A VERY SAD AND BRUTAL NEWS: Alabama two key player many not play due to brutal….

Today’s OBR coverage will focus on picking apart last night’s schedule release, for which we did a couple of articles last night and a live show that I’ve linked above. I’ll talk a bit about the schedule below, and there will be a raft of articles about it over the next two days.

I do want to comment on a more personal matter that we expressed to our visitors via the Watercooler the other day. Jake Burns, a contributor here for five years and, more importantly, a friend, has a tremendous opportunity to create something independently and has decided to pursue it.

While Jake and I tried like hell to figure out ways to keep the OBR team working together, ultimately, we weren’t the only folks involved in this situation, and it didn’t work out. I don’t blame Jake at all for following this opportunity and wish him the best. Losing Jake isn’t something that makes the OBR better, but we’re not exactly going to curl up into a fetal position. We’re already planning the next phase of the site, and I’m excited about what the future holds. Change is not always good and not always worse. It’s what we decide to make it, and there are some very intriguing opportunities before us.

The OBR has lost important contributors before during our 25 years, but somehow, it has managed to continue to thrive and, in many ways, get better and better as we expand our audience and build on what we’ve learned. And we’ve learned a lot, especially over the last few years.

I want to thank Jake and others for saying very nice things about me and the OBR on Xitter yesterday. It is appreciated.

At the same time, I don’t want my legacy to be that I created a platform that young writers used to launch their careers. I mean, that’s fine, and I’m happy to have played a role, but, in truth, I really want the OBR to be part of what it means to be a Browns fan. You wear orange and brown, you ride the roller coaster of each season, you love your team and your town, and you enjoy the OBR. I just want to be part of the fabric of this town. I want this site to go on after I retire (someday) and after I shuffle off this mortal coil (further out than that, hopefully).