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Browns' leading tackler should benefit as team beefs up defensive line
By Marla Ridenour
Beacon Journal sports writer
Published on Tuesday, Aug 05, 2008
BEREA: D'Qwell Jackson's wife's dental practice, Beautiful Smiles in Westlake, is nearly a year old and about to expand to Cleveland's east side.
But the Browns' inside linebacker didn't want to use his smile as an advertisement.
''Don't look at my teeth,'' Jackson said. ''She's working on mine.''
Amira Baker-Jackson and her sister Ronnie Baker, a dentist in Miami, have seven offices and are trying to start their own chain with their brother, Sharif, as manager.
''They have a good plan. She's doing well,'' Jackson said.
Jackson said his wife received her undergraduate degree from Howard University in an accelerated two-year program, then spent four years in dental school.
''I'm going to have some smart kids, I know that,'' Jackson said.
If Baker-Jackson's business gets any bigger, her husband might start passing along her office phone number to opponents after jaw-rattling hits.
The Browns' leading tackler in 2007 finds himself set up for a big season. In his third year as the starter at weak-side linebacker, he's expected to benefit greatly from the trades that brought defensive linemen Shaun Rogers and Corey Williams to the Browns.
He had 114 tackles in 14 games in '07 and finished second in 2006 with 113 in 13 games, but having 350- and 320-pounders in front of him could mean a breakout year for Jackson.
''It's always good to have a lot of beef in front of you,'' Jackson said Monday. ''It allows me to run around a little bit and hide behind that big 9-2 and big 9-9. I won't take as much of a beating this year as I did the previous years.
''I don't expect those guys to keep me free all the time. But when they do, I've got to make the most out of it. I told those guys, 'As long as you play hard, I'm reading off you guys. Don't think you have to do everything by the book. We're going to play off each other and get this thing done.' ''
Browns coach Romeo Crennel might not favor excessive freelancing, but complimented Jackson for being ''a very instinctive football player.''
''That showed up in college and he still has that quality,''
Crennel said of the Atlantic Coast Conference's Defensive Player of the Year in 2005. ''[Now] he has a better understanding of the defense, where he needs to fit, how he has to take on some of those big guards that come out on him. He has made good progress, he understands the passing game and he's a good linebacker.''
Crennel said Jackson, 6-foot and 240 pounds, must handle big guards with leverage and quickness.
''You have to develop the knack of knowing when to take them on and when you might put a move on them and get around them,'' Crennel said.
When Jackson came out of Maryland, Browns General Manager Phil Savage coveted Alabama's DeMeco Ryans in the 2006 draft. Ryans went 33rd overall to the Houston Texans, so Savage traded center Jeff Faine and the Browns' 43rd overall choice to New Orleans Saints to move up to select Jackson with the 34th pick. That trade loomed larger when free-agent center LeCharles Bentley tore his patellar tendon on the first day of training camp.
Ryans also went on to make 156 tackles in his rookie season and 127 last year, starting his first Pro Bowl.
On draft day, Savage compared Jackson's instincts to those of Baltimore Ravens star Ray Lewis. Jackson's numbers his first two years haven't come close to those put up by Lewis, however. The 26th overall pick in the 1996 draft, Lewis recorded 142 tackles as a rookie and 210 his second year.
With more talent up front, Savage expects more from Jackson. The Browns' primary goal will be to shore up a defense that ranked 27th in the league against the run and 30th overall last season.
''We had trouble with it. There were problems,'' Jackson said of the run defense. ''We've just got to face it. Last year is last year. We've watched games 1,000 times. We know what we need to do to correct those things.
''To add to that, we had a lot of guys who were playing injured. They got rushed back and weren't really 100 percent. It took a toll on them, and it took a toll on us as a defense.''
Coming into a season of high expectations, Jackson can't hide his excitement.
''I put more expectations on myself than anyone,'' he said. ''We've got the right pieces right now. We've pieced this thing together and we've made a run to go deep in this thing.
''Not just winning the regular season,'' Jackson said, ''but making it to the postseason. I'm excited, and all the other guys are excited. Coaches are excited. We're jelling right now.''
Marla Ridenour can be reached at mridenour@thebeaconjournal.com. Read her Browns blog at http://www.ohiomm.com/blogs/browns/.
BEREA: D'Qwell Jackson's wife's dental practice, Beautiful Smiles in Westlake, is nearly a year old and about to expand to Cleveland's east side.
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