Offseason thoughts (Vol. V)

OK, let's get this one out of the way before it spirals out of control . . . 

The main reason the Odell Beckham Jr. era with the Browns failed miserably was not the man himself. It wasn't his attitude or approach to the game. By all accounts, he was a model teammate; highly popular in the locker room.

The biggest problem was the coaching. Beckham never had a chance to fit into the Cleveland offense for a number of reasons. First and most important, he and his quarterback struggled mightily to get on the same page and missed.

That he was able to immediately fit right in when he signed with the Los Angeles Rams after the Browns finally decided to pull the plug on him midway through this past season is a perfect example. He and Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford clicked right away.

After spending 29 games with the Browns -- yeah, it seemed much longer than that -- and failing to produce on a way-too-regular basis, he moved right in after signing with the Rams and resumed a career that had previously produced spectacular numbers and moments with the New York Giants.

Why? He and Stafford were total strangers in a football sense. In eight regular-season games, though, they hooked up for five touchdown passes. Then they tacked on two more scoring grabs in four post-season games. Seven touchdowns in 12 games before OBJ went down with another ACL tear in the Super Bowl victory over Cincinnati.

In those 29 games with the Browns, Beckham was on the receiving end of a touchdown pass seven times. SEVEN TIMES! Again, why? Why was he such a bust in Cleveland and a savior -- and perfect complement to Cooper Kupp -- in L.A.?

Questionable -- trying to be nice here -- coaching from the offensive staff. Freddie Kitchens had no clue, although Beckham posted a 1,000-yard season in 2019, but with just four touchdowns. Kevin Stefanski was worse. He and offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt vainly tried everything. The harder they tried, they more they failed to take advantage of the wide receiver's unique talents.

The common thread here is the quarterback. Yep, it's time to wail a little on Baker Mayfield, whose best eight-game stretch as a professional came with Beckham idled by his first ACL tear midway through the magical 2020 season that saw the Browns reach the postseason for the first time in nearly 20 years.

Or is it fair to wail? Mayfield is such an easy target for blame, although it's difficult to hold him totally responsible for what happened this past season. The fault there lies almost exclusively with those who greenlighted him to start a majority of the games while operating at well under 100 percent health. 

It's hard to pinpoint exactly why it all fell apart with Beckham. Did Stefanski lose confidence in him? It's logical to think maybe he did after failing even though Beckham was healthy and available for him for just a dozen games the last two seasons. 

It was a failure compounded by an injured quarterback, a pandemic that ravaged the roster on a weekly basis and a situation that hounded the club constantly through social media until a stunt pulled by his father helped goose his departure. 

Topping that off is a raging argument, triggered by the NBC-TV crew televising the game suggesting Beckham was booted out of Cleveland. In actuality, he all but begged to be released since he was being used sparingly.

Thin-skinned viewers responded predictably, taking it personally and castigating the venerable Al Michaels and loquacious Cris Collinsworth. Either they were misinformed as to why Beckham will soon be fitted for a Super Bowl championship ring or misunderstood the situation and tried to get cute.

It landed with a thud in Browns Nation. Time to move on.