Wow. I'm not one to fall in line or in love with the talking heads on TV, Twitter, the web, or the radio about anything. I was stuck away from the television when the Browns traded down their number six pick down 21 spots Thursday night, and was listening to the folks on WKNR tear it apart.
But like I've said before, I'm trusting the Holmgren-Heckert combination. I know one wide receiver or cornerback isn't going to turn the franchise around. It would have been nice to get Colt some weapons, of course, but the Browns' weaknesses run deeper than that. And the treasure we plundered from the Falcons was definitely worth it.
So when the Browns later moved up to the 21 spot later and grabbed Baylor defensive tackle Phil Taylor, I was okay with it. Sure, the first thought I had was "who?" And the second was "he had two sacks last year? That's only two more than I had." Yet I didn't hate it. Because I take the fact that I didn't know about him as only a good thing.
Turns out not many Browns fans had actually heard of Phil Taylor. Some were willing to wait and see..some were more judgemental. The national media draft previews also were mixed. But again, I am willing to trust the Browns' judgement.
Yet then I quickly found Taylor's twitter handle-- @philtaylor98 --and his bio.
It was only about 6 hours ago that I suggested never to draft a player with "money" in his nickname. Unfortunate on two counts. One is that the rule was formed 8 years ago, and so I hadn't worked twitter bios into the rule. The other is that nobody gives a damn what I think. But yet when I saw Taylor's self-description, and all that it could say about him, I felt sick to my stomach. Being out to get the money is not a good foot to start out on, especially in Cleveland. As Craig from WFNY (@WFNYCraig) said, everyone tries to be hard on twitter.
Ok, I get it. But no PR rep or agent suggested that maybe being on the hunt for "Greatness" or "QBs" or "Some cute cheerleader" or "a 7-layer burrito" wouldn't be better than "this MONEY"?
In Cleveland, we'll love you if you work hard, play through pain, and embrace the city that embraces you. So welcome to Cleveland, Phil Taylor. But learn the lessons of Big Money (below) before you. You're getting paid no matter what. Now it's time to earn it. Because soon you're gonna have way more than 455 followers. And they want to love you.
