The New York Giants’ dumbfounding decision to trade an all-time great at the peak of his powers is the latest example of an NFL team valuing their culture and the allure of hope over talentThe Giants traded Odell Beckham Jr to the Browns on Tuesday night, weeks after paying the star receiver a $20m signing bonus, and after general manager David Gettleman proclaimed less than two weeks prior: “We didn’t sign Odell to trade him. That’s all I need to say about that”.Gulp. In return, the Giants picked up a first- and third-round pick, safety Jabrill Peppers … and $16m in dead money. It is the kind of trade that would cause a mutiny in your fantasy league. Related: 'Wow':...
Sports forecasts aren’t worth the paper they’re written on: which is why we’re publishing these online. But are the Browns set for a spectacular improvement?The problem with predictions in this space is that they are comically flawed.Six months ago, we proclaimed with great certainty the Patriots and Seahawks would meet in the Super Bowl, apparently oblivious to Seattle’s obvious decline. We also assured readers that Aaron Rodgers and JJ Watt would be the NFL’s top offensive and defensive players – a thought made preposterous by mid-season. Eyes undoubtedly rolled when we said the Oakland Raiders were the team we were “most looking forward to watching” and the Dallas Cowboys would win the NFC East. The fact we thought the New...
The Browns are on the brink of a winless season and the projected No1 draft pick has reportedly said he doesn’t want to play there. How’s your week going?There is no football futility quite like the touchdowns you think you have until you don’t have them. And for the Cleveland Browns – a franchise that breathes futility through two incarnations – Sunday seemed like a particularly bleak low.On the way to what likely will be 0-16, the Browns nearly tasted elation. It came on a snow-covered field in Chicago with the serendipitous union of April’s No2 draft pick, Bears quarterback Mitch Trubisky, throwing a pass into the waiting arms of April’s No1 draft pick, Cleveland defensive end Myles Garrett. Garrett...
African American athletes can be everything: grand slam champions, Olympic medalists, explosive, magic. Everything, that is, except benignWhat’s a brother gotta do to catch a break in sports? Asking not for myself, a black sportswriter, but for a friend. OK, not for a friend. For DeShone Kizer, the beleaguered rookie quarterback of the terrible Cleveland Browns.Early one Saturday morning last month Kizer ducked into a downtown bar for a break, a bit of release. The pressure on him at the time surely pinched, what with the Browns being 0-6 and his passer rating at a league-worst 27.3. He is of legal drinking age, didn’t break any laws and didn’t violate any sacrosanct policies held by the team. But a Zapruder-grade...
The NFL’s most disheartening franchise lost for the 20th time in 21 games under Hue Jackson. Suddenly, a winless season is looking alarmingly within reachAt 0-5 with a season schedule filled with playoff contenders and division champions, the Cleveland Browns must wonder today if they will win a game at all this season.On Sunday, the NFL’s most disheartening franchise found more agonizing ways to lose in falling 17-14 to the New York Jets. Their 19th defeat in their last 20 games, dating to last season, featured two interceptions and a lost fumble just three yards from a touchdown that could have given them the lead – and perhaps a win. Related: NFL round-up: Aaron Rodgers stuns Cowboys with final-reel touchdown...