Charlie Frye: QB Score: Week 12

I am writing this just a few hours after the Browns lost to the Bengals, 30-0, so there hasn’t been much in the way of published blog posts or news editorials about how poorly the Browns played today, although one blog has already identified whatever it was the Browns did this afternoon (“played football” might be a stretch) as disgraceful. As sure as there will always be an England a lot of noise will be generated in the greater Cleveland area in the next few days, which is to be expected when one’s team gets shut out by the worst defensive team in the league, a team that hadn’t shut out an opponent since 1989. Should Romeo be fired? Should Lerner sell the team? Should…

So allow me to get in on the action early with a post about our intrepid leader, Charlie Frye.

He’s not a good quarterback.

There. I said it. That’s all there is to say, really.

This isn’t a personal attack on Frye, and my comments aren’t the result of his poor play this afternoon. Since the preseason I have been leery about Frye’s ability to be a starting quarterback in the NFL. What happened this afternoon was more the final nail in the coffin than the game that launched a thousand yells of “He stinks!”. If you want a more level-headed breakdown of why there is little hope for Frye, here is a nice post from one of the Football Outsiders. But that’s just the statistical backing for whatever thoughts are floating around in your head. Occular proof is all one needs in this instance. There is no nuance.

Frye had his worst game of the season today. His QB Score was -148. His QB Score per play was an atrocious -4.23. Four INTs didn’t help his cause, but even if the Hail Mary INT at the end of the first half were removed from his boxscore he would have had his second-worst game of the season. Any way you cut it Frye had a terrible game. Just ask Braylon Edwards.

The good news is that the Browns have some clarity heading into the offseason. Frye is not the guy to lead the team back to the playoffs, let alone .500 football. That said, the talk about possibly drafting Brady Quinn or Troy Smith (see: today’s PD) is a little absured. The biggest problem on the team isn’t Frye. It’s the offensive line. Peyton Manning could be at the helm right now and the team would still be struggling. Before the backfield should be addressed the offensive line needs fixing. Only then would it make sense to persue alternatives for the quarterback position. Which is why I think in the long run the Browns will be better if Frye is the quarterback next season. Whatever money the team has — whatever draft picks the team uses — needs to go to improving both the offensive and defensive lines. The worst decision the team could make at this point is throwing money or a high draft pick at a quarterback. It’s the same decision the team made back when we drafted Tim Couch, and it’s the sort of decision-making that’s been haunting the team ever since. The good news is that the 2006 draft class is coming along nicely, so I have hope that the 2007 draft class will be able to contribute to the team right away. But if we spend our high draft pick on any quarterback or running back or another skilled position player, my hopes will come crashing down, and so will the 2007 season.

How’s that for drastic?

Notre Dame hates Michigan

In case you somehow missed it, Notre Dame lost to USC last night, 44-24, in a game that was not even as close as the final score would indicate. Surprisingly, both teams had nearly the same offensive total in yards (ND: 402, UCS: 407), but there was absolutely nothing impressive about ND’s offense — other than a general inability to catch simple passes and convert fourth downs — and USC’s secondary and defensive lined played quite well. I’m not sure how ND ended up with 400 yards, actually. Of course, 60 of those yards came on Brady Quinn’s scamper, which was the longest run for ND this season. But still. 400 yards seems like a lot. That said, the 400 yards was more sound and fury than anything else. When ND needed to move the ball crucial yards — on fourth down and within the red zone — they may have well been playing an NFL team they looked so helpless. When the yards mattered ND struggled to move the ball. It’s no surprise they lost.

What does USC’s victory mean? A few things.

First, Notre Dame clearly hates Michigan. After the third week of the season it was clear that ND wasn’t going to make the BCS championship game. So what did they do? They ran off a nice string of victories over underwhelming opponents, wooed the AP and Coaches into voting them high in the rankings, reached a point where Michigan’s victory really started to look like a legitimate beat-down of a top-5 team, and then once they finally were in position to almost secure Michigan’s spot in the BCS championship game — all they had to do was beat USC and Michigan was probably in — they go out a lay an egg against USC. Of course, I can’t actually substantiate whether Notre Dame hates Michigan. Why? Because…

Second, Notre Dame had NO CHANCE against USC. Even if ND was in love with Michigan they were still going to be helpless against the Trojans. Notre Dame has been overrated for about…oh…let’s call it 24 months. Maybe this loss will finally put Notre Dame where they belong: out of the top ten. Now that the regular season is over here is a nice fact: Notre Dame played two top-25 teams this season and lost to both by a combined 46 points. And let’s follow up that fact with an Aflac Trivia Question: When was the last time ND beat a team that finished the season in the top 10? I’ll play the role of Bob Davie and say I’m not sure. Did Michigan finish the 2004 season in the top 10? If so, that’s the last time it happened. If not, we might be looking at 2002, if not earlier. I have no idea where ND will be ranked in the preseason next year, but until they beat someone there can be no more talk about Charlie Weis being a SuperCoach or ND being a powerhouse or anything of that nature. Unfortunately, this certainly won’t happen. Why? Because…

(Third) Notre Dame is going to face Michigan in the Rose Bowl. Just the rematch you wanted, right? Me, too. With USC and OSU on the path to Glendale, the Rose Bowl will grab Michigan to fulfill its Big Ten tie and then get an at-large pick to replace the departed Pac Ten team USC. Will the Rose Bowl pick, oh, Boise State? Probably not. Notre Dame is the sexy team and will most likely be the team Michigan plays on New Year’s Day. Start warming up the hype machine. All we’ll hear about for the next month is the tradition of each school’s football program and the quiet dignity of Brady Quinn and the perserverance of Michigan in light of Bo’s death. Sounds like fun. Shoot me now.

Fourth, lost in all the madness of the weekend is the tragic story of a very good Wisconsin team. With Arknasas, Notre Dame, and West Virginia losing this weekend, Wisconsin will certainly rise in the BCS standings. My guess is that they’ll jump from #8 to #6. Unfortunately, Wisconsin won’t play in a BCS game because only up to two teams from any one conference are allowed to be in the BCS each season. OSU and Michigan will represent the Big Ten. Wisconsin, despite being ranked so damn high, will probably play in the Capital One Bowl, which is still a nice bowl game, but my heart will sink a little bit when an inferior Notre Dame team plays in the BCS instead of Wisconsin.

Finally, from top to bottom the SEC is the beat conference in college football. But the Big Ten has the three best teams. There is no way I’d take Florida over Wisconsin, and after watching the Arkansas-LSU game, I’m not sure I’d take Arkansas either. OSU, Michigan, Wisconsin, Arkansas, and Florida is the order of the top five teams from the Big Ten and SEC. This should be noted. Now it is.