THE DAILY BLOVIATION
Good morning, Cleveland Browns fans!
I occasionally get emails from both new and long-time visitors to the site. I welcome them. Heck, I leave my email at the bottom of these morning Bloviations. They're a gateway to fantastic feedback about the site and new friendships. Sometimes they're serious, and sometimes they're absurd.
Into the latter camp came a quick message from an old friend yesterday, who randomly wrote to ascribe deep and semi-religious philosophical powers to my dog and constant companion, Cookie. The mutt, rescued at about three months, is now four years old. She's part-Yorkie, part-Poodle, and now apparently part-monk.
The email made me think hard about Cookie's life philosophy, which, from outward appearances, seems focused mostly on quickly bouncing from eating to sleeping to guarding our home from the ever-present menace of our neighbor's dog. Based on her routine, it's not much more evolved than that.
Then I realized that Cookie, unlike her owner, lives very much in the moment. She doesn't really seem to worry about the ramifications of her actions. She tears the squeakers out of toys, ruining them, and she's totally alright with that. She enjoys the act of squeaker surgery for what it is itself. She lives in a state of eternal optimism, hoping that manna in the form of bacon or hamburger will drop from the heavens as my wife cooks dinner.
I root for a team that has unofficially adopted dogs as its mascot, leaning into the ferociousness of their barking. And, sure, dogs can be fierce. But they're also unfailingly loyal, optimistic, intelligent, and focused on the now.
And so our Browns must be, as reflected in today's LINKS OF MODERATE INTEREST, as they are ready to win now and in a short window thereafter and can't be too concerned about what will happen six years later.
So, go ahead, Browns, remove that squeaker from that foam-filled toy if it brings us a Super Bowl in 2024. We need to take a cue from our real dogs. Then, take a nice nap in the most comfortable spot in the house. And if things don't work out? Well, then, rely on eternal optimism. After all, it's been sixty years since the Browns have won it all, and we're still here.
4. GOODBYE MATTHEW ADAMS
Giants sign linebacker Matthew Adams - (giants.com)
There is a certain sadness among some unnamed members of the OBR team today, as special team and backup linebacker Matthew Adams has moved on to a new team. Adams fate was sealed as the Browns picked up additional linebacker and special teams help earlier this year, as he was hovering toward the bottom of the 53-man roster. As Andrew Berry grabs new talent and stuffs it at the top of a depth chart that only contains room for 53 individuals, some will fall out the bottom of the chart. It's simple physics, people.
3. BROWNS VISIT WITH A PROMISING WR
#Georgia WR Ladd McConkey is visiting with the #Falcons today, after visiting with the #Browns recently, source said. Atlanta is one of 14 teams to do in-person work on the versatile WR. McConkey is an intriguing late 1st, early 2nd option.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) April 12, 2024
Browns visited with Georgia WR Ladd McConkey - (watercooler)
Falcons & Browns Hosting Georgia WR Ladd McConkey For Pre-Draft Visits - (nfltraderumors.co)
Ladd McConkey visits with Falcons, recently visited with Browns - NBC Sports - (nbcsports.com)
In most evaluations I've seen, and as RapSheet says here, McConkey is a bottom-of-the-first, top-of-the-second player, so the Browns are obviously hoping he drops or falls through the cracks here. Or they're seeing if they like him enough to move to grab him.
McConkey is amazingly fast, with a 9.33 RAS score. He's not that big, at just shy of six feet tall and 186 pounds, but he looks like a player who can get separation at the next level. Of concern, he's at the edge of the Browns age guardrails per Jack Duffin's analysis. There are differences of opinion on him in the Watercooler.
2. WHY HASN'T WATSON BEEN RESTRUCTURED?
— Spotrac (@spotrac) April 12, 2024Mahomes had a $59M cap hit 4 weeks ago…
CASH
Watson: $46M
Mahomes: $45.8M
Jones: $36M
Prescott: $34M
Stafford: $31MThe only story here is that Cleveland hasn’t touched that Watson cap hit (yet). They’re beginning to protect their future finances in the event that he doesn’t… https://t.co/a6Xaj23WlX
(Jack Duffin)
How And When The Cleveland Browns Can Get Out of Deshaun Watson's Contract (Jack Duffin)
An interesting Xitter post by Sportrac and Warren Sharp sparked some conversation about why the Browns haven't restructured Deshaun Watson's contract yet, so I figured I would take this time to point you to two Jack Duffin articles on the subject. Subscribers, remember that Jack is great at answering questions in Ask the Insiders if you have them on this and other contract issues.
1. BROWNS ADD ANOTHER DRAFT PICK
Browns Trade Offensive Tackle Leroy Watson to the Titans for 2024 7th Round Pick - (OBR)
Leroy Watson IV traded to Titans for 7th-round draft pick - (chronicle-telegram)
I have a contact person at 247Sports that I talk to about how the site is doing and things I need from our network partner. Just yesterday, I was spending my time whining to him that the Browns weren't doing much of anything this off-season and that it was negatively impacting the site. Whine, whine, whine. Then, he sees the Adam Schefter tweet that the Browns had traded a tackle that many fans didn't remember for a seventh-round pick and immediately ribs me about the BIG MOVES the Browns are making.
But, you know, with what Andrew Berry does with these Day Three draft picks, next thing you know, he may be able to parlay this deal for Leroy Watson into a starting defensive tackle.
As it is, it's probably no coincidence that the Browns dealt with the Titans, the new home of ex-Browns offensive line coach Bill Callahan, who is now coaching alongside his son. We'll likely never know whether Callahan just loved Watson or this is some sort of quid pro quo for the Browns allowing Callahan to head to Tennessee.
Have a good one! GO BROWNS!
THE LIFT
Positive news from the world of sports and beyond...
Artificial reef designed by MIT engineers could protect marine life, reduce storm damage - MIT News
We humans create problems. For one thing, we decided back in the 1700s that we should build our global economy around burning things, which has shot a bunch of stuff up into the atmosphere, which, in turn, according to the vast majority of scientists, has sort of gummed up the works from an atmospheric point of view.
Of course, you may be one of the people who don't buy this, and I'm not here to argue with you. That's not the point of this space. But whether it's climate change or something else, something is devastating many of our coastal coral reefs, hurting marine life and putting coastal communities at risk.
Fortunately, and more to the point of the emotional uplift I'm looking for here, it appears that human ingenuity may come to the rescue. An MIT team has come up with ways to build "architected" reefs, which just might help buffer the pounding of ocean waves and give marine creatures a place like the coral reefs to thrive. We humans solve problems, too, and that's today's Lift.
YOUR MORNING NEWSWIRE SOUNDTRACK
Jake and Andrew react to the news of Nick Chubb restructuring his contract with the Browns. What it means for 2024 and beyond. They also hit on some NFL uniform rules introduced this week with some updates on helmet types available and banned for this year. Then they shift to the guys they love for the Browns at pick No. 85 with three each. They will be covering each of the pick slots with their best fits as they see fit from prospect study.
OBR ARTICLES FROM YESTERDAY
Top Cleveland Browns Draft Targets Defensive Tackle - (Jack)
Browns Trade Offensive Tackle Leroy Watson to the Titans for 2024 7th Round Pick - (Jake)
2024 Cleveland Browns In-Depth Mock Draft Week Eight - (Andrew)
EXCLUSIVE Meet 2024 NFL Draft prospect Sam Wiglusz - (Noah)
Cleveland Browns Draft Targets at Edge - (Cody)
Browns Podcast All Eyez on Cleveland: Nick Chubb Contract Rehab and Expectations Plus Mock Draft Analysis - (Brad W)
Cleveland Browns News 4/12: Tackle Buzz, Chubb Deal Win-Win and Controversy Avoidance - (Barry)
Explaining The Cleveland Browns $15,639,450 Of Dead Cap - (Jack)
FROM THE FORUMS
NEW! OBR VIP Discord Coming Soon!
Meanwhile, here are some new threads in the OBR’s discussion forums:
ASK THE INSIDERS (VIP)
How many DTs can fit on the 53?
THE WATERCOOLER
OT: UFC 300!
Voch Lombardi Talks OL in Draft with Quincy
LiveWire Thread for 4/13 - Twitter, Articles, Videos-OPEN THREAD
Browns visited with Georgia WR Ladd McConkey
Schefter: Leroy Watson to Titans for 7th
LiveWire Thread for 4/12 - Twitter, Articles, Videos-OPEN THREAD
Browns Burning Question of the Day 4/12 - Extending Chubb?
WRAPPING UP
When not emulating his dog by trying to curl up like a bagel on the couch, Barry McBride is the Publisher and Founder of the OBR and bloviates this nonsense every morning. You can follow him on Twitter @barrymcbride or write him at barry@theobr.com if you are so compelled.
CONTACT Barry to sponsor the OBR. We have plans for nearly any budget!
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