Cleveland Browns (2007 & prior)

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ABJ

3/7/06

Browns report

Browns aren't blind in making next move

Savage working on deal with left tackle Shelton

By Patrick McManamon

Beacon Journal sportswriter

<!-- begin body-content -->BEREA - The signing of Reuben Droughns leaves one key move for the Browns before the start of free agency at midnight tonight: The re-signing of left tackle L.J. Shelton.
``We're still working on it,'' General Manager Phil Savage said Saturday.
The two sides have been talking, and Shelton's agent indicated recently that things might be close. Savage is not the kind to say anything is close or moving well until a deal is complete.
``It's a difficult thing to try to fill every hole that you have,'' he said. ``We're going to do the best that we can with it, but there could be a position where we might have to fake it for another year. Say use a combination of players for a year.
``That could easily happen.''
Left tackle, though, is a tough position to ``fake.''
``Especially if you're the quarterback,'' Savage said.
Thus the emphasis and work on re-signing Shelton.
``I'm gonna give him a call,'' said Droughns, who signed a three-year contract extension Friday afternoon. ``I just got his number last night, and I'm going to call him to see where his thought process is. Hopefully, I'll convince him to come back here.''
Savage also said:
• He expects the free-agent signing period could be delayed again if the league and union agree to extend the CBA. Presently it's set to start at midnight tonight.
``If an agreement is reached, I think it'll be put off a few more days,'' Savage said. ``We're ready to go. We've been sitting around waiting for four days. Seems like four months.''
Though he was not critical, Savage said the ongoing discussions about extending the CBA ``bring attention to the league.''
``I think ultimately there's a good chance they can get something done,'' he said. ``It's not something they started talking about last week. We'll see. We are one of 32 teams that plan to play by the rules and make it work once we get the green flag.''
• The Browns would not change their plans drastically if no agreement is reached and many big-name players are released. ``I think, by and large, we're going to stay with the plans we have and adjust depending on who those players might be,'' he said.
• An agreement would allow other teams to lock up their players because it would increase the 2006 salary cap from $94.5 million to about $105 million.
``It might reduce the market a bit,'' he said. ``But the more you have, the better off you are. So it would put us in a pretty advantageous position as long as there are players out there we like.''
• The signing of Droughns might not affect the status of William Green and Lee Suggs.
Savage said Green ``absolutely'' has a spot on the team as Droughns' early-down backup, and Suggs could be the change-of-pace back the team wants -- if he can avoid injury.
``There's a role for him on this team if he can prove to stay healthy,'' Savage said.
Brownies . . .
The three-year contract given Droughns cost the team a small amount on the 2006 salary cap, but not a significant amount.... Said Droughns on staying in Cleveland: ``The city has shown me so much support. The year before last when I was with the Broncos, I kind of got the job by default. This past year, they gave me an opportunity to win the job. That right there shows you what kind of confidence they have in you as a player.''
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[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Canton

3/7/06

Browns still can have Arrington

Tuesday, March 7, 2006


<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>By STEVE DOERSCHUK


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ARRINGTON

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In a conversation with The Repository before the 2000 draft, agent Kevin Poston said he “guaranteed” his client LaVar Arrington would become a better pro than Courtney Brown.

Cleveland subsequently picked Arrington’s Penn State teammate, Brown, at No. 1 overall. Washington spent the No. 2 pick on Arrington.

In retrospect, Poston was right. Five years later, the Browns again must decide if a big payday for Arrington is the right move.

Washington, facing a severe salary cap squeeze, reached a settlement with Arrington late Sunday that puts him on the free-agent market. He has spent his NFL career playing in a 4-3 scheme and would have to adjust to a 3-4 if he landed in Cleveland.

Browns General Manager Phil Savage said finding a linebacker to fit alongside captain Andra Davis is a top priority.

In terms of spending for impact free agents, Savage said, “I think we’re in pretty good shape.”

Savage and his staff have today and tomorrow to get their ducks in a row. Previously, San Francisco’s Julian Peterson had been the most attractive linebacker in free agency.

Labor negotiations have pushed the scheduled start of free-agent signing to 12:01 a.m. Thursday. Savage has made it clear the Browns are of a mind to strike quickly with players they want.

Arrington went to three straight Pro Bowls from 2001-03 but did not mix well with Washington Head Coach Joe Gibbs.

Arrington’s market value is a mystery, in that he played only four games in an injury-plagued 2004, and did not have a sack while sparring with Gibbs and Defensive Coordinator Gregg Williams in 2005.

The 6-foot-3, 255-pounder had 11 of his 22.5 career sacks in 2002. He will turn 28 in June.

Savage has indicated he will be disappointed if he can’t parlay the Browns’ healthy salary-cap situation into signing a couple of difference-making free agents.

Likely targets include center/guard LeCharles Bentley and wide receiver Joe Jurevicius, a pair of former Cleveland-area high school stars.

The Ravens have made it clear they like 350-pound nose tackle Maake Kemoeatu, but they don’t have the room to outbid Cleveland if the Browns make a serious offer.

Pass rushers who could address what Savage called a priority need include Peterson, Andre Carter and Darren Howard.

Now, Arrington looms as another player squarely on the Browns’ radar.
Reach Repository sports writer Steve Doerschuk at (330) 580-8347 or e-mail: steve.doerschuk@cantonrep.com
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[OSUBasketballJunkie]

scout.com (free)

3/7/06

Preview of the Browns and their possible FA targets.

[osugrad21]

Canton Rep

3/8

Iowa's Greenway may be the way to go at No. 12
Wednesday, March 8, 2006 By Steve Doerschuk Repository sports writer
The Browns are plotting to close the country-mile gap between themselves and the Steelers.
The divide traces to getting plowed. Pittsburgh permitted 86.0 rushing yards per game in 2005. Cleveland’s ground index was 137.6.
Help could come from drafting a salt-of-the-earth linebacker at No. 12 overall. Signs point to Chad Greenway, a strapping farm lad who blossomed at the University of Iowa.
Greenway revealed suspicion of a future in Ohio during a recent interview when he said, “I think the Browns need linebackers ...”
Fairly recently, no one thought Greenway would be rated so highly in a draft. Nfldraftscout.com has him as the 11th-best player, Sporting News pegs him at No. 12, Mel Kiper 20th.
Greenway grew up in Mount Vernon, S.D., 1,000 miles from Cleveland, in open spaces that dictated nine-man high school football. His team was put together from two schools.
He was a big man in the little school, a quarterback who grew up pretending he was Joe Montana. As a senior on a state championship team, he rushed for 1,320 yards and passed for 1,147. He made 132 tackles and four interceptions as a safety.
Also a track star, he won four events in the South Dakota state meet, including the 110-meter high hurdles.
He dreamed of playing big-time college football.
“I sent a lot of tape out trying to get somebody to bite,” he said.
Only Iowa offered Greenway an NCAA Division I full ride, and that didn’t get him far at first.
He redshirted as a freshman in 2001, blew out a knee in 2002 spring drills and finally emerged as a second-team All-Big Ten weakside linebacker in 2003.
He moved up to first-team All-Big Ten in 2004 but decided not to jump into the draft. Coming off a 156-tackle 2005 season, he thinks it was the right move.
“I improved greatly (in 2005),” he said. “My weaknesses are less, and I have more strengths.”
Greenway, 23, has good size (6-foot-2 1/2, 242 pounds) and excellent athleticism. His show of strength at the Combine embarrassed him, though. He was credited with 16 reps of 225 pounds. Putting that in perspective, 5-foot-9 running back DeAngelo Williams had 25 reps.
This might haunt Greenway, unless he puts on a better show at Iowa’s pro day. Last year, questions about linebacker Derrick Johnson’s strength dropped him to No. 15 overall (Chiefs). Some see Greenway as a Johnson type.
“I like to think I play similarly to Brian Urlacher,” Greenway said, referring to the Bears’ NFL Defensive Most Valuable Player. “I’m obviously not to his level at this point.”
To be an elite pro, Greenway must answer questions about fighting off big blockers. It is agreed he should be a fine run chaser and pass coverage man.
If the consensus is that he is more athlete than playmaker, he could drop to the second half of the first round.
Iowa Head Coach Kirk Ferentz’s friendship with Cleveland General Manager Phil Savage dates to their days together with the early 1990s Browns. Savage can be sure he’s getting an honest analysis from Ferentz.
Savage said at the Combine that improving the pass rush is a top priority. Greenway sees himself up to the task as an outside linebacker in a 3-4 scheme.
“We were not a real blitz team at Iowa,” Greenway said. “I think I have that ability. When I did get that opportunity, I was pretty successful.”
Run defense. Pass defense. Both Savage and Head Coach Romeo Crennel have harped on juicing up these areas.
There’s little doubt those two have asked themselves if Greenway might give them a double shot in one glass.

Reach Repository sports writer Steve Doerschuk at (330) 580-8347 or e-mail: steve.doerschuk@cantonrep.com




The Browns need players to bolster their four-linebacker scheme.
Some LB candidates played end in college and are not listed here. The projected top college linbacker candidates in the draft (with Combine measurements):

Round 1 A.J. Hawk (6-1 1/8, 248), Ohio State; Chad Greenway (6-2 1/2, 242), Iowa; Bobby Carpenter (6-2 1/2, 256), Ohio State; DeMeco Ryans (6-1 1/2, 236), Alabama.

Rounds 1-2 Ernie Sims (5-11 3/4, 231), Florida State; Thomas Howard (6-3, 234), UTEP; Abdul Hodge (5-11 3/4, 233), Iowa; D’Qwell Jackson (6-0 1/2, 230), Maryland; Rocky McIntosh (6-2, 235), Miami (Fla.).

RoundS 2-3 A.J. Nicholson (6-0 3/8, 241), Florida State; Jon Alston (6-0 1/2, 223 - ran a 4.50 40 at the Combine), Stanford; Kai Parham (6-3, 248), Virginia; Gerris Wilkinson (6-2 3/4, 234), Georgia Tech.

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

ABJ

3/8/06

Browns report

Defensive lineman Pryce could be right for Browns

Four-time Pro Bowl player was released by Broncos

By Patrick McManamon

Beacon Journal sportswriter

<!-- begin body-content -->BEREA - The Browns aren't waiting on the start of free agency to look to improve their defense.
Former Denver Broncos defensive lineman Trevor Pryce is set to be in Cleveland today for a visit, a league source said. (The Browns' policy this offseason is not to confirm visits, unlike past years when the team announced who was in the building.)
Pryce spent the past nine seasons as a starter in Denver, and was a leader of the team.
He was released March 2 in a salary cap move and can be signed at any time.
A former first-round draft pick (1997), Pryce has 64 career sacks, which ranks in the top 10 in Broncos history.
A lower back injury forced him to play only two games in 2004, but he came back to start all 16 games in 2005.
Pryce has been to four Pro Bowls (1999-2002), played both end and tackle, and had 58 sacks from 1998-2003, the fifth-highest total in the NFL in that time.
The regular free-agent signing period is set to begin at 12:01 a.m. Thursday, but because Pryce was released any team can sign him.

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CPD

3/8/06

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