Cleveland Browns (2008 Season)

[osugrad21]

CPD

Browns insider

by Mary Kay Cabot Monday November 10, 2008, 8:28 PM


Browns coach Romeo Crennel said Monday he might make one or two more lineup changes but declined to reveal them.
"We talked about it over the weekend, and we had a meeting [Monday] morning, but I haven't had a chance to talk to the players about anything yet," he said. "I'm not divulging anything at this point."
Asked if he would classify them as major or minor changes, he laughed and said, "I would classify them as a secret right now."
Of course, none of the changes will match last week's blockbuster move of benching
quarterback Derek Anderson for Brady Quinn. But players are aware that anything is possible at 3-6.
"If we're not playing well, everybody's job is on the line," said linebacker Andra Davis.
Guard Eric Steinbach said he didn't think players were walking on eggshells.
"If that's something that coaches or management decides to do, that happens every week and every season in the NFL," said Steinbach. "I don't think guys will be walking around with their heads on a swivel. You've got to go prepare the same way each week."
Asked if he had enough depth on the team to make major changes, Crennel said, "The coach has to make a determination about how he can get guys to compete and what he can do to put the best guys on the field to give the team the best chance."

Cont...

 

[osugrad21]

CPD

Cribbs says Browns need to weed out players who quit

by Mary Kay Cabot Monday November 10, 2008, 8:03 PM


Browns special teams ace Josh Cribbs agreed with running back Jamal Lewis that some players quit during Thursday's 34-30 loss to Denver and even took it a step further, saying the team needs to weed out those players.
"We can't figure out what's in everyone's head when they're playing, but that's what it looked like -- that some guys quit," said Cribbs. "Jamal is a hard runner. He goes out there and busts his tail every day, every game. I do the same, and it hurts when players don't show the same will and same fire and desire to win. It's a shame sometimes, but we just have to pull together as a team, weed out those guys and play the rest of the season out."

Cribbs said the fact the Browns blew a big lead for the second week in a row, this time a 23-10 edge in the third quarter, supports Lewis' claim that some Browns gave up and need to check their egos at the door. The loss dropped the Browns to 3-6 and effectively dashed their playoffs hopes.
"When you have a team like that that comes into our house and we're capable of beating them, that's the first thing that comes to your mind, is guys quitting," said Cribbs. "[Lewis] didn't say any names, because you don't know who those guys were. But we know if everybody didn't quit, we would've won that ball game."
Cribbs added: "I don't care what our record is, I'm going to go all out every time I step in the field. And I'm going to try to instill that within each player, so we have a renewed sense of life out there on the field."
Linebacker Andra Davis, a defensive team captain and good friend of Lewis', stressed that when No. 31 talks, his teammates should listen. After all, Lewis is just 302 yards shy of becoming only the 24th players in NFL history to rush for 10,000 yards.

Cont...

 

[osugrad21]

CPD

Memorable moment turns into a nightmare

by Bill Livingston Monday November 10, 2008, 7:19 PM


Her son had never gone to a Browns game when his father was alive. Kathy Pataky's husband, Clifford, who died of cancer in March, would always say, "That's not the type of crowd you want to be in."
But last Thursday night was beautiful, an evening stolen from summer. "I bought tickets on a whim," Pataky said.
They were up in the cheap seats, section 502. The Browns have a no-alcohol section called the "Family Fun Zone." This wasn't it. Fun wasn't part of her package.
"My son Carter is 15 and had never been to a game. I hadn't been in 30 years," said Pataky, 50. "So I took Carter and his friend Shawn. We wanted to see Brady Quinn make his first start at quarterback. When I walked in, I was thinking, by rights, his father should have been here to take him to the game."
Pataky said she is a Cavaliers fan, but has also attended Indians games. The only unpleasantness was on the scoreboard when the Cavs or Tribe lost.
She was such a football rookie that she herded the boys into their seats at 6 p.m., more than two hours before kickoff of the Browns-Broncos game.
Pataky thought she knew what to expect. "I'm not a prude," she said. "I've been to concerts at The Q and the old Coliseum. I expected a certain amount of bad language. I didn't expect what happened, though."
The trouble started when two fans wearing Denver Broncos jerseys sat down in the row in front of her. Browns fans in the row behind her started cursing the Denver fans. Then they started throwing peanuts and other objects at them. Pataky was too scared to look closely at the missiles.
A third Denver fan arrived. The mean rain of spiteful objects increased. No one in her family was hit, but Pataky had had enough when one of the Denver group stood, turned toward the hecklers and shouted, "Why don't you throw it at my face instead of my back?"

Cont...

 

[osugrad21]

Canton

Browns players don't feel like Bengals
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
BY STEVE DOERSCHUK
[email protected]

BEREA It must have been another universe. It seems eons ago.

It was here in Ohio. It was less than a year after the Bengals almost stunned the 49ers in Super Bowl XXIII.

The Browns were on their way to a division championship.

It was Dec. 10, 1989, and Bengals Head Coach Sam Wyche detected his crowd getting rowdy after he charged onto the Riverfront Stadium field to protest a call that favored Seattle.

Wyche, in a moment of temporary insanity or self-sacrificing community service, hustled to a stadium microphone and faced the crowd.

Then, at the top of his lungs, he said:

"Will the next person that sees anybody throw anything onto this field point 'em out and get 'em out of here. You don't live in Cleveland. You live in Cincinnati."

Since then, a lot of bad stuff has hit the field in both towns.

The Bengals posted the NFL's worst record in the 1990s.

The Browns lost their team after the 1995 season and have neither won a division title nor a playoff game since coming back in 1999.
Cont...

 

[osugrad21]

Canton

Cribbs: Team egos must go
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
BY STEVE DOERSCHUK
[email protected]

BEREA If Jamal Lewis called out some teammates after Thursday's Denver debacle ? well, Romeo Crennel did it first.

Here's what the head coach said coming off the previous game in which a big lead was blown.

"The bright spot of the (Baltimore) game, if there is one, is Josh Cribbs," Crennel said. "I think Josh tried to take the team on his shoulders, tried to lift them up all himself, and he just didn't have enough help.

"On kickoff returns and punt returns, he was tremendous. On coverage, he was tremendous. He tried really hard to help this team win.

"Everybody else, they weren't able to play at the level that he was playing at, which is unfortunate, because that's what we needed."

In a sense, Crennel was even calling out Lewis, the running back whose remarks after the Denver game made waves.

Some of his teammates, Lewis said, "need to check their egos at the door."

On Monday, it was Cribbs' turn to weigh in. If there are such players, Cribbs said, they must be weeded out.

Cribbs hasn't given up on the season. He said he used his drive to work Monday to dream about winning the final seven games.

The team squandered strong second-half leads in losing its last two.
Cont...

 

[NJ-Buckeye]

I guess somebody has to explain to me how anyone has an ego and your team is 3-6 and sucking wind

 

[LitlBuck]

I guess somebody has to explain to me how anyone has an ego and your team is 3-6 and sucking wind

Totally agree. It was interesting to note that neither Lewis or Cribbs mention any names of the guys with the egos and the guys that they thought quit on the team during the Denver game. We will probably know after this season when some guys are moved.

 

[NJ-Buckeye]

We could start the name game... that might be fun...

Winslow is a head case.. but I can't see him as a quitter... bonehead at times not a quitter... His fumble was a result of trying too hard.. not quitting

Edwards - maybe .. he disappeared in the Denver game

Rogers - didn't look like he quit.. just got tired

Heck, who else is good enuf to even remotely think he has the right to have an ego ?!?!?

Wimberly??? He has to get good again.. before he's allowed to have an ego...

 

[LitlBuck]

I would try to guess some names but like you I have no idea who would be good enough to have an ego on his team.

With regards to quitting, the only guy I can think of on the offensive side of the ball would be Edwards because the OL really did give Quinn protection on all of the past plays.

I would have to think that the quitters were on the defensive side. Certainly not Rogers or Davis. However, the way the rest of the defensive guys were tackling maybe it was the entire defense except for Rogers and Davis.

It will be interesting to see if Romeo does make some changes what those changes will be and that might be an indicator.

Oh, I thought I might just throw this out because of a couple posts yesterday. On the 90+ pass play MacDonald had that WR one-on-one. He was not supposed to get any support from Jones. That was the defense that was called. I just thought I would clarify that.

 

[muffler dragon]

From what little of the game I was able to see, I would put McDonald at the top of the list of "quitters". Multiple horrible plays by him should land him on the bench ASAP.

 

[LitlBuck]

I don't know if he "quit" during the game or is just a very young CB who was not ready to start in the NFL. He played pretty well as a nickel back last year but hasn't made the adjustment to become a starting CB yet.

I was listening to a Browns show last night and at the beginning of the season they gave up a seventh round draft choice for a guy named McDaniels and he has been inactive for almost all of the Browns teams. That just doesn't make much sense. The guys on the show also said that Savage is very reluctant to pick up guys once the season begins. Ty Law was signed yesterday by the Jets I believe.

 

[muffler dragon]

I don't know if he "quit" during the game or is just a very young CB who was not ready to start in the NFL. He played pretty well as a nickel back last year but hasn't made the adjustment to become a starting CB yet.

I recall (not exact time or moment) when McDonald was near the ball, and just stopped dead in his tracks. No effort or anything to attempt to get in the play to take the man down. Needless to say, the 90+ yard play was an exercise in futility with that jump at the pass AFTER the receiver caught it.

You may very well be right though, and I'm not trying to make a particular case. I just remember him pissing me off a few times.

I was listening to a Browns show last night and at the beginning of the season they gave up a seventh round draft choice for a guy named McDaniels and he has been inactive for almost all of the Browns teams. That just doesn't make much sense. The guys on the show also said that Savage is very reluctant to pick up guys once the season begins. Ty Law was signed yesterday by the Jets I believe.

I won't even attempt to speculate about the things that go on in the higher eschelons of an organization like the Browns. I do find what you shared to be quite interesting.

Truthfully, this is the first point in Crennel's career as coach that I've wanted him out. It would be nice to get a coach with some previous NFL head coach experience.

 

[IronBuckI]

I don't think either of our starting corners, Rogers, or Davis quit. Everyone else on the defense could be suspected. Edwards quit when he got frustrated against Washington, and I wouldn't put it past him to quit on the team again. Quinn, the o-line, and Winslow were all playing their asses off. Winslow looked pretty pissed at himself for the drop, and I just don't think that he has any quit in him. Whether he likes his situation or not, he's just too much of a competitor.

 

[Mac]

I'm starting to think that Romeo will be out after this year, and I hope he is!! This team hasn't progressed like they should have this year. And some of it might be the personnel with "ego" issues as well, and those guys need to be sent packing.

 

[LitlBuck]

I have heard many times that Romeo is a player's coach and all of the players really like him. I don't know if that is good or bad but if you are dealing with a lot of egos I think it is probably bad. The only problem with bringing in a new HC next year is that it is starting over once more. In addition, I think they need to bring in a HC who has been one in the NFL. Bringing in coordinators is just not getting the job done but I don't know many successful NFL HC's who would be available.