, hey, weird stuff is happening so I’m dreamiing weird stuff.

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It’s pathetic that the Plain Dealer hasn’t written one article on how these labor issues might affect the Browns considering the Browns have among the most money to spend this offseason and we are on the eve of free agency. Are Tony Grossi and Mary Kay Cabot both on vacation or what? Once again, the ABJ has better Browns coverage.

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Labor issues aside, I could imagine Stephen Davis being a pretty good part of a 1-2 punch at RB in Pittsburgh with Willie Parker.

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The Colts are apparently in big trouble with the cap due to contract issues with Manning and Harrison. They’ve got a team with several decent young players that could make good targets for the Browns. LB David Thornton maybe?

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I wouldn’t mind seeinig the Browns picking up Michael Pittman as an alternative to Droughns. Pittman isn’t going to command much money in this market, he’s a great receiver, and he’s a decent starter if need be. The bad? He’s had some off the field BS that has been kind of uncool. But if we assume William Green and Lee Suggs are likely to get replaced, Pittman would be an ideal type of on-the-field player behiind Ruben.

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CNNSI is reporting that Kerry Colliins would be the Ravens "top option" at QB if he is released. Are you kidding? Please say it is so!!! Another option? Gus Frerotte. He’s a little better, but I’d be happy to take my chances against him too.

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Dude, Shaun Alexander’s situation is kind of remarkable -- any other NFL player in his situation would have gotten a giant contract at some point during the past few years. Iinstead, he could be looking at a drastically smaller contract or playing on another one-year deal waiting for an uncapped 2007 or a new CBA that would allow a giant 6 or 7 year deal.

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Add punter Dave Zastudil to the "ideal offseason." I don’t think Richardson was _that_bad, and I don’t think a punter is a big priority. But the cost of upgrading that position would be so modest that there’s no reason no too. But I’m starting to wonder how much of the talk about Bentley, Jurevicious, and Zastudil is just wishful thinking that former Clevelanders will be coming back home.

It’s hard to judge whether a breakdown in labor talks would benefit the Browns. I’ve read some stuff that suggests teams with a lot of cap space like the Browns could really cash in since so many good players will hit the market and few teams will have money to spend. But a true breakdown in talks would mean an uncapped 2007 season, meaning any decent player will want to cash in come 2007, even the ones who’d be under contract in 2007. But more importantly it’s hard to imagiine 2006 free agents being willing to sign multi-year deals because in 2007 they could hit the market again and really rake it in, and they’d probably have to sign a multi-year deal under rather conservative terms since teams would not know what to project capwise for 2007 and beyond. So the Browns would basically be looking at maybe getting some high-value one-year rental free agents in 2006. And it would come at the expense of NFL labor parity that has made the NFL easily the most entertaining pro sports league in the world. I’m not sure I’d take that deal unless, you know, the Browns could make a deep playoff run in 2006, and I’m not sure 3-4 free agents would even be enough.

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One interesting side note in the above article -- that the NFL pays matching funds into players’ 401(k) accounts on a "2-1 basis." Wow! As far as I know a personcan contribute up to 10% of their earnings into a tax-free retirements savings account. So a 22 year old player making 1 million could contribute 100K, get 200K from the league, and instantly have 300K saved up for retirement. Think about that for a second -- that player could drop out of the league, live a normal, happy life while never again contributing to his retirement and then STILL retire at age 60 with a whopping $5,942,370 in his 401(k) assuming an average 8% return...

All that would be great if the IRS let you save that much. Alas, I just checked it out and apparently an individual can only save 15K per year tax free, with up to 29K in matching funds. So an NFL player could only stash 44K/year in a 401(k). Still pretty sweet, as I’ve been saving for years and haven’t yet accumulated 44K total.

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It’s interesting that Savage interviewed two highly regarded, potential first-round running backs at the Combine. I think it’s smart to gauge where those guys might be drafted if only to get a sense of how the free agent running back market will be -- the Browns are likely to be shopping for a young veteran. But I’d be pretty surprised if they drafted a RB on the first day of the draft. Who knows though... BPA, right?

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My current "ideal offseason":

Free agents: G LeCharles Bentley, WR Joe Jurevicious, NT Ma’ake Kemoeatu, LB Bart Scott, and a two-gapper at DE
Draft: LB Chad Greenway, OG in the second, DE in the third

A depth chart that included the following would be pretty good IMO -- not yet imposing on offense but competent and promising on both sides of the ball:

• DL: Roye, Kemoeatu, McKinley, while grooming a rookie to play end
  
• LB: Scott, Greenway, Davis, Thompson
  
• OL: Shelton, Coleman, Faine, Bentley, Tucker, with Andruzzi and a some youth in the mix
  
• Offensive skill postions: WRs Edwards, Jurevicious, Northcutt, RBs Droughns and Suggs, TEs Winslow, Heiden, Shea

I’m intrigued by Adan Archeleta as well, if he’s truly available. He’s always looked good to me especially in run support. And it doesn’t look like Sean Jones and Brodney Pool are both going to pan out. The question with Archeleta, besides what type of money he’ll command, is how much he has left in the tank. Personally, I think he’d benefit by moving away from the Rams, out of a dome, and into a situation where he’s the leader in the defensive backfield on an emerging defensive-oriented team. The worst thing I can say, and this is why I didn’t include him above, is that Brian Russell is a similar (and cheaper) player so a guy like Archeleta is perhaps not much of a priority this offseason.

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Chad Pennington = Tim Couch. Personally I’d still probably prefer to have Couch. That’s sad, I know...

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I’ve been thinking about the draft quite a bit and am entertained and perplexed by the Houston Texans. First, why did they let it be known they were settling on Reggie Bush? Doesn’t that limit their options, decrease their negotiating power with Bush, and back themselves into a corner with their fans? Seems dumb. Secondly, Reggie Bush, to my eyes, isn’t a concensus #1 overall player. Dynamic and electric? Yes. Franchise running back? Um, does such a thing even exist in today’s NFL? Shaun Alexander is the reigning MVP and his team doesn’t even seem to be trying to keep him. It’s hard to justify committing long term to any running back, let alone making one the top overall pick in the draft. And finally, Vince Young is from Texas and just won a National Championship in a head-to-head matchup against the two other top players in this draft. The fans in Houston would go nuts if they had Young. It seems like the stars are aligned for Young to be a Texan and I think Casserly is overthinking this whole thing. Just pick Viince Young and hope for the best. Even if Young flops they’ll get four or five years of highly entertaining football and the fans there will love it. And picking Young over Bush or Lienart is a close enough call that you might as well go with the guy everyone wants. Certainly Casserly can’t be fired for that. Just pick Young, trade Carr, keep Domanick Davis, invest free agent money on the O-line, and let it roll.

UPDATE: What a joke: "We can stop acting like (Young’s) a unique, can’t-miss superstar cut from the same mold as Michael Vick". If this dude actually think Mike Vick is a can’t miss superstar I’d like to know when he thinks Vick will, you know, start playing like one.

Roye will be back. This is awesome news. As I mentioned a few days ago (and a couple commenters disagreed with me), I really didn’t get the feeling Savage was high on Roye and didn’t think he’d be back. I was obvioisly (and thankfully) quite wrong and Roye has resigned with a three-year deal. Roye has easily been the best defensive lineman of the "new era" and should be able to perform at a high level for at least a couple more years. I haven’t seen financials for this year, but the fact that the Browns were able to sign him before the start of free agency suggests both sides were happy with the numbers.

Of course, keeping Roye doesn’t really solve many problems along the defensive line. The Browns desperately need a presence at nosetackle and could stand an upgrade at the other end too. Also in the above article was mention that the Browns are talking with LJ Shelton about coming back. This too would be great news, especially if it happens in the next two days.

Reading Peter King’s latest column, it sounds like if there is not an agreement on a new CBA before March 3rd and free agency opens, the Browns would be in a nice position since they have a lot of cap space. Also worth considering is that they may have lessened competition for linebackers and defensive linemen agreeable to the 3-4. But even if free agency opens with a new CBA (as still seems more likely) the Browns ought to have little trouble signing 2-3 defensive starters.

With free agency mere days away, expect the Browns to move quickly on a nosetackle, an offensive lineman (LeCharles Bentley?), and a wide receiver (Jurevicous, Givens?). You could throw linebacker in there too, but other than bilking the Ravens out of a player or two it’s a little hard to tell who the Browns might be targeting there. Anyway, at OL and WR I am rooting hard for a 1992 Ignatius vs. Lake Catholic reunion on the Browns offense.

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The Vince Young slide appears to be beginning. There’s no way IMO he slips out of the top 10, but some of the quesstion marks being thrown up do seem valid -- if he has never played from under center and never had to go through his progressions, well, you can see how that might be a problem in the NFL. And the latest criticism -- that he’s just not very smart -- is the most damning. But I don’t buy others like the fact that his throwing motion is weird (who cares if he completes passes?) or that his elusiveness won’t play so well on the NFL level (that’s BS -- I think Lou Holtz said that faster players are great, but they also get further out of position...). The guy has a lot of holes, but he’s a great football player. We’re not talking about Aaron Rodgers here, we’re talking about a guy with unique talent. Maybe he’s dumb as a rock and maybe I wouldn’t choose him on my team, but there’s no way 10 teams take a pass on a guy with his physical talent.

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Why would the Redskins pursue Antwaan Randle El? He’s a good player, but don’t they need a bigger, more physical guy to play opposite Santana Moss?

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If the Cardinals really don’t pursue an established running back, the market for guys is going to be very favorable to NFL teams. I wonder at what point the Browns decide they can do better than Droughns or, at least, that Droughns price ought not to be too high. I feel bad for Ruben though -- he could be on the verge of being the best NFL running back for the money. Which isn’t the best deal for him.

Of the potential players on the chopping block, who should the Browns keep? Who should they let go?

• Antonio Bryant - I like Bryant, but he’s aggravating to watch. I like the fact that he obviously competes hard and is markedly better at getting separation than some of the guys we’ve had at WR the past few years. But he catches the ball like he’s still in college. And, frankly, that is really holding him back from being one of the better receivers in the NFL. Given that 2005 was the last year of his contract I would have expected Bryant to perform better and prove to GMs that he can consistently catch the ball with his hands. But he didn’t. While I’d happily take him back for a year or two, I think Bryant has enough talent to attract a better offer elsewhere. Verdict: GONE.
  
• Dennis Northcutt - Northcutt had a terribly dissappointing season. He was barely seen as a receiver and struggled returning punts. But there were contributing factors. For whatever reason, Maurice Carthon just couldn’t figure out how to use Northcutt effectively -- by putting him in motion, lining him up in the slot or in the backfield, trying to match him up against a linebacker, safety or nickel back. It seems relatively simple... maybe I’m missing something? But I know that over the last few years whenever the Browns offense seemed to click (and that hasn’t been often, so it’s easy to remember) Northcutt got the ball a lot on plays that seemed designed to take advantage of his skillset. And on punt returns, well, Northcutt did all right, it seems, while the unit as a whole was routinely called for penalties. Unless those penalties were somehow due to Northcutt not using his blockers properly, I find it hard to fault him too much for that either. My vote -- keep him and use him right. He’ll make some money in 2006 but not an exhorbinant amount, and Northcutt could certainly outplay his value if used properly. Vedict: KEEP.
  
• Ben Taylor - Maybe he can become the next Brant Boyer. But really, Taylor has been undistinguished in the NFL and the image of Jerome Bettis completely flattening him late in the season will forever remain in my mind. Perhaps if the cost is low (which is probably will be) Taylor will stick around. But odds are the Browns plan on acquiring a couple linebackers in the draft and free agency, leaving little room for a guy like Taylor. Verdict: GONE.
  
• Kenard Lang - Lang admirably tried to switch to LB and he should be commended, and rewarded. But he wasn’t really good enough at LB and apparently doesn’t fit in at DE in the 3-4. Hopefully Lang gets a nice deal from a 4-3 team cause from all I see he’s a good player and a good dude. Verdict: GONE.
  
• LJ Shelton - Played very well in 2005, better than Verba and cheaper. Shelton will be in line for a nice bump in pay. Unless Savage snaps up another LT quickly in free agency the Browns will need Mr. Shelton. Verdict: KEEP.
  
• Kyle Richardson - Richardson didn’t have a great season, but he didn’t suck as bad as you might think. Compare his numbers to some other punters and you’d be hard pressed to tell the difference between him and a host of other guys. We have enough problems on this team, and the punter just isn’t one of them right now. It’s hard to care too much, but... Verdict: KEEP.
  
• Orpheus Roye - It seems like Savage wasn’t thrilled with Roye’s 2005 performance. I think he did pretty well, though something tells me Savage really wants bigger guys at DE. It comes down to a question of value -- do the Browns value Orpheus more than another team might? I don’t think they do, though losing Roye would create another big hole to fill. Verdict: GONE.
  
  [Update: I think the commenter below is right -- Roye is a pretty big. It’s just that Savage seems kind of reserved when talking about Roye, and I’m wondering if Savage really wants a bigger, two-gap guy to play end, or at least a different sort of player than Roye. I love the guy though -- he’s been nothing but solid these past few years.]
  
  
• Aaron Shea - Got hurt and suddenly, along with Winslow’s self-infliction, the tight end position was hurting. Well, Shea is a decent player and he can catch the ball well. The question is whether the Browns can get enough blocking from the trio Winslow/Heiden/Shea. Winslow isn’t going anywhere (except perhaps the IR) and Heiden seems to be better overall. Again, it will come down to money. Verdict: KEEP.
  

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If Drew Brees is really granted free agency, the Detroit Lions should snap him up ASAP. They would benefit immensely. In fact, I’d love to see him in Cleveland if circumstances were a little different, and frankly it still might be a good idea to go after Brees. It will be interesting to see how hard Baltimore goes after him.

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UPDATE: Since I wrote the above the Browns have waived Kenard Lang and Michael Lehan. I don’t have much else to say about Lang (except good luck, again), but Lehan is a bit interesting. I think he’s a pretty decent nickel back and at times I thought he played very well in a Browns uniform. But even Lehan himself appears to understand why he was cut, and it had less to do with his performance than his health. The guy just seemed to get hurt all the time. And he’s not good enough to keep around if he can’t say healthy. I;m sure he’ll get a shot with another team or perhaps the Browns sometime during the 2006 preseason or regular season. But his story is one that is common to lots of NFL players -- decent but not outstanding ability and injuries <> steady job.

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CAVS NOTE: You have to like Ferry’s dealing for Ronald Murray. He did two things that are commendable: 1) Got a potentially useful player to help replace Larry Hughes, and 2) gave up little in return. And of course in the process he showed Cavs fans that he is walking the right line between competing this year and competing in the next few years. Cool.

From one of Peter King’s recent columns:
Worst NFL Records Since 2003
1 Oakland 13-35
1 San Francisco 13-35
3 Houston 14-34
4 Arizona 15-33
4 Cleveland 15-33

Ouch. What really sucks is that in 2002 there was a sense that the Browns, though far from perfect, were back to being a competitive team.

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If Jamal Lewis is not resigned by the Ravens (and really, why would they overpay for him as Lewis seems to expect), you think Phil Savage will make some noise about potentially signing him? The Former Raven Factor is the trickiest thing about having Savage as GM. All I can say is I hope Lewis does not play for the Browns at any price. But I wouldn’t mind it if Savage convinced the Ravens FO he might take a run at him. In any event, it looks like another bad year to be a free agent running back.

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And you know, the other Lewis, Ray, is making some noise too. If he gets released (which seems unlikely to me) you’d have to think Savage would be interested in him as a player. I don’t know though. He hasn’t been a big impact player for a couple years. And I can not stand the guy. But it’s not like Ray Lewis back in a 3-4 is going to suck.

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The Houston Texans have are stayiing the course by keeping Carr -- but is it to victory or disaster? What’s the better 1-2 punch -- David Carr and Reggie Bush? Or Vince Young and Domanick Davis? I’m probably wrong, but I view Reggie Bush as a high-risk prospect. I see Eric Metcalf much more than I see LaDanian Tomlinson. And if I were the Texans I probably would dump Carr, pick Young, keep Davis, and sign a veteran QB. But not without first looking hard to trade down 4-5 spots. As it stands, Texans opponents are still going to stack the line unless Bush becomes a big threat when split out wide like, uh, Eric Metcalf.

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Check out this Football Outsider’s review of the AFC North. It’s a pretty accurate representation.

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ESPN is trying to make Koren Robinson’s trip to Hawaii a feel good story. While I do in fact feel good for the guy, the fact that he made the team as a kick returner means he’s not really a Pro-Bowl WR. And is the big story of the Pro Bowl, providing further proof where no further proof was required -- the Pro Bowl is beyond meaningless.

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If free agency is pushed back due to snags in negotiating a new CBA, there is going to be a truly insane flurry of activity just prior to the draft. Not sure if this is good or bad as far as the Browns are concerned, but I do feel like Savage will at least be more prepared than the previous regime.

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Everytime I read about how Randle El is likely to sign with a team other than Pittsburgh, I wonder who the Steelers will replace him with. As a starting WR he’s only adequate and is pretty replaceable. But not if you factor in how the Steelers use him on option plays. Plus he’s a pretty good punt returner. The Steelers will remain a very good team, but the offense might be more conventional without Randle El in 2006. Of course, I doubt the people in Pittsburgh are too troubled by this right now.

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I hadn’t heard before that the Cardinals are opening a new stadium this fall. When did this happen?

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Apparently Culpepper is now on the trade block. Forget about that guy. Besides the fact that he is hurt and probably won’t do much of anything in 2006, he’s just not that good. And it’s stupid to trade for and invest big money in a player who’s not that good. Maybe the Ravens will get him. Better yet, maybe the Ravens will give up some draft picks and pay him a lot of money.

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It’s about time for a Ross Verba sighting, isn’t it? I can just feel it coming. Best guess on the context: Las Vegas, tax evasion, a criminal investigation? Or a possible return to the NFL? Hehe.

The more you think about the Tribe’s deals with Coco Crisp and others, the better they look. Really. Seriously. A couple things to consider:

• The Indians potentially got a future star in Marte. This is not news. But go with me for a second and just imagine having a real player at third base. He’ll play in 2007, and he’ll be in the majors by June 2006 if Aaron Boone struggles. In that sense, it gives the Tribe a much better chance at having an offensive weapon at third base in 2006. If Boone sucks then Marte gets his chance.
  
• Swapping Bard for Shoppach is key. Shoppach is every bit the catcher Bard is, except he really can hit. Scratch Shoppach on your lineup card for at least 60 games, and maybe (and hopefully) much more. Shoppach is what makes this deal a potentially positive one for the 2006 season. The Indians have to be hoping Shoppach becomes a near-everyday player.
  
• Half the problems are first base may also be solved. Because the more Shoppach can catch, the more Victor Martinez may play first base. And Ben Broussard plays a little less.
  
• The trade clearly helps the bullpen. Riske was dead weight to this team after Wedge lost all confidence in him down the 2005 stretch. Mota is an obvious upgrade even if he isn’t the force he was a couple years ago, which isn’t out of the question. None of this quite replaces Howry, but it’s a viable plan. And without this deal the Indians are clearly in worse shape in the bullpen.
  
• Jason Michaels is probably a decent player. A .380 on base percentage is not bad, and is much better than Crisp’s. In fact, I’d say the odds are very good that Michaels gives the Indians comperable production in left field. He’s the equal of Crisp in the outfield, and he gets on base. Maybe he doesn’t have the decent power that Crisp has been developing, but I think swapping Shoppach for the offensively-challenged Bard about makes up for that. And I think if Michaels can hit around .290 and play good defense that ought to be good enough for a year or two, and if he outperformans that all the better.
  
• Consider Aaron Boone, Ben Broussard, and Casey Blake. None had good years in 2005, and no one is counting on much. But at least one of these guys ought to bounce back and make a contribution. Blake is a decent player and is my pick to play well. If he can get his average back up he coule really improve the offensive punch of this lineup. Broussard seemed pretty lost to me most of last season and probably has the least amount of time to prove himself. Boone is a good defender and a battler, but his offensive ability is somewhat limited even if he plays well. Best case scenario: Blake rediscovers his stroke at the plate, Boone holds it together to be decent for a year, and Broussard develops into more of a platoon player with the unspectacular Eduardo Perez. Give me a pleasant suprise from one of these guys and I’ll be happy.
  

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I feel horrible for the residents of Eastlake, who are getting buried in stadium debt. I remember a few years ago I was working nearby at Lubrizol in Wickliffe and the new stadium was all the rage. If I remember correctly, the stadium even had then-mayor Dan DiLiberto’s name on it. Wow, it didn’t take long for things to take a turn for the worse. It’s really too bad too because the Lake County Captains have generally been a good draw and the park looks really nice while driving by. There’s got to be a way out of this mess, right? Maybe the Indians can indirectly assist by supporting some of Eastlake’s ancillary services that may suffer due to the ballpark. It’s not the Indians responsibility, but it would be a nice gesture. The Captains, afterall, are an Indians farm team and the proximity to Cleveland is a boon to both teams.

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Julio Franco is 47 years old, and he just signed a two-year contract. This is a dude that played with Corey Snyder and Mel Hall at Municipal Stadium. Amazing.

Yep, the Steelers won the Super Bowl, much to the chagrin of many Browns fans (but not this one, not really). It was not a pretty game, and frankly the Seahawks looked like they could have emerged victorious were it not for a few weird calls and a few plays where they didn’t execute. The Steelers, on the other hand, made the big plays whent hey needed them and came out on top.

There’s no reason as a die-hard Browns fans to be too upset about the Steelers winning the big one. The AFC North is better and perhaps the best division in football in 2006 if the Browns hold up their end of the bargain. And that is the best thing for the Browns if they want to win a Super Bowl themselves. Think about the old NFC East -- you think those teams benefited from playing one another during the heyday of that division? Or the NCAA tourney -- there is a reason why even mediocre ACC teams continually make runs in March. Because their level of play is heightened by playing tough teams all the time. Since the Browns already couldn’t beat the Steelers in 2005, I have no problem with the Steelers being the best team in the NFL. Maybe next year (or the year after, etc) the Browns won’t suffer that indignity, but if they can’t be the best team in the AFC North then let the best team in the AFC North be the best in the NFL. Unless it’s the Ravens, who still don’t deserve to win anything for at least another 30 years.

Kudos to Bettis for capping off a great career. He didn’t have a great game, but then again this wasn’t a Super Bowl full of sterling performances. Bettis had a few tough runs but was otherwise swarmed by a surprisingly stout Seahawks defense. I left with the impression that the Seahawks defensive line won the battles in the trenches most of the time.

But Pittsburgh took advantage of three huge plays.

• Roethlisberger completed one long pass all night but it set up the first Steeler TD. On a broken play he hit Hines Ward inside the five just before half-time. Roethlisberger had a bad game, and even this pass was a little ugly as it should have gone for a TD if he hadn’t hung it up. But it was good enough because Ward managed to get wide open. A few plays later Roethlisberger took it into the end zone (yes, he was in).
  
• Willie Parker had a poor game too -- save for a killer 75-yard td run. Parker had pretty much sucked in recent months and this game didn’t change my mind. But he has speed and he got a chance to show it. And since that was the only big play on the ground all night, it was plenty enough.
  
• Finally, the gadget play of Randle El to Ward for the TD was a back-breaker. This was the same play the Steelers burned the Browns on, and it worked just as well here. You can’t really blame the Seahawks though -- they needed to play aggressively defensively at this point in the game and just got burnt. I guess it helps to have a couple former-QBs at WR. And it makes me wonder why the Browns can’t seem to occasionally execute this sort of play with Frisman Jackson or Josh Cribbs. Sigh.

All in all I still have to hand it to Hasselbeck. The guy is a good QB. He was basically the entire offense for Seattle and other than one bad pick he had a great game. He basically made 3 TD throws (1 to Stevens, another called back on penalty, another that was dropped) and nearly another one that Stevens took inside the five yard-line before being overturned.

Shaun Alexander, on the other hand, didn’t quite look the part of a game breaking RB but I’m not exactly sure what to make of that. I thought he looked pretty good running the ball in the first half. He wasn’t gaining a ton of yards but was certainly effective and you could tell the Steelers defense respected him. But it seemed like the Seattle gameplan didn’t include him as much as it should have. And frankly that’s pretty shocking for a guy who was the NFL MVP. In this Super Bowl he wasn’t even the best offensive weapon on his own team. It will be interesting to see what will happen with Alexander on the free agent market. If Holmgren wasn’t confident leaning on Alexander in the Super Bowl it’s hard to imagine the Seahawks shelling out mad money for the guy. And if he doesn’t stay in Seattle he could wind up in any of a number of intriguing places.

A word about Roethlisberger’s bad game. I think of all the players in this game he was the most affected by the weird pace of a Super Bowl because Roethlisberger is still the sort of QB who takes advantage of whatever the defense gives him as opposed to being a QB who dictates the way the offense will play. But the difference between Roethlisberger 2004/5 and Roethlisberger 2005/6 was still obvious. At no time did he have that fatigued look he had in last year’s playoffs. And that little flip pass to Randle El was evidence he was playing with the right mix of reckless abandon and conservativness.

Officiating. In a word, bad. There were crappy calls all over, but the two biggest were ticky-tacky holding and offensive interference calls on the Seahawks. Both took points off the board. I can see the offensive interference, but the holding was very bad. Did it cost the game? Maybe. They certainly cost the Seahawks a lot of momentum. And that holding call probably cost them the lead in the second half. But what the Seahawks didn’t do was overcome those penalties. In fact, they did the exact opposite and and melted down after the bad call. In fact, the interception after the holding call is what really killed them as a field goal in that situation would still have tied the game and the Seahawks would have had all the momentum in the world.

More than the officials, however, the Seahawks wide receivers did not take advantage of some golden opportunities. Darrell Jackson could/should have caught two TDs if he had remained in bounds, Stevens flat out dropped another TD pass, and another wide out dropped a tough but definitely catchable ball in the end zone. You have to make some of those plays if you want to win a Super Bowl. I think in the end the Seahawks proved themselves to be quite dangerous but just not quite good enough.

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I’m really sick of people saying, "At least this Super Bowl wasn’t a blow out." Cause, you know, it’s been a while since the Super Bowl was a blowout.

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Joe Montana can suck it. Missing the Super Bowl MVP thing cause he wan’t getting paid enough is one pathetic thing. But subjecting us to that pathetic FedEx commercial is a felony. How can a winner be such a loser? You know what I think of when I think of Joe Montana? John Candy.

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If you now pay actual money for tickets to a Rolling Stones concert, well you just have no excuse now. What a terrible performance! And why the hell do the Stones need an extra guitar player to play "Satisfaction?" You don’t even need five fingers let alone an extra guitarist. Pretty lame. Or was that the replacement bassist? I don’t even care enough to know for sure...

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Even lamer was how the broadcast edited out "bad words" in Rolling Stones songs. That fact that those same songs are played thousands of times a day on radio stations all over the country apparently doesn’t matter to the paranoid NFL Halftime Entertainment Committee, or whoever. Personally, I thought a Detroit-themed halftime would have been pretty cool since it would at least make some sense. You could have started with some Motown performers, then have Kiss and Madonna do a duet, then a rap-rock interlude with Kid Rock and Eminem, and finally the White Stripes can come along and show Keith Richards how to play guitar.

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The days of big Super Bowl commercials are over. The whole way products and services are marketed has changed too much for the Super Bowl to matter like it used to. I can’t think of even one very good Super Bowl ad this year, let along a great one.