Cleveland Browns 2011 Super Awesome In-Season Thread

• like_that

  

  I am with everyone else on going defense first round. As I have said before, it seems like 2/3 of the teams will be going defense in the first round, so there will be a lot of first round offensive talent in the 2nd round.
• BR1986FB

  Don’t rule out drafting another DB
  
  By Don Delco
  OBR Browns Reporter
  Posted Feb 22, 2011
  
  
  Selecting another stud defensive back may be Browns best option at No. 6.
  
  Three things are certain come springtime in these United States of America.
  
  1. Everyone’s NCAA March Madness bracket will be busted by the beginning of the second round. Thanks, Sienna.
  
  2. Everyone’s first-round mock draft will be wrong, save for a pick here or there. Thanks, Al Davis.
  
  3. Taxes are due April 15. Thanks, Uncle Sam.
  
  When it comes to No. 2, most mockers are in agreement the Cleveland Browns will select a defensive lineman or, if available, Georgia wide receiver A.J. Green. But what happens -- as is the case with most drafts -- when things don’t unfold the way they were planned?
  
  Perhaps the Browns should consider drafting another first-round defensive back.
  
  Before we get to the two defensive backs to consider at No. 6, let’s go back to last season. The Browns selected Florida defensive back Joe Haden with the seventh overall pick. Haden finally started ahead of Eric Wright entering the Browns’ 12th game of the season. Fittingly, Haden finished with five total tackles, four passes defended and one interception in a Browns’ 13-10 win over Miami on Dec. 5. For the season, Haden finished with 50 tackles, one forced fumble and was fifth in the NFL with six interceptions behind Baltimore’s Ed Reed with eight and New England’s Devin McCourty, Pittsburgh’s Troy Polamalu and Philadelphia’s Asante Samuel with seven apiece.
  
  It appears the Browns have one stud cornerback. So why not have two?
  
  The NFL has become a pass-first league. Rules, such as the no-contact beyond five yards, have benefited wide receivers and quarterbacks. Completion percentages are at an all-time high. In the Super Bowl earlier this month, only 36 rushes were attempted compared to 79 passing attempts.
  
  When it comes to Cleveland’s division, the AFC North, first thought is this is a black-and-blue, smash-mouth division. Yet, in six games, Pittsburgh’s Ben Roethlisberger, Baltimore’s Joe Flacco and Cincinnati’s Carson Palmer combined to finish 104-for-158 passing (65.8 percent complete) for 1,481 yards with 12 touchdowns and two interceptions. Individually, Flacco was 34-for-50 for 364 with five touchdowns and one interception, Palmer was 39-for-59 for 580 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions and Roethlisberger was 31-for-49 for 537 yards with five touchdowns and one interception.
  
  One reason for their success were some excellent wide receiver targets. Baltimore’s Anquan Bolden had eight catches for 142 yards and three touchdowns in the Ravens’ 24-17 win over the Browns on Sept. 26. A week later, Cincinnati’s Terrell Owens had 10 catches for 222 yards and one touchdown in a Browns’ 23-20 victory and Pittsburgh’s Mike Wallace and his 56-yard touchdown reception in the first quarter of the season finale Jan. 2, sparked the Steelers’ 41-9 route.
  
  While you may think the Browns’ biggest rivals are smash-mouth, they can throw the ball and throw it effectively against the Browns.
  
  So, that brings us back to drafting another “Joe Haden.”
  
  LSU’s Patrick Peterson is regarded as not only one of the top cornerbacks in this year’s draft, but also a top overall prospect.
  
  “This silky smooth corner was the best cover player I saw last year,” wrote CBSSports.com’s Pete Prisco. “He was better than Joe Haden ... This kid is special.”
  
  Peterson (6-foot-1, 222 pounds) won the Jim Thorpe Award, which is given each year to college football’s best defensive back. He was a consensus All-American, the first player since Michigan’s Charles Woodson in 1997 to also win the Chuck Bednarik Award, which is given to the nation’s best defensive player, and he was the SEC Defensive player of the Year.
  
  Peterson is so good there is a slim chance he falls to No. 6.
  
  Yet some believe there isn’t a wide gap between Peterson and Nebraska’s Prince Amukamara. At 6-1, 205, Amukamara has all the tools to be a top NFL cornerback. Some have said Amukamara is a better tackler than Peterson. In 48 career games, Amukamara had five interceptions, 100 solo tackles, 26 passes defended, forced three fumbles and had four sacks.
  
  &#8220rince Amukamara is not a future safety,” writes Yahoo!’s Shutdown Corner blogger and friend of The OBR Doug Farrar. “At worst, he's a decent and slightly overdrafted corner, and at best, he's a star waiting to happen.”
  
  In order to stop good passing games, the Browns must find defenders. Drafting another top-10 defensive back to complement Haden would not be a bad thing.
  
  Of course, that theory can also be turned on its head. When I presented the defensive back theory to a friend, he responded, “Well, if this
  
  http://cle.scout.com/2/1050237.html#
• Commander of Awesome

  

  Seneca Wallace Wants Chance To Start 22nd February, 2011 - 3:23 pm Pro Football Weekly - Seneca Wallace wants to sign with a team that will give him a chance to start at quarterback.
  
  Wallace, who spent 2010 with the Browns, will be a free agent this offseason.
  
  He wants an "opportunity to lead a team" and added that it was "kind of early to tell" whether that opportunity would come with the Browns.
  
  "If I do go back (to Cleveland), hopefully it's a chance to compete for the starting position," Wallace said. [READ]
  
  Read more: http://football.realgm.com/src_wiretap_archives/20645/20110222/seneca_wallace_wants_chance_to_start/#ixzz1EitbDsEV
  
  Good luck with that one Seneca.
• OneBuckeye

  

  I hope he comes back, but I hope he doesn't think he will get the first crack at starting. He may be able to take over if Colt really stinks it up, but he would have to be OK with that.
• buck

  http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/02/22/phil-dawson-gets-the-franchise-tag/
  browns use the franchise tag on dawson.
• BR1986FB

  Cam Newton is a friggin dumbass. If there was a chance that he might be drafted before the Browns, freeing up another playmaker for the Browns to potentially draft, he might have tossed that out the window with his Lebron-like "I see myself as an icon" comment to Peter King. That shit may fly in the NBA but not in the NFL.
• OQB

  

  Cam Newton is a great athlete, but lacks so much in between his ears!
  
  About the draft....this is who I would go after with the #6 pick
  
  Da'Qaun Bowers, Patrick Peterson, Von Miller, Prince Amukarmara in that order and whichever is available.
• wildcats20

  

  Any chance the Browns could take a look at the newly released Shockey? I know they have the GOAT, but Shockey could be a nice asset.
• DaBrowns41

  Doubtful. Evan Moore catches everything, and Ben Watson is great for the WCO. TE is low on our list, although I'm sure we'll bring one in late or in UDFA to test out and potentially groom.
• Laley23

  

  Shockey isnt as good as either of our TEs, so I wouldnt even give him a call.
• OQB

  

  I really like Evan Moore and our man Ben Watson....both can produce big numbers in a west coast offense because both are receiving tight ends....we may want to pick up a blocking Te since we released Royal.
  
  No thanks on Shockey though...I'll pass.
• BR1986FB

  Vote Joe Thomas here. He's MUCH more worthy than the overhyped Pouncey....
  
  http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/02/22/pft-heroes-2010-vote-for-the-top-offensive-lineman-of-the-year/
• DaBrowns41

  Good looking out BR1986FB.
  
  Nice Lattimer avatar, too.
• Commander of Awesome

  

  I voted. Joe Thomas at 30.89% Pouncey at 26.66%.
• BR1986FB

  DaBrowns41;688198 wrote:Good looking out BR1986FB.
  
  Nice Lattimer avatar, too.

  
  Thank you, sir. Had to switch it up a little from the Steve Everitt.
• SportsAndLady

  

  BR1986FB;688212 wrote:Steve Everitt.

  
  "The Modells can burn in hell for all I care."
• BR1986FB

  SportsAndLady;688240 wrote:"The Modells can burn in hell for all I care."

  
  That's my boy!
• Commander of Awesome

  

  lol for some reason I first thought of this when mentioning Everitt. [video=youtube;dOVxitMy47c][/video]
• OQB

  

  Any news on the combine?
• shook_17

  

  i wonder if this coaching staff will use evan moore more? use him a split out. the dude has hands. we have to get him the ball.
  
  this draft will be interesting. mock drafts all over the place. who ever we draft i will be happy. all def needs.
• Commander of Awesome

  

  Depends on if moore wants to stay healthy so he can be on the field. So far he's proven not capable of staying healthy.
• BR1986FB

  Cleveland Browns' Mike Holmgren keeping all draft options open at combine, adds Colt McCoy is 'the guy' in 2011
  
  Published: Wednesday, February 23, 2011, 7:39 PM Updated: Wednesday, February 23, 2011, 7:40 PM
  Tony Grossi, The Plain Dealer
  
  "Our philosophy is to take the best player on our board once it's set up," Browns president Mike Holmgren said Wednesday on the upcoming draft. "Now, if you have two guys that are [really close], then we'd have a discussion on which one to take."
  
  INDIANAPOLIS -- The Browns arrived at the NFL Scouting Combine with obvious needs on defense. That matches up well with the strength of the 2011 draft, which is top-heavy with blue-chip defensive linemen.
  
  But offense never escapes the mind of President Mike Holmgren. Upon landing here on Wednesday, Holmgren's eyebrows twitched just enough to keep everyone guessing about the direction the Browns will take with their first pick, No. 6 overall.
  
  "I'm also looking for a home-run hitter," Holmgren said, pointedly.
  
  That comment alone will intensify the debate on which glaring need the Browns should satisfy first -- defensive line or wide receiver.
  
  Four defensive linemen are considered worthy of the No. 6 pick. Two are tackles and two are ends. The top-rated linebacker, Von Miller of Texas A&M, and the top-rated cornerback, Patrick Peterson of Louisiana State, could be justified there, too.
  
  But there's really only one home-run hitter on offense worthy of a top-10 pick, a guy who can score a touchdown from any place on the field. That's Georgia receiver A.J. Green. Without mentioning him by name, Holmgren essentially conceded that Green is a strong candidate for the team's No. 1 pick.
  
  "We do [have a lot of work to do on defense] and it is [a good draft for defense]," Holmgren said. "But I think you have to be a little careful of thinking too much about needs so that you reach. I don't want to do that. So our philosophy is to take the best player on our board once it's set up. Now, if you have two guys that are [really close], then we'd have a discussion on which one to take."
  
  Green is considered by some draft services to be the top player in the draft. Some mock drafts have him being taken by Cincinnati at No. 4.
  
  Another position on Holmgren's mind as the draft season kicks off is -- no surprise -- quarterback.
  
  "Oh, yeah, we will draft a quarterback. You can almost count on it," Holmgren said.
  
  But the feeling going into this week is that Holmgren is looking for a developmental prospect and is not planning on displacing Colt McCoy as the team's starter in 2011.
  
  "I believe in the young guy we have," he said. "I'm pretty sure we'll take one later in the draft."
  
  McCoy has been meeting regularly with new coach Pat Shurmur for the past couple of weeks. The Browns want to get McCoy exposed to Shurmur's offensive playbook before a possible owners lockout shuts down all contact with players after March 3.
  
  Holmgren indicated he has no intention at present of bringing in a quarterback to compete with McCoy.
  
  "It works best if you can identify 'the guy,' let him know he's 'the guy,' and train him appropriately to be 'the guy,'" Holmgren said. "It's nice to have all this competition and all this stuff, but it doesn't work very well, usually. So if you believe in a young man, believe he's 'the guy,' then you have to go with it."
  
  Holmgren's apparent plan is to designate McCoy the starter, choose between Jake Delhomme and Seneca Wallace as the backup, and draft a developmental quarterback for the No. 3 role.
  
  Delhomme is under contract for 2011 for $5.4 million. Wallace is unsigned and has expressed a desire to compete for a starting job. Holmgren conceded that Wallace may fit better in Shurmur's offense because of his past exposure in Seattle to Holmgren's West Coast offense.
  
  "That decision honestly hasn't been made yet," Holmgren said. "Some of it has to do clearly with Jake's contract."
  
  "He wants to win," Mike Holmgren said of Phil Dawson, who was given the franchise tag by the team prior to efforts to sign him to a long-term deal. "He's a competitive guy. And he's an awfully good player. That's why we did what we did."
  
  Dawson's tag: Holmgren said that the Browns used the franchise tag on placekicker Phil Dawson to give them time to work out a multi-year deal.
  
  Talks broke down before the 2010 season, but the club hopes to resume negotiations after the league's labor dispute is resolved.
  
  "Until we can come to something that they like for long term, this is our way to keep him," Holmgren said. "He's really good. I didn't want him going anywhere. And if you look at our roster, there's not a lot of other candidates [to replace Dawson]."
  
  Dawson sold his house in Westlake during the season in anticipation of moving on in free agency. The franchise tag assures him a one-year salary of about $3.25 million -- more than three times what he was paid in 2010.
  
  Many players react negatively to the franchise tag because it pretty much keeps them off the market. Dawson has declined to comment on the Browns' action. Holmgren said he has not talked to Dawson recently.
  
  "He was upset about a lot of things when I first came on [as Browns president]," Holmgren said. "I think our relationship improved because I think he realized -- I think -- that he could trust us when we said what we'd try to do.
  
  "He wants to win. He's a competitive guy. And he's an awfully good player. That's why we did what we did."
  
  http://www.cleveland.com/browns/index.ssf/2011/02/cleveland_browns_mike_holmgren_9.html
• KR1245

  

  I want Peterson
• shook_17

  

  what if the saints cut reggie bush.. anybody interested? i love his speed, not sure what kind of money he would want but definetely something to look into.
• se-alum

  

  OQB;688922 wrote:Any news on the combine?

  
  Not much will happen until Saturday.