Browns schedule just got tougher than Steelers'

by ismail on Sep 9, 2008 8:31 PM EDT Comment 10 comments

One of the main premises for the opinion that Cleveland would win this division is because their schedule is easier by 2 games (Denver and Buffalo VS San Diego and Pats). These 2 games could be the difference in a division which will go down to the wire (so they said).

From the looks of it,....Denver will be a MUCH tougher outting than New England. Jay Cutler looked UNBELIEVABLE last night,...he really is a rising star. The same can be said for Buffalo and Trent Edwards. Shawn Merriman is out for the season as of today.

Right now I would much rather play the Pats and Bolts. So far things are falling into place.

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hmmm

Chargers are still a serious concern in my book. It’s that “any given Sunday” feeling that makes me think their last performance will be the exception to their rule. The Patriots, ehh not so much. They do have a pretty solidly built team and Matt Cassel is going to be able to win a pretty impressive chunk of games just because of that, but hey we’re looking pretty damn good. It’s their turn to spend the entire season sweating about our matchup! Or at least sweating more profusely.

Brandona

by PrimantisStillersNAt on Sep 9, 2008 9:08 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Oh yes, I also agree about the Broncos and Bills. Good luck, Cleve Brownies!

Brandona

by PrimantisStillersNAt on Sep 9, 2008 9:09 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I’d almost call it even. Without Merriman, they won’t be quite as good at getting pressure. They still have a lot of talent, but I’ve always felt with them that the whole is less than the sum of the parts. We’ll see how they do in the next few weeks, though; they looked about ready to implode last year too.

The Bills are solid in al phases, and that’s all that concerns anyone about them. Their most outstanding feature is special teams. Still, a team without weakness may very well be able to prey on an imbalanced team like the Browns.

The Broncos look frightening. Brandon Marshall was supposed to be their big guy, but Cutler didn’t seem to care that he was out. Surround that guy with more talent, and the offense looks pretty scary. Culter is looking more like Roethlisberger every day. Their defense isn’t great minus Bailey and Dumervil, so the O/U with them and Cleveland should be around 70.

The Pats just went from a super power to a crafty veteran team. I’d still rather play the Bills.

charity standing orders

by BadMaafala on Sep 9, 2008 10:30 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

speaking of Dumervil

watching the game last night you know who he reminds me of, James Harrison. Very similar bodies. First person in the league I’ve seen who looks like Harrison. Both are 5’11-6’0. Harrison is a bit lighter at 245 than Dumervil’s 260 (owing to Dumervil being a full-time DE, Harrison needing a bit more quickness at LB). But they both use their supposed height disadavantage to an advantage. Getting way underneath the pads of taller, bigger tackles, and driving them backwards with their substantial power.

by TheMostViolentTeam on Sep 9, 2008 11:27 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I still think New England will be a team to be reckoned with. Not that Matt Cassel is a rising star, but the Patriots rely more on team ball than a team like the Colts do (who would be 100% screwed without Manning).

I’m not so convinced about the Broncos being an awesome team just yet — it was a blowout win against a team that’s been blown out many times the past several years. And, the Bills played a very good game, as they have the past two years. The problem is that the Bills need to prove they can do it for an entire stretch of games as opposed to being a .500 club.

Ultimately, the only games that’ll matter come season’s end in the AFC North will probably be the division games. I know that’s obvious in most divisions, but considering the Steelers have dominated the AFC North for awhile, I think it’s especially important (if the Browns finally break the barrier, it’ll be uncharted territory for Pittsburgh).

Dawgs By Nature - Find out why Pittsburgh still sucks.

by ChrisPokorny on Sep 9, 2008 10:37 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

New England

I don’t think they are garbage for sure, but I don’t think they are a “crafty veteran team.” They are beyond that. Their LBs are aging, and a weakness, and the secondary is even worse. The elite level of the D-Line will help keep them in games against the middle of the pack AFC teams (such as the Jets, Bills, Titans, of the world), but they’ll be exposed by the teams with better offensive play. Their offense is going to take a huge step back. I used to agree with you Chris that Manning was the most important to his offense in the league, right up until last year. The offense the Pats used last year was designed exclusively around the ability of Tom Brady to make quick decisions, and have an even quicker release. This made the O-line look much better than it actually is (further compounded by injuries they are dealing with). Randy Moss also was a big factor in the design of the offense (his ability to get deep), but Cassel doesn’t have the arm strength to hit the deep, accurate ball like Brady could. The Pats will scheme to use short passes, screens, and a heck of alot more running, all of which are much easier to stop. We’ll see how good Belichick is now, without his spies, and without Brady (he was 5-18 or something like that before Brady started playing for NE). That said, due to the weakness of their schedule, and the quality they have on both lines (although, the O-Line is fading a bit), they should be in most of their games, and win a few, probably finishing somewhere around .500.

by TheMostViolentTeam on Sep 9, 2008 11:34 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Moss

I know that he struggled on bad teams, but there is no question in my mind that he is still the best receiver in football. I think that offensively they aren’t going to be as bad as some people think. I also think there are QB’s out there who can come in and look good throwing to Randy Moss.

My guess is that he Pats struggle for a while to find their footing but that they manage to come back and play very close to the Bills for the division.

by SteelerBuddha on Sep 9, 2008 11:51 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Cutler did look good,

but don’t forget they were playing against the Raiders.

I for one am not going to believe that the Pats, Chargers, Colts, and Giants aren’t going to be tough games. It’s week one and those guys all have the chance to still play tough. I’m sure they will all be up for our games with ’em at any rate.

I’ve always felt we had a good shot with the schedule even though it looked tough on paper. With the O-line and ST performaning much better SO FAR, I feel even better, but I wouldn’t get ahead of that….yet.

by SCSteeler on Sep 10, 2008 4:50 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

thanks for that

because we need to realize that the raiders are garbage. trust me, i live in their backyard. i thank the man up above for making me a steelers fan. the raiders are by far, hands down, the biggest mess in the league. al davis needs to go. deangelo hall was a terrible signing.

"If you hit .440 with 20 bombs, you don't have to do s---. You don't have to bring a glove to practice, just hit and leave whenever you want. You can bring a 40 and smoke a cigarette and call me from the parking lot asking me what time the game is, and I'll tell you. You can even say 'F--- you, Steve!' Actually, don't say that, that wouldn't be very nice." -Steve Friend, Head Coach, Chabot College Gladiators Baseball

by flipgatey3 on Sep 11, 2008 3:44 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Raiders

Derrick Burgess, Nnamdi Asomugha, and Dante Hall are a tough group to pass against. Hall is overrated, but he’s not a bad #2. What we saw is a rookie LT (Clady) dominate Burgess, and another rookie (Eddie Royal) dominate Hall, while Cutler dominated them all without his top reciever. I don’t care if it is the Raiders, that still shows something.

charity standing orders

by BadMaafala on Sep 11, 2008 9:05 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs