Cleveland Browns (2008 Season)

[NOTREDAMECHIEF]

So, is BQ better than most of you thought he was ??

 

[LitlBuck]

I can't speak for the others, h I can hardly speak for myself, but I really didn't expect any less than what I saw last night. He did play a little bit in a preseason game last year. I think that he and DA are pretty close and I might even give the nod to BQ when it comes to the short passing game but I want to see a little more of DA's improvement in that area this season. Actually, I think any QB with a pretty good arm and a pretty good head on their shoulders would be a fairly decent QB in the Browns' offense.

PS I do not like Notre Dame:(!! Never have Never will!

 

[JCOSU86]

So, is BQ better than most of you thought he was ??

A lot of us have high expectations for Brady Quinn, so exceeding them would be tough.

I think he is legitimate, though.

 

[jlb1705]

So, is BQ better than most of you thought he was ??

Yes, so far.

And while credit goes to Quinn for playing well in his limited opportunities, much credit also goes to Joe Thomas and Rob Chudzinski, as those are two of the main reasons that Anderson has also been better than we thought he was.

I guess part of what you want us to admit is that we were overlooking a good player because we were blinded by our dislike of Notre Dame. For some of us, I guess that is a part of it. Mostly though, the rational anti-Quinn stuff was due to the fact that the Browns lacked the foundation that you need on your football team for any quarterback to be successful. If the team had drafted Quinn at #3 and passed on Thomas, this team would still stink. If this team had kept Maurice Carthon or even Jeff Davidson at Offensive Coordinator, it would still suck. And even after the Browns did the right thing and made the moves to build that foundation, I think most of us were surprised how quickly those moves translated into some success on the field.

Even with that foundation though, you need the right player at QB, and it appears the Browns are fortunate enough to have two of them. I am glad Quinn is in a Browns uniform.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Link

Harrison ready to lend a hand

Steve King, Staff Writer
08.07.2008

The preseason opener between against the New York Jets tonight at Cleveland Browns Stadium will be a special time in the career of Browns running back Jerome Harrison.
The third-year pro has already proven thus far in training camp that he can be the third-down pass receiver coming out of the backfield that the Browns are looking for. His ultra-quick feet and north-south running have made him one of the more impressive players in camp.
As one Browns assistant coach said during the team's full-squad minicamp two months ago, "There's no way that a linebacker can cover that guy in space."

Continued......

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Link

Passing grade

Steve King, Staff Writer
08.08.2008

A passing grade for the top two Browns passers in Thursday night's 24-20 loss to the New York Jets at Cleveland Browns Stadium in the preseason opener.
Both starter Derek Anderson and Brady Quinn were impressive. They weren't in mid-season form - that's not going to happen this early - but they looked close to it for most of the time.
"All three quarterbacks directed long touchdown drives, and that was good," said Browns head coach Romeo Crennel, including third-stringer Ken Dorsey into the mix.
Anderson and the No. 1 offense made it look easy in their only possession, marching 62 yards in nine plays for a score. It was a good mix of runs and passes, as Anderson completed 4-of-5 attempts for 20 yards, including a two-yarder for wide receiver Braylon Edwards for the score. It added up to a gaudy 122.9 quarterback rating, which is higher than all but two figures he's had in the regular season in his career.

Continued.......

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Link

Young players step up

Steve King, Staff Writer
08.08.2008

Browns head coach Romeo Crennel was looking for the three young players to step up Thursday night and prove their worth under the lights, and wide receiver Travis Wilson, wide receiver/kick returner Syndric Steptoe and running back Jerome Harrison did just that in a 24-20 loss to the New York Jets in the preseason opener at Cleveland Browns Stadium.
Wilson, a 2006 third-round draft choice, tied for second on the Browns in receptions with three, good for 58 yards, the second-highest total for the club.
"Travis is trying to take advantage of his opportunity," Browns head coach Romeo Crennel said.
He had played well during the organized team activities and again in training camp, and he carried that forth into the game.

Continued......

 

[LitlBuck]

Steptoe's situation going into this season was more dire than that of Harrison and Wilson. A 2007 seventh-round draft pick, he spent all of his rookie year on the practice squad.

Really can't see him making the team just as a kick return person when we have Joshua. Don't know if there's enough room to carry two of those type of players when we have so many WRs.

 

[Mike80]

I liked what the first team offense did for the most part.

That catch by Braylon was awesome.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

CPD

While Browns secondary struggled vs. Jets, receivers offer promise of talented depth

by Mary Kay Cabot Friday August 08, 2008, 8:40 PM



Roadell Hickman/The Plain DealerBrowns rookie wide receiver Paul Hubbard showed some agility in grabbing this pass from Ken Dorsey in the second half of Thursday's 24-20 exhibition loss to the New York Jets.

Two things became evident during the Browns' 24-20 loss to the Jets in the preseason opener -- their depth at receiver gets a passing grade, while their depth at defensive back is a passing fancy.
While youngsters such as receiver Travis Wilson, rookie tight end Martin Rucker and rookie Paul Hubbard gave the Browns a bright outlook in the passing game, their young DBs were burned for touchdown passes of 71 and 70 yards from Brett Ratliff to receiver David Clowney.
On the first, Clowney blew past first-year corner A.J. Davis on the left side and safety Nick Sorensen was late backing him up. On the second, Clowney beat Cleveland native Steve Cargile, and UNLV rookie safety Mil'Von James arrived late.
The good news is that starting cornerbacks Eric Wright and Brandon McDonald looked solid in their brief stints, with McDonald stopping Leon Washington short of a first down on the Jets' opening drive. The play led to the Browns' stuff of quarterback Kellen Clemens on 4th and 1.

Continued......

 

[LitlBuck]

Savage news to make a call to Buffalo to see if they would like one of our TE's, which we have an abundance, for AY. We need a CB in the worst way.

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

Is this the year?
Long-suffering Browns fans expect big things from their team
Sunday, August 10, 2008 3:45 AM
By Ethan Ramsey


THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Roadell HickmanThe Plain Dealer
It's safe to say they're excited in Cleveland -- more than 26,000 fans showed up in Cleveland Browns Stadium for a practice Aug. 1.


BEREA, Ohio -- In Bill Lipold's opinion, the last time a "really good" Browns team walked on the field was 44 years ago at the 1964 NFL championship game.
On a two-week Christmas leave from state-side Army duty, the then-23-year-old watched with several friends in $6 bleacher seats at Municipal Stadium as his team beat the Baltimore Colts 27-0 for its last title.
Now 67, the lifelong Cleveland man sat on bleachers again Monday morning, this time at Browns training camp. He chose a spot on the squint- and sunburn-inducing east stands so he could closely watch a passing drill.
Lipold remains skeptical about 2008, not only regarding the defense's progress and the feasibility of overtaking rival Pittsburgh for the division title, but even whether Derek Anderson, throwing crossing routes in front of him, is the right choice at quarterback.
But even he concedes, "This just might be the year."

Continued.......

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Canton

Browns face long camp stretch before Monday game vs. Giants
Sunday, August 10, 2008
By Steve Doerschuk
REPOSITORY SPORTS WRITER

BEREA Here come the dog days, but ... who were those crazy cats?

During a break in the first of eight straight days of training camp practice, wide receiver Braylon Edwards hopped in the driver's seat of a golf-cart-style equipment buggy.

As Edwards took a Saturday drive across one of the practice fields, laughing, an usher near the gallery ropes observed, "He's driving that like he drives his Bentley."

Teammate Joshua Cribbs hopped on and got a short slalom of a ride before Edwards ? back from a short visit to the training room after getting a foot stepped on ? tapped the brakes. Cribbs pretended to be thrown forward, personal-injury-lawyer style.

It was comic relief ? there had been a false rumbling Edwards was hurt ? in the longest work stretch of the year with no days off. There is no game to look forward to until the Aug. 18 Monday nighter against the Giants.

Continued........

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Canton

Browns Notebook
Sunday, August 10, 2008
By Steve Doerschuk
REPOSITORY SPORTS WRITER

BROWNS NOTEBOOK

Hello, Mr. Rogers

Shaun Rogers is a huge defensive lineman but not a big talker. In his first comments after his debut as a Brown, he said he still needs to improve his pad level and recognition of plays.

He joked about a one-hour lightning-rain delay: "It didn't have nothin' to do with me. I went inside."

Of the progress of the defense, he said, "I think we can be good, man. Even great."

Romeo Crennel said there wasn't much to judge, since Rogers and the first-string defense played just one series.

"He was doing it the way we wanted him to do it," Crennel said. "With repeated reps, I think he'll be pretty decent."

Continued........

 

[LitlBuck]

Cleveland.com

Coming up short? Quinn, Crennel reject criticism that backup QB shies from throwing deep
by Tony Grossi
Saturday August 09, 2008, 10:03 PM

Brady Quinn threw 17 passes in the preseason opener Thursday night against the New York Jets.

The play-by-play account of the official NFL game summary described 16 of them as "short."

Another pass erased by a penalty was short.

The only Quinn pass of any notable length was caught by Travis Wilson crossing to the left sideline for a gain of 23 yards.

During the telecast of the game, WKYC Channel 3 analyst and former Browns quarterback Bernie Kosar urged Quinn to thrown downfield more.
But there are plenty of Browns disputing that the backup quarterback from Notre Dame has emerged as a dink-and-dunker in his second training camp.

"I think sometimes if you have a bad play you may be a little bit more reserved about taking chances," coach Romeo Crennel said. "He had a bad play in the game that got intercepted because [Quinn and receiver Syndric Steptoe] weren't quite on the same page, and I think that probably he wanted to be a bit more conservative as he went down.


"But basically I tell him to take what the defense gives you. And if the defense gives you short passes, you take short passes. You don't try to force it down the field when they're defending deep."

But Quinn's first preseason performance of his second season mirrored what has transpired on the practice field.

Quinn's pass selection on Saturday seemed fairly typical of camp.
In a 6-on-8 drill, Quinn passed short for tight end Darnell Dinkins, short for running back Jerome Harrison twice, and short to Wilson. His only pass of intermediate range for receiver Efrem Hill was broken up.
In the same drill, starter Derek Anderson threw four times to wideouts Braylon Edwards and Donte Stallworth.

Later, in a team drill, Quinn checked down to Harrison once and connected short with receiver Josh Cribbs on a quick slant. Quinn did throw once to Stallworth.

Afterward, Quinn disputed that he has been checking down frequently to secondary receivers.

"No, I don't think so," he said. "If you look at the overall coverage of the previous game, I think they didn't give us anything downfield a whole lot. Especially in the situation I was in. Their coverages aren't going to allow you to make that play."

Quinn said that at practice he is "working within the framework of the calls. ... You're not going to force something down the field and have interceptions."

Ken Dorsey, the No. 3 quarterback who works closely with Quinn and Anderson, said Quinn "can push the ball downfield. He does it. [It's just that] Derek's known for it.

"When Brady was in the game [on Thursday], it was a completely different defense that was in. They're giving him one thing, whereas Derek's getting another thing. A lot of it is just going through their reads and trusting their reads."

Continued