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Is Robiskie ready to shine for Browns in 2010?

Tony Grossi of the Cleveland Plain Dealer compiled a list of five players that he believes may shine for the Browns in 2010 and of those five, I happen to agree with his selection of second year receiver Brian Robiskie.

Brian Robiskie: The second-year receiver dressed for 11 games as a rookie and caught passes in only three of them. If one OTA practice open to the media is any indication, he should at least quintuple his season total of seven catches.

Of all the receivers at last year’s scouting combine, I felt as though Robiskie was the most polished. That’s not to say he was the best, but his route running was superb (which is usually a great indication that a young receiver will make an impact right away in the NFL) and he displayed soft hands during all of the drills.

Neither Grossi nor I are suggesting that Robiskie will be a superstar, but I think the former Ohio State Buckeye could mount a career that resembles former Bill Don Beebe’s. Some of you might be thinking, “Oh, wow – Don Beebe, huh? Wow – great.” But Robiskie could do much worse than to have a Don Beebe-like career. Much worse.


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Jose Lima will be remembered by fans

Jose Lima, who played 13 seasons for five different clubs in major league baseball, died at the age of 37 on Sunday. He apparently suffered a major heart attack in his home and later passed away at Huntington Memorial Hospital.

Richard Justice of the Houston Chronicle wrote a nice piece on Lima today about what he meant to the fans and his teammates. Below is a small taste of the article.

You never forgot how he stopped that afternoon and signed an autograph for your kid.

Jose Lima didn’t just scribble his name and hurry into the dugout like the others. He struck up a conversation, asked his name, made him laugh.

Your kid was hooked on Lima Time from that moment, and so were you. He captured an entire generation that way.

As legacies go, isn’t that a wonderful one?

“I was born for this,” Lima once said.

Indeed he was. Thousands of fans surely left the ballpark vowing to return because Jose Lima made them feel special.

“I know they pay my bills,” he said. “Some people change when they make a lot of money. That’s not Jose Lima.”

Death always has a way of making you remember the good in people. Some baseball fans didn’t like Lima because he craved attention and was outlandish, but part of the reason sports are great is because they give you athletes to both cheer for and root against.

Lima finished his baseball career with a losing record (89-102) and a 5.26 ERA. But even though he won’t go down as a good pitcher, most fans that watched baseball during his career span remember Jose Lima. He had a colorful personality and he will be missed.

Orton on the trading block? Broncos say no.

According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Broncos are denying that quarterback Kyle Orton has ever been on the trading block.

Broncos official texted on report Denver had shopped QB Kyle Orton: “Kyle Orton Has NEVER been available or discussed. Ever! Period.”

The Broncos aren’t going to risk upsetting Orton by making it public that he’s on the trading block. Because if they do have intentions of trading him and a deal never goes through, then their starting quarterback will go through the entire season knowing that his team wanted to deal him in the offseason.

The Broncos find themselves in a tricky situation. Orton’s contract expires at the end of the year and with three developmental quarterbacks (Brady Quinn, Tim Tebow and Tom Brandstater) behind him on the depth chart, it wouldn’t be a bad idea for the Broncos to try to get something for the veteran QB now before he bolts at the end of the year.

Then again, the Broncos need to go with the quarterback that they believe gives them the best chance to win now. With a year of Josh McDaniels’ offensive system already under his belt, that player is Orton – not Quinn or anyone else. Will Orton get Denver to the Super Bowl this year? Probably not, but he’ll likely perform better than any other quarterback on the roster and therefore, it might not be worth it for the Broncos to trade him for a mid-round pick. (I’m just speculating what they would get for him, but it would most likely be a mid-to-late rounder.)

That said, if Quinn turns in a great training camp/preseason and proves that he can be a capable starter, then the Broncos would obviously be more apt to trade Orton before the season. It makes no sense to have two capable starters on the roster when one of them will surely be moving on in a year. Might as well get something in return for him now.


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Mike Brown fired

Per Brian Windhorst of Cleveland.com…

In a move expected since the team lost three consecutive games to be upset by the Boston Celtics in the conference semifinals, the Cavs fired coach Mike Brown on Sunday according to a league source. The news was first reported by ESPN.

Okay, no shocker there. What was the reason for his dismissal?

Some Cavs’ players, including LeBron James, also seemed to lose patience with Brown after some of his adjustments and rotations didn’t work against the Celtics in the playoffs.

However, James is not believed to have made a personal push with management for a coaching change. He left it to the front office to make the final decision.

Brown seemed to struggle with his rotations after having to incorporate Shaquille O’Neal back into the team in the playoffs after O’Neal missed the final six weeks of the season. He started a lineup in the first game of the playoffs that he hadn’t used all season and the turbulence from multiple players changing roles appeared to upset the balance of the team.

Those problems plus, according to sources, some disagreement over some game plans for playoff games with some of the team leaders eventually led to some discord in the locker room during the Celtics series.

I put that bit about LeBron in bold because it may hold a clue to his future. If it’s true that he left Brown’s fate up to management, then it seems like he’s not all that interested in who’s coaching the Cavs, and that’s a bad sign for Cleveland fans that are hoping he re-signs.

Mike Brown will land on his feet. He bungled the playoff rotations, but that was partly because he had too many good players he had to play, especially when the Celtics started picking the Cavs apart.


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