Kershaw’s Deal Brings Up Old Debate on Smaller Markets

Earlier this week, the Los Angeles Dodgers signed their ace pitcher, Clayton Kershaw to a seven-year deal for an estimated $215 million, an average of over $30 million per year.

The Dodgers were lauded for tying up arguably the game’s best pitcher up contractually for his prime years, ages 25-32. They weren’t paying outrageous cash to a player currently in his 30’s, like the Angels’ deal with Albert Pujols and the Yankees’ second contract with Alex Rodriguez.

However, the signing once again highlights baseball’s biggest problem: The disparity between big market teams and the middle and small markets.

Yes, the talking heads will point to the Twins’ deal with Joe Mauer (8 years, $184 million) and the Reds’ contract with Joey Votto (13 years, $263 million) as proof that mid market teams can keep star players for a long period of time.

But can those teams put a competitive team around those stars over a long-term if they are paying one player that large of a percentage of money spent on salaries?

There is no question the sport is flush with cash, despite what the Indians claim, and salaries continue to climb and climb.

Could teams like Cleveland, Kansas City, Milwaukee, and Pittsburgh have signed Kershaw to that same contract? The answer is probably not.

Baseball has put luxury taxes in place to be able to keep smaller markets in the mix, all you have to do is look at Tampa’s situation with former Cy Young winner David Price as an alternative.

Price may not be as accomplished as Kershaw, but he is close.

The Rays signed a one year deal with Price for $14 million this season, but the expectation throughout the game is that Tampa will deal Price sometime before the 2015 rather than let him walk away because they can’t afford to pay one player the $25 million per season that the lefty will get on the open market.

There just isn’t a reward for non large market ballclubs to be able to develop and keep the talent they have developed.

It’s funny when baseball writers talk about the four World Series won by the Yankees from 1996 through 2000, and they talk about how the cornerstones of the team were homegrown: Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada, Andy Pettitte, and Mariano Rivera.

The point they are missing is could any non-large market team have been able to keep four players in the organization for most of their careers?

All you have to do is look to Cleveland for that answer…no!

In the early 90’s, the Tribe drafted Albert Belle, Jim Thome, and Manny Ramirez, and traded for Sandy Alomar, Carlos Baerga, and Kenny Lofton before they spent any significant time in the major leagues.

Then GM John Hart took the then revolutionary step of offering long-term deals to young players to keep them under Cleveland’s control for an extra year or two beyond the free agency service time, but one by one, they left the organization, with Alomar staying the longest–11 years.

The Tribe made a legitimate huge offer to keep Ramirez, but he turned them down to head for Boston after the 2000 season.

Belle and Thome left as free agents, while the others were traded before they reached that point.

We see similar story lines every year in the majors, when will the small market team pull the trigger on a deal which will send a player becoming a free agent for younger, more controllable players.

Someone is going to say that the Yankees lost Robinson Cano to Seattle this winter, but when was the last time something like that happened? Usually, New York just keeps Cano.

To us, we still think paying a pitcher $30 million a year isn’t the most sound idea, not matter what their age. They are simply too volatile in terms of performance.

Hart once said the difference between the Yankees and other teams is that New York can afford to make mistakes. If Kershaw gets hurt (which we hope he doesn’t), it’s not that big of a deal for Los Angeles.

It would be crippling if it happened to the Royals, Brewers, Indians, or Reds.

Young Cavs Need to Toughen Up, Get Some Grit

The Cleveland Cavaliers opened their trip out west with good feelings. They started their new acquisition, two-time all-star Luol Deng, and defeated the Utah Jazz.

However, things took a sharp turn south as the Sacramento Kings, a team with a similar record as Cleveland’s, hammered the wine and gold. The 44 point loss was the largest margin of defeat in the NBA this season.

During the game, the Cavs’ young guards, Kyrie Irving and Dion Waiters seemed upset at being taken out of the game by head coach Mike Brown. Whether they were dismayed by the fact their team was getting shredded or because they were losing playing time is up for debate. Whatever the reason, it seems like there is a problem behind the scenes.

Yes, the Cavaliers are a relatively young basketball team, but the only rookie getting regular playing time is free agent Matthew Dellavedova, a gritty, energy type of player.

The rest of the team is in their second or third years in the league, so they’ve been around long enough to know the NBA. And they do have veterans like Anderson Varejao, Jarrett Jack, and now Deng, along with a veteran coaching staff to tell them the work that is needed on a daily basis to win in the league.

So, why isn’t it taking?

The Cavs look disinterested in too many games, and they get blown out far too frequently for a team that has four top five picks in the draft on the roster.

It doesn’t seem like the players are learning from the experience. A loss like the one to the Kings shouldn’t be acceptable to anyone in the organization.

When Jack signed with the Cavs last summer, he made a statement about how there are two types of players, those who love the lifestyle and those who love the game.

Right now, it looks like the young players with the Cavaliers are more about the former, and it spells trouble for the franchise unless that changes.

Look, every player likes to win. The crowds are with you and it makes it easy to show up at the gym every day to practice.

What are needed for this organization to move forward are players who hate to lose. Those men are stung by every loss, and they will do anything to prevent defeat.

Our contention is that Michael Jordan’s greatest attribute as a player was his competitive streak. The man simply hated to lose at anything. Most of the great players in any sport have the same trait.

It doesn’t appear that the Cavaliers have many players who have the “competitiveness” gene. They are happy to be professional basketball players, but they don’t want to do whatever it takes to win basketball games.

You would like to think the veterans on the team could communicate this to Irving, Waiters, and the rest, but it hasn’t taken yet and the season is almost halfway through. GM Chris Grant added another veteran voice in bringing Deng over.

Hopefully, bringing a guy who has been on playoff teams the past few years makes a difference.

That’s the risk of having a team made up of a majority of young players. Sometimes, they learn to win together like the Cavs of the 80’s with Brad Daugherty, Ron Harper, and Mark Price.

These Cavs need to develop some toughness and grit. If winning doesn’t start soon then Grant will need to make changes with the roster to bring in players who are sick of losing.

The time to make the playoffs is now and the time to start demanding victories is also now. The players need to get on board or move elsewhere.

Time for Tribe to Honor Albert Belle

Over the last few years, the Cleveland Indians have honored several of the players from their playoff teams of the late 90’s by putting them into the club’s Hall of Fame.

Sandy Alomar Jr. was the first to go in, fitting because he was the first piece of the puzzle when the Tribe traded for him after the 1990 season.

Kenny Lofton and Charles Nagy quickly followed him and last year, Carlos Baerga received the honor.

And there is no doubt that Jim Thome and Manny Ramirez will be inducted some day very soon, but their playing days ended too recently to be considered.

However, there is one name that is missing. The central figure for the first few years of the winning seasons including the strike shortened 1994 season and the American League Championship team of 1995.

It is time for the Indians to put Albert Belle in the franchise’s Hall of Fame.

We realize Belle’s departure from Cleveland as a free agent after the 1996 season was not exactly friendly and he antagonized the fan base when he came back to the lakefront as a member of the White Sox in subsequent visits. But you can’t ignore the fact that he’s one of the best players ever to wear an Indian uniform.

The slugger hit 242 home runs with the Tribe, leaving town as the franchise leader (he was passed by Jim Thome), and hit .295 with a 949 OPS in 913 games as a member of the team.

He led the American League in runs batted in three times with Cleveland, as well as leading the AL once in home runs, doubles, and runs scored once in his tenure here.

And in his last three seasons on the north coast, he finished second twice and third once in the MVP voting.

Of course, baseball historians will wonder years from now why Belle didn’t win the award in 1995 when he batted .317 (8^th in the league) with 50 HR (led league) and 126 RBI (tied for AL lead) on the best team by far in the junior circuit.

He hit at least 34 home runs the last five seasons in Cleveland, and knocked in at least 100 runs in those seasons as well. The significance of that is the 1994 season, the strike season, lasted only 113 games.

Yes, Belle was a controversial figure to be sure. He was suspended early in his career for different issues, and was once sat down because of a corked bat.

However, we also may have been the most studious players in the game when it came to his craft. He studied opposing pitchers and made adjustments.

In game five of the ’95 World Series, Belle went to school on new Hall of Famer Greg Maddux’ pitching him away and homered to right field in the first inning.

There is no question when you went to an Indians’ game in those days; you waited in your seat for Albert Belle to come to the plate. If you were at home, you made sure you were watching when Belle was hitting.

He was a “must see” player.

The Indians haven’t announced their honoree for the 2014 season yet, and the lately the antagonism between the Tribe and Belle has softened, so maybe he will get the nod.

But if they aren’t considering Albert Belle, they should. And we have a feeling when Belle is inducted, the fans will respond with a thunderous ovation.

Cleveland is a forgiving city, and they want to open their arms for the most exciting player to wear a Tribe uniform over the last 50 years.

Browns’ Defense Can’t Handle a Lead (Again!)

Another Sunday, another loss for the Cleveland Browns, who dropped their sixth straight game in the Meadowlands, 24-13 to the Jets.

Today’s defeat had a typical twist, with WR David Nelson, deemed not good enough to make the Browns in training camp, caught two touchdown passes (6 and 5 yards) to exact revenge on the guys who cut him.

Defensively, once again, Ray Horton’s crew couldn’t stand prosperity. The Browns took a 10-0 lead in the second quarter, and really, at that point in the game were dominating the Jets. The score would’ve been 17-0 because the offense couldn’t score after having a first down inside the NY five yard line.

As soon as Cleveland finally did get in the end zone on a 5-yard run by Edwin Baker, his second rushing touchdown in two weeks with 6:47 to go in the half, the defense allowed QB Geno Smith and the Jets to march right down the field for a touchdown in 13 plays, including four key third down conversions. There was 1:18 left in the second quarter.

The coaching staff decided to keep the ball in the air instead of running the clock and going into the locker room with a 10-7 advantage.

On the first play after the punt, the defense allowed RB Bilal Powell to run up the middle for 39 yards into Cleveland territory and gave Rex Ryan’s team a new lease on life. Three plays later, including an unnecessary roughness penalty on Tashaun Gibson, and the Jets’ Nick Folk kicked a chip shot field goal to tie the game at halftime.

The defense, who had been stout against the run all season long until last week, was gashed again and again, allowing 209 yards on the ground. Considering the plan should have been to make Smith throw the ball considering his 21 interceptions on the season, this was totally unacceptable.

This week when Horton gets his time with the media, he shouldn’t be spouting numbers showing how well his unit is really playing. The past two weeks, they have been battered. And once again, the defense didn’t sack Smith, which more often than not has been the case recently.

Offensively, there was the obligatory dropped passes, including one in the end zone by Greg Little, who should thank the coaching staff every week for their patience, because it’s hard to believe he would get this much of an opportunity with any other team in the NFL.

QB Jason Campbell didn’t have a good day either, but the drops didn’t help. He hit on just 18 of 39 throws for 178 yards and one interception. You would think because Campbell didn’t play well, Rob Chudzinski and Norv Turner might mix in the run more.

Well, you’d be wrong.

Baker carried just 17 times for 64 yards, almost four yards per shot, and in total, Cleveland averaged 5.5 yards per running play.

Even though it’s a passing league, you still have to run the ball in the NFL to win. The front office and coaching staff simply have ignored this part of the game.

WR Josh Cooper subbed for Davonne Bess and played like the organization expected the veteran to play, grabbing four catches for 26 yards.

This is another example of the different agenda the organization has had all year. They traded for Bess, and he was going to get every opportunity to show what he could do.

So, with one game left at Pittsburgh, the Browns are staring at seven straight loss to end the season in the face.

Until everything done in this organization is about winning and winning now, nothing is going to change in Berea. No matter who they take in the draft, Joe Banner has to turn around the attitude, one that he and his staff came into the year with.

Stop looking to next year!

Lack of Depth in System Hurts Tribe’s Ability to Deal

The recent drafting history of the Cleveland Indians hasn’t been good. Several people have written about the fact that since 2000, the only star player picked on the first round by the Tribe has been C.C. Sabathia.

A look at the current roster shows Jason Kipnis and Lonnie Chisenhall among the everyday players originally picked by the Tribe, and the only pitchers of note drafted or originally signed by Cleveland are Cody Allen and Danny Salazar.

That’s one reason the Indians find it difficult to make trades during the off-season.

The way to get established players is the ability to deal major league ready talent for them. And right now, the Indians have precious few of them.

Currently, the two prizes of the farm system are SS Francisco Lindor and OF Clint Frazier, coincidentally, the first round draft picks in 2011 and 2013 respectively.

They are both considered in the top 20 prospects in all of the minor leagues, and with the lack of quality in the system; there isn’t any way that GM Chris Antonetti can use either of them as trade chips.

The other factor working against the Tribe is that none of their top prospects, save for Trevor Bauer, have played a game at the AAA level.

That means any team dealing for a top prospect from the Indians would have to wait awhile before seeing the fruits of the trade.

That’s a tough sell for a team dealing a quality player.

Where the Indians do have some depth is in bullpen arms, which normally aren’t going to fetch a quality major league player. They also have some middle infield depth though, and other teams could be interested in that.

According to Baseball Prospectus, five of the Tribe’s top 10 prospects are middle infielders. Besides Lindor, Cleveland could afford to deal one of these players: #6 prospect 2B Jose Ramirez, #7 SS Ronny Rodriguez, #8 Dorssys Paulino (although he may be moved to the outfield because of defense), and #9 2B Joe Wendle.

This publication rates the Cleveland farm system as thin in top flight talent, but loves the two guys at the top of the organization’s system.

The only pitchers listed in the top ten are RHP Cody Anderson, who was at Akron in 2013, and RHP Dace Kime, who was just drafted last summer.

In order to get a high-caliber player, let’s say David Price, you have to be able to give up a big name prospect. Do the Indians have that player because they aren’t dealing Lindor and/or Frazier, nor should they?

It is doubtful that Tampa Bay would deal the former Cy Young Award winner for #3 prospect OF Tyler Naquin (’12 first round choice) and say Rodriguez, who could be dealt because he is blocked by Lindor.

That’s why it is a huge priority for the organization to stock the farm system, and with two first round picks this June, assuming Ubaldo Jimenez signs elsewhere, there is a solid opportunity to do just that.

This isn’t to say it is impossible for Antonetti to pull off major trade, but it does make it more difficult.

Part of having a good farm system is not only being able to add young talent to the big league roster, but it also enables a team to make trades.

When the younger talent in the Cleveland organization gets closer to the majors, they will be in a better position.

Cavs’ Need to Stop Expirimenting

A little over a week ago, on November 20th, the Cleveland Cavaliers lost a home game to the Washington Wizards 98-91 to drop their record to 4-8. After beating the Wizards on the road in the previous game, this was a tough pill to swallow.

Following the contest, Mike Brown told the media that only one player played hard the entire night, rookie G Matthew Dellavedova. When the Cavs took the floor for the next game in New Orleans, the coach wanting to send a message to his team, started Dellavedova.

The wine and gold blew a 12 point lead late in the fourth quarter that night and they haven’t one a game since, getting blown out in their two road games (San Antonio and Boston) and dropping a home game to the Miami Heat.

In both the road games, the contest was basically over in the first quarter. Could that be because Cleveland doesn’t start their best players?

It is time for the coaching staff to go back to basics and start the games with veteran players to keep them in the game right from the get go.

Mike Brown needs to settle on a regular rotation to settle down the mess that the Cavs are becoming.

Let’s start at center. We get that the staff wants to start Andrew Bynum because he can get loose before the first and second halves, and there is no problem with that. The big man isn’t killing the team with his play and he needs the time to get his game back.

At power forward, Tristan Thompson needs to play more. The third year man from Texas is averaging 32 minutes per night, but in the last five games, all losses, he hasn’t played more than 26 per night, and has only scored in double figures once, and also only has one game with more than 10 rebounds.

He needs to play at least 30 minutes per night, and probably should get 33-35 minutes.

The small forward spot is a mess, but Earl Clark has to be shaking his head after last night. On Wednesday vs. Miami, Clark shot 5 of 11 from the floor scoring 13 points. Against Boston on Friday, he received 12 minutes.

Clark may have problems guarding small forwards, but he is a better shooter than Alonzo Gee. If Cleveland has the lead, Brown can give more time to Gee, a good defender to protect the lead.

In the backcourt, most people thought the idea would be that Kyrie Irving, Dion Waiters, and Jarrett Jack would split the time. We would start Irving and Jack, another veteran who can help the team get off to a good start, and use Waiters as the key offensive player on the second unit.

Irving should be out there for at least 36 minutes with Jack and Waiters splitting the other 60 at the guard spot.

The second unit should be Waiters and Gee, with Anderson Varejao backing up Thompson and Bynum. Brown needs to also work Tyler Zeller and Anthony Bennett in the rotation, and he should let them know when they are going to get into each game and give them time. As young players, they need that type of stability.

That is, of course until GM Chris Grant can deal Varejao to a contending team. The Brazilian has had a fine career in Cleveland, but with Thompson, Zeller, and Bennett needing minutes, it is time to cash in on the asset.

Brown’s statement about playing hard has the Cavs spinning out of control. It’s time to go back to basics and tonight’s game against the Bulls would be the perfect time to do it.

Steelers Drive Nail Into Browns’ Season

Some things are inevitable. The winter is cold, water is wet, and the Pittsburgh Steelers defeat the Cleveland Browns.

The Steelers are struggling through a disappointing season, but they still managed to come to First Energy Stadium and paste the Browns, 27-11, ending the home team’s playoffs chances in more way than one.

The black and yellow squad also knocked out QB Jason Campbell with a head injury, meaning it’s back to Brandon Weeden, which is just another reason Rob Chudzinski’s team will once again not advance past 16 games.

At the bye week, several media people (and we agreed) said the Browns’ front office needed to bring in a running back and another quarterback seeing the alternative if something did happen to Campbell was Weeden. They failed to do either move, and now will watch Weeden once again prove to everyone he is not an NFL starting quarterback, probably for the next couple of games.

Pittsburgh had one of the league’s worst rushing defenses, yet the Browns could not exploit it, gaining only 55 yards rushing in 16 attempts.

The coaching staff will say the score dictated the passing game, but Cleveland came out and ran only five times in the first quarter (gaining 17 yards) on a cold and blustery day downtown.

When Chris Ogbonnaya ran for 10 yards on his first carry of the second quarter (the Browns’ first play of the quarter), it gave him two carries for 15 yards. He was given the ball just twice the rest of the game.

Of course, it didn’t help that on his next carry, he gained eight yards and moved into Steelers’ territory, but coughed up the ball for the second consecutive week. Pittsburgh turned the turnover into three points and a 13-3 lead going into the half.

Starting the second half, the Browns’ held on the 4th and 1, and starting marching into Pittsburgh territory to get back in the game, but that’s when Campbell was knocked out with a blow to the head (no penalty, either thanks to the great NFL officiating crew), resulting in a fumble and a return to the Browns’ four yard line, where the visitors promptly scored and ended the game for all intent and purposes.

From then on, it was a Chudzinski/Turner passing show, with Weeden throwing 29 times in the last quarter and a half, completing only 13 and throwing in a pick six by William Gay to top off another dismal performance.

The game story going in was the pressure the Browns’ defense had been putting on quarterbacks, but they registered no sack on Ben Roethlisberger today, while Cleveland passers were sacked five times and one was knocked out of the game.

Still, with 17 of the Steelers’ points coming as a result of turnovers by the offense, it is tough to blame Ray Horton’s unit. They actually pitched a shutout in the second half.

The defeat wasted a record-setting performance by WR Josh Gordon, who caught 14 throws for a team record 237 yards and a touchdown. Gordon continues to impress, despite people who want to constantly bring up any negative they can find about the second year wideout.

Over the years, we have maintained to be successful in the NFL, you have to run the ball, and you have to stop the run. The Cleveland Browns have mastered the latter, but they will continue to struggle until to do the former. And to do that, they must make a commitment to the running game, even though it’s a passing league.

Today’s defeat means it is time to start looking at 2014. However, if Brandon Weeden has to start most of the games remaining. Even the evaluation process will be difficult.

Bengals Show How to Score Without the Ball

After the first quarter of today’s game against Cincinnati, the Cleveland Browns looked like a team bound for the post-season.

They dominated the Bengals. Andy Dalton threw two interceptions to Joe Haden, one resulting in a touchdown, the first pick six of his career. The Bengals couldn’t run the ball either, and it appeared the Browns were going to get a huge win on the road and put themselves in great shape for an AFC North division crown.

Cleveland was even running the football well, as Chris Ogbonnaya had a 43 yard run, the longest of the year by a Cleveland running back and led 13-0. The era of good feeling ended on the Browns last play of the first quarter, when Jason Campbell was picked off by James Harrison.

Then came the nightmare of the second quarter and all of that went up in smoke as the Bengals scored 31 points in the stanza, and without any real offense either.

Dalton hit TE Jermaine Gresham on Cincy’s first play of the quarter to cut Cleveland’s lead to 13-7.

After a Spencer Lanning punt that was deflected giving the Bengals the ball on the Browns 38, it took five plays, one a flea flicker pass from Mohamed Sanu to Gio Bernard, to take the lead 14-13.

The momentum officially shifted.

On the subsequent drive, the Browns’ offensive line fell apart as Campbell was sacked and TE Jordan Cameron picked up a holding penalty.

The Browns started to throw the ball almost exclusively underneath, and did pick up two first downs the next time they had the ball, but Lanning’s next punt was blocked and run in for a touchdown. It was now 21-13 Cincinnati.

After another holding penalty, it took two plays for the Bengals defense to strike, forcing an Ogbonnaya fumble after a reception and Vontaze Burfict returned it for another score and the Bengals scored 28 unanswered points with their offense running just 10 plays.

And even though they were down just two scores and there was still more than a half to play, and the conditions weren’t exactly ideal, Rob Chudzinski and Norv Turner decided to stop the running game almost completely.

They ran just once more in the first half, and the passes thrown were mostly of the checkdown variety.

The punting unit capped off a dreadful quarter by allowing a 27 yard return by Adam Jones to set up a Mike Nugent field goal. The 13-0 lead at the quarter had been turned into a 31-13 deficit.

At that point, Cincinnati had demonstrated no ability to move the ball against the Cleveland defense, yet they led by 18 points.

That fact made it very curious when Chudzinski went for it on 4th and 5 at the CIN34 on the Browns’ first series of the second half. He could have pinned the Bengals back with plenty of time.

He got away with it because Campbell hit Josh Gordon for a 74 yard touchdown pass on the next possession, closing the gap to 31-20.

Chudzinski’s gambling tendency got the best of him early in the fourth quarter, as he went for it on 4th and 3 at the Browns’ 27 with almost 11 minutes left in the game. The Browns were down 18 at the time, and that quickly became 21 as Nugent hit another field goal that didn’t need any gain by the Cincinnati offense.

The Bengals gained just 224 yards on the game and caused two turnovers. Horrible play by the punt block team (resulting in 14 points) and a huge fumble recovery which put another seven points on the board won this game for Cincinnati.

The coaching staff (once again) put their quarterback in a horrible situation by ignoring the running game and when they did run it was only on first down. There was no creativity. This on a day the Browns averaged five yards per carry.

In an ironic twist, former Brown Bobby Rainey, cut a few weeks ago by Cleveland, gained 160 yards for Tampa Bay today.

Maybe the offensive line simply doesn’t block for the run very well.

Despite the loss, the Browns are still very much in the playoff chase, just a game back for the second wild card spot, just a game behind the Dolphins and Jets.

A win next week against the Steelers at home and then against Jacksonville will put the Browns at 6-6 and right in the thick of it.

As long as the special teams improve and the coaching staff stays with the running game.

Do Browns Need to Run the Ball?

The running game has certainly been de-emphasized in today’s NFL.

It used to be a tenet about good teams that they had to be able to run the ball and also be able to stop the run.

Earlier this week, Browns’ All Pro OT Joe Thomas scoffed about his team’s lack of a running game, saying something to the effect that it really isn’t important anymore.

Is he correct?

We looked at the top 10 rushing teams in the league this year and found more teams that are winning than losing.

The top two rushing teams to this point are Washington, who led the league last season and are currently sitting at 3-6 on the season after last night’s loss to Minnesota, and Philadelphia who are 4-5 on the 2013 campaign.

That certainly supports Thomas’ opinion that the ground game isn’t a prerequisite for winning.

However, looking at the rest of the top ten shows the following teams: Seattle (8-1), San Francisco (6-2), Green Bay (5-3), New England (7-2), New York Jets (5-4), and Kansas City (9-0).

Notice that several of those squads also have Pro Bowl caliber quarterbacks in Russell Wilson, Colin Kaepernick, a possible future Hall of Famer in Aaron Rodgers, and a definite enshrinee in Canton in Tom Brady.

The other two teams among the leaders are Buffalo (3-6) and Oakland (3-5). Thus, six of the ten having winning records.

Conversely, the worst running teams in the NFL shows only two teams with a winning record: New Orleans (6-2) and Dallas (5-4).

Atlanta (2-6) is the worst team in the NFL on the ground, followed by the woeful Jacksonville Jaguars at 0-8.

The Giants (2-6), the Ravens (3-5) and Pittsburgh (2-6) round out the top five.

So, what we can conclude is that you have a better chance of being successful if you can run the ball, which when you think about it, isn’t really a change in conventional wisdom.

That brings us to Thomas’ team, the Cleveland Browns, who rank 25^th in the NFL in rushing.

A closer look shows that coach Rob Chudzinski and offensive coordinator have had to be very creative in getting some of the yards on the ground the Browns have accumulated.

The trick/gadget plays used by Turner have accounted for 15% of Cleveland’s running game. That would include reverses by WRs Josh Gordon and Travis Benjamin, plays out of the wildcat formation by MarQueis Gray, and the fake punt by Josh Aubrey that went for 34 yards.

Taking away those eight plays would lower the Browns’ average yards per carry by a half yard (3.7 to 3.2), and the latter figure would rank third worst in the National Football League.

The flaw in Thomas’ logic is that if you are a good team, a winning team, you have to be able to run the football to protect leads. In reality, the Browns were lucky to be able to burn over six minutes off the clock last Sunday in the victory over Baltimore.

As the weather conditions at home get more severe, the ability to run the football will become more and more important.

That’s why the front office needs to do something during the bye week to improve this aspect of the game.

If the Browns want to be a winning team, perhaps one that can make the playoffs, they have to be able to run the ball, particularly late in games.

A majority of the good teams in the NFL can do just that.

Don’t Look Now, Browns Are In Playoff Picture

After losing 11 straight games to the Baltimore Ravens, the Cleveland Browns talked all week about how this team didn’t lose all those games. That it would be different this time.

They backed up the talk with a 24-18 win over the defending Super Bowl champions, raising their record to 4-5 on the season.

The Browns, who people figured had given up on the 2013 season, are now in a playoff race heading into the bye week. just a game behind the Jets for the sixth and final spot in the post-season.

Same day, the Browns lack of a running game is going to hurt them, but that day wasn’t today, as Cleveland gained just 73 yards on the ground with an average of 2.6 yards per carry.

Willis McGahee carried 21 times for an unbelievably low total of 31 yards, and the Browns inability to punch a touchdown in the closing minutes allowed one more chance for Baltimore.

Of course, the Ravens, who actually rank lower in the league’s statistics in running, managed just 55 yards on the ground, also averaging 2.6 yards per attempt.

The offensive stars for Cleveland were QB Jason Campbell, who provided his second straight effective start, hitting on 23 of 35 passes for 262 yards and three touchdown passes, two to Davone Bess, who rebounded after last week’s horrendous performance.

Campbell made some huge plays to keep possession on the Browns’ last drive, in which they took over the ball with a three-point lead and 6:44 remaining.

First, he scrambled for 12 yards on a 3rd and 3. Then, he converted a 4th and 1 with a cross the body toss to Bess, who made a diving catch, after being chased out of the pocket.

He even showed his backup, Brandon Weeden, how to correctly execute the flip pass, hitting Chris Ogbonnaya for 14 yards after being flushed out of the pocket.

He was efficient and trusted his receivers on a few plays, throwing into tight coverage and expecting his wide outs to make the play.

The first scoring drive featured a throw to Greg Little, who turned it into a 46 yard pick up after the catch. Also, the first TD throw to Bess was made with a Raven defender right on him.

Little had perhaps his best day as a pro, hauling in seven passes for 122 yards. He did leave the game with a shoulder injury.

Campbell also received good protection from the offensive line, who allowed just two sacks on the day after giving up five the first time the two teams met in Baltimore.

This time, it was the Browns who sacked Joe Flacco five times, and once again five different players did the honors (Chris Owens, T.J. Ward, Jabaal Sheard, Armonty Bryant, and Quentin Groves).

Defensive coordinator Ray Horton said the Browns needed to improve on third down situations and they did just that, holding Baltimore to just 7 of 16 conversions. And Joe Haden picked up his first interception of the year.

A fumbled punt set up Cleveland’s third and final touchdown.

With the bye week here, let’s hope the front office can address the team’s inability to do anything on the ground. McGahee is a pro, but outside of the Buffalo game (and he averaged only three yards a carry in that game), he has not been effective.

Rob Chudzinski and Norv Turner made it work without a ground game today, but if more meaningful games are played later in the season, it will be necessary to run the ball to protect leads.

Right now, they simply can’t run the ball, which of course makes Campbell’s day even more impressive.

We will say it again, it is amazing what a professional quarterback can do with this offense.

After the week off, the Browns visit Cincinnati, who no doubt will have revenge on their minds after a beating they took in Cleveland in week four.

That game will be bigger than anyone would have thought after the Browns were 0-2 and traded their starting running back.