Takes By The Lake podcast

Latest Episodes:

Ep. 120: What's next for the Browns after John Dorsey and Freddie Kitchens? Jan 03, 2020

Show notes

Doug Lesmerises is back after a long Takes break to check in on the departures of the Cleveland Browns GM and coach and where the Browns might go from here. Doug doesn't think this is just same old, same old, and there are ways in which the Haslams are showing progress as owners. So that's the discussion, looking back some and looking forward more as to what the Browns might do next.

Thanks for listening to Takes By The Lake from cleveland.com.

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Ep. 119: How can the Cleveland Browns make Baker Mayfield more comfortable? Nov 06, 2019

Show notes

Doug Lesmerises is joined by Pete Smith, the editor of SI Browns Maven, to discuss everything going on with this 2-6 team, led by what could happen to help Baker Mayfield look like 2018 Baker Mayfield again.

They attempt to turn down the heat on the reactions to this Browns team as they look for answers for the second half of this season and beyond. Thanks for listening to Takes By The Lake from cleveland.com.

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Ep. 118: Ken Carman on the Browns and life in Cleveland sports radio Oct 31, 2019

Show notes

This episode of Takes By The Lake from cleveland.com is a little different from the norm. The topic of discussion isn't just sports, but life in Cleveland sports. Doug Lesmerises is joined by Ken Carman from 92.3 The Fan to dig into Carman's life as a sports radio host, how he reached this point in his career, what responsibility he feels to Cleveland sports fans, what happens when he offers an opinion that teams or players don't like and everything else that comes with being one of the strongest and sharpest voices and minds in Cleveland sports media.

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Ep. 117: Baker Mayfield's ball placement and Chris Hubbard's blocking Oct 15, 2019

Show notes

As the Cleveland Browns take their off week, Steven Ruiz of For The Win makes his first appearance on the podcast to talk about Baker Mayfield's progress and whether he's been fixed yet after some issues early this season. A great film analyst, Ruiz takes us through Mayfield's highs and lows and give his prediction on how he thinks the rest of the season will shake out for the Browns and the AFC North. Then Doug Lesmerises comes back with his view about the Browns, which is more optimistic than many views, and his take on one player in particular who is throwing off the offense.

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Ep. 116: Cleveland Browns shouldn’t panic (but maybe they should trade for Trent Williams) Oct 09, 2019

Show notes

The Cleveland Browns are 2-3... and no one should be freaking out. On this calm, reassuring episode of Takes By The Lake, Doug Lesmerises is joined by two great guests -- his cleveland.com colleague Ellis Williams and former Case Western Reserve quarterback Dan Whalen.

Whalen is up first to break down Baker Mayfield's performance Monday and whether anything about the long-term outlook on Mayfield has changed.

Then Ellis jumps on to discuss his proposal that the Browns trade for Washington left tackle Trent Williams and he makes a compelling case. They also discussed Freddie Kitchens’ play calling so far.

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Ep. 115: Is the Browns' Nick Chubb a top five running back? Oct 02, 2019

Show notes

Doug Lesmerises is joined by Cody Suek of waitingfornextyear.com to talk about what the Browns learned from their Week 4 win over Baltimore -- and what we learned about the Browns.

Did Freddie Kitchens actually completely change as a play caller?

What do we think of how quickly Baker Mayfield is getting rid of the ball?

Is Nick Chubb a top five running back in the NFL?

How much of a priority should it be to sign middle linebacker Joe Schobert and keep him in Cleveland?

All that as we figure out what's up with this Browns team looking ahead to San Francisco on Monday night.

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Ep. 114: What's causing the Cleveland Browns red-zone problems? Sep 24, 2019

Show notes

Doug Lesmerises is joined by Ellis Williams, the newest member of the Browns coverage team at cleveland.com, to dive into what happened to the Cleveland Browns near the goal line on Sunday night in their 20-13 loss to the Los Angeles Rams. The Browns scored a touchdown just once in four red zone trips, and more success there would have changed the outcome.

So Doug and Ellis take you through the most important plays near the end zone and discuss what was there and wasn't there, and who might have been most responsible for the failures there. There are a lot of different opinions about the Browns offense right now, and we're not saying we're exactly right, but throw this look into everything else you're hearing and reading.

Thanks for listening to Takes By The Lake from cleveland.com.

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Ep. 113: Is Baker Mayfield being tricked by veteran defensive coordinators? Sep 18, 2019

Show notes

On this episode of Takes By The Lake from cleveland.com, Doug Lesmerises is joined by two of his favorite Twitter follows on the Browns to talk about what's going on with the Browns offense through two games.

First up is Brendan Leister, a high school football coach who also works for PFF and has a great understanding of what the Browns are trying to do offensively. He talks with Doug about the problems on the offensive line, and what Freddie Kitchens can be doing as a play caller to make this offense run more smoothly.

Then it's Brent Sobleski of Bleacher Report, who offers his theory of what opposing teams are doing to Baker Mayfield among his many observations. If you enjoy Takes By The Lake, tell a friend to give it a try. Thanks to you for listening to this Cleveland sports podcast from cleveland.com.

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Ep. 112: Baker Mayfield vs. Sam Darnold vs. Lamar Jackson Sep 10, 2019

Show notes

On this episode of Takes By The Lake, the topic is ... the 0-1 Cleveland Browns. But not what happened last week, but what could happen this week.

In previewing the Browns vs. New York Jets game on Monday night, I was joined first by Matt Stypulkoski of NJ Advance Media who covers the Jets. We talked about the Baker Mayfield vs. Sam Darnold matchup of the top two quarterbacks from the 2018 NFL Draft, the Gregg Williams defense in Year 1 in New York and the crushing collapse for the Jets against Buffalo in Week 1.

Then I welcomed Charles McDonald of SB Nation, and we talked all about the three best quarterbacks from the 201 8 draft: Mayfield, San Darnold and Lamar Jackson. McDonald is great at breaking down QBs, and he had some great insight into Mayfield.

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Ep. 111: Do the Cleveland Browns have a top-five roster? Sep 03, 2019

Show notes

We're previewing the Cleveland Browns 2019 season on Takes By The Lake by thinking a bit about how they got here. But, also what they can do.

First, John Kosko of PFF joins Doug Lesmerises to talk about where the Browns roster ranks in the NFL, whether Myles Garrett could be defensive player of the year and how the Browns built to this point.

Then Daryl Ruiter of 92.3 The Fan joins to discuss how Freddie Kitchens compares to the history of Browns coaches he has covered, why he believes in the structure of the organization now and whether 1-31 was required to get the Browns to this point.

It's long, but it's football season. And the Browns have earned our words and our ears. Thanks for listening to Takes By The Lake.

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