• New here? Register here now for access to all the forums, download game torrents, private messages, polls, Sportsbook, etc. Plus, stay connected and follow BP on Instagram @buckeyeplanet and Facebook.

Cleveland Browns (2007 & prior)

Jump to latest Follow Reply
Sort by date Sort by votes
Canton

Browns' stumble at Cincinnati; playoff hopes take a hit
Monday, December 24, 2007
By Steve Doerschuk
REPOSITORY SPORTS WRITER

CINCINNATI The feel-good story of the year spat out a shocking chapter: The play-bad game of the week.

Needing a win to clinch a playoff spot, the Browns drifted early, followed Derek Anderson off the side of the bridge, and endured a hard lesson from the ghost of expansion seasons past.

But what lesson? Browns fans need their pain? Enjoy it?

?Everyone here has had my back all season,?? Anderson said after a 19-14 loss to the Bengals. ?It is hard to look around this locker room after a disappointing loss.?


Cont....
 
Upvote 0
Canton

Anderson not only culprit
[FONT=Verdana,Times New Roman,arial,helvetica,sans-serif]Mistakes in other areas also hurt[/FONT]
Monday, December 24, 2007
By Steve Doerschuk
REPOSITORY SPORTS WRITER

BEREA Yes, Derek Anderson?s two interceptions in the final two minutes of the first half were equally hideous and damaging.

Remember, however, what started Sunday?s avalanche of ugliness.

The Browns blew a great chance to send the Bengals reeling early. On the opening kickoff, coverage man Daven Holly blindsided Glenn Holt to cause a fumble. But, when they cleaned up the pile, the Bengals had the ball.




Cont...
 
Upvote 0
Canton

Browns unravel in biggest game of the year
Monday, December 24, 2007
BY Todd Porter
REPOSITORY SPORTS WRITER

CINCINNATI

His neatly pressed, freshly dry-cleaned designer suit spoke volumes of the ride of Derek Anderson. His long face, sad eyes and quiet voice spoke of the reality.

Anderson led the Browns playoff retreat Sunday. He threw four interceptions. Missed open receivers. Had passes dropped. Cleveland?s shiny sports car turned into a rust bucket against the Bengals. Anderson knew just how bad, and how ill-timed, his performance was.

?I never give up on myself,? said Anderson, a sixth-round throwaway the Browns signed after the Ravens waived him. ?We work too hard. I owe everything to the guys in the locker room and the coach. They?ve had my back all year. It makes it hard to go in there after the game and look around at the disappointment we have.?

Anderson is a swashbuckler. He?ll live and die by the sword.

The Pro Bowl alternate left a stain on his season Sunday on a windblown day in Cincinnati. His pressed suit and bright tie couldn?t hide any of it.

Cont...
 
Upvote 0
Canton

For Browns, it's destiny lost
[FONT=Verdana,Times New Roman,arial,helvetica,sans-serif]Team needs Colts? help for playoff berth[/FONT]
Monday, December 24, 2007
By Todd Porter
REPOSITORY SPORTS WRITER

CINCINNATI Those teams with first-round byes in the NFL playoffs may not be the only ones resting their starters next week. If Browns Head Coach Romeo Crennel wanted, he could as well.

Postseason football in Cleveland has almost nothing to do with the regular-season finale at Cleveland Browns Stadium. There is only one long-shot scenario where a Cleveland win over San Francisco will matter, and that would be a rare Indianapolis-Tennessee tie.

If the Browns are going to play into 2008, the Colts need to beat the Titans in an 8:15 p.m. game next Sunday.

In a matter of one game ? the end of one half, really ? Cleveland lost control of its postseason destiny. Now, Browns fans may have more of an interest in the Indianapolis game than their home team.


Cont...
 
Upvote 0
Canton

Browns note Dec. 24
Monday, December 24, 2007
BY Steve Doerschuk
REPOSITORY SPORTS WRITER

WOOFS IN THE HOUSE

Based on observations from a 25-minute walk around the stadium shortly before kickoff, roughly one of every 20 fans who braved the cold and wind was wearing Cleveland Browns gear.

No-shows were minimal. Bengal fans seemed eager for one last thing to cheer about in their sorry season.

It was never more than 20 paces between local yokels yelling, ?Who Dey.?

On one ramp crowded with incoming pedestrians, a deep-throated yell of ?Here we go Brownies? went up. There was no shortage of barking in reply.

Cont...
 
Upvote 0
Canton

Grading the Browns Dec. 24
Monday, December 24, 2007
BY Todd Porter
REPOSITORY SPORTS WRITER

GRADING THE OFFENSE

There is no explainable way to give an offense that turns the ball over four times a passing grade. Derek Anderson was awful. The wide receivers dropped passes. The line missed assignments. Jamal Lewis was the only glimmer of hope in this offense, and with a 19-0 hole, he couldn?t be used exclusively. Rob Chudzinski?s play design and calling remain both aggressive and imaginative. However, he didn?t account for a windy day that took both teams out of their pass offense.

GRADING THE DEFENSE

When a backup running back gashes a defense for 130 yards on the ground, that means this defense still has holes. The defense didn?t give up the TDs, but it still would have been nice if that unit could?ve gotten off the field with just a field goal after one of the two first-half interceptions.

Cont...
 
Upvote 0
Whatever happened to Kamerion Wembley this year? I know that he got around the quarterback a few times this year but he did not seem like the same player this year that he was last. I very seldom saw him making plays like he did last year even in the running game.
 
Upvote 0
LitlBuck;1038043; said:
Whatever happened to Kamerion Wembley this year? I know that he got around the quarterback a few times this year but he did not seem like the same player this year that he was last. I very seldom saw him making plays like he did last year even in the running game.
Click to expand...
Good question. Sophomore jinx? Or, more likely, the D-Line was so atrocious that he was keyed on and couldn't get freed up to make the plays he made last year. I still think he'll be the cornerstone of the defense when we get one.
 
Upvote 0
I'll say that, as a Steelers fan, I am rooting for the Browns to get into the playoffs. Browns fans have to rank among the most passionate of those around the league despite the fact their last Championship was before the NFL was created.

I'll be rooting hard for the Colts to play all of their players in the Titans game next weekend, and to beat the Titans to help get the Browns in the playoffs with a win of their own. Division loyalty, like my Big Ten loyalty, wins out when it doesn't involve my team. Best of luck.
 
Upvote 0
Dispatch

Browns put their playoff hopes in the Colts' hands

Tuesday, December 25, 2007 3:12 AM
By James Walker


THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
Playoffs in the balance

  • 49ERS (5-10)
    AT BROWNS (9-6)
    1 p.m. Sunday
    TV: Fox (Ch. 28)
  • TITANS (9-6)
    AT COLTS (13-2)
    8:15 p.m. Sunday
    TV: NBC (Ch. 4)
THE BROWNS MAKE THE PLAYOFFS ?
  • If Tennessee loses at Indianapolis,
    or if Tennessee ties and Cleveland beats San Francisco
THE BROWNS MISS THE PLAYOFFS ?
  • If Tennessee wins at Indianapolis

BEREA, Ohio -- Perhaps Cleveland Browns coach Romeo Crennel will send Indianapolis Colts coach Tony Dungy a nice Christmas gift.
Maybe Derek Anderson will call fellow quarterback Peyton Manning and ask how he's feeling.
The Browns' season has boiled down to one game, but not the one they're playing Sunday against San Francisco in Cleveland Browns Stadium.
Whether they win that game matters little. The Browns' playoff hopes, for all practical purposes, rest on the outcome of the Tennessee-Indianapolis game later that night. If the Titans win, they get the final AFC wild-card spot and the Browns spend the playoffs at home in front of their televisions. If the Colts win, the Browns are in, even if they lose to the 49ers.

Continued.....
Click to expand...
 
Upvote 0
CPD

'It's just too bad'

Cleveland Browns need help from Indianapolis Colts' backups
Tuesday, December 25, 2007 By Mary Kay Cabot
Plain Dealer Reporter
The Browns received some discouraging news Monday out of Indianapolis: The Colts will rest quarterback Peyton Manning and other key starters for at least half of Sunday night's all-important visit by the Titans.
The Browns, of course, need the Titans (9-6) to lose to the defending Super Bowl champion Colts (13-2) to clinch a playoff spot for the first time since 2002. If the Titans win, they nab the wild-card spot because of their better record against common opponents, the second applicable tiebreaker with the Browns.
Yes, there's still one more way the Browns could get in, but it's about as likely as Halley's Comet streaking over Cleveland Browns Stadium this weekend. If the Browns beat the San Franciso 49ers Sunday and the Titans tie the Colts, the Browns would be in by virtue of their better record (10-6 vs. 9-6-1).




Cont...
 
Upvote 0
CPD

Cleveland Browns' field goal to beat Baltimore Ravens signaled a change in fortune



Tuesday, December 25, 2007 Tony Grossi

Plain Dealer reporter
Since the Browns were reborn in 1999, they've had their share of breaks -- most of them bad.
They blew top draft picks and signed the wrong free agents. When they drafted a college stud, he blew out his knee practicing wheelies on a supercharged motorcycle. When they lured reputable players, they suffered unspeakable injuries.
On the field, other than one season in which the planets aligned, the Browns lost more than they won every year.




Cont...
 
Upvote 0
CPD

Cleveland Browns should play Brady Quinn if they get a big lead Sunday


Tuesday, December 25, 2007Bud Shaw
Plain Dealer Columnist
The ideal scenario for the Browns on this given Sunday -- though why they would start creating comfortable scenarios now is anybody's guess -- is threefold:
A big early lead against a bad team.
A second-half appearance by Brady Quinn somewhere other than in a Subway commercial.




Cont...
 
Upvote 0
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top