Daily Dawg Tags: Browns and the bye week

Spanning the virtual globe to bring you the latest news about the Cleveland Browns and the NFL – these are your Daily Dawg Tags for Monday, Dec. 5.

The Cleveland Browns made it through the bye week in pretty good shape, all things considered.

No videos showed up online of a player being a drunken fool in a club, which is always nice. And since the Browns didn’t play, they did not have an opportunity to extend their current losing streak.

Most importantly, the Browns saw their draft prospects earn a tidy return.

While the San Francisco 49ers could not pick up that all important second win – despite playing a Chicago Bears team that was starting Matt Barkley at quarterback – the Philadelphia Eagles continued their free fall in losing their seventh game out of the past nine.

That means, if the season were to end today, the Browns would have the top pick in the 2017 NFL Draft as well as potentially the ninth overall selection, thanks to their trade with the Eagles so Philadelphia could select quarterback Carson Wentz.

Two top 10 picks? What could possibly go wrong.

Cleveland Browns News

No need for the Browns to make drastic changes

While the Cleveland Browns have gotten off to the worst start in franchise history, there is no need to make any drastic changes this offseason.

Cleveland Browns: Who is Ed Reynolds?

The Cleveland Browns secondary has not been a bright spot in 2016, but safety Ed Reynolds has calmed things down since entering the starting lineup.

Browns lack of third-quarter scoring is unbelievable (DBN)

OK, maybe nothing is unbelievable after you accept the fact that the Cleveland Browns are 0-12. However, as I was reading a couple of threads over at The OBR during the team’s bye week, I did a double take when I saw that someone pointed how just how few points the team has scored in the third quarter this year: 16 points.

Jimmy Haslam preaches continuity and faith in top men during meeting (cleveland.com)

Browns owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam recently held a full staff meeting in Berea and preached continuity after what could be only the second 0-16 season in the history of the NFL, sources confirmed for cleveland.com.

NFL News

Focus shifts to Doug Pederson following Eagles’ lifeless performance (ESPN)

Philadelphia Eagles head coach Doug Pederson delivered a message following last week’s home loss to the Green Bay Packers, telling the locker room that the last month of the regular season will show who wants to be here and who doesn’t. The players’ response on Sunday — or lack thereof — was telling.

Dak Prescott, Ezekiel Elliott already the best offensive rookies in NFL history (Sporting News)

Either Dak Prescott or Ezekiel Elliott will be robbed of NFL offensive rookie of the year honors this season. Whoever “loses” would have won the award in any other season. Debating who is more deserving is splitting hairs. It’s much more interesting to look at where the two Cowboys rank among the best rookies in NFL history. That also is easy: In some combination, they are 1-2.

Rob Gronkowski’s season is over, but questions remain (NFL.com)

Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski was officially placed on injured reserve Saturday, ending any hope that the key cog in the team’s offense might make a late playoff cameo. Instead of fighting to get back by the AFC Championship game or the Super Bowl, the team, Gronkowski and his family opted for a long-term solution.

Bears, 49ers bad and stupid (Chicago Tribune)

The Bears offense entered Sunday’s game ranked 31st in points scored. The 49ers defense entered the game ranked 32nd in points allowed. Fox Sports should’ve repackaged the show as “So you think you can play football?’” No. The answer to the question above would’ve been no.