Browns: Bernie out, Solomon Wilcots in for preseason color commentary

Nov 4, 2012; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Browns former quarterback Bernie Kosar stands on the field before a game against the Baltimore Ravens at Cleveland Browns Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

The Cleveland Browns have announced that Bernie Kosar, the beloved former quarterback will no longer be the color analyst for the team’s preseason games.  After last year’s extremely overblown moment of honesty from Kosar where he called St. Rams quarterback Kellen Clemens bad with delightfully entertaining detail, the team is replacing Kosar with Solomon Wilcots.

Wilcots is certainly the more professional, seasoned broadcaster, but this is unlikely to be a move that is popular among fans.  Rightly or wrongly, this locality and fan base adores Kosar.  Despite personal issues, there are fans who wish he was a coach or the coach and Tony Rizzo is always trying to get Kosar a job he lacks the qualifications to do.

For Kosar, whatever he lacked in professional polish in the broadcast booth including his voice which is a product of the overwhelming beating he took in the NFL, showing the problems that untreated concussions can cause, he was honest and brought an interesting analysis, especially to quarterbacks.  Kosar still breaks down defenses as a reflex and knows exactly what is going on and where the quarterback should be throwing the ball and how he should be throwing the ball.  That made his commentary more interesting.

While his commentary got a little too colorful with Kellen Clemens and Chris Leak some years ago, that actually made him entertaining.  And for some fans who are not interested in the guys fighting for the 52nd and 53rd spot on the roster, he did provide a reason to keep watching.  There is undoubtedly going to be a good amount of rabble rousing over this issue, but the Browns have opted for a more antiseptic broadcast.