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Archive for the tag “Cleveland Browns”

19 Mar 2013

Phil Dawson era comes to an end in Cleveland

The Phil Dawson era came to a predictable end on Tuesday as the veteran kicker reportedly signed a contract with the San Francisco 49ers.

The signing ends Dawson’s 14-year career with the Cleveland Browns. He made his final season in Brown and Orange his best as he earned his first Pro Bowl appearance after making 93.5 percent of his field-goal attempts – the second-best percentage in the NFL.

“Hey, Cleveland. Thank you for a tremendous ride,” Dawson wrote on his Twitter account. “Your love, support & encouragement have blessed me deeply. Playing for you has been one of the great joys of my life and I wish you all the best.”

Posted in Cleveland Browns, Phil Dawson and tagged Cleveland Browns, Phil Dawson

17 Mar 2013

Browns doing things in free agency

The Cleveland Browns – much like the Cleveland Indians before them – are doing things in free agency.

And, just like the moves that the Tribe made, it remains to be seen if the new acquisitions are going to make a difference as the Browns continue to rebuild the team and try to become a relevant player in the AFC North Division.

The additions – especially along the defensive line – give the Browns something they haven’t had in … well, we’re not sure, let’s say quite a while, which is depth.

And nothing bad can ever come from having depth – especially in today’s NFL.

We take a look at what (and why) the Browns are doing at The Cleveland Fan.

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16 Mar 2013

Browns take a look at Brent Grimes

The Cleveland Browns reportedly hosted free agent cornerback Brent Grimes on Saturday.

Grimes tore his Achilles’ tendon in the opening game of the 2012 season with Atlanta after the Falcons put the franchise tag on him. He is the No. 1 rated free agent among cornerbacks, according to Pro Football Focus, which wrote that:

“Grimes shows a fantastic instinct for zone coverage and reminds me a little of Asante Samuel without the lapses and questionable desire for contact. He has fantastic fundamentals, quick reactions and a pretty good set of ball skills when the ball is in the air. Along with everybody else on this list, however, he comes with some risk attached. He will be 30 years old by the time he next sees the field, and is coming off a season-ending injury.

“In the 2011 season he got his hands to 13 passes while allowing just 25 to be completed all year, and QBs had a rating of only 62.9 when targeting him, but this offseason he might have to accept a short-term ‘prove it’ contract to see a more healthy return a year from now.”

Grimes definitely sounds like the type of player the Browns should be investigating as, when healthy, he would be a nice player to pair with Joe Haden.

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14 Mar 2013

Browns continue to add talent and depth to the defense

The Cleveland Browns continued to add depth to the defense, coming to terms with defensive lineman Desmond Bryant late Tuesday night and outside linebacker Quentin Groves early Tuesday morning.

The moves mean the Browns currently have a six-man rotation on the defensive line where the oldest player is the 27-year-old Bryant, and a six-man linebacker group where the 30-year-old Groves is the oldest.

Not a bad start for the first two-days of free agency for CEO Joe Banner and head coach Rob Chudzinski.

Posted in Cleveland Browns and tagged Cleveland Browns, Desmond Bryant, Quentin Groves | Leave a comment

13 Mar 2013

Browns open free agency by reaching deal with Paul Kruger

The Cleveland Browns jumped into the free agent pool with both feet on Tuesday, signing Baltimore linebacker Paul Kruger to a reported five-year deal worth $40 million (with $21 million guaranteed).

Kruger hit the national spotlight after recording 4.5 sacks during the playoffs, although people seem to want to overlook that he was shut out in the Ravens’ games against Denver and New England. And that the Ravens had to limit the time he was on the field in the Super Bowl because, as Pro Football Focus put it, he “has an awful habit of blowing contain in run defense when he tries to crash down on run plays.”

On the plus side, Kruger had nine sacks in 2012 during his first extended action in the starting lineup for Baltimore (he made six starts this season, bringing his four-year total to seven starts). Kruger earned a +7.9 grade from Pro Football Focus, the sixth-best of any 3-4 outside linebacker, and his 12.2 Pass Rushing Productivity was the highest score at his position.

Posted in Cleveland Browns and tagged Cleveland Browns, Paul Kruger | Leave a comment

12 Mar 2013

The most important lesson of free agency for the Browns

If you only read one other story today Cleveland Browns fans, it should be this one by Bill Barnwell at Grantland.

In it, Barnwell writes about how more talent is becoming available at below-market rates in NFL free agency, which officially opens today at 4 p.m.

If you don’t have time to read the entire article, here is the most-relevant part:

“Almost nobody scouts well enough to overcome huge value gaps …, which is why the league’s smarter teams go out of their way to acquire additional picks and are happy to take 90 percent of the player for 50 percent of the price in free agency. What those smart teams will do in this new economy is — very simply — be patient. The true stars will disappear off the market early, and the dumber teams will pay a premium for talent to lock them up in the first 24 to 48 hours, but the smart teams will wait. Even if it’s just a week, antsy players will see the open slots beginning to fill up around them and settle for far less than they would have at the opening of free agency.”

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10 Mar 2013

Browns have plenty of options when free agency opens Tuesday

The AFC North is a harsh mistress; after all, it’s not known as the NFL’s Group of Death for nothing.

And that’s a lesson that Cleveland Browns CEO Joe Banner hopefully learned during the fall and one that he needs to remember as the Browns get ready for the official opening of free agency on Tuesday.

It takes a special type of player to be successful in this division; it’s not for everyone. Targeting players that you know can perform in the pressure cooker is a strategy that should be part of the decision-making process for the Browns. After all, that’s been a successful strategy for the Ravens and Steelers for the past decade.

To find out who those players could be (and, no, Jerome Harrison is not one of them), head over to The Cleveland Fan.

(Photo by U.S. Presswire)

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06 Mar 2013

1 Comment

Would the Browns consider signing Wes Welker?

With free agency starting next week in the NFL, the Cleveland Browns have an opportunity to start filling some important holes on the roster.

And while the defense would appear to be the primary area to focus on, when you are coming off yet another 5-11 season there are plenty of areas that could use help on both sides of the ball.

Which brings us to New England wide receiver Wes Welker.

Posted in Cleveland Browns and tagged Cleveland Browns

06 Mar 2013

1 Comment

Are the Browns starting to lose Cleveland?

It’s a universal truth that Cleveland has been Browns town since the team first joined the NFL for the 1950 season.

Through (long-ago) championships and (more-recent) crushing defeats, regime changes, coaching changes and more quarterbacks than we care to think about, Cleveland has always bled Orange and Brown. (And while it is cute that the Indians are trying to convince everyone, primarily themselves, that this is a Tribe Town, they need to come back when they draw more than 5,000 fans for weeknight games in April and May. Then we can talk.)

But we’re starting to wonder if the Browns are losing their influence, however, following the announcement that the team will no longer charge a Personal Seat License to new season-ticket purchase.

Posted in Cleveland Browns and tagged Cleveland Browns

05 Mar 2013