Devils extend Travis Zajac and other news!

I've been busy and have not had a ton to write about over the last week.
It's been slow, but with the hockey lockout over, I'll try to have a Devils preview finished before the Saturday night opener at the NHL Muni on Long Island.

I have two terrific interviews finished and in the inbox, so I hope to get them posted over the next week or two.
They are both excellent and one might be our best yet!
Stay tuned for those!

The New Jersey Devils decided not to risk another homegrown star bolting via free agency and signed their top center in Travis Zajac to an eight-year extension worth 46 million over the term.

The deal is pretty cap-friendly as Zajac will make less money in the first two years of the deal when Ilya Kovalchuk is making the most and increases as the Kovalchuk contract decreases.
Zajac would have been an unrestricted free agent at the end of this season and locking him up now enables Lou Lamoriello to either work on existing player renewals or to land a player from outside the organization.
The Devils look to be under the floor by a fair amount under the new CBA, so the money to sign or extend players (Patrik Elias and/or David Clarkson) looks to be there next summer.

Travis Zajac is a solid number one center, on other teams, he might be one of the best second liners in the game, but his passing ranks with the better centers and the Devils will need a feeder for Ilya Kovalchuk.
This signing ensures that the Devils have that and the pairing will have many years to get the chemistry down.
Zajac also is the Devils' best faceoff man, which will come in quite handy in the shortened season.
I like (not love due to the length) the deal as it keeps Devils players in the family, which I am usually in favor and Zajac gave the Devils a small discount in the contract as well.
Usually, Lou Lamoriello returns that loyalty when the player's career is over, so Zajac will likely benefit from that when playing days are past for him.

Nice start to the new CBA era for the Devils and should keep some contract locker room conversations away for the winter!

Photo Credit: Newark Star-Ledger 

Liriano in doubt,Pirates add Jeanmar Gomez

The Pittsburgh Pirates added two players and might be losing a high profile signee over the last few days while I was down with the flu.

The worst news was the possibility of the contract of Francisco Liriano being revoked due to an injury to Liriano's non-throwing arm.
The contract had not been finalized before an injury that has been disclosed as being to his right arm,although just how the injury occurred has not been released to the public.
If the injury is severe enough that the Pirates would decide not to sign Liriano,the Pirates would have two spots open in the rotation and with very few experienced options available on the roster,Pittsburgh would have some major questions at the end of their rotation....

The Pirates added a candidate for one or both rotations spots as Pittsburgh obtained Jeanmar Gomez from the Indians.
Gomez is a paradox as a pitcher that likes to keep the ball down,yet allowed 15 homers in 90 innings with Cleveland.
Gomez hits the low 90's,but strikes few out,so I would not get your hopes up for Gomez.
The Pirates shipped Quincy Lattimore to the Indians in return.
Latimore had been a toolsy pick in the last draft in the Dave Littlefield era and had shown power as he worked his way through the system eventually reaching AA Altoona last season.
Latimore's issue was lack of contact as in each of the last five seasons,he struck out over 100 times.
I liked Quincy a lot in meeting him through the years and I hope he can turn things around in a different setting....

The Pirates signed Lucas May,who will likely be assigned to AAA Indianapolis.
May was at one time a top prospect,but his star has faded over the past three years,playing with four different organizations.

Rob Chudzinski is the Big Bang?

The Cleveland Browns ended their search for a head coach with the somewhat surprising hiring of Carolina offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski for the position.

Chudzinski was the offensive coordinator for the last winning season for the Browns in 2007 and was extended with a long-term contract for the 10-6 Browns.
Chudzinski was relieved of his job after the following season that saw the sweep (sound familiar) that Romeo Crennel and Phil Savage removed in favor of the Eric Mangini regime.
Since leaving Cleveland, Chudzinski worked for the Chargers before moving to Carolina as the offensive coordinator for the last two seasons.

I do not have a real problem with the hire, considering the available applicants, there really was no standout candidate.
I liked Ken Whisenhunt, but not enough to stamp my feet and pout about missing him and none of the others stood out either.
Chudzinski was a good coordinator in Cleveland and the work that he did with power-armed Derek Anderson makes me think that perhaps he can bring something out of the similar tools of Brandon Weeden.
Chudzinski was a reasonable talented caller of plays, which means after Pat Shurmur anyone was going to look good in hindsight.

It looks like the Browns are going to bring Norv Turner in as the Browns offensive coordinator and likely play-caller to aid in the learning curve for the first-time head coach.
This makes lots of sense to me as that is what Pat Shurmur never seemed to grasp-calling the plays and running a team is a tough task for anyone, let alone an inexperienced coach.

For all the flaws of Norv Turner as a head coach and I have brayed loudly about his shortcomings in that role in the past, allow me to say this-Norv Turner is one of the best coordinators of my generation, and bringing him to Cleveland is a huge grab for the organization.
Add that to Turner's rapport with QB's and the Browns should know if they can win with Brandon Weeden, Colt McCoy or if they need to obtain a new passer from another venue.
I would have liked to have seen Dick Jauron retained as defensive coordinator, but it appears that will not happen.
I would prefer the 4-3 defense continue to be run, as the teams' defensive strength is along the defensive line, although I would love to see another pass rushing end opposite Jabaal Sheard (the draft strength appears to be at DE, so there is a chance a trade down could happen to get back a second-round pick).
The linebackers are a position of need in the 4-3 alignment, let alone for the 3-4, so I believe that hiring someone with a 4-3 preference would shorten the curve to contention.

The bigger issue with me is not the gamble on Chudzinski, it is more about the embarrassment of promising the moon and producing a rock.
The press conference of Jimmy Haslam and Joe Banner that was filled with so much braggadocio has made the franchise look bad again.
This was supposed to be a fresh start, but yet it appears to be the same old Browns from the outside looking in.
The first major hire from Haslam/Banner is a risk, the result will go a long way in seeing how the front office is looked at for a long time.

Not a Chip shot (yet)

For a time yesterday,it appeared that the Cleveland Browns were on their way to locking up Oregon head coach Chip Kelly as their new coach ,but Kelly has decided to keep the process going for a little longer by going through an interview process with the Buffalo Bills and Philadelphia Eagles.
Kelly's interview with the Bills took place yesterday and the Eagles will talk with Kelly today.
After that discussion is concluded,the Kelly watch will resume with Kelly deciding which team he will sign with or perhaps he might return to Eugene,Oregon with the Ducks.
After all,Kelly did just that last year in turning down the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and that has something to do with why the Browns could not keep Kelly in the fold before the Bills and Eagles could take their swing at Kelly.
Kelly has stated that he wished he had talked to other teams last season besides Tampa to "go through the process" and that is why this lasted a bit longer than perhaps it could have.
I cannot blame him for this-check the situation out and make a good decision for you and your family.

I'll have more on my thoughts on why or why not Chip Kelly might be a risk/reward  hire for the Browns (or anyone else),if he actually gets hired,but for now,everything is still on hold..

Thanks to those of you that joined our page on Facebook (Thoughts Of RS) and as some of you have quietly found out about our sister site,thanks for the positive feedback thus far.
I'll be unveiling more on that here after the Browns coaching search is concluded!

O Joy!!!

Confused?
Well, the O Joy was a huge part of my teenage years and I would wager only a few dedicated people even remember it.

The Valley Mall opened in 1974 and although I cannot be sure of this stat, I believe it to be the case, a tenant from the beginning was the Orange Bowl chain.

The Orange Bowl was mainly known as a pizza eatery, usually by the slice, but I don't remember eating the pizza often.

My memories of the pizza think of it as a thin, greasy pizza that might not rank well against a strong pizza today from the home pizza market like a Tombstone, DiGiorno, or Red Baron, let alone a pizza worth going out for.
But the Orange Bowl had one thing going for it for this person- something called the O-Joy.

The O-Joy was not easily slipped into any category.
It was not ice cream; it had similarities to Italian ice, but it was much thicker and better held together than Italian ice. It was not really a slushie or what is often confused with the O-Joy, an Orange Julius from the better-known Orange Julius chain.

If I had to say what it was closest to, I would say its closest relative would be an orange juice-flavored Slurpee.
The O-Joy definitely tasted like orange juice, and I would say that there was some orange juice in it.
Often, when you buy "fruit juice," it will say something like "contains 20% juice!" or is called "a fruit drink product", but the O-Joy tasted like orange juice, not like orange soda, so I do believe at least some orange juice was in it.

The Orange Bowl was on the corner of the mall as it existed then and was located at the end that I used most with two of the three book stores nearby with Books and Things Jr., and Waldenbooks, and the sporting goods store, Shipley's, none of which is in the mall today.

Since my brother and I usually went to the mall once a week (mom got groceries while we were there) and time was usually of the essence, we had maybe an hour to hang out and get our allowance spent for the week, which usually was spent on boxing and wrestling magazines and an O-Joy before we were out the door to meet our mom for the ride home.

A mall trip that my brother and I still recall to this day involved us getting bawled out by mom as we drove from our house to the mall.
Please keep in mind that it was a good twenty minutes to get there, so this was a good ear-chewing!
As we were listening to this, a balding fifty-ish jogger was passed on the road, complete with an eighties headband and running gear.

Think of any eighties stereotype, and you'll get the picture clearly.

The lecture continued, and said jogger appeared, and I blurted out, "Check this guy out in heavy training for the Gavin MacLeod look-alike contest".
Brought the car down, and Mom had a hard time continuing the lecture after that!

The Orange Bowl went out of business as a chain in the late 1980s, never to be heard from again, and I don't hear a lot of internet talk missing it as you do on other lost chains like Burger Chef, for example, but I sure do.

The O-Joy was good, and I think I'd still be a fan, but you never know about these things.
Tastes change, and maybe it would not be as delicious today, but you cannot touch the memories.
Sometimes, the important thing might not be the item, but the company you keep and your memories.

Stay tuned for more mall memories eventually, and stay tuned soon for the first interview of the new year!

Browns head coach?

The Cleveland Browns needed a change.
Despite some improvement in talent,Pat Shurmur was overmatched in the role and likely should not have been hired to begin with as without the connection of his uncle to Mike Holmgren,he would not have been.

The Browns apparently are looking very hard at three college head coaches at their splashy hire.
I have issues with all three and for three very different reasons,but as I told my friend and reader Hank earlier about this topic,I really do not have a strong opinion on who TO hire...

Oregon's Chip Kelly has the highest upside,but his read-option offense seems awfully gimmicky for the NFL and something makes me think that Kelly is just as likely to be the next version of Bobby Petrino than he is anything else.
Penn State's Bill O'Brien did very well there in his first year,but the first year was always going to be the best there with their sanctions and he might be looking to leap while the going is good.
O'Brien also comes with the Belichick stain of none of the Billy B. gang ever succeeding as a head man in the league.
Syracuse's Doug Marrone has league experience with New Orleans as their offensive coordinator with Drew Brees and the Super Bowl winning Saints,but he has been just .500 with Syracuse,although the program does seem to be for the better since his arrival.

The NFL candidates are uninspiring as well.
Andy Reid is out because of his issues with Joe Banner,not that I would want him anyway.
Lovie Smith is dull,although there would be worse choices.
Bruce Arians would not be a candidate,but his work in Indianapolis as an interim has put him in a mix for some teams.
An assistant that I do like is Greg Roman at San Francisco,Roman is committed to the running game and is from the Cleveland area,so the job might appeal to him.

The big names are interesting to a degree.
Jon Gruden is intense and young enough to make a run,but Gruden might stay with the status quo with the offense and that has been disappointing.
Bill Cowher is way overrated and does not seem to have the fire anymore anyway.
After suffering through the Mike Holmgren show up and cash a check era,I am not in favor of another less than inspired big name.
Nick Saban has the Belichick stain and a less than strong Miami tenure,but I think he would work hard in what might be his last chance in the NFL.

If I had to choose,I think I'd go Saban,Gruden,Roman in that order.

Back tomorrow.....

Browns fall in Pittsburgh-Shurmur,Heckert axed...

The Cleveland Browns were not expected to do much entering the Steel City for the season-ending game against Pittsburgh, considering that they were starting a third-string quarterback in Thaddeus Lewis and were without the main cog of the running game in Trent Richardson.
Cleveland surprised me by hanging in for the entire game before falling to the Steelers 24-10 on a day filled with snow showers.
Thaddeus Lewis tossed a seven-yard touchdown pass to Greg Little early in the third quarter to tie the game at ten and the game was still in doubt into the late fourth quarter when a Steeler score put the game away.
The Browns finished the season at 5-11 and fired head coach Pat Shurmur and general manager Tom Heckert earlier this morning.
I'll be back later today or tomorrow with a more comprehensive look at the firings and either in that post or the following one, I'll take a look at some of the rumored candidates...

Brownie Bits

1) Thaddeus Lewis was better than expected, although those expectations were not very high.
Lewis finished with over 200 yards passing and threw just one pick.
The interception was a bad one as Troy Polamalu baited Lewis into throwing the ball and stepped in front for the easy grab.
That ended a drive that might have ended in a score, but all things considered, Lewis was more than adequate...

2) Lewis used Ben Watson as his safety valve as he caught seven passes, but Lewis had issues throwing the ball deep or even medium length as only one pass was completed for more than twenty yards on the afternoon...

3) Brandon Jackson made a rare appearance from the Pat Shurmur doghouse (Being demolished as I type) and rushed for over fifty yards on eight carries.
Jackson collected a lot of money for a lot of time spent on the injured list and being deactivated, so this was about what the Browns got for two years of salary.

4) Jabaal Sheard finished up a disappointing second season with a nice game against the Steelers O-line.
Sheard finished with two sacks in his return to his college home.
I hope Sheard is able to return to his rookie form and I believe that he will as this often happens to rookies as players learn and "get a book" on players.
How that player bounces back is how one looks at that player's career.

5) The Lewis interception was big but just as big was the Travis Benjamin catch and rise, which then resulted in a strip of the football.
Benjamin has become a larger part of the offense and I hope to see improvement next season...

6) Pat Shurmur showed more fire in this game than he has in two seasons.
We are all human and perhaps the knowledge of his coming release had him on edge?

7) Nice to see James Harrison show up with another helmet to helmet cheap shot.
Harrison is rumored to not be returning to Pittsburgh next season.
Baltimore would be a nice fit for this thug...

8) Nice day for the defense as they held the Steelers to just 212 yards on offense.
They were handicapped by field position, but it was a good effort on the whole...

9) Rumors have three college coaches at the top of the Browns list- Oregon's Chip Kelly, Syracuse's Doug Marrone, and Penn State's Bill O'Brien.
None do much for me.
O'Brien might be jumping the Penn State ship after getting the best mileage from a suffering program and has the Belichick stain (no Belichick assistant has succeeded as a head man). Kelly will be bringing a gimmick offense and makes me think of the failed Atlanta tenure of Bobby Petrino and Marrone is interesting with his success in New Orleans as their offensive coordinator, but Syracuse was not exactly a power.
Color me uneasy...

10) This started yesterday and never was finished, so sorry if this reads a bit disjointed!
My Apologies...

Photo Credit: Cleveland Plain Dealer