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00:00Todd did say yesterday he would like to have things wrapped up by the end of spring.
00:06Yeah.
00:08Good, bad, indifferent?
00:11I mean, yeah, I think it'd be good if you go to training camp
00:15with a number one quarterback to begin preparing for a season.
00:19I mean, if you remember a year ago,
00:22with the whole four-man quarterback fiasco nonsense stupidity that they went through,
00:28you know, Joe Flacco ended up being the week one starter,
00:30and he barely got any first-team reps early in camp.
00:33So what sense did that make?
00:36So I think that if you pick one of these guys to go into training camp as the number one
00:43and you build around them during camp, I think that that certainly makes a lot of sense.
00:49So let me just – I'm going to make sure I got it straight.
00:51As we are right now, if the season started tomorrow, Deshaun, then Shadour, is that where we're at?
01:01I mean, that's where I'm at.
01:03Okay.
01:05Does that mean I like it?
01:06Doesn't mean I agree with it, but I think that's what they're going to do.
01:10So what would you agree with?
01:11What do you think they should do then, Darrell?
01:14I'd go Shadour.
01:15I just – I don't see anything to gain by playing Deshaun unless you have to.
01:22So – but I think that that's where they're leaning.
01:25I think they're leaning Deshaun, Shadour ready to go, and, you know, you're going to see Shadour this season.
01:34I don't think there's any doubt because – just because Deshaun might start week one,
01:39that certainly doesn't mean he's ending the season as the starter either.
01:43So I'm not counting on him being available for all 17 games this fall.
01:50Munkin mentioned the athleticism that Deshaun is kind of displaying right now,
01:56and he said, remember, he had that, but we haven't seen it because of the injuries.
01:59Do you think it's there, Darrell?
02:01How much of it do you think is back?
02:03I have no idea, Jeff.
02:05I have no idea because – just because it looks good in practice doesn't mean it's going to look good
02:11in games.
02:12And we – like, we've seen that for the last 30 years.
02:16How many Browns quarterbacks have looked great in practice, and then you put them in the games,
02:21and it's just a complete train wreck?
02:25So I don't – I don't know.
02:29Well, he looks good.
02:30He looks healthy.
02:32Whether or not that means he's back to being the player he was six years ago,
02:36I think somebody's in fantasy land if they think that's actually going to happen.
02:42All right, let me ask you this one.
02:43Are we concerned that the head coach has not met face-to-face, I guess, or at all with Miles
02:49Garrett?
02:49Like, what's your take on that comment yesterday?
02:51Because it was an interesting soundbite, I'll tell you that.
02:54Well, the way he responded to it, I think.
02:58The tone of voice, okay, was –
03:02More aggravated with the question or with Miles?
03:05And just kind of explain to everybody what happened because you were standing there too.
03:09Yeah, it was just a very quick no.
03:11And then he looked the other way.
03:12Yeah, it was kind of like, are you really asking that question?
03:15No.
03:15And then can we move on to another quarterback question because I know you have them.
03:19Like, I think that he would have rather had more quarterback questions than had to answer that question about Miles.
03:27So are we on shaky ground with these two or is it just a matter of you don't have to
03:31be here, so what's the difference?
03:32He ain't required to be there, so he ain't required to be there.
03:35Like, I mean, it'd be one thing if Miles was there and they hadn't spoken, right?
03:41Mm-hmm.
03:41He's not required to be around.
03:43This is all voluntary.
03:44So, it's great for you guys to talk about –
03:48How many other guys are not there?
03:52I mean, yeah.
03:53I mean, Grant Delpit wasn't there yesterday.
03:55Denzel wasn't there yesterday.
03:57So, yeah.
03:58I mean, it's all voluntary right now.
04:00They don't have to be there.
04:02Which, to me, makes it all a non-story, Darrell.
04:05Well, I mean, of the things I care about, Miles Garrett talking to Todd Munkin right now isn't even on
04:10my radar,
04:10but it's on everybody else's, so here we are talking.
04:12Well, I think part of it is that we talk about, you know, Super Bowl championship teams
04:16or teams that make it to the playoffs and say, you know, this all started in OTAs.
04:20This is when we start to get to know each other.
04:22And, I mean, there is something to be said for at least showing your face to see the new boss
04:28when you have the opportunity to do that and trying to build –
04:32Does Miles Garrett really need to show his face to impress the new boss?
04:36No.
04:36No.
04:37No.
04:38You know what I mean?
04:39Like, he is –
04:40I mean –
04:41He's the best defensive player in the NFL right now, right?
04:44So, like –
04:45You can't win by yourself, though.
04:48I know.
04:49Well, they don't win with him anyway, right?
04:51I mean, they won eight games the last two years with Miles Garrett.
04:54So, like, really, how much of a difference is Miles Garrett really making when it comes
04:58to impacting winning for the Cleveland Browns?
05:00What?
05:00Without him, they would have won five games the last two years combined instead of the
05:04eight?
05:04Like, you know what I mean?
05:05He had six sacks against New England.
05:07They lost by 30.
05:08Like, I mean –
05:09All right.
05:09Well, do you think your head coach is aggravated by the fact that the best player in the NFL
05:13on defense isn't there?
05:14Did you feel a sense of aggravation during this conversation that they had?
05:18I don't want to speak for Todd, but –
05:20You saw.
05:21What was his reaction?
05:21What did you read on his reaction?
05:23You were standing there.
05:24You were the reporter.
05:24Tell me.
05:25I think he wanted to say something other than no.
05:28Okay.
05:29And what that is, I'm not allowed to say.
05:32So use your imagination.
05:34All right.
05:36I believe it was the movie Semi-Tough.
05:38Remember that movie?
05:40It was Mac Davis and Chris Christopherson, and there was a scene in it where the guys were
05:46on the – and this is what this reminds me of.
05:48Guys were practicing, and somebody starts yelling about the kicker.
05:53Who is sitting in the stand smoking a cigarette.
05:56And they're like – they're all over the kicker.
05:59Dude gets up, walks onto the field, drills like a 65-yarder, and goes back, lights up again,
06:04and sits down.
06:05Oh, I thought you were talking about the movie The Replacements where Griff did that, too.
06:08That's what this is like to me.
06:10It's just, okay, fine.
06:13When I show up, I'm going to kick everybody's butt.
06:16Goodbye.
06:17Yeah.
06:17That's what this is like to me.
06:18To me, it's an absolutely non-story.
06:21Well, I mean, it's Miles, and, you know –
06:24He's done this before.
06:25Yeah.
06:26This is –
06:27And he's allowed.
06:28He's allowed to.
06:29This is not abnormal for him.
06:31That's correct.
06:31I mean, and that's why I'm just like, yeah, whatever, because he doesn't show up to OTAs
06:38or he shows up to, like, one or two of them.
06:41Like, you know, typically he'll show up to, like, one of them.
06:44Usually it's right before the mandatory minicamp just to say, hey, I came.
06:49I mean, we've had years where he came early and then – for one, and then wasn't back
06:53until minicamp.
06:54Like, so this is not – yeah, this isn't really abnormal behavior for him.
07:00And, again, he's not required to be there.
07:03And I'm going to tell you right now, if I'm not required to be there, I ain't going to be
07:09there.
07:11Like, that's just how she goes these days.
07:13You know what I mean?
07:14Exactly.
07:15Yeah, so –
07:15All right, so, Daryl, who's impressed you out there right now?
07:19Have you met – especially of the new guys, is there a difference maker here that you're like,
07:23you know what, I love the way that they did this, and this feels like it's the right direction?
07:28They did one practice that was focused heavily on –
07:32Daryl, is the team going to be better next year?
07:34Yes.
07:35And why?
07:36Well, I was getting to my answer here.
07:39Go ahead.
07:40Sorry.
07:42I think Quinshawn Judkins looks like he's going to be back to what he was before the injury.
07:48He looks healthy, which is great.
07:51The movement, the cutting, the acceleration, all those things appear to be back for him.
07:57So, that is great news.
08:03The wide receiver core looks a lot more organized than it did last year.
08:09Munkin is definitely not a – you know, some coaches, some head coaches, they just, like,
08:14stand off to the side and let the assistants run the practice, and they're just, like, observers of everything, right?
08:19Like, that's not Todd Munkin.
08:21Like, Todd Munkin gets his hands dirty.
08:23He's in there.
08:24There were a couple instances yesterday where they stopped plays because of mistakes.
08:29They – he was walking through players, what he wanted on specific plays for them to do
08:37and what he was looking for, assignments, those type of things.
08:43You know, Devin made the catch of the day in the end zone.
08:51So, that was great to see.
08:53But, yeah, I mean, it's – like I said, it's just one spring practice, and I'm not going to sit
08:59here and hype this thing up
09:01like the Browns are going to be, you know, the big turnaround of 2026.
09:07I'll tell you, it was organized.
09:09The time was spent well.
09:12There seems to be more accountability in practice, and to me – and the guys that are coming off injuries
09:21look healthy.
09:22So, to me, you know, being able to check off all those boxes is a positive.
09:28Do I think that's going to equate to them being a better football team this year?
09:33Absolutely.
09:34The schedule also helps.
09:36The level of competition they're going to play this year I think helps.
09:39So, you know, my expectation for them is that they win those games that they lost last year that they
09:47should have won.
09:48And that pushes you close to the 8-9 win total.
09:54You like what Munkin's doing so far, Daryl?
09:56Yeah, I do.
09:57I do.
09:58I mean, look, I'm the first to admit I was very skeptical when they hired him.
10:02I was not blown away by the hire at all.
10:05Wasn't impressed by it.
10:06But I do like what he's doing.
10:10I understand what he's doing right now, Jeff.
10:13And, you know, my hope is that that translates into those positive results during the season, right?
10:22It, you know, remains to be seen.
10:23Again, we've done this a million times with these coaches that come in here, and it looks great in the
10:27offseason.
10:28Then the reality of the regular season sets in, and it's basically the same old sloppy mess.
10:34The one thing that really stands out to me, again, Todd Munkin's not here for the sloppy mess.
10:40If he sees a guy make a mistake, they come off the field, somebody else goes in.
10:44We saw that a couple times yesterday.
10:47And, again, he's not afraid to stop a play and make him re-rack it and re-run it if
10:52mistakes are made and things aren't done the way he wants them to be done.
10:55Those are all positives in my book.
10:57Those are not criticisms by any stretch of the imagination.
11:00So I really do like what I've seen from Todd here so far this offseason.
11:09It just remains to be seen if that's going to translate to wins and losses on game days.
11:14All right, Derek, let me ask you this big-picture question.
11:16With the NFL, they voted for more international games, so we're looking at 10.
11:21It's going to be more.
11:22Eventually, it's going to be 16.
11:23That's what they want.
11:24They want everybody to play an international game, but they have to go through the NFLPA to make that happen.
11:30But that's where this is headed.
11:32I think my bigger concern is the fact that the teams can't block two games from going international.
11:39The thought of the Browns-Steelers playing in London doesn't do anything for me, I can tell you that.
11:43Well, the other thing, too, is they can't even set the dates of the upcoming.
11:47I know Nashville, they're getting a Super Bowl, right?
11:52They can't even set dates for future Super Bowls right now because they don't know how many games they're playing.
11:57Because the goal is to get to an 18-game schedule.
12:02How they're going to get there, I don't know.
12:04That's got to be collectively bargained.
12:05Just like with increasing the international games.
12:08They want an 18-game schedule.
12:10This is what I think the future of the NFL is going to be.
12:1318-game schedule, one international game, one neutral site game.
12:17Eight home, eight road.
12:20Okay?
12:21I think that's ultimately where this is going to be heading.
12:27How long that's going to take, how fast they do that.
12:31I know with the new television contracts and whatnot, they're trying to renegotiate existing television contracts to get even more
12:38revenue.
12:38They, you know, that's, I think, part of the calculus of doing this.
12:46But, yeah, there's a long way to go before that actually becomes reality because, again, they've got to collectively bargain
12:53that with the NFLPA.
12:55So, Darrell, I mean, you talk about these neutral site games.
12:57Is this the NFL's answer to saying, hey, we are watching Major League Baseball actually become interesting to these people
13:04that maybe don't like baseball by playing the field of dreams gamers or playing a game at NASCAR?
13:09Well, look at the NHL with their stadium series.
13:12That's exactly what I was going at.
13:13Yeah, you know, so could I see a day where Browns and Bengals play a game at Ohio Stadium?
13:20A hundred percent.
13:21A hundred percent.
13:22I could see that.
13:24Or Browns-Lions at the Big House, you know, up in Ann Arbor.
13:29Like, yeah.
13:32And I do think that there's probably some additional money to be made, and that's what's driving it, right?
13:36Yeah.
13:37Because, to the commissioner's credit, he continues to find hundreds of millions of dollars in additional revenue on an annual
13:44basis,
13:44whether it's through standalone television games or whatever, these international games or whatever.
13:49Because at some point, like, you top out.
13:52You plateau with your revenue.
13:53And some way, somehow, Roger Goodell continues to expand that revenue, right?
13:59And to me, the next thing is to go to that 18th game, to add a neutral site game on
14:08top of an international game for everybody,
14:11and then you get your eight traditional home-and-away games as well.
14:15I'm guessing that's going to come with another bye week.
14:18I'm guessing the Super Bowl gets pushed back towards a President's Day weekend there in February.
14:24I think that that would make sense.
14:26But that's the big vision that Roger Goodell has right now, and, you know, it's going to be interesting to
14:33see how he goes about making that a reality.
14:37All right, let me just throw one Cavs question at you while you're out there, too, just because you've got
14:40the post-game show coming up tonight.
14:41Yeah.
14:42Your thoughts on where the Cavs are right now, especially after blowing that 22-point lead and trying to even
14:47this thing up.
14:47Yeah, I mean, I don't know how you recover from that, but I also said that after Game 6 against
14:52the Pistons.
14:53And then they recovered from it and won Game 7 by, like, 30 points.
14:59So I'll go the positive side of things.
15:03They did build a 22-point lead against New York.
15:06I'm not afraid of New York, but New York has what the Cavaliers do not have, and that is a
15:11stone-cold killer in Jalen Brunson.
15:13The Cavs do not have a stone-cold killer on this team.
15:16Their superstar defers in the fourth quarter.
15:18That's Donovan Mitchell.
15:19That really bothers me.
15:22James Harden is a turnover machine.
15:24He doesn't play a lick of defense.
15:27That concerns me.
15:28But could the Cavs come back and win this series?
15:32100%.
15:33Absolutely.
15:34My worst fear, though, is that we're going to sit back and look at what happened in Game 1 as
15:38to why they're not playing in the NBA Finals.
15:42All right, so give me your prediction on tonight's game, then, before we get to the same.
15:45I think the Knicks come to Cleveland up two games to none.
15:48And then the Cavaliers go back to New York with the series tied at two, and it becomes a best
15:53of three.
15:54Wow.
15:54And do you have any path for them to win tonight?
15:58Oh, yeah.
15:58I mean, they've got to play like they did.
16:02They actually only played two good quarters, because that first quarter was pretty terrible.
16:07Scored 16 points.
16:08Yeah, that was awful.
16:10The formula is to play the way they did in the second and third quarter, where they outscored New York
16:14by like 30 points.
16:15Okay?
16:16And if they can do that into the fourth quarter, all the way through the fourth quarter, they're fine.
16:22And also, too, Kenny Atkinson, please, for the love of everything holy, use your timeouts.
16:26Okay?
16:27That's why you have them.
16:28If you're going to save them, save them for the purpose of using them.
16:33So, hopefully Kenny's not asleep at the switch again tonight either.
16:37All right, Darius.
16:38That was a mess.
16:39Just as we wrap this thing up, the latest on Berea, you'll have all that for us.
16:43And then also tonight, after the Cavaliers game, the opportunity to talk to you and break things down after the
16:48Cavs, right?
16:49Oh, we're going to have all kinds of fun tonight.
16:51Hopefully they win, and everyone will be in a much better mood than they were Tuesday night.
16:55Phone lines were packed Tuesday night.
16:57Folks were angry, and so was I.
16:59They weren't the only ones angry.
17:00I was pretty angry, too.
17:02I think people are still angry, and they can't wait to get them back on the floor tonight.
17:05Daryl, thank you.
17:06We appreciate you.
17:06We'll talk to you later, my friend.
17:07You bet, guys.
17:08All right.
17:08All right.
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