CROSSROADS: Starring, The Cleveland Browns

[Enigmatic Evil]

I don't think I need to be the one to point out that this feels a bit tumultuous lately. New Head Coach, maybe helps establish the front office front some of us wanted as opposed to Savage's cell phone tactics which clearly worked, so... so well for us. Holmgren at least points us in a direction. The right one? Debatable.

Our offense needs an overhaul. That much is obvious. Our offense is Peyton Hillis... maybe Colt McCoy, Benjamin Watson...

Thats about it. Our WR's, everyone's fair game. Cribbs is probably about the only one likely 'due' any kind of spot due to his special teams duties. We'll see how much Shurmur likes him. Maybe its anything goes.

Our offense is likely to have a completely different look going into next season.

What about the defense?

We saw flashes of improvement but overall I'd say it was a lot of the same old, same old. Getting burned in the secondary and sometimes showing complete ineptitude against the run. The injury bug certainly wasn't doing the D any favors late in the year.

Do we keep a 3-4 or do we move to a 4-3?

I think the line would need an overhaul if we were going to jump to a 4-3. I think we've to 75% of a line that could handle a 4-3 with next to no depth. That's with Rogers AND Ruben going full tilt all game. We would need a new DT to help Big Baby keep fresh and at least a DE. That could be a draft pick right there.

I don't know. I think our Secondary could still use a new starter, at safety or CB, maybe something you take in the draft if there is a player at #6 that can be a difference maker on the defensive end. I'm not going to say no. Haden anyone?

I can't see us going that direction, if our first pick isn't on someone who can help the offense, I would be surprised. Who knows with Heckert though. What do you guys think about moving forward. What are some areas that you feel need to be addressed?

[Distempered-Dawg]

The deepest need is LB.

[BernietheKid]

Cleveland Browns coach Pat Shurmur: What changes fans can expect on the field

Published: Friday, January 14, 2011, 7:15 PM Updated: Saturday, January 15, 2011, 1:18 AM

By Tony Grossi, The Plain Dealer


ANALYSIS
The Browns we've known the past two years are gone. Change started Thursday with the selection of new coach Pat Shurmur. Here's a taste of what we might expect when the Browns next take the field.

Where the offense is heading: Total conversion to the pass-first principles of the West Coast offense. Regards short passes as extensions of handoffs. Stresses getting the ball in receivers' hands quickly and letting them make plays running after catches.
Horizontal routes and pinpoint accuracy enable receivers to accelerate with the ball.

The up-tempo passing game opens up lanes in the running game. Running is not de-emphasized, but is set up by the pass. The base system is a traditional fullback-halfback formation, with both required to be good pass catchers. The quarterback runs the show. This is the system that most fits Colt McCoy's skill set.

Shurmur will establish the mentality of his offense, and thus his team, by calling the plays. With veteran coaches schooled in the offense already on board -- Mike Holmgren and Gil Haskell -- Shurmur is likely to hire a younger coordinator whom he can groom to eventually take over play-calling in the future.

Where the defense is heading: Most likely will switch to the traditional 4-3 alignment. Leading contender as coordinator is Dick Jauron, 60, who has 25 years as an NFL assistant and head coach. Jauron worked for Holmgren in the 1990s and last year worked for Andy Reid in Philadelphia.

Jauron likes big, physical defensive linemen who play the "two-gap" style -- required to keep blockers off the linebackers. In that regard, linemen in his version of the 4-3 have similar responsibilities as the linemen in the Eric Mangini 3-4 system.

The linebackers must be fast and agile, able to run sideline to sideline. He favors a four-man front, but will substitute an undersized rusher on designated downs, much like Marcus Benard has been used. Jauron doesn't take a lot of chances and tries to be more solid than fancy.

Cleveland Browns coach Pat Shurmur: What changes fans can expect on the field | cleveland.com

[Enigmatic Evil]

See I'd get all butthurt about the whole "grooming a younger OC" thing, relate it to Brian Daboll then I go... Daboll was understudy to Mangini, a coach who showed next to no offensive prowess at all. Makes you scratch your head a bit, doesn't it?

Dick Jauron? I don't have anything against the coach. He fits the "veteran DC" archetype so many of us are fantasizing about. If he can stress consistancy to these players and find a way to balance pass defense and pass rush without sending half the D and calling it even.

I don't know. I am getting excited for a new coach. Guess that makes me anti-Mangini...