Some reasons to believe in Shurmur

[Neo]

Would I be lying if I said I wasn't the only one who was skeptical when we hired another coordinator for our Head Coach vacancy? Probably not. After doing a little bit a research, I have started to warm up to the idea of some young blood coming in here to rejuvenate this franchise. So far Mike Holmgren and staff have done a good job bringing in players and improving our roster and that gives me a reason to trust them (for now).

I must admit I was one of the people thinking " Oh god, he we go again!" I was convinced that this was another humongous disaster in the making and then I decided to research. After I looked up Shurmur's past and had seen that he had eight years under Andy Reid (Holmgren tree), I started to feel like maybe this could work. We have a Super Bowl winning coach as our president, a HC and a GM with ties to Holmgren, and they have also worked for the Eagles at the same time so they are familiar with each other. If you put all that together, you can see that this franchise has more stabilty at the top than it has EVER had since they have came back into the league in '99.

It also got me to thinking about what other team that we are starting to resemble? A history of losing (New era Browns), a new young Head Coach who was an offensive coordinator, never been to a Super Bowl, and that team is the New Orleans Saints.

In fact, if you put Sean Payton's and Shurmur's resumes side by side, they are very similar.


Look, I am not saying that Shurmur is the same coach as Payton, I am not saying that we are going to be the next Saints , I am saying that teams that were in similar situations as we are in now had success. I am just going to let this play out before throwing the new coach under the bus. Who knows, maybe we will end up winning it all soon!

[Joey]

Great points. I am holding my opinion until i see who the OC and DC are going to be.

[YtownBacker]

New coaches always look better when they walk in and find a franchise QB and a nice group of talented players.

I wonder how long Payton would have lasted if he walked in and inherited a mess at QB and a lack of overall talent on the team. Same goes for Smith, Harbaugh and Tomlin.

If Colt doesn't turn out to be the guy and we don't have another excellent draft then it doesn't really matter who the new coach is.

[Enigmatic Evil]

I stand by, this is a team in transition. This is an offensive guy and he's got Hillis, McCoy, some TE's and Cribbs at his disposal right now. We're going to be bringing this guy some weapons. Last year, all things considered we were bringing a knife to a gun fight and doing pretty good for ourselves. With some weapons, and hopefully, with some confident play calling we will be able to win games that we have been losing. Those close losses that birthed the out of control lynch mob that wanted to MacBeth Mangini down Cleveland.

Lets compare the Saints and Browns again for a moment. The Saints hit a wall and decided, "We want to be a winner" they overhauled the roster, have been DRAFTING very well for themselves and yeah they landed a top FA QB.

We're on the verge, guys!

We're in a transitional period as a team when we all just want to be at the end winning it all. The team needs to grow to walk tall before we can start running.

[Masters]

Originally Posted by YtownBacker

New coaches always look better when they walk in and find a franchise QB and a nice group of talented players.

I wonder how long Payton would have lasted if he walked in and inherited a mess at QB and a lack of overall talent on the team. Same goes for Smith, Harbaugh and Tomlin.

If Colt doesn't turn out to be the guy and we don't have another excellent draft then it doesn't really matter who the new coach is.

Technically Payton didn't walk in to a franchise QB, nor did Smith or Harbaugh. NO signed Brees after hiring Payton, and was a gamble since Brees was coming off that shoulder surgery (and his former team not believing he was a franchise QB). Smith walked in to no QB, same with Harbaugh. Their teams then drafted a QB in round 1 who turned out to be potential franchise QBs. Only Tomlin walked in to an established franchise QB.

[Brown Warrior]

Heckert said there's going to be a LOT of turnover, and that the Browns are showing too much age. If we can get clear of the CBA, I see a lot of young, midrange free agents for the front 7 along with a couple draft picks. I see a serious #1 WR in the draft to go with McCoy, Hillis, and Watson for the new WCO.

Holmgren is making this his team with his systems and philosophies. I can dig that.

[BernietheKid]

Nate Ulrich: New Browns coach still has much to prove
Shurmur has many positives but just as many questions

By Nate Ulrich
Beacon Journal sports writer
Published on Sunday, Jan 16, 2011

Browns President Mike Holmgren didn't hit a home run with the fans when he hired Pat Shurmur as the team's new coach. Actually, he didn't even reach the warning track.

It might turn out to be a great decision, but it's just not sexy right now. People in Northeast Ohio would have celebrated if Jon Gruden, Bill Cowher or Holmgren returned to the sidelines to command the Browns.

Shurmur, though, has never been a head coach before at any level. He has only been a coordinator for the past two seasons, when he controlled the St. Louis Rams' offense.

He also shares an agent, Bob LaMonte, with Holmgren and Browns General Manager Tom Heckert. His late uncle, Fritz, was Holmgren's trusted defensive coordinator with the Green Bay Packers. Those connections have prompted whispers about nepotism.

So it's not surprising Holmgren feels compelled to sell his choice. Shurmur, too, must promote himself. Here's one view of their initial sales pitch:

• I'm buying . . . how Shurmur meshes with the front office. He studied the intricacies of the West Coast offense under Philadelphia Eagles coach Andy Reid for 10
years. Reid is one of Holmgren's notable disciples, so by extension, Shurmur is Holmgren's protege. Shurmur is also tight with Heckert, who spent nine years in the Eagles' front office. They'll work together to overhaul the roster, so their camaraderie is important. The Browns' brass shares a vision and a philosophy with its coach, which was not the case during Eric Mangini's final season with the Browns.

• I'm not buying . . . it will always be easy for Shurmur to be his own man. Holmgren reiterated he's the president and Shurmur is the the coach. The Big Show, however, casts a big shadow. Everyone at the team's headquarters in Berea calls him Coach. Shurmur must seek advice without becoming a puppet, and it could be a tough balancing act for a while.

• I'm buying . . . theories that dismiss previous head coaching experience as a prerequisite for success in the NFL. Ten of this season's 12 playoff teams have head coaches who had never held the same position with another franchise. While exchanging e-mails with Browns linebacker Scott Fujita, he offered the following reminder about his experience as a Super Bowl champion: ''Not too many people knew who Sean Payton was when we first got to New Orleans five years ago, and just look at what he's accomplished. He was a natural from his first day on the job.''

• I'm not buying . . . that it's a good idea for Shurmur to call the offensive plays. It's not uncommon for offensive-minded coaches to do it, and Holmgren did it throughout his coaching career. But Shurmur might take some lumps while trying to juggle. Pulling double duty will make Shurmur's job more difficult because he'll need to focus on the big-picture strategy while repeatedly planning the next play or two in his mind. He also won't be able to call plays from the booth like he did during his entire tenure with the Rams. It will also probably prevent the Browns from recruiting an experienced offensive coordinator. After all, why would anyone who's accustomed to calling plays want to relinquish those duties? They'll probably need to find a quarterbacks or wide receivers coach looking for a promotion.

• I'm buying . . . Shurmur's ability to deal with people, especially his players. He's not a rah-rah leader, but he still makes his expectations clear. At 45, he's young enough to relate to the players, but he's also old enough to command respect. As Rams running back Steven Jackson said: ''I knew it would not be long before coach Shurmur got a head coaching job in this league. He was a good coordinator for the Rams. And on Sundays, he got the most out of his players.''

• I'm not buying . . . notions that Shurmur can mold the Browns' defense into something special. Unlike Mangini, Romeo Crennel and Butch Davis, he's not a defensive-minded coach. Offense is his specialty, and it's also one of the reasons why Holmgren hired him. When asked what type of defense the Browns will run next season, Shurmur said, ''There's a defense?'' It was a joke, but it was also a bit alarming.

• I'm buying . . . Dick Jauron or Dave Wannstedt as a defensive coordinator. The Browns need a strong, experienced coach to compensate for Shurmur's lack of a defensive background. Jauron, 60, and Wannstedt, 58, would be able to do that. They both have head coaching experience and could help Shurmur become more well-rounded by offering their knowledge. They both use 4-3 defenses, so the Browns could abandon their current 3-4 system, though Shurmur would not confirm it. Jauron will reportedly interview with the Browns this week.

• I'm not buying . . . Holmgren's attempt to downplay the significance of LaMonte's influence during the coaching search. Holmgren said when he first placed Shurmur on his list of candidates, he didn't even realize they had the same agent. Well, they did, and it probably made negotiating Shurmur's four-year deal a cakewalk.

• I'm buying . . . Shurmur's pedigree. He grew up around men with great football minds. Not only was Shurmur's uncle Fritz a legendary assistant coach in the NFL, but also his father, Joe, was a standout football player at Albion College. The younger Shurmur was an All-Big Ten center at Michigan State University, where he played for George Perles. Shurmur used to visit his uncle while he coached with the Packers.
Even back then, Holmgren had his eyes on the young man who would become his first head coaching hire. ''I remember him from those days, and what I remember most was an eager, young guy,'' Holmgren said. ''Coaching was in his blood, in his genes.''

Ohio.com - Nate Ulrich: New Browns coach still has much to prove

[Danamal]

"It might turn out to be a great decision, but it's just not sexy right now. People in Northeast Ohio would have celebrated if Jon Gruden, Bill Cowher or Holmgren returned to the sidelines to command the Browns".









Many who called for the Browns coach to be fired were seriously star fucking and they went home with Shurmur...
This article just wreaks who do you like in 13?

[YtownBacker]

Originally Posted by Masters

Technically Payton didn't walk in to a franchise QB, nor did Smith or Harbaugh. NO signed Brees after hiring Payton, and was a gamble since Brees was coming off that shoulder surgery (and his former team not believing he was a franchise QB). Smith walked in to no QB, same with Harbaugh. Their teams then drafted a QB in round 1 who turned out to be potential franchise QBs. Only Tomlin walked in to an established franchise QB.

MY point was that Payton, smith and Harbaugh were successful their first year because they had talent. Without Brees, how successful do you think Payton would have been for a struggling franchise. If he was already on the roster might just be that the previous coach could have kept his job. Same with Harbaugh and Smith. They came into situations with far more talent then the average coordinator being promoted to HC.

If Colt McCoy turns out to be a franchise QB then Shurmur may just end up looking like a great pick by Holmgren. If Colt fails, chances are the Browns don't progress until they get a stable force under center. Does that make Shurmur a good or bad coach?

I'm just saying that sometimes a coaches success is dependent upon the talent he has to work with. Hell, Eric Mangini might still be the Jets coach if they drafted a QB of the future instead of trying for a quick fix with Favre.

That said, Shurmur isn't a sexy pick but Colt and a good draft could make him a successful one.

[Enigmatic Evil]

Well I have been stating that our inconsistency at QB has been one of this teams major short comings for the longest time now. If Colt can even prove to be a presence behind center so that we don't have to worry about that position anymore it will benefit the team. Colt doesn't have to play like Joe Montana. He just has to make plays and play smart, minimize mistakes and help the offense make the most of our opportunities.

If Shurmur is the guy, awesome. I don't want to make judgements on the guy before he's even ran his first team camp or the pre-season is even over. We're very analytical fans and we will no doubt be analyzing Shurmur's every move. I just hope he can be a beacon of hope and passion for the Cleveland Browns, thats what I want to see from our coach. Mangini, he was a good guy, but I never got the sense that he bled Brown and Orange... Lets see some fire from Shurmur.