Daily Dawg Chow: Browns news (1/1/13)

Cleveland Browns:

• "Browns make wrong move by firing Heckert" (AFC North Blog) - "The Browns continued their housecleaning by firing general manager Tom Heckert along with coach Pat Shurmur, according to ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter. The reason to dismiss Shurmur was clear. He didn't win. Nine wins in 32 games isn't going to cut it, especially with an ownership change."
• "A Banner day? Only if new Browns CEO Joe Banner is the real deal" (Chronicle-Telegram) - "For better or worse, the future of the Cleveland Browns now rests in the hands of CEO Joe Banner. Browns owner Jimmy Haslam III made that abundantly clear Monday, when he announced the firings of coach Pat Shurmur and general manager Tom Heckert during a late-morning press conference."
• "Haslam seems poised to make run at Alabama’s Saban" (Beacon Journal) - "Nick Saban wasn’t in the room, but his aura certainly was. Although Browns owner Jimmy Haslam wouldn’t discuss specific candidates to replace coach Pat Shurmur, fired Monday along with General Manager Tom Heckert, it seemed obvious that University of Alabama coach Saban is the man Haslam is targeting."
• "Trent Richardson admits to playing with broken ribs" (Morning Journal) - "obody in a different colored jersey can jump on him or punch him in a pile anymore this year, so now Trent Richardson doesn’t have to hide the truth: He played most of his rookie season with two broken ribs on the left side of his body. He still can’t sleep on his back or left side."

NFL:

• "Andy Reid's dismissal from Eagles signals end of NFL era for longtime coaches, patient owners" (Yahoo! Sports) - "Philadelphia should be happy today. It finally found a way to dump Andy Reid. For 14 years the city's football fans have stomped, punched and kicked the Eagles' coach, firing him in parking lot tailgates, on the radio and in the stands. And good ol' Stand Up Andy took their rage, staring implacably across the top of his playlist, seemingly oblivious to the fact his team's fans never found a way to love him."
• "Which team looks Super?" (ESPN) - "It took 17 weeks and 512 games, but the 2012 playoff field is finally set after a huge final Sunday of the regular season."
• "No doubt about Peterson's MVP credentials any longer; more Snaps" (SI.com) - "Musings, observations and the occasional insight from a Week 17 that offered a fitting and thrilling conclusion to 2012..."
• "NFL Coaching/GM Carousel Tracker 2012-2013" (SI.com) - "Throughout the offseason, we’ll be monitoring the 2013 head coaching carousel, with updates on all of the firings, hirings and rumors across the league."