ESPN.com’s Pat McManamon reported Wednesday that text messages from Browns GM Ray Farmer to the team’s coaching staff were “nearly a season-long occurrence.”
According to McManamon’s source, the texts took place over the course of “multiple games and continued at least until Johnny Manziel got his first start in Week 15.”
McManamon mentions that the texts didn’t necessarily have anything to do with strategy, but they were related to the team’s usage of their quarterbacks, as well as play-calling.
The Browns could end up receiving a fine, suspension and/or a loss of a draft pick for this situation.
Jeremy Fowler believes Farmer’s role in all of this could leave him on hot seat, as credibility may damaged beyond repair.
The NFL’s investigation could lead to some or all of Farmer’s text messages eventually being released.
On top of that, Farmer was the one who traded back to get Justin Gilbert, despite the fact that they had their pick of Sammy Watkins, Mike Evans and Odell Beckham Jr, and later moved up to get Johnny Manziel.
Gilbert wound up putting together an extremely disappointing rookie season, but there are major concerns about whether or not Manziel will ever be an NFL quarterback.
Fowler has spoke to league sources who believe the Manziel pick wasn’t driven by Farmer, even though it will always be his pick.
Earlier in the day, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk wonders if Farmer could end up being the “fall guy” in the end for owner Jimmy Haslem.
“The best evidence as to whether Farmer is simply the fall guy could come from whether his employment continues once the decision on discipline is announced,” Florio writes. “If owner Jimmy Haslam doesn’t fire Farmer for his role in #TextGate (especially after Farmer drafted Johnny Manziel at a time when the Browns knew or should have known that Manziel was a ticking time bomb), some (such as me) will suspect that Haslam is displaying loyalty to the guy who absorbed the #TextGate bullet.”
For what it’s worth, Florio wrote a few days ago that NFL teams could target Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff now that new HC Dan Quinn will have final say over the team’s roster.
Florio specifically mentioned that Browns as one team to keep an eye on in regards to Dimitroff.
It’s hard to say if Cleveland would try to lure him away from the Atlanta down the road, but it’s certainly an interesting idea.
We’ll have more regarding the Browns as the news is available.
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