Cleveland Browns (2008 Season)

[LitlBuck]

One writer's opinion on who might have quit.

link

Browns ability to finish? A little dull
Scott Petrak | The Chronicle-Telegram

BEREA ? Where to begin when discussing the Browns? frustrating finishes?
We know how they blew double-digit leads in consecutive games at home. Fourth-quarter turnovers and dropped passes on offense, no pass rush and big plays allowed on defense.

But the deeper question is: Why did the season slip away in five fateful days?

Is there something innate in the team or its players that dooms them to failure when success is there for the taking? Do they lack a killer instinct necessary in the cutthroat world of the NFL? Are they mentally weak?
Running back Jamal Lewis says yes.

?This is the NFL, you can?t call it quits until the game is over,? he said Thursday night after a 34-30 loss to Denver. ?Some people need to check their egos at the door and find some heart to come out here and play hard.

?This is a man?s game. The way we went out there and played two weeks in a row, finishing the same kind of way, it?s not there. I think there are some men around here that need to check their selves, straight up.?
No one can argue with Lewis? pedigree ? Super Bowl champion, NFL Player of the Year ? work ethic or effort on game day. His teammates seem to lack the same intangibles that equate to wins.

In the last two weeks, a number of Browns were in position to make a singular play that would?ve clinched victory. None made it.

The defense allowed a third-and-16 conversion and Derek Anderson couldn?t muster one more drive against Baltimore. Cornerback Brandon McDonald dropped an interception against the Broncos, then the defense failed to stop a fourth-and-1 run after standing up the runner in the backfield. Even Brady Quinn wasn?t exempt in his impressive debut, as he threw two incompletions on the final unsuccessful drive.

Lewis didn?t name names, but one would guess he?s referring to receiver Braylon Edwards and tight end Kellen Winslow. Both have had off-field issues and seem more concerned with prancing or flexing for the cameras than winning.

If your two most talented offensive players can?t be counted on in the toughest of times, where can a play-caller or quarterback turn?

On the defensive side, inexperience seems to be the major issue. Besides Willie McGinest and, to a lesser degree, Corey Williams, there?s no history of winning. That means doubt can creep in, followed by fear and failure.
Coach Romeo Crennel is ultimately responsible for molding 53 men into a winning group. In what won?t be a surprise to many, he?s still searching for answers.

Continued

[LitlBuck]

Part of an article from here

Brownout
Winds of change could continue blowing in Cleveland
By Dan Arkush
Nov. 10, 2008

Crennel hinted there could be some lineup changes before the Browns? next game the following Monday night at Buffalo. He said the same thing after the Browns went 0-3 to start the season, and nothing happened.

But team insiders are starting to think a lot of changes could materialize if the Browns continue to stumble down the stretch, including the removal of Crennel, despite the contract extension he earned through 2011 following Cleveland?s 10-win season in ?07.

Said one league executive: ?There are too many guys that get away with murder, not practicing hard and talking back to coaches. There is a poor environment marked by a lack of respect and discipline.

?A cultural shift is needed.?

In addition, Crennel?s game-management skills and clock management (the end of the Washington game in Week Seven is a prime example) have been under fire this season. But the biggest problem by far is Cleveland?s defense, Crennel?s supposed area of expertise. The lack of pressure and faulty communication have been hard to ignore.

Said one daily team observer: ?When (the Browns? defense) faces a three-receiver grouping, they switch to their nickel defense and become a 4-3 team. You can dictate their front by the personnel grouping. When they take the big bodies off the field in their nickel package, you run the ball. When they bring the big boys back in, you throw it. They are a very reactive defense. They play defense like Romeo manages the team. It?s easy to move the ball on them.?

While even slight improvement down the stretch will probably secure Crennel?s job and put an end to the growing rumors that former Steelers head coach Bill Cowher is on Browns owner Randy Lerner?s radar screen, Anderson?s future with the team appears to be on increasingly shaky ground, with a trade this offseason becoming increasingly likely.

It?s also possible, we hear, that the team may consider dealing Winslow, whose erratic play on the field and well-documented bad-mouthing of the organization regarding its handling of his staph infection off the field have left team insiders wondering just how long the Browns will be willing to put up with him.

One personnel exec told PFW that Winslow, who is signed through 2009 but has made it clear that he wants a new contract, would probably garner more than Chiefs TE Tony Gonzalez would have in a trade, based on talent alone.

[tsteele316]

cleveland's offense scored 57 points the last two weeks. offensive players quitting isn't the issue when your defense blows a 2 td lead in the 4th quarter in consecutive games.

[jlb1705]

Bingo. If you score thirty points or close to it in an NFL game, you should win that game.

I don't think anybody will say that the offense has been as crisp or mistake-free as we'd like, but at the moment they are not near the top of the list of problems that are holding this team down.

[exhawg]

I would love for the Brown's to draft Malcolm Jenkins and sign a LB or two this offseason. I think Jenkins and Wright would give them 2 good CB's, and the DL is already decent. I guess it depends what the next coach wants to run, but they have to get another good CB.

Who got run over by the TE on the one TD pass? I'm guessing he's one of the quitters.

[kippy1040]

That would not be a bad draft pick for the Browns if Mal Jenkins would be around but I think he will be gone before the Browns could get to him.

[LitlBuck]

While, I can appreciate the love for Malcolm I also think we need to bring in a veteran CB who would be able to help out the entire secondary. I know that veteran CB's are very difficult to find for the right money but we need someone back there to help the younger guys.

I think if there is a new coach next year we possibly could see a 4-3 defense which would be nice IMO.

We will have to pick up some linebackers for next season because Davis and McGinnis will both be gone.

I found it interesting to find out last night that the Browns GM, coach, and both coordinators are all represented by the same agent.

[osugrad21]

CPD

Tony Grossi's Scouting Report: Buffalo Bills

by Tony Grossi/Plain Dealer Reporter Tuesday November 11, 2008, 9:11 PM


Tom Gannam/Associated PressFormer Bedford High standout Lee Evans (83) is seventh in the NFL with 700 receiving yards and fourth in the league with 18.9 yards per catch.
BROWNS vs. BUFFALO BILLS Monday, 8:30 p.m. in Ralph Wilson Stadium, Orchard Park, N.Y.
Record: 5-4
Last game: Lost to New England, 20-10, Nov.¤9, in Foxboro, Mass.
Coach: Dick Jauron, 19-22, third year; 55-72 overall.
Series record: Browns lead, 9-5 (counting postseason).
Last meeting: Browns won, 8-0, Dec. 16, 2007, in Cleveland.
League rankings: Offense is 24th (28th rushing, 12th passing), defense is 13th (15th rushing, 16th passing) and turnover differential is minus-6.
OFFENSIVE OVERVIEW
Their high-priced, heavy-weighted offensive line has underperformed, and the domino effect has crushed quarterback Trent Edwards. Defenses have stacked the box, suffocating running back Marshawn Lynch and daring Edwards to beat them. Under heavy pressure, Edwards has slumped considerably, throwing five interceptions vs. two touchdowns the past three games. Edwards has no dependable targets at short range. He badly misses injured possession receiver Josh Reed and the tight ends largely have been mediocre. In recent games, coordinator Turk Schonert has copied Miami's "Wildcat" formation using Lynch or Fred Jackson as the shotgun runners. In the preseason, receiver Roscoe Parrish, a high school quarterback, got some looks in the Wildcat, but he hasn't had any reps in real games. Deep threat receiver Lee Evans is the best player on offense.
Cont...

[osugrad21]

CPD

Andra Davis ready for 100th game, but his Browns future is in doubt
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
BY STEVE DOERSCHUK
STEVE.DOERSCHUK@CANTONREP.COM

The little girl in the family section of Cleveland Browns Stadium gets taller and taller.

But her time to pick out her daddy running in his orange helmet and No. 54 jersey grows shorter and shorter.

Alisha Davis was 16 months old when Andra Davis was a fifth-round draft choice of the 2002 Cleveland Browns. Her mother, Monique, took her to games from the start, and they still go ? until Ohio autumns frost the toes.

On Dec. 1, Alisha turns 8. Daddy will hit the big 3-0 two days before Christmas. They might not see another Fourth of July in Ohio.

Time flies by like Dawg years. Andra Davis has gone from Browns rookie to second-oldest player on the defense after Willie McGinest.

There are seven games left in Davis' contract year. Things are not going well for the team, and changes are on the way.

The handful of Browns who have been around as long as Davis all dress at the end of the locker room near the back door.

"The only guys who were here when I got here," said Davis, glancing to three nearby lockers, "were Steve Heiden ... Phil Dawson ... Ryan Tucker."

Davis is preparing for his 100th game as a Brown, a Monday nighter at Buffalo.

He and Monique have watched Alisha grow into a school kid and added two more daughters. A few years ago, they made Ohio their full-time residence after spending previous offseasons in their native Florida.

But now his contract is up at a time when starters his age who are not stars scrap for their future.

Cont...

[osugrad21]

DDN

Browns' Crennel: 'I'm not a quitter'

Cleveland coach rejects the notion that his players have given up on season at 3-6.


By Tom Withers
Associated Press

Thursday, November 13, 2008

BEREA ? If he's going down, Romeo Crennel is going down fighting.
Stung and personally insulted by running back Jamal Lewis' claim that some unnamed Browns quit in the fourth quarter of last week's loss to Denver, Cleveland's embattled coach disputed Lewis' belief, defended his leadership skills and said he's certain his team has not yet given up on him or a season spiraling away.
"When you say that the team quit, that's saying that I quit," Crennel said. "I know that I'm not a quitter and my players don't quit."
After the Broncos scored 21 points in the fourth quarter and beat the Browns 34-30 last Thursday ? just four days following a similar collapse in a home loss to Baltimore ? a frustrated Lewis vented by saying some Browns quit and others needed to check their egos. Lewis' comments were then supported on Monday, Nov. 10, by return specialist Joshua Cribbs, who said the team needed to "weed out those guys and play the rest of the season out."
Cont...

[osugrad21]

ABJ

Lewis simply wants players to act like pros Word quit implies team wasn't trying
By Patrick McManamon
Beacon Journal sports columnist

Published on Thursday, Nov 13, 2008
Jamal Lewis probably doesn't care if a few of his teammates are unhappy with him.
If one or more of his teammates thought Lewis was talking personally to them when he said some players quit in the loss to the Denver Broncos, Lewis probably would shrug.
And he would tell them to take it to heart if they think it was them.
As Lewis said, ''This is a man's game.''
No, that's not a politically perfect phrase, but Lewis' point is that the Browns play a tough game in a tough league, and there is no room for individuals.
He wants teammates who will be
accountable on every single play. Who won't celebrate a game before it's over. Who won't find the camera and yell into it, ''That's what I do,'' after a disputed touchdown catch. Who don't go to the sideline and point at a tattoo of their college on their bicep, then go out and commit a penalty that kills a drive.
It's really simple
Lewis has a pretty simple approach.
Cont...

[osugrad21]

CPD

Crennel doesn't give up on defending team

by Tony Grossi Wednesday November 12, 2008, 8:45 PM


Tracy Boulian, The Plain DealerJamal Lewis' stinging comments continue to resonate on the Browns and with coach Romeo Crennel.
To an embattled football coach surrounded by fires breaking out on a weekly basis, the worst thing to hear is his team quit.
Thus, Browns coach Romeo Crennel went on the offensive Wednesday to douse the perception spreading like wildfire as a result of comments made by running back Jamal Lewis and receiver / returner Josh Cribbs.
"It seems like the word 'quit' has taken a life of its own and grown a little bit bigger, and now the Browns are quitters and the coach has lost control of the team and there's division in the locker room, and that's not the case," Crennel said.

"These guys are going to play and play together. Whether we play good enough remains to be seen. We haven't been playing good enough, but we've been in the games. You don't quit if you have the ball at the end of the game with a chance to win.
"If you get beat, 63-3, then I think you can say your guys quit. [Last] Thursday night [against Denver], guys did not quit. Thursday night, guys didn't play as smart as they needed to play in critical situations, I agree there. But that can be said about other games in the course of the year, which we've been in most of them."
Lewis made his stinging comments following the 34-30 loss to Denver, in which the Browns blew a 23-13 lead in the fourth quarter. Besides saying he felt some players quit with the lead, Lewis said, "Some people need to check their egos at the door and find some heart to come out here and play hard."
Crennel said it was the latter point "that impacted me the most." He didn't disagree with that comment.
On Monday, Cribbs agreed with Lewis and chimed in that the team should weed out those who quit.

Cont...

[osugrad21]

CPD

The Browns story line that won't quit

by Bud Shaw Wednesday November 12, 2008, 6:41 PM


Chuck Crow, Plain Dealer File PhotographBrowns coach Romeo Crennel says he resents suggestions the Browns quit against the Broncos last week because it reflects negatively on him. Even without the criticism, there isn't much positive to take away from this season.
Tracy Boulian, The Plain DealerIt's easy to understand why the always-intense Josh Cribbs might think his teammates aren't putting up enough effort.
After further review, the Browns didn't quit.
They're just not any good.
Feel better?
Not surprisingly, head coach Romeo Crennel's contention is his team is still playing hard.
The whole discussion about what running back Jamal Lewis and returner / receiver Josh Cribbs said is semantics gone awry, but more on that later.
The Browns are 3-6 either way. But not giving up does beat the alternative.
Quit now and by the season finale against Pittsburgh, fully stocked getaway limos would be idling in the parking lot and players would be text-messaging friends and family between snaps.
Even if Crennel is correct, though, it's not all that comforting.
Quitting would at least explain the wide-open prairies of space in the Browns' secondary. It might also make you feel better about the way this team tackles. The flip side: If what we're seeing is maximum-tackling effort, whoa Nellie.
Here's what I think Lewis and Cribbs meant, and my read on Crennel's reaction to it.
Lewis: Certain players have never won anything in the NFL and still beat their chests like Tarzan. They don't know how to finish games. They're as immature dealing with leads as they are dealing with prime-time network validation.

Cont...

[osugrad21]

Canton

Crennel: 'I am not a quitter'
Embattled coach says team has not given up on him, either
Thursday, November 13, 2008
By STEVE DOERSCHUK
STEVE.DOERSCHUK@CANTONREP.COM

BEREA Four years ago this month, Romeo Crennel's road to Cleveland was cleared when Butch Davis quit after a 58-48 loss at Cincinnati.

Odds are Crennel will survive at least until a Dec. 21 game against the Bengals, but now it is him driving that orange bus along that rocky road.

He is head coach of the NFL's team of the decade in terms of weirdness.

As crazy as the latest irony might seem, it is the expansion-era norm.

Half the storyline heading into Monday night's game at Buffalo is whether players are quitting. Half is the glow on Brady Quinn's face, with his run just starting.

In the wake of a players-only meeting Monday, Crennel led a Wednesday morning session to air his views about the "quitting" issue, stirred by media interviews with running back Jamal Lewis and special teams captain Joshua Cribbs.

"Guys did not quit," Crennel said. "Guys did not play as smart as they needed to, but ..."

Crennel is disturbed by the public perception any of his players have quit.

"I think players respect me as a coach and play for me as a coach," he said. "That's why when that word quit comes up, you take it personally. It's a reflection on me.

"If you say the team quit, that's saying I quit. I am not a quitter."
Cont...

[osugrad21]

Canton

Daniels to 'help' McDonald in Browns' secondary
Browns notebook
Thursday, November 13, 2008
BY STEVE DOERSCHUK
STEVE.DOERSCHUK@CANTONREP.COM

BEREA After a nightmarish game against Denver that included giving up a 93-yard touchdown, Brandon McDonald's role will be adjusted.

Romeo Crennel didn't explain exactly how other than to say McDonald will be "getting some help" from fourth-year pro Travis Daniels. McDonald was a fifth-round pick last year.

"Everybody has things like that happen to them," Daniels said of McDonald's Thursday night struggles. "Deion. Ty Law. Champ. Everybody.

"You've just got to learn from it."

The 6-foot-1 Daniels is a fourth-year pro who arrived Aug. 20 in a trade from the Dolphins for a seventh-round pick. The 5-foot-10 McDonald was a Round 2 pick last year.

"When I first came into the league (as a Round 4 pick out of LSU), I was trying to do a lot of things based off my ability," Daniels said, "as opposed to the smarts. The longer I've played, the more veteran guys I've been around ... they told me sooner or later all that athletic stuff is gonna have to be put to the back end, and the mental part put to the front."

Daniels played in all 16 games with the 2007 Dolphins, getting five starts.

"Going against Braylon Edwards, Kellen Winslow, Dont? Stallworth the last nine weeks ... I'm definitely ready," Daniels said. "Gotta step it up."

These are times that try a young 23-year-old cornerback's soul.

Cont....