NOTE: Yesterday on NNR Samantha Bunten of NBC Sports and I graded the free agent moves of every team. Tomorrow Tony Williams of Metro New York joins me to talk NFL and NBA. He covers the Giants and Knicks for the paper.

Johnny Manziel was involved with a heckler in Texas attending the Byron Nelson golf tournament. At the pool, he was heckled by a fan and got so upset he threw a water bottle at the individual. Of course there was no damage because Johnny is no more accurate at throwing water bottles as he is with footballs.

There are two things that bother me about this. First, I was expecting a better version of Johnny after his rehab. I was hoping he had developed a better attitude and a thicker skin after the self evaluation that is a central part of rehab. Clearly he has not learned a lot from rehab. That leads me to my next issue.

If Johnny expects to be a Browns QB, he had better improve a lot. If not, he can expect to experience much more criticism. While the Browns claim he is doing much better, the reports from camp indicate he is still struggling with the playbook and his reads. That makes me wonder if he is doing the work necessary to learn the new offense.

There are two positives however. First the incident did not involve a blow up swan. Second, Johnny will not have to unlearn last year’s offense because he never learned it.

That is what I think. Tell us what you think by commenting here or tweeting me @NNRonDSN.

NOTE: News, Notes and Rumors podcast are BACK. Check out our thoughts on Fridays about the games coming up and Monday on the results of the weekend. My co-host is Samantha Bunten of NBC Sports. Podcasts can be heard on https://fryingpansports.com/radio-show/. Thanks for your support.

Bill Smith is a former coach of several semi-pro teams, has officiated both football and basketball, done color on radio for college football and basketball and has scouted talent. He edits https://fryingpansports.com. He has also published several novels on and a non-fiction work at http://www.merriam-press.com/. Follow him on twitter @NNRonDSN to get the schedule of Special News, Notes and Rumors broadcasts. You can hear the previous shows on https://fryingpansports.com/radio-show/.

He also edits .

To keep up with the News, Notes & Rumors podcasts, follow me on twitter @NNRonDSN.

Note: On NNR today Tony Williams Giants and Knicks beat reporter for Metro New York and I discussed the NFL and NBA in detail. The podcast is on https://fryingpansports.com/radio-show/.

With the Browns win over the Bengals Thursday there has been a lot of talk of the Browns being a contender for the playoffs. We got Tony’s answer on the podcast. But for me the answer is “Maybe.”

The reason I am not sure is the loss to the Jaguars. If the Browns had taken care of business they would have a game and a half lead on the rest of the AFC North which at least this season is the best division in the NFL. The history of the Browns since they have come back is they play up to their opponents or down depending on if the team they are facing is better or worse. Playoff teams win those games.

Playoff teams are able to run the ball. The Browns did well against the Bengals D, but in the previous 3 games averaged under 3 yards per carry. That is not what Playoff teams do.

The third area that distinguishes playoff teams from pretenders is their ability to stop the run. At times this season the Browns D has stopped the run. But more often they have struggled to do so. This season they are giving up an average of 134 yards per game which is 28^th in the league.

A win over the Texans would be another good step toward the playoffs. But there are still criticial games ahead. The Browns need to keep winning and not over look anyone. Even a winless Jags team beat the Browns.

That is what I think. Tell us what you think by commenting here or tweeting me @NNRonDSN.

NOTE: News, Notes and Rumors podcast are BACK. Check out our thoughts on Fridays about the games coming up and Monday on the results of the weekend. My co-host is Samantha Bunten of NBC Sports. Podcasts can be heard on https://fryingpansports.com/radio-show/. Thanks for your support.

Bill Smith is a former coach of several semi-pro teams, has officiated both football and basketball, done color on radio for college football and basketball and has scouted talent. He edits https://fryingpansports.com. He has also published several novels on and a non-fiction work at http://www.merriam-press.com/. Follow him on twitter @NNRonDSN to get the schedule of Special News, Notes and Rumors broadcasts. You can hear the previous shows on https://fryingpansports.com/radio-show/.

He also edits .

To keep up with the News, Notes & Rumors podcasts, follow me on twitter @NNRonDSN.

 Those of you that read FPS regularly know I was never a big fan of the Browns bringing in Mike Holmbren as President of the team. I really like and respect Phil Jackson but as a coach not as the guy making talent decisions. Jackson and Holmgren have a lot in common.

Holmgren was the HC/GM of the Seahawks for several years until he was stripped of his GM duties due to bad drafts. Jackson has never been the talent evaluation guy officially. Yes, he had a lot of power at LA but he had no hand in building the team. The same was the case in Chicago. Both teams were built before Jackson arrived. While he was able to massage HUGE egos of NBA players to get the most out of them, he stepped into a perfect situation that was ready to win in both cases.

Both Holmgren and Jackson prefer to live on the west coast or Jackson’s home in Montana. Having lived through one of the worst winters in Ohio history, I can relate to that. Even traveling around town during the snow and ice storms is a pain. The time spent waiting in airports for delayed flights will not sit well with Jackson. While he “worked” for the Browns, Holmgren spent more time talking to Seattle radio stations than those in Cleveland. When Jackson was being courted as a head coach for the Lakers again he made it clear he did not want to travel with the team. Is this the guy that will be an active part of the scouting staff? I doubt it.

The one huge edge I would give to Jackson over Holmgren is in selecting a head coach. Holmgren brought in a totally unqualified guy and then did not give him the help and support to have any chance of success. Jackson is much more likely to bring in a quality guy to coach the team he helps put together.

The bottom line on the issue if Jackson is committed to do the job, the Knicks will get better. It would hard to expect them to get worse. The Knicks are looking to push the Nets off the headlines of the local media. That is not a good reason to bring in someone that is not fully committed to do the job for a sports team.

NOTE: No show today. Join us Monday for Browns Free agency and NCAA bracket analysis.

That is what I think. Tell us what you think.

NOTE: Check out the live News, Notes and Rumors show on Monday, Thursday and Friday at 6 PM Eastern on or https://fryingpansports.com/radio-show/. On Monday Samantha Bunten of NBC Sports and I discuss the results of the weekend. Thursday shows alternate between NFL Draft and basketball. On Friday Tony Williams Giants beat writer for Metro New York joins Samantha and me to preview the upcoming games. The archive is available on https://fryingpansports.com/radio-show/.

Bill Smith is a former coach of several semi-pro teams, has officiated both football and basketball, done color on radio for college football and basketball and has scouted talent. He edits https://fryingpansports.com. He has also published several novels on and a non-fiction work at http://www.merriam-press.com/. Follow him on twitter @NNRonDSN to get the schedule of Special News, Notes and Rumors broadcasts. You can hear the previous shows on https://fryingpansports.com/radio-show/ and the live show Mondays at 6 PM Eastern time on .

He also edits .

To keep up with the News, Notes & Rumors podcasts, follow me on twitter @NNRonDSN.

Tony Williams, beat writer for the Knicks and Giants on Metro New York Paper joins us to talk about how the NY fans feel about Knicks ownership and the coaching change.  James Dolan who own the Knicks also own the Indians.

Dave Kay, basketball editor for waterfootball joins us to discuss the playoffs and the NBA Draft.

Samantha Bunten joins us to talk about the Browns and Indians.

NOTE:  There will be no show Thursday May 24 or Monday May 28.  We will resume regular schedules on May 29^th.

Our NNR Sportsims.net football league will start in June.  The league is free to our listeners and readers.  Email me at [email protected] to register.  The draft order will be determined by the date of registration.

NNR at 6PM EDT follows the Moohead show at 5PM on http://mooheadradio.com/2.0/.  Press the Green arrow at 6 for NNR.

The archive of the show is available the following day at https://fryingpansports.com/radio-show/.

Be part of the show by calling our SportSims.com hotline at 216-539-0607.

Bill Smith is a former coach of several semi-pro teams, has officiated both football and basketball, done color on radio for college football and basketball and has scouted talent. He edits https://fryingpansports.com and was a senior writer for .  He has also published several novels on and a non-fiction work at http://www.merriam-press.com/.

He edits .  

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 Tony Williams, Giants and Knicks beat writer for the Metro New York Paper joins us to talk about the NFC East draft and the Knicks playoff run.

Dave Kay, basketball editor for waterfootball.com joins us to talk about the NBA Draft and the playoffs.

Samantha Bunten feature writer for the Bleacher Report on the Browns and Indians joins us to talk about the Browns draft and Indians start to the season.

NOTE:  There will be no NNR show tomorrow.  Join us again on Monday, May 7^th for our regular schedule.

NNR at 6PM EDT follows the Moohead show at 5PM on http://mooheadradio.com/2.0/.  Press the Green arrow at 6 for NNR.

Join Mr. Moohead  on http://mooheadradio.com/2.0/ after early Cavs games for his post-game chat.

The archive of the show is available the following day at https://fryingpansports.com/radio-show/.

Be part of the show by calling our SportSims.com hotline at 216-539-0607.

Bill Smith is a former coach of several semi-pro teams, has officiated both football and basketball, done color on radio for college football and basketball and has scouted talent. He edits https://fryingpansports.com and was a senior writer for http://NFLDraftDog.com.  He has also published several novels on and a non-fiction work at http://www.merriam-press.com/.

He edits .  

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We talk a little baseball in honor of opening of the season.

Chris Schad feature writer for the Twins joins us to talk about the AL Central.

Tony Williams, beat writer for Metro New York Paper joins us to talk NFL and NBA

Steve Gallo of the USA Today sports department joins us to talk about Bountygate.

Corey Hanley feature writer for the Orioles joins us to preview the AL East.

Happy Easter to all.

NNR at 6PM EDT follows the Moohead show at 5PM on http://mooheadradio.com/2.0/.  Press the Green arrow at 6 for NNR.

Join Mr. Moohead  on http://mooheadradio.com/2.0/ after early Cavs games for his post-game chat.

The archive of the show is available the following day at https://fryingpansports.com/radio-show/.

Be part of the show by calling our SportSims.com hotline at 216-539-0607.

Bill Smith is a former coach of several semi-pro teams, has officiated both football and basketball, done color on radio for college football and basketball and has scouted talent. He edits https://fryingpansports.com and was a senior writer for .  He has also published several novels on and a non-fiction work at http://www.merriam-press.com/.

He edits .