00:00That's the one part that I think of conversation with fans
00:03that have been frustrating me a lot lately is like, you know,
00:07and I ain't saying it, but you know who they're talking about, you know,
00:10in particular about, okay, well, if Deshaun is doing this,
00:13the Browns are just going ahead and move on.
00:14And I'm like, hold up, why?
00:16Why?
00:17Like, what interest does it serve Andrew Barry or Todd Munkin
00:21to weaken your own quarterback room, to strengthen another quarterback room?
00:25When you've seen quarterbacks get hurt throughout the season,
00:27you've seen three or four teams play QB3,
00:30and you want the Cleveland Browns to trade one of their quarterbacks for what?
00:34Yeah, I mean, I think it has to – it's about the return.
00:39Like, if it was getting you something that you felt was the value.
00:41You get a godfather offer, that's different.
00:43But outside of that, it doesn't make sense.
00:45We've seen Barry make those types of decisions before where it's like, you know,
00:50he traded his primary backup right before the season started,
00:52and Josh Dobbs because he was like, I'm getting a fifth-round pick back.
00:55Like, yeah, I'll take that.
00:56Like, that's a good deal.
00:57So, like, I think for sure, like, if they felt like they got the right value.
01:01But, I mean, ultimately, like, whenever they decide it's time to bring Dylan Gabriel back,
01:06they got to figure out, like, how they're going to handle that.
01:09Maybe it will be keeping all four.
01:10Maybe it'll just be like they release Taylor Green and try to sneak him onto the practice squad.
01:14I don't know.
01:14Or they don't do that at all.
01:15Right.
01:15Like, well, as I said, they could just keep all four active.
01:17I don't know.
01:18But, I mean, is it the smartest decision?
01:21Not necessarily because I think you're taking away from another spot on the roster.
01:24But I also understand where, like, if they're trying to invest in these guys, they're trying to invest in these
01:28guys.
01:29I don't think it's as easy as, like, well, hey, Deshaun's doing this, so move on.
01:33Because, also, I think I still believe, Earl, Deshaun's not playing so well that, like, he's going to keep this
01:39job all season.
01:40He's played average.
01:40There's going to be a point where they make that change and go to one of the young guys to
01:44see who they have.
01:45I've said it this entire time.
01:47I've said it before the season started.
01:49If the Cleveland Browns get average quarterback play, I think the Cleveland Browns can be competitive.
01:54Well, guess what?
01:55They have gotten average quarterback play.
01:57That's the floor.
01:59And, as a fan, would I like to have the best overall quarterback in the NFL?
02:03Yeah.
02:03Yeah, for sure.
02:04But there's a ceiling and a floor to everything except for Major League Baseball when it comes to their payroll.
02:09Outside of that, most things in sports got a ceiling and a floor.
02:11And, for me, it's just one of those things to where I'm looking at it like, I don't know.
02:16It's not like our starting quarterback has played all world.
02:19And, at the same time, when's the last time Deshaun Watson has played a full season?
02:23When is the last time the Cleveland Browns has played just one quarterback in a year?
02:28All you got to do is just look at the landscape of the NFL through six weeks, and you will
02:32see quarterbacks are falling left and right.
02:34Backup quarterbacks are falling left and right.
02:37Well, and that's why, like, it could necessitate that you get the value you're looking for.
02:40Like, because so many guys have gotten hurt, maybe some team calls you up and says,
02:45Hey, you know what?
02:46I will give you a, I don't know, fourth-round pick for Shador Sanders.
02:50And then Andrew Barry is like, okay, that's increasing the value I dropped and I'll take it.
02:55Like, but that's different.
02:56So, I think right now there's not a market.
02:57And as long as there's not a market, they're probably just going to try to keep all four guys as
03:00long as they can.
03:01I think the Browns are more buyers than sellers at this point.
03:03I just think, I think tomorrow's a big game for Deshaun from a standpoint of, like, people are going to
03:09be mad about this, but I don't really care.
03:11From a standpoint of, like, the conversations around, like, him and how long he starts.
03:21Because I understand, like, he's played well enough to this point to stave that stuff off.
03:26The Browns are winning.
03:27They're 3-2.
03:27They have a winning record.
03:29And as long as that keeps happening, I think that it probably does stave off any of those conversations.
03:33But Earl, like, if he plays poorly tomorrow, like, if it looks like the Jets game and he, you know,
03:40these things aren't going well and the offense isn't functioning,
03:43if he turns the ball over, which he's avoided some of those of late.
03:49He has thrown some balls to the other team, though.
03:52And he had the fumble at the end.
03:54So, like, if he's turned the ball over and it's an ugly game, like the Ravens win by double digits
04:02or something like that,
04:04I think it brings a lot of the conversations about, like, how long of Alicia has, like, back to the
04:08surface.
04:09Like, it's almost like, well, it was fun while it lasted early in the season,
04:13but at some point it's inevitable that they're going to have to make this change.
04:18And when I say that, Earl, I don't mean, like, it's imminent.
04:22Tom Munkin's going to change quarterbacks for the Titans game.
04:24That's not what I'm saying at all.
04:26I'm just saying, like, I think it sort of restarts the clock on when we start sort of calculating how
04:33much time he has left under center,
04:35if it's holding back the offense, if we don't think it's working anymore,
04:39if the honeymoon stage of this experience is kind of worn off, if you will, I think that's kind of
04:44what it does.
04:45Does that make sense?
04:46Like, I don't think Tom Munkin's going to be reactionary and just be like, hey, I got a 3-3
04:49football team now making a quarterback change.
04:51But I do think it starts the clock sort of on, all right, how much longer does he actually have?
04:57And we actually start talking about that again.
04:59I don't agree that it starts the clock just yet.
05:04I mean, in my opinion, I think the game versus the Jets was the worst game that he played all
05:10season.
05:10And even still, the Browns had an opportunity to win.
05:14You know, when I look at Deshaun Watson, I try to make sure that I'm being fair in my evaluation.
05:20And I'm not just falling in line with the status quo of it's popular and I hate on Deshaun Watson
05:25because people just don't like Deshaun.
05:27What I see is a quarterback who has limitations and has flaws, but I also see a quarterback that is
05:35much better than I expected and anticipated him to be this season.
05:39We had conversations before this year started about expectations.
05:44And the only expectations I had for Deshaun early on in training camp was I thought he was going to
05:50be motivated to come out here and compete.
05:52I thought that he was going to give it his all because this possibly could be the last year of
05:57his career.
05:58What I was concerned about was the speed of the game, him having the ability to stay healthy and just
06:04show playmaking ability.
06:06Deshaun has shown me that despite having two Achilles injuries, his legs still work.
06:11He's still one of those explosive playmakers that can, you know, get out of bad situations.
06:16The reality of the situation is even though he has not put together four solid quarters of football, he has
06:22came through more often than not in the clutch in critical moments, meaning game winning drives.
06:29The Cleveland Browns would not be three and one or three and two if it wasn't for Deshaun Watson.
06:35And you can argue if it wasn't for a botched punt based on how that game was playing out, that
06:41could have been game winning drive number four for Deshaun Watson.
06:44It didn't turn out that way.
06:46Do I want to see him play better, a cleaner version of football?
06:49Absolutely.
06:50But at three and three, if we were to lose this game, I don't see Todd Monken, you know, shortening
06:57his leash or ready to make some type of change.
07:00Because like I said, that wasn't the energy people had leaving, you know, the Pittsburgh Steelers game.
07:06Last week's game was last week's game.
07:08I don't think every single NFL game is created equally.
07:11For sure.
07:11And so, like, I look at this situation and I just think it's too early for that conversation.
07:16No, and I feel you.
07:17Again, my point isn't that I'm saying, like, it's coming next week or it's coming in two.
07:22Like, but the bye week looms after that Saints game.
07:26So that's like, what, a month from now, just about?
07:29So it's like, it kind of feels like that would maybe time out, right?
07:32And by the way, like, this starts an interesting stretch of the schedule because you get the Ravens for first
07:38place in the division.
07:40And then you get the Titans after that who are right now an 0-5 football team, haven't gotten a
07:45win yet.
07:46And it feels like a game the Browns should win, but so did the Jets game in some respects.
07:49And then after that, like, you go on the road to Pittsburgh, which is always a tough place to play,
07:54another division game.
07:55And then on the road to New Orleans where that's another tough place to play.
07:59And that's a team that's at least, they're not maybe winning a ton of games, but they're playing better football
08:04than they have in recent years.
08:05So, and you lost there a couple years ago when both teams were also very bad.
08:09So, like, you got three straight row games.
08:11Like, that can take it.
08:12So, I just think, like, tomorrow matters in the sense of, like, how does he play in a division game
08:18against this opponent with first place on the line?
08:22And if this is where the season starts to teeter in the wrong direction, I do think that clock sort
08:26of starts.
08:27And then we're talking about, like, when we get to the bye week, maybe it is going to be time
08:31to make a change.
08:31I'm not saying it's imminent.
08:33I'm not saying, like, pressure's on.
08:35Like, the pressure was on in Tampa.
08:37So, everybody knew going into that game, it was well reported that if he struggled in that Tampa game and
08:43they lost and the offense looked bad,
08:45that they were likely going to be, we would have been talking about Shador Sanders starting that quarterback for that
08:49Panthers game.
08:50Like, that was on the record.
08:52But I think that, so it's not quite the same pressure, but I do think tomorrow matters in terms of,
08:59like, how does he respond after a loss?
09:01How does he respond in keeping this team afloat, getting them to 3-3?
09:04Like, if he can sort of salvage things and keep it on track, like, then he's good.
09:08If he can't, I think we start wondering then, like, okay, what does this mean for what's ahead?
09:13And could it mean that the quarterback change is coming at some point in the next month or so?
09:16Well, I do think, like, how he, how, like, they respond after that loss, it expands further behind than just
09:25Deshaun Watson.
09:26I thought Todd Munkin was probably, that was probably his worst coach game.
09:29I thought he got outcoached by Aaron Glenn, and I thought some of those late game decisions made by him,
09:34you know, contributed to the Cleveland Browns losing that game.
