There will not be Chud

Another casualty at the Factory of Sadness today. From SI.com:

Less than one calendar year after tabbing Rob Chudzinski as the guy to help them end at least two decades of frustration, the Browns reversed course Sunday and axed Chudzinski.

“We appreciate Chud’s passion for the Browns, and we have great respect for him both personally and professionally,” the team said in a statement. “We needed to see progress with this football team. We needed to see development and improvement as the season evolved and, unfortunately, we took a concerning step backward in the second half of the year.

“Our fans deserve to see a consistently competitive team. We have high standards, and there’s an urgency for success. When we believed we were not positioned to achieve significant progress in 2014, we knew we had to admit that a change was needed, and move forward.

“Browns fans are the most loyal and passionate supporters in the NFL. We’re fully committed to bringing them the winning football team they deserve.”

It was a rather surprising turn of events for a team that finally seemed like it might be headed in the right direction early in 2013. A closer look at how it unraveled:

Tale of the tape: 4-12 record in 2013; 4-12 record with team overall.

What Went Wrong: Well, for starters, it seems as if the Browns had second thoughts from the get-go about hiring Chudzinski, a first-time head coach. That speaks as much to the dysfunction in Cleveland’s front office as it does to Chudzinski’s abilities.

The season actually started surprisingly well for a Browns team not expected to go very far in 2013. They ran off three straight wins in late September/early October, with Brian Hoyer at quarterback, to get above .500 and still sat at 4-5 headed into their bye.

From there, disaster. The Browns lost their last seven games, giving up 27 points or more in five of them as Ray Horton’s defense crumpled behind a struggling offense. Even though the Trent Richardson trade looked brilliant in bringing back a Round 1 pick, the Browns never found a true No. 1 RB. And with issues at quarterback continuing to linger, that was too much to overcome.

Roster Outlook: The Browns do have some talented pieces in place — WR Josh Gordon is a burgeoning star, Joe Thomas a standout left tackle and Joe Haden a very solid No. 1 cornerback.

Aside from finding the aforementioned starting quarterback, running back (and help at wide receiver), the biggest decision might surround what to do with center Alex Mack. He’s arguably the best at this position in the league, meaning he’ll have a chance to cash in as a free agent, though he’s reportedly said he will allow Cleveland the chance to match any offer. Would the Brows consider using a franchise tag instead?

Much of what happens from here with the roster will be determined by the schemes of the next staff. The Chudzinski era was built around a vertical passing attack and 3-4 defense. Cleveland may have to go back to the drawing board.

Possible Replacement(s): Josh McDaniels, Bill O’Brien, Lovie Smith, Kevin Sumlin, Ray Horton

Adios Acta!

From SI.com:

CLEVELAND (AP) -- The Cleveland Indians have fired manager Manny Acta after the team collapsed from contention.

Acta, hired by Cleveland in 2009 after two losing seasons as Washington's manager, couldn't stop the Indians from falling to last place in the AL Central. They were within three games of first place on July 21 before losing 21 of 25 and eventually sliding all the way back to last. It certainly wasn't all Acta's fault, but there were times when the Indians seemed to be going through the motions and a lack of effort isn't a positive reflection on any manager.

Acta went 214-266 in nearly three seasons with the Indians, who are just 21-50 in the second half this season. He had one season left on his contract.

The Indians announced Acta will not return in 2013 on Thursday, an off day before opening their final homestand.

Bench coach Sandy Alomar, a former Indians player and fan favorite who could become Cleveland's next full-time manager, will replace Acta for the last six games of 2012.

The Indians said the search for a new manager will begin immediately. Acta's coaching staff will remain intact for the rest of this season.

Indians general manager Chris Antonetti thanked Acta for his service.

"Manny's passion for the game, positive attitude and tremendous knowledge of baseball helped guide us to a number of high points during his tenure," Antonetti said in a statement. "Managerial changes are never easy or taken lightly, but as we approached the end of the season and turned our attention to assessing the year, we determined a change was necessary."

Earlier this month, owner Paul Dolan said he was not considering a managerial change, but the Indians continued to stumble and left the club with little choice. Dolan indicated the decision was made by Antonetti, who is in his second season.

"I have great respect for Manny and appreciate the effort he exhibited not only leading our team, but also the contributions he made in our community over the past three years," Dolan said in a statement. "I fully support Chris' decision to make this change and am confident that he will lead a tireless search to find the right individual to lead the club to our ultimate goal of winning the World Series."

Acta maintained a stoic attitude during the Indians' freefall and insisted he wasn't concerned about his future but only about developing young players.

It didn't help Acta that several Cleveland players underperformed while others couldn't stay healthy. Former All-Star center fielder Grady Sizemore, who was signed to a one-year, $5 million free-agent contract in November despite missing most of the past three seasons with injuries, never got healthy enough to play. Designated hitter Travis Hafner missed several months with a bad back.

And Antonetti's major acquisition in 2011 of ace Ubaldo Jimenez failed to pay dividends, as the right-hander went 9-17 with a 5.55 ERA.

After winning 80 games in 2011, the Indians entered the season with high hopes. It seemed as if they were in position to compete for a playoff spot before their inexplicable collapse, going 5-24 in August.