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We have our VP of Player Personnel (Sources say)


sdballis

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Can the front office collection of Brown/DePodesta/Berry, with its new approach to the draft, scouting and free agency, blend with the more traditional group of Jackson and his coaches?
Should make for some lively meetings.
This much is clear: The Browns are committed to analytics. It's a front office the likes of which has never been in charge of the Browns -- and perhaps any other NFL team.
That makes the upcoming draft even more intriguing for Browns fans.
Not repeating the entire article....but it asks the question: Can this front office perform the job of drafting rookies and signing free agents well?
My question it: Can they do any worse than the guys we have had running the show. I say not. I say that you and I and a computer with access to draft services like Kiper and CBS/Fox/NFL.com could have done just as well as these guys have done.
So, I definitely count this as an upgrade.

 

I'll have to assume if it's going to be a quarterback @ #2, after crunching the analytics, Hue is going to have a huge- if not final- say on who we draft. I'm sure they'll interview, work out, and watch every snap Goff, Wentz, and Lynch have played. As well as interview college coaches and do some pretty thorough background checks- guaranteed we aren't drafting any barflies & head cases this time around

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I'll have to assume if it's going to be a quarterback @ #2, after crunching the analytics, Hue is going to have a huge- if not final- say on who we draft. I'm sure they'll interview, work out, and watch every snap Goff, Wentz, and Lynch have played. As well as interview college coaches and do some pretty thorough background checks- guaranteed we aren't drafting any barflies & head cases this time around

Disagree with both your bolded points. Analytics wasn't invented overnight, and it's something Sashi has been working with already. Hard to imagine how drafting a quarterback--the hardest and most illusive position to crack--would be the better mathematical move with their first, first round pick.

 

Sashi also has final say, not Hue.

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Just getting caught up on some of these FO hires and gotta say....wtf?..I just dont know....???

 

Cant say Im excited, cause I know nothing about these guys or how they'll do......cant say Im bummed, cause I know nothing about these guys or how they'll do.....

 

hmmmmm....the Haaavaaard sweater brigade....

 

 

Or, we might actually have a team that calls plays that aren't predictable? One that calls both a run and the play-action pass which faked that same run at the start?

Thats a dilemma right there......because analytics would dictate what plays work best in what situations......so, if a coach calls something "outside of the box" and it fails, then he's a dumb ass for doing so and the comments will be something like "everyone knows you run in that situation".....but if the play works out, then he's a genius(until the next bad call).....

 

Think Seattle New England....goal line play....and how brilliant Pete Carroll looked that day....

 

I dont think its a chess match....its about beating the other guy with execution.....not trickery....

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One of things I read in MKC's column that questioned Brown's hiring was that his scout experience is all on the pro-side. So what?

 

I fail to see the difference purely from an evaluation process perspective, but that is only one level. When it comes to weighing attributes, would it not make sense to have your ScoutMaster know which attributes make the best pros?

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One of things I read in MKC's column that questioned Brown's hiring was that his scout experience is all on the pro-side. So what?

 

I fail to see the difference purely from an evaluation process perspective, but that is only one level. When it comes to weighing attributes, would it not make sense to have your ScoutMaster know which attributes make the best pros?

What percentage of our roster is made up of guys that were "Pros" before we got them.....i.e. ones that were not taken directly from college, be it drafted or UDFA.........Probably close to 50%? That is why we need someone whose experience is on the "Pro" side.

You can hire college scouts. Where is Andrew Berry's experience? College. Well then, that would balance things out, wouldn't it.

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So what's the difference between scouting a pro and scouting a college kid?

My guess....and it is a guess.....would be that college scouts are evaluating players talent level and how they may do as pros...

 

While Pro scouts are used more to evaluate teams and schemes and the things you'll be up against when playing them.....and, perhaps, the occassion player who you may trade for or sign in FA....though, usually, most of the talent level and Pro-ability is already determined by this time.....

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My guess....and it is a guess.....would be that college scouts are evaluating players talent level and how they may do as pros...

 

While Pro scouts are used more to evaluate teams and schemes and the things you'll be up against when playing them.....and, perhaps, the occassion player who you may trade for or sign in FA....though, usually, most of the talent level and Pro-ability is already determined by this time.....

Sure if he was involved in advance scouting... the article did not make it seem he was... but then it was MKC.

 

"Berry has spent the past seven seasons in scouting with the Colts, including the last four as pro scouting director. But he's studied mostly existing NFL players and not college prospects. He's assisted with the college process, but hasn't been responsible for making those picks."

http://www.cleveland.com/browns/index.ssf/2016/01/why_some_nfl_execs_are_seeing.html

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Ok so Sashi runs the draft and Berry runs free agency, but I'm still confused on what DePodesta does. Is he a salaried consultant? That's the vibe I'm getting.

Here's the sense I am getting for player acquisition:

  • Berry runs traditional scouting period... be it pro or collegiate.
  • DePo seems to have a duel role: developing the analytic tools and the organization's personnel selection processes.
  • Sashi is the gatekeeper at the confluence of the traditional and analytic processes, and adds the cost element (value) to the decision process. Then he drives the personnel decision process to consensus, if possible, but breaks ties, if needed.
The above can easily be turned inward as well... a needs assessment, if you will.

 

As an example...

If we are considering an acquisition for FS, we have to include the worth of keeping Gip vs. various FA, draft and current roster alternatives. This brings out the value of analytics is determining the relative worth of players.

 

For any single position the process should be already well defined. Considering options across two or more positions is surely more complex, but our cap space may delay the pain of many such decisions for a season or two. Then the process should hopefully be fully developed

 

 

Or not... ;)

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Something I read the other day that fills me with trepidation. Berry was presumably part of the pro-scouting department in Indy that green-lighted the Trent Richardson trade. That is, assuming it wasn't an Irsay special

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  • 2 weeks later...

Something I read the other day that fills me with trepidation. Berry was presumably part of the pro-scouting department in Indy that green-lighted the Trent Richardson trade. That is, assuming it wasn't an Irsay special

I was there as well, but I just read this:

 

Berry comes highly recommended from Pro Football Hall of Fame front-office executive Bill Polian.

 

“Andrew Berry is one of the brightest young men we ever had the pleasure of working with,” Polian said. “He came to us very early in his career, and very soon, we realized he was on a fast track. I am not surprised the Browns hired him for this very important position. I assure you he has both the capacity and the will to do an outstanding job. The Browns have made, in my humble opinion, a great hire.”

http://www.wkyc.com/sports/nfl/browns/cleveland-browns-proud-of-front-office-staff-they-have-built/38039181

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