Red Right 88

In Cleveland, hope dies last

Archive for the month “September, 2010”

20 Sep 2010
2 Comments

Where do the Browns go from here?*

Some random thoughts on a Browns team that is 0-2 despite being on pace to only give up 264 points, the fewest since the team returned in 1999.

What We Know

This team can’t turn the ball over or commit an over abundance of penalties. Jake Delhomme threw what was essentially a TAINT against Tampa and Seneca Wallace threw a genuine one against Kansas City. Peyton Hillis fumbled deep in Tampa territory, Jerome Harrison fumbled to give KC a short field. Holding penalties, false starts, personal fouls. Add those all up and it’s not good news.

It’s not realistic to expect a team to play a perfect game. That’s just not going to happen. But the Browns have to work even harder than most teams to eliminate mistakes because they can least afford them.

Josh Cribbs is the team’s best wide receiver. Cribbs is the only receiver in the group that the defense has to worry about. Cribbs is a converted quarterback. So what does that say about the other three main receivers?

The defensive secondary is vastly improved over last year with the additions of Sheldon Brown, Joe Haden and T.J. Ward.

The team was smart not to give Jerome Harrison a new contract based on four games from last season. So far, it’s easy to see why the team drafted Montario Hardesty.

What We Fear

That Josh Cribbs may be the team’s best runner. We don’t really know this, though, because the Browns haven’t called his number much this year – only three rushing attempts after averaging 6.9 yards per rush last season. But if it’s true, that doesn’t say much for Harrison and Peyton Hillis.

That the four-game winning streak to end last season was a mirage, built not by a team that was finally showing improvement, but on a schedule that featured teams that had quit on the season (Oakland & Jacksonville), fluke games (Harrison vs. KC) and the most over-rated win in franchise history (Pittsburgh).

That Mohamed Massaquoi, Brian Robiskie and Chansi Stuckey may be the worse wide receiving group in the NFL.

That Jake Delhomme’s ankle injury is worse than we believe.

That the schedule is about to get decidedly more difficult over the next seven weeks.

That Brian Daboll is in over his head as an offensive coordinator.

That this team hasn’t improved as much as we’d hope.

What Does it all Mean?

The season is only two weeks old. We all knew this was a team that is still being rebuilt. We all wanted to believe the team was improving at least in some areas and it has – unquestionably in the secondary and, despite the first two games, at quarterback.

This is not, in any way, a “here we go again” scenario. But it’s also not the end of last season; the four-game winning streak is over and it’s clear that there was no carry-over. While not expecting the Browns to morph into a powerhouse overnight, we were hopeful that the team could be competitive, which in some fashion they have been the first two weeks.

There is still much that needs to be improved on, but that doesn’t mean we can’t raise our expectations of the team, if only slightly. That also doesn’t absolve anyone from taking their share of the blame. We can’t just say, “the talent is not there” and let the coaches off the hook. You win as a team, you lose as a team.

And while it is certainly not going to get any easier in the coming weeks, there’s no reason to give up on the season just yet.

*The Browns go to Baltimore for a game on Sunday against the Ravens.

***

The weekend wasn’t a total loss as we bounced back with a big week in the 2010 Cheddar Bay Invitational over at Cleveland Frowns, going 3-0-1:

Penn State (-21) vs. Kent State. Win!

Green Bay (-13.5) vs. Buffalo. Win!

Houston (-3) vs. Washington. Push thanks to a big comeback from the Texans.

Atlanta (-6.5) vs. Arizona. Win! Finally, Derek Anderson does something for a Cleveland fan.

Season so far: 3-2-3.

***

Here’s what everyone else is saying:

More about second-half planning and execution: Waiting for Next Year

Browns perfecting second-half disappearing act: Waiting for Next Year

Adjust your expectations: Cleveland Frowns (careful, Frowns is grouchy this week).

Here’s some Cribbs notes for Eric Mangini: Bill Livingston

Error-prone ways a torment to Eric Mangini: Terry Pluto (he’s not the only one being tormented)

Posted in Cleveland Browns, doubts, expectations, fears
20 Sep 2010

Who asked for a sequel?

Two weeks into the season. Two games that looked like mirror images. Two losses for the Browns already.

This is quickly shaping up to be a long season.

For the second week in a row, the Browns played a decent, if not perfect, first half to take a lead into halftime. And for the second week in a row, they came out in the second half and did absolutely nothing offensively, wasting another solid effort by the defense.

Consider:

  • The Browns scored 14 points in the first half, zero in the second.
  • They only gained 55 yards in total offense in the second half after putting up 254 yards in the first. And three first downs.
  • Their four second half “drives” covered 5 plays, 6 plays, 4 plays and 3 plays; all ended in a punt.

Just what is offensive coordinator Brian Daboll and the rest of the offensive staff doing at halftime?

The Browns defense held its own:

  • Giving up only three field goals, one on a short field after the refs blew a call and ruled Jerome Harrison had fumbled the ball.
  • Intercepting KC quarterback Matt Cassel twice and holding him to a 46.1 QB rating for the game.
  • Limiting KC rushers to just 3.6 yards per carry.
  • Holding the Chiefs to just six points in the second half, after giving up just seven points in the second half last week against Tampa. Think about that for a minute: you hold the opposing team to two field goals in the second half and you still find a way to lose?

Apparently the coaches on the defensive side of the ball have the whole halftime adjustment thing down.

Seneca Wallace wasn’t bad filling in for the injured Jake Delhomme, although he did deliver the weekly TAINT on a poor throw in the second quarter. And while it wasn’t the greatest throw, intended receiver Chansi Stuckey wasn’t exactly a firebrand running his route.

We knew going into the season that the wide receivers were going to be a weakness, but after two weeks it seems the group is even worse than expected. On Sunday:

  • Brian Robiskie had his weekly catch, for 12 yards, bringing his two game total to 2 receptions for 18 yards.
  • Stuckey had one catch for 11 yards; he’s at 5 catches for 41 yards on the season.
  • Mohammed Massaquoi had one catch for nine yards; he’s at 3 receptions for 55 yards on the year.

In no way is this a knock on Josh Cribbs, but if a converted quarterback is your top receiver (5 catches on the year for 85 yards, including a sweet TD off a Wallace pass on Sunday), your receiving group is in big trouble.

The Browns failed to mount any kind of ground game, averaging only 2.8 yards per rush. Running the ball is supposed to be the offensive’s strength; if they lose the running game it’s going to only get worse.

It would be one thing if these two games were against teams far superior to the Browns, but they weren’t. Tampa and KC really aren’t that much better (it at all better) than the Browns. That’s what makes these past two weeks so frustrating.

“I feel like we had a lot of this conversation last week,” coach Eric Mangini said in his post-game press conference.

You’re not the only one coach.

Posted in bad sequels, Cleveland Browns, Kansas City Chiefs, long season | Leave a comment
18 Sep 2010

Browns vs. Chiefs – Week 2

The Browns come home Sunday for Week 2 against Kansas City. After last week’s self-inflicted mess in Tampa, there’s no where to go but up for the Orange & Brown.

The Opposition

Kansas City record: 1-0
Offensive rank: 29th overall/31st passing/6th rushing
Defensive rank: 29th overall/29th passing/18th rushing
All-time record: Browns lead 10-9-2, with a 7-2-1 mark in Cleveland
Last meeting: Browns won 41-34 in 2009
The line: Browns (-3)

What to Watch For

This is going to start sounding like a broken record after a few weeks, but for the Browns to win they have to run the ball effectively and stay away from turnovers/mistakes. Last week’s game against Tampa showed that this team has virtually no margin for error this season, and if they turn the ball over or make too many mistakes they just won’t have a chance.

They where able to take care of the first part against Tampa. The Browns averaged 4.5 yards per rush, with Jerome Harrison (5.8 yards per rush) and Peyton Hillis (4.6) leading the way. That’s the plan the Browns have to follow.

The Browns also need to have a better run/pass balance. Last week they threw 38 passes to just 23 runs; although it was 28 passes/23 runs before they threw the ball on their last 10 offensive plays of the game. But, even so, any game where the Browns throw more than they run is probably going to end up as a loss.

So while game conditions can dictate what the Browns have to do offensively, they need to do a better job of not putting themselves in a position where they have to throw the ball too much. That’s just not a strength of this team and they need to get the running game going and keep it going against the Chiefs.

The other big story will be if Seneca Wallace takes over at quarterback for the injured Jake Delhomme. Former Indians manager Mike Hargrove was fond of saying that starters were starters for a reason; which means your backups are not the best players.

But Wallace should be fine, at least for one week against the Chiefs. One of the biggest hurdles a backup QB has to clear is the lack of playing time as the starting QB takes all or most of the practice reps during the week.

If this were Week 10 and Wallace had been holding a clipboard for two months, it would be a different story. But we’re close enough to training camp that Wallace hasn’t had time to get rusty, plus he’s an active member of the offense in the Flash/Cyclone package – or so we’re told, we didn’t see much of that against Tampa – so he should be OK, especially playing at home.

As for the Chiefs, the bandwagon got pretty crowded after their opening week win over San Diego. But if you look closer, quarterback Matt Cassell was 10-for-22 for 68 yards and the team really only made two big plays on offense: Jamaal Charles’ 56-yard TD run and Dexter McCluster’s 94-yard punt return. It’s not as if they laid the hammer down on the Chargers. And you can’t count on special teams scores on a weekly basis.

The Best Browns vs. Kansas City Game I’ve Ever Seen

For two teams that don’t play each other very often, the Browns and the Chiefs have had some nutty games through the years, especially in Cleveland. You had the 1995 game where the Browns returned two interceptions for touchdowns; the Dwayne Rudd helmet toss game in 2002; and the 2006 game where Derek Anderson came off the bench and led the Browns to an overtime win and, in the process, turning the next three years of Browns football into an ulcer-inducing mess.

But the best one was the 1989 game that ended in a 10-10 tie in Marty Schottenheimer’s return to Cleveland as KC’s coach. It was one of the most physical Browns games I can remember.

Here’s The Plain Dealer’s game story, as well as video in Parts 1, 2, 3 and 4.

The Prediction

The Browns know they let a game get away from them last week. They were better than Tampa and, if they hadn’t turned the ball over, would have won. The defense was sound, only giving up one big play.

The team will receive a boost as they will be making their home debut in front of a fan base who truly wants something to cheer for. T.J. Ward and Joe Haden had their first taste of regular season action last week and held their own. This week the maturation continues.

If Jake Delhomme is out, the Browns should concentrate on the run and bringing out more of the Flash/Cyclone package to help Seneca Wallace out.

The Browns take the win and build some momentum heading into a tough stretch of schedule.

Posted in Cleveland Browns, Kansas City Chiefs, NFL, Seneca Wallace | Leave a comment
17 Sep 2010

Week 2 Picks

After a disappointing opening week of 0-2-2 in the 2010 Cheddar Bay Invitational over at Cleveland Frowns, it’s time to start the comeback.

This week, we like:

Penn State (-21) vs. Kent State

Green Bay (-13.5) vs. Buffalo

Houston (-3) vs. Washington

And the money pick: Atlanta (-6.5) vs. Arizona.

Here’s why:

  • As a starting quarterback in the National Football League, Derek Anderson has never won consecutive road games (I know that’s not the same as not covering, but work with me here).
  • Last week against St. Louis, he threw 15 passes to Larry Fitzgerald – 12 of which were off the mark.
  • In Bill Simmons’ weekly picks column on ESPN, a reader asked “Have Ken Whisenhunt and most of the sports media ignored the past two seasons of schizophrenic Derek Anderson games? There is only one way your season ends with Derek Anderson: with your face in your hands, weeping.”
  • Browns fans in Cleveland haven’t forgotten.
  • The Cardinals are on the road this week against Atlanta.
  • Derek Anderson is the quarterback.
  • Until he proves otherwise, he is still Derek Anderson.

Confidence is high this week.

Posted in Cleveland Browns, Derek Anderson, NFL, point spreads | Leave a comment
17 Sep 2010

The Browns must do … something … apparently … I don’t know

ESPN’s John Clayton confirmed a point in his mailbag that we (and others) have been making all week:

“The key to the start of any season is not to overreact … there’s no need to panic. It’s a long season.”

Bill Simmons also agrees.

But not everyone got the message at ESPN, as AFC North beat writer James Walker has determined that the Browns are already in a “must-win” situation Sunday against Kansas City.

They must win or … what? Well, let’s find out:

“If the Cleveland Browns can lose to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, they can lose to just about anybody. And considering their next eight opponents include only one team that didn’t have a winning record in 2009, the Browns desperately need a win Sunday …”

Really? So a team that was widely picked to only win about 3-4 games this season is in a “must-win” situation after just one week?

“The Browns, who won four straight to end the 2009 season, lost all momentum after last week’s loss to the Buccaneers.”

Did you get that? ALL MOMENTUM IS LOST. So, the Browns, no momentum. But the Bengals, Falcons & Jets, who also lost Week 1, and the Ravens & Steelers, who barely won Week 1? All momentum, baby.

“It’s no secret that Cleveland head coach Eric Mangini entered the year on the hot seat.”

Well, it might be a secret to Randy Lerner and Mike Holmgren. And they are the only ones who count here.

“The Browns weren’t expected to be a playoff team this season.”

So what’s the problem then? If they weren’t expected to be very good and they lost a game, then why hit the panic button?

The only thing the Browns “must do” on Sunday is show up and play. Nothing else. The season won’t be won or lost on Sunday, no one will lose their job, no one will be monkeying with the thermostat on Mangini’s office chair.

Oh boy, it’s going to be a long year.

***

For a more reasonable reading of the temperature of Mangini’s chair, check out this piece from Waiting for Next Year.

Posted in Cleveland Browns, hot seats, NFL, over reaction, utter nonsense | Leave a comment
15 Sep 2010
2 Comments

Hold on, I’m Adjusting

What do NFL teams do in the locker room at halftime?

In his new book, Take Your Eye off the Ball: How to Watch Football by Knowing Where to Look, Pat Kirwan, a senior analyst on NFL.com and former coach and front office member, offers a glimpse into what goes on while we’re grabbing a beer and restocking the chip bowl:

“… the booth coach typically gets down to the locker room ahead of everyone else. He sets up a quick statistical breakdown on the white board of everything that’s gone on so far.

“The goal is to give coaches enough material to use both in determining what adjustments are necessary and lecturing the players about what’s working and what isn’t. Some coordinators keep it simple – for example, they’ll decide that every play that gained 4 yards in the first half will be run again in the second half.

“Of course, most coaches aren’t going to have emptied the bucket in the first half. There should always be a few plays at various down and distances that a team didn’t show. Those will get unveiled in the second half.

“Then the coordinators write up new play-call sheets, filling new plays into each box. The key is to not rewrite the entire game plan. A coaching staff may be able to identify three new things to roll out; any more than that and they run the risk of confusing too many players.

“The team that had the best game plan going into the game – and the team that makes the best adjustments in the locker room – is usually the one that comes out on top.”

So now that we know what teams are supposed to do, the question becomes: just what are the Browns doing at halftime? Time and again, the Browns struggle in the second half; what worked in the first half rarely seems to work in the second, and the team, especially on offense, more often than not loses its way.

Last season, the Browns were outscored in the second half in nine of their 11 losses – the only exception being the two games against the Bengals. That’s probably not uncommon for a game where you lose, but consider that in their five wins, the Browns only outscored the opposition twice (KC and Oakland).

It happened again Sunday against Tampa – after a strong (for them) first half, the Browns wilted in the second. The question is why?

Maybe this is just another indicator of a team that isn’t very good. Maybe it’s an indictment of coordinators Brian Daboll and Rob Ryan. If the team plays well in the first half that would indicate the scouts did a good job creating a report on the opposition and the coaches prepared the team well during the week.

But it’s up to the coaches to adjust and put the team in a position to win in the second half of the game. And something is clearly wrong, especially on offense where it seems like Daboll is turning into Maurice Carthon. It could be that in all the talk last year about how coach Eric Mangini must go, we’ve missed the real culprit in all of this.

We know what we’ll be doing Sunday during halftime; the question is: what will the Browns be doing?

***

C’mon, Tony, didn’t we just cover this?

If Jake Delhomme is hurt it’s OK for Seneca Wallace to play on Sunday. That’s why you carry more than one quarterback on the team. This isn’t Derek Anderson vs. Brady Quinn all over. This is just the way an NFL team operates.

I wouldn’t expect the hoople heads to be able to tell the difference, but the main beat writer for the city’s biggest paper covering the most over-analyzed team in town should be able to see the difference.

Tell me how having Wallace under center will change the game plan; how will the Chiefs have to adjust; what kind of shenanigans can the Browns throw at Romeo Crennel with Wallace playing instead of Delhomme?

Just don’t give me more of the same.

Posted in Cleveland Browns, hoople heads, Jake Delhomme, Pat Kirwan, second-half adjustments
14 Sep 2010
2 Comments

Sometimes, a loss is just a loss

The voices started shortly after the Browns loss to Tampa Bay:

“Same old Browns.”

“Here we go again.”

“Not Metcalf up the middle again!”

OK, maybe not that last one, but you get the point. And Bill Livingston fed into that paranoia with his column in the PD, writing that “the sunny outlook (after the loss) particularly jolts the system because it followed proof on Sunday that the leopard hasn’t changed its spots after all.”

After decades of disappointment, some fans default to a doom and gloom scenario any time the Browns lose. On some level you can’t really blame them, any Browns fan under the age of 45 has never seen a championship.

But the important thing to remember is the team doesn’t feel that way. Eric Mangini and Mike Holmgren are working hard to make sure the players don’t carry the burden of past failures.

“There’s nobody in there that I even have a sense feels that way and a lot of guys are new,” Mangini said in his Monday press conference. “A lot of guys don’t know what ‘here we go again’ means because they weren’t part of that in the past.

“As you look at the tape and even after the game, everybody understood what happened and what needs to be fixed in order to prevent it from happening again. We are talking about game-specific, not any bigger picture type thing.

“There are a lot of guys in there that are veteran guys, that are mature, that understand how to fix problems. I don’t think there’s anybody that feels that way, top to bottom.”

“I want them to start feeling like good things are going to happen instead of, you know,” Holmgren told the paper. “And they will, they will.”

That attitude is an important piece of the rebuilding plan, not just of the team but also of the fans’ mental state.

With so many new faces in town – 38 players weren’t on the roster two years ago, Mangini is in his second season and Holmgren and Tom Heckert in their first with the team – why would they feel any sense of “here we go again” after one loss?

None of them were here when the Browns lost heart breakers in the playoffs in ’85, ’86, ’87 & ’88. They weren’t here for Spurgen Wynn, Tim Counch, Ty Detmer, Trent Dilfer and Kelly Holcomb’s “teeny tiny fracture.” Likewise, this front office didn’t pass on drafting Richard Seymour and LaDanian Tomlinson, pick Chaun Thompson in the second round or sign Andre Rison to a big free-agent deal.

The “here we go again” crowd has to carry that water themselves. They have to realize that sometimes a loss is just a loss, that Jake Delhomme’s interceptions are just interceptions, not another example of how the Browns are getting ready to go “full circle on the same carousel to oblivion as before.” (Livington’s words).

Luckily, there is still a portion of the fanbase that can take a loss without crumbling. It’s certainly not easy being a Cleveland fan – if it were this site, along with ones such as Cleveland Frowns, Waiting for Next Year and ’64 & Counting, to name a few – would look and read differently. And it’s not as if downtown Cleveland is congested with victory parades.

Going into the season, you could realistically say the Browns had a chance to beat five teams: Tampa, Carolina, Buffalo, KC and Jacksonville. They were never going to beat all five, and most fans would take a 3-2 record out of this group. That’s still possible, even after losing to the Buccaneers.

And as much as some want to lay the blame for the loss at Delhomme’s feet, the receivers have to take their share of the blame as well for poor route running, particularly Mohamed Massaquoi and Chansi Stuckey.

Sometimes, a loss really is nothing more than a loss. All it will take is a win on Sunday against Kansas City to quiet the voices, even if it’s only for a while.

Posted in Cleveland Browns, culture change, here we go again, NFL
13 Sep 2010

Two is Better than One

The Browns are better off this season at the quarterback position – despite what happened Sunday in Tampa. And the team may be putting that depth to the test this week against Kansas City.

The Plain Dealer is reporting the Jake Delhomme is scheduled for an MRI on his right ankle after injuring it during Sunday’s game. Delhomme was visibly limping for most of the second half, and it looked like it was affecting his throwing as his right foot is his plant foot.

With Seneca Wallace on the roster, the Browns actually have one of the better starting/back-up quarterback situations in the league. If the team needs to turn to him for a week or two, things should be fine. As WFNY points out, they can use both quarterbacks without it turning into the mess from last season.

So no worries on Delhomme’s ankle; odds are the MRI is just a precautionary procedure, you know, teams do that all the time.

Of course, T.I.C.

***

Much like the Browns, we’re off to a bit of a disappointing start to the 2010 Cheddar Bay Invitational over at Cleveland Frowns:

Saints (-5) vs. Minnesota – PUSH thanks to Garret Hartley. Jackass

Notre Dame (-3.5) vs. Michigan – FAIL. This is the only pick we regret as we had narrowed it down to this game or Oklahoma (-7) vs. Florida State. The lesson? Notre Dame ruins everything.

Indianapolis (-2) vs. Houston – FAIL

Cleveland (+3) vs. Tampa Bay – PUSH

So 0-2-2 to start the season. Time to head back to the Red Right 88 lab and crunch some data in preparation for Week 2.

Just remember, it’s a marathon, not a sprint.

Posted in Cleveland Browns, Jake Delhomme, NFL, Red Right 88 | Leave a comment
12 Sep 2010
2 Comments

A Tale of Two Halves in Tampa

What happened?

How did the Browns look so good in taking a 14-3 lead against Tampa, only to see the offense revert to 2009 levels of play calling and execution, eventually turning what looked like a sure opening-day win into a 17-14 loss to the Buccaneers?

It wasn’t even so much that they lost – this team is still rebuilding and will lose more games than it wins this season – as much as how they lost. The one thing you didn’t want to see was Jake Delhomme turn the ball over and make some of the bad decisions that haunted him last season in Carolina. He really needed to carry over his performance from the preseason, both for his confidence and to retain the confidence of the fan base.

But after leading the Browns to the early lead on a 41-yard pass to Mohamed Massaquoi and a 10-yard run by Peyton Hillis, the bad Jake Delhomme returned.

With a chance to put points on the board at the end of the first half after a Mike Adams interception, Delhomme made a horrible throw under pressure, Ronde Barber intercepted and returned the ball to the Browns 3. Tampa then scored right before halftime, trimming the Browns lead to 14-10.

The Browns moved the ball well in the first half, gaining 202 yards, but could only total 138 yards in the second half as offensive coordinator Brian Daboll fell back into his 2009 bad habits of inexplicable play calling. Daboll, supposedly “more comfortable” this year had Delhomme throw three straight passes – the third of which was intercepted – on the series following Eric Barton’s fumble recovery on the six-yard-line. Why?

After completing passes to seven different receivers in the first half, the wide receivers became an after thought about halfway through the third quarter. Was that play calling? Or another example of how this group of receivers just really isn’t all the good?

After Hillis fumbled the ball away at the Tampa 15-yard-line early in the third quarter, the offense ground to a halt. From that point on, the Browns only gained two first downs and had only one play of more than 10 yards.

The Browns also threw 38 passes to only 23 rushes for the game. The team can not win that way, especially on a day when Browns rushers were gaining 4.5 yards per run. Now obviously the game situation can dictate the play calling, but if the plan was to throw the ball that many times, it’s going to be a long year.

And going back to Barton’s fumble recovery for a minute, after falling on the ball he just laid there; why didn’t he get up and run with the ball? He wasn’t down by contact – at least not until defensive end Jason Trusnik jumped on him for no reason. It may have changed the play calling if the Browns hadn’t been starting the drive on their own 6.

OK, it was just one game. For all that went wrong, the Browns did some things well and we’re more disappointed than discouraged. They essentially lost this game through their mistakes, rather than Tampa beating them, but that shows that this team has virtually no margin for error this year; they can’t make mistakes and hope to win.

The running game was solid; the defense put pressure on Freeman, sacking him three times; and the young secondary held up well, with rookie T.J. Ward totaling 10 tackles, a forced fumble and a forced interception.

So while the team has some things to build on from this game, they also have plenty to work on as they prepare for the home opener against Kansas City.

Posted in Cleveland Browns, disappointment, Jake Delhomme, NFL, TJ Ward
12 Sep 2010

Browns vs. Bucs – Week 1

The Browns open the 2010 NFL season today against Tampa Bay with a legitimate chance to win just their second opening-game since 1999.

The Opposition

Tampa Bay (2009) record: 3-13
Offensive rank (2009): 28th overall/24th passing/23 rushing
Defensive rank (2009): 27th overall/10th passing/32 rushing

What to Watch For

Led by a running game that was 8th in the league last year and featuring Jerome Harrison and Peyton Hillis, the Browns should be able to run the ball and control the clock – Tampa’s defense was 27th overall last season but last in the league against the rush. We should also see the debut of the new Flash/Cyclone package with Josh Cribbs and Seneca Wallace.

Even with the right side of Cleveland’s offensive line still unstable, the combination of Joe Thomas, Eric Steinbach and Alex Mack – who should be even better in his second season – should allow the Browns to control the line of scrimmage, even with Tampa rookie Gerald McCoy at one of the defensive tackle spots.

Controlling the game by keeping the ball on the ground should be in the Browns game plan throughout the season, and especially today. Limiting the number of times Jake Delhomme has to throw the ball will help:

  • Keep the Browns defense off the field as much as possible, normally a good idea but even more important as today is expected to be one of the hottest games in Browns history
  • Continue the process of rebuilding Delhomme’s confidence
  • Limit the responsibilities of the wide receivers, who as a group are still unproven and a weakness.

That’s not to say the Browns can’t turn to Delhomme if needed. Delhomme’s past success against the Buccaneers – he was 9-2 as a starter with Carolina – and knowledge of the team should come in handy at some point today. With the Browns only playing the NFC South teams once every four years, any extra edge will help.

Tampa QB Josh Freeman enters the game with a broken thumb on his non-throwing hand, but his size can still prevent problems for the Browns defense, and tight end Kellen Winslow will present a good test for the Browns revamped secondary, especially safety T.J. Ward. The Browns won’t face many tight ends better than Winslow this season, so a solid day by Ward and the secondary will pay off down the road.

The Best Browns vs. Tampa Bay Game I’ve Seen

The 1989 game in Tampa, which the Browns won 42-31. Eric Metcalf had 233 yards of total offense and abused the Tampa defense all day, scoring on a 24-yard reception and a 43-yard TD run (look at the 1:25 mark of the video). Here’s the Plain Dealer‘s game story.

The Prediction

The Browns are better than Tampa, even if only slightly. The Bucs are three-point favorites, but the game will be blacked out in the Tampa area, which negates any perceived advantage they may have. We’re taking the Browns (+3) and fully expect them to win outright.

And with Cincinnati facing New England, Pittsburgh taking on Atlanta and Baltimore facing the Jets Monday night, we could very well be looking at the first-place Browns after Week 1 concludes.

Posted in ball-control offense, Cleveland Browns, Eric Metcalf, NFL, Tampa Bay | Leave a comment

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