00:00Nothing has happened here on trade deadline day yet.
00:04Deadline's 4 o'clock today in the National Football League.
00:07Lady who will be all over it, you can follow her on Twitter.
00:10You can listen to her on, well, now X.
00:12You can listen to the Orange and Brown Talk podcast
00:15and, of course, read all of her coverage.
00:17In the Plain Dealer and Cleveland.com joins us right now.
00:20Mary Kay Cabot on the Wise Heart Right.
00:21We make it right.
00:22Call Kyle Wright Hotline.
00:24Happy Tuesday, Mary Kay.
00:26Trade deadline day.
00:28Do you expect to be busy?
00:31Well, as of a couple of days ago, there was really nothing brewing.
00:36Nothing was imminent.
00:37And although the Browns were still trying to make some things happen,
00:40nothing was really coming together as of a couple of days ago.
00:43So if they do actually make a trade, and it's entirely possible,
00:48if they do, it's something that will have kind of come out of nowhere
00:51over the last couple of days.
00:54So we'll have to see how it goes.
00:56I don't really know what would be imminent at this point.
01:01I don't know what they might come up with, but they are still trying.
01:07Mary Kay, were you surprised yesterday when you asked Todd Munkin if he was ready
01:12to come out with his quarterback decision, and he's just not ready yet?
01:17I was surprised, yes, I was surprised, because after I saw the Jeremy Fowler report that he
01:22was going back to Deshaun, I just assumed that he was going to tell us that, announce
01:28that, whatever.
01:29So, yes, I was a little surprised about that.
01:32With that in mind, why isn't he ready to announce it?
01:36Is it because of the trade deadline?
01:38Is there confusion in the building?
01:40Are they trying to protect somebody's feelings, or is there a real discussion here?
01:47Well, there could be a lot of reasons for that, and one of those reasons could be something
01:52as simple as competitive advantage, that you just do not want to let the Texans know what
01:58you're thinking.
01:58Because if you can get to at least even just Wednesday, then Tuesday you've kind of messed
02:04them up in their game planning.
02:06They don't know which quarterback they're having to prepare for.
02:09So, I think that could have something to do with it.
02:13And then, also, it might just be the fact that he did want to huddle with his staff and
02:18sort of get everybody's opinion on everything and see what they were all thinking.
02:22They really hadn't had a chance to do that by the time we talked to them yesterday.
02:27So, we'll see where they're going with this, but I think competitive advantage might be a
02:32part of it.
02:33Is one good game by Shadour in a loss enough to give him an edge over Deshaun, who led five
02:43fourth quarter comebacks to get wins for the Browns?
02:46Well, I think you have to look at this decision in a vacuum, and I think you just have to
02:50ask yourself, who gives us the best chance to win?
02:54Not what they did on Sunday.
02:56Not what they did in those five fourth quarter game winning comebacks.
02:59I think you really need to ask yourself, who can do that?
03:03Who can go out and execute in this game and moving forward?
03:07And I actually think they're almost taking it week to week.
03:10They're not committing to anything beyond the current week.
03:15So, I understand what you're saying, that those five fourth quarter comebacks should
03:21count for a lot, and I know that they do, but I don't think that you can just look at
03:28it like that.
03:28I think you have to look forward, not backwards.
03:31Mary Kay, obviously it's deadline day, and the Minnesota Vikings after last night just aren't
03:36even hiding it anymore, that they're trying to trade for a quarterback.
03:41Naturally, the Browns have four of them, and we still don't even know who the starter is
03:45for sure yet on Sunday.
03:47Is there any world in your mind where they could move on from any of their quarterbacks
03:52today?
03:54You know, I suppose there is a world in which they can do that.
03:58I don't know.
03:59They hadn't wanted to do that.
04:01They like their young quarterbacks.
04:03When they look ahead to next year, I think they see a very financially reasonable quarterback
04:10room, and I think they like that.
04:13They've got young guys that they can develop.
04:15They've got at least one guy that they think has a chance to be their quarterback of the
04:20future in Shadour.
04:22So, I don't think they're clamoring to trade a quarterback, but once again, if there are
04:28desperate teams that are going to offer you something that you weren't expecting, then I
04:33think they'll be open to that.
04:34Mary Kay, I love your thought that you said about looking forward and the comeback should
04:39mean something, but looking forward from here.
04:42That screams Shadour.
04:43Does it not?
04:45Not necessarily.
04:46Okay.
04:47No.
04:47Not necessarily.
04:49Because I'm talking about the short-term future, and right now they're still trying
04:53to get to the playoffs.
04:55They are still very much in the hunt.
04:57You have no idea what's going to happen with any other teams.
05:00You don't know who's going to stay healthy.
05:02You don't know who's going to get hurt, and they're in a playoff hunt right now, and they
05:07really need to win this game, and they need to win, obviously, as many more games as they
05:13possibly can.
05:14And so, no, I'm not talking about the long-term future.
05:16I'm talking about the immediate future and who gives you the best chance to go out and
05:21beat the Texans and try to kind of make sure that you're still in this hunt.
05:24Could it become a situation where the quarterback thing becomes week to week, where maybe they
05:30do go back to the 31-year-old who has led them to five game-winning drives against Houston?
05:36Mary Kay, to your point, to help them with their initiative to make the postseason.
05:41But if you lose that game and then you have the bye week in your 500, would that be a
05:46natural
05:46time to make a change?
05:47Are we week to week with this thing?
05:49It just feels like everything's kind of up in the air.
05:52Well, I think it is up in the air, and I do think it is a week-to-week thing
05:56right now.
05:56And Todd even mentioned that yesterday.
05:59Excuse me.
05:59It's week-to-week because you don't know what the landscape is going to be from week-to-week
06:05right now.
06:06So, I don't think they're trying to figure out who is going to be their 2027 quarterback
06:11right now.
06:12I think they're trying to figure out who is going to be the best man to beat the Texans
06:19on Sunday.
06:21All right, quarterback and all that's all well and good.
06:24We're talking about it endlessly, Mary Kay.
06:27It's clearly the big topic of conversation.
06:29If you're going to allow teams like the Saints to run for 160 yards on you after the Steelers
06:35ran for 200 yards on you, does it really matter who's playing quarterback for the Browns?
06:40How do they fix this run, D?
06:42I mean, it's a problem.
06:44It is a huge problem.
06:45And it didn't help that Malik Collins missed this game with an illness.
06:48So, that just didn't help at all.
06:52But certainly, the run defense has been one of the biggest disappointments of the season.
06:58Jared Burst not getting any sacks and not enough pressures has also been a huge disappointment.
07:02But the run defense really has been very shocking and surprising.
07:08So, yeah.
07:09I mean, if the Saints can go out there and drop those kind of yards on you, then pretty much
07:15anything can happen.
07:16Because, of course, we know they were averaging only 86 yards a game heading into that game.
07:20It was a wild Jared Burst week here, Mary Kay.
07:23We were talking a lot of Jared Burst just because of all of his comments and all of the press
07:28conferences
07:29with you guys this week.
07:31Is there any concern on the Browns side of things about this slow start for him quite yet?
07:38I don't think so.
07:39I don't think so.
07:40I think they recognize that he's having a long on-ramp to the attack style defense.
07:46That he hasn't adjusted to it as quickly as maybe they thought that he would.
07:51And I don't think they are looking at him in any way, shape, or form and thinking that
07:57he wasn't a good part of the trade.
08:00I think they believe that he's going to be a core part of their team for a long time.
08:05And I don't think that they're down on him.
08:08Mary Kay Cabot joining us from the Plain Dealer at Cleveland.com.
08:11It's trade deadline day in the NFL.
08:12Mary Kay will have coverage like crazy if anything happens with the Browns.
08:17Cleveland.com, the Plain Dealer, and of course on Twitter, now known as X.
08:22With that in mind, Mary Kay, if the Browns do something today, do you see them bringing
08:27in players or shipping guys out?
08:29I think they would prefer to bring in a couple of players if they possibly could, or maybe
08:34even one.
08:35And I think those positions are pretty obvious.
08:37I think we know that they could use another edge rusher.
08:41Those don't grow on trees, but there are a few guys out there that you might be able
08:44to pry away from a team.
08:46Now, one of those that I had speculated that they might possibly have some more interest
08:51in or renewed interest in was Jadavian Clowney, but that was going to be if the Texans had
08:55lost this past week and their playoff hopes had kind of fizzled or faded.
09:00But now they're right back in the thick of it.
09:02They've won three of their last four.
09:04They're just starting to really heat up.
09:06And so I really don't see them parting with Jadavian, but he's someone that I had my eye
09:10on.
09:10And then, of course, I have urged them to try to trade for Khalil Mack, but the Chargers
09:17just don't seem to want to part with anyone right now.
09:20They're not willing to be waving that white flag for whatever reason.
09:24And I just don't know if that's going to happen or not.
09:26I think it should.
09:27It seems like it makes a whole lot of sense for them to trade Khalil Mack right now since
09:32he's in the final year of his contract and whatnot.
09:35So I don't know.
09:36I guess that might be one to maybe keep an eye on.
09:38But as I mentioned, nothing was really cooking as of two days ago, and I don't know if anything
09:43has heated up yet today or not.
09:45Interesting, Mary Kay.
09:46It is so fascinating to me.
09:48I would love to see a big blocking tight end come in here and just watch Harold Fannin Jr.
09:53be a tremendous pass catcher.
09:55I think that would be a really fun position for them to go out there and snag a little bit
10:00of depth behind Harold.
10:02Anything happen in there or not really?
10:04Well, that is definitely one of the positions that they would love to bolster and get that
10:08blocking tight end in here.
10:10But again, as of right now, unless they found somebody lurking around somewhere that they
10:17thought they could pry away from someone, I don't think that that's going to happen either.
10:22So we'll have to see.
10:24I know that we all know that Andrew Barry loves to make trades at the trade deadline.
10:29He loves to do that.
10:30And if he can't do it, I think he actually kind of gets disappointed.
10:33Like, he didn't do his job well enough.
10:35But sometimes these things present themselves and sometimes they don't.
10:40And it takes two to tango.
10:42And if they can't find any good trade partners, then nothing will happen.
10:46Mary Kay, was it okay that Deshaun didn't play on Sunday after being activated?
10:53Well, I think so.
10:55I think so.
10:55Because it really is hard to go out there and practice and get the game plan in and get
11:00it all figured out when you haven't practiced.
11:02He didn't even take team reps on Friday.
11:05And it's not like putting your right tackle in or anybody else, really.
11:10It's your quarterback and you really need to get the game plan down.
11:13But, I don't know.
11:15And it was an opportunity for them to see Shadour.
11:19It was a natural, organic chance for them to see what he could do.
11:23But there is still part of me that wonders, hmm.
11:26I wonder if even Deshaun Watson coming off of a concussion and not having practiced all
11:32week, I feel like there were opportunities early in the game that he could have put that
11:37team away.
11:38So, I do wonder about it sometimes, but, you know, hindsight is 20-20 and they did what
11:43they felt they needed to do.
11:45That's what I thought, too, Mary Kay.
11:46The first half was so poor offensively.
11:48I just thought, okay, if the guy who had been hot in the fourth quarters and took you to
11:55five wins was playing in that first half, would it have been a different story?
11:59Who knows?
11:59But it certainly crossed my mind more than a few times.
12:03Trade deadline day today.
12:05Good luck.
12:05We hope you're busy because I'd love to see the Browns do something to improve their
12:10chances of trying to get to the playoffs.
12:11If anything happens, follow Mary Kay on X, read her in the Plain Dealer, cleveland.com,
12:17and, of course, summation of everything in the Orange and Brown Talk podcast.
12:20Mary Kay, thank you.
12:22Thank you, guys.
12:23Mary Kay Cabot joining us on the Wise Heart Right.
12:25We Make It Right.
12:26Call Kyle Wright Hotline.
12:28You heard what she said about kind of the future, and then I followed up with her, and
12:34she said future meaning Sunday and this year more so than anything.
12:40So who would give you the best chance to win coming up on Sunday?
12:44Which quarterback?
12:46216-474-0092.
12:48It's Baskin and Phelps.
12:49Nick Padone in for Andy today.
12:51All right.
