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Browns still winless, seeking answers after second-half disaster
By George M. Thomas
Beacon Journal sports writer
Published on Monday, Sep 22, 2008
BALTIMORE: The Browns, needing a victory, came into Baltimore on Sunday afternoon and got caged by the Ravens.
Some might look to find a silver lining in a cloud that darkens by the week, but there wasn't a lot to like in a performance that dropped the Browns to 0-3.
The Browns' offense continued to look flat, weak and uninterested. It made a Ravens' defense that many had called long in the tooth look like it was ready for another Super Bowl run.
For a while, it seemed as if the Browns would have a shot in this one. On their first scoring drive, quarterback Derek Anderson reminded fans of the way he played the first 12 games of last season. He completed 4-of-4 passes for 40 yards and a touchdown that came courtesy of a nice run by Jerome Harrison on a screen pass. It was Harrison's first career touchdown.
The Browns walked into the locker room at halftime with a 10-7 lead and a little momentum.
That soon vanished.
After halftime, the Browns' offense shot itself in the foot time and again with penalties that not only showed a lack of discipline, but also a lack of focus.
''We didn't start off the second
half very good, so the second half wasn't the best half of football for us,'' Browns coach Romeo Crennel said. That would be an understatement.
The Browns had nine penalties — several on false starts — totaling 65 yards. Overall, the Ravens held the Browns to 169 yards offense and 11 first downs, intercepted three passes — one returned 32 yards for a touchdown by free safety Ed Reed — and shut them out in the second half.
How dominating were the Ravens? They controlled the ball for 13:18 of the 15-minute fourth quarter.
''I thought that we'd be a better football team than we are,'' Crennel said. ''You never know how the games are going to turn out or what the won-loss record is going to be, but I thought we'd play more consistent football, and we're not very consistent.''
Running back Jamal Lewis (12 carries for 56 yards) expressed his disappointment in the team's start in strong terms.
''It's pathetic. I don't know what else to say,'' he said. ''So far, we've played three good teams, and we're a good team. But we didn't match our opponents' performance in the first three games. They finished games and we didn't.''
At 0-3, the Browns face a steep climb to become a playoff team, and unless something changes quickly, they will find themselves on the outside when it comes to the postseason.
Players remain optimistic, however.
''It's frustrating. I don't think I've ever started a season 0-3,'' Anderson said. ''I've been 0-2 before and come back and finished the season strong. I don't want to beat a dead horse, but there are a lot of games left and we have a lot of guys on this team who I don't think are going to quit, regardless of the situation.''
Listening to Crennel, he knows it will take more than optimism to salvage this season.
''I tell them they're not a very good football team and we're going to have to work really hard if we want to do anything,'' he said.
George M. Thomas can be reached at sportswriterabj@sbcglobal.net. Read his blog at http://www.ohiomm.com/blogs/sportsblitz/
BALTIMORE: The Browns, needing a victory, came into Baltimore on Sunday afternoon and got caged by the Ravens.
Get the full article here.
Comments
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Scottsdale, AZ
Posted 02:38 AM, 09/22/2008
"Listening to Crennel, he knows it will take more than optimism to salvage this season." True... but unfortunately, Crennel has no clue of what it is that is missing or how to coach it IF he could identify it.
Wadsworth, OH
Posted 06:33 AM, 09/22/2008
Romeo Crennel is the worst coach in the NFL. We need to get rid of him now. Waiting until the end of the season will only put us in competition with other teams searching for coaching talent. Crennel is a QB killer. He ruined Charlie Frye. Is doing the same to Anderson and will ruin Quinn as well if he is given the chance.
Posted 07:01 AM, 09/22/2008
2 words .....they stink!!!FIRE CRENNEL and let Quinn get some playtime!
Alliance, Oh
Posted 07:07 AM, 09/22/2008
Ugly! What is the problem THIS time. They'll be looking for excuses all year. They could have handed the ball off the entire 2nd half and just punted the ball and had a chance to win. But, Anderson showed his true colors when the pressure is on by tossing the interceptions and gave the Ravens "easy" field position to take control. It's gonna get uglier!
Posted 07:09 AM, 09/22/2008
Two words...they stink!!!Fire Crennel ,he's getting paid for nothing!!!Give Quinn a try !Hey, Cleveland doesnt need a team anymore if they continue having poor seasons ,year after year ,after year!Why waste time on these losers?Does anyone agree?
Tallmadge, OH
Posted 07:27 AM, 09/22/2008
The Browns should fire Romeo and hire Bill Cowher whatever the cost. Last year's lucky 10-6 non-playoff season is long history. Trade DA for a high draft pick, and let Brady Quinn start the rest of this once again non-playoff season for the future. Another disappointing season for us Browns' fans.
Posted 08:27 AM, 09/22/2008
Fire Crennel - and go after Cowher even though he's not available until next year and pay him Lerner whatever he wants. This team needs discpline - get rid of Anderson and let Quinn play - trade Anderson for a WR Braylong can't do it himself. And tell Stallworth to quit being a Big Baby at 90% he should be playing.
Posted 09:04 AM, 09/22/2008
The chickens have come home to roost. I called for Cranial's firing BEFORE last season. That 10-6 record was DESPITE the head coach and fraudualant because they only beat ONE team with a winning record. Forget Cowher, he's not coming here. Hire Marty Schottenheimer who got fired after going 14-2 in 2006. At the very least he'll get the most out of this talent and won't stand there like a buffoon.
Posted 09:17 AM, 09/22/2008
I love how people think switching QB's or head coaches in the middle of a season will magically fix anything. And who the hell is going to trade a high draft pick for DA right now? When the Browns can Romeo, they're giving up on the season all together. To the person who said Edwards can't do it himself, he could certainly start by catching more passes than he drops. CBS pointed it out yesterday, most dropped passes in the NFL.
Wooster, Oh
Posted 09:32 AM, 09/22/2008
I agree with Jonathan. Switching coaches is a bigger deal than people think. Unless the coach has totally lost the team, the players would be confused, divided, and angry about having to learn a whole new system in short order. However, Crennel has obviously lost the fans. He's a mighty big man to be sitting on a bubble with that stoic, emotionless, don't-know-what-hit-me look he projects.
cuyahoga falls, oh
Posted 09:48 AM, 09/22/2008
Clevland sux and always will. You would think the fans would have just given up by now.
Posted 10:14 AM, 09/22/2008
I just want to remind everyone that i begged to trade Anderson on draft day to get back into the 1st day. Not because i supported Quinn, but because i didn't believe Anderson was the answer. His stock was high then. I had very little support for that and after reading some of these posts... bandwagon.
Posted 10:53 AM, 09/22/2008
Do you people honestly believe that starting Quinn right now is a good thing for him long term or this team short term? You have one healthy receiver and he can't hold on to a pass. Opposing defenses can zero in on your tight end because he's the only passing threat you have. There is no running game. How is switching to a QB with less experience than the one you have going to fix any of those things?
Posted 11:30 AM, 09/22/2008
Sign spotted this morning above the Garfield Heights unemployment line: "Romeo... Romeo... Wherefore art thou, Romeo?"
Posted 11:37 AM, 09/22/2008
Tony! You weren't the only one who wanted the Browns to act logically and responsibly on behalf of the fan base. How is it that most of us could see the wisdom of trading Anderson while the iron was hot, but Phil Savage was blind? Once again, a moronic move (or non-move) by the Browns based upon either misplaced loyalty or the inability to be an adult and admit one's mistakes! Not trading Anderson is Savage's version of Crennel/Carthon. I say that the fans should own the team. We don't care about the players' psyches - we just want to do what is best for maximizing the number of victories.
Posted 11:43 AM, 09/22/2008
I agree to a point with JOnathan; however, it is and has been quite obvious that Romeo is not getting the best out the team and cannot instill the discipline and focus necessary to keep a team competitive. And this year we can't even seem to GET competitive much less STAY competitive. All excuses aside, we need a coach who will demand that these talented young men earn their money and play to their potential. I say bring Marty back if he would come. Second choice Bill Cowher (if he still has the desire and drive to be a head coach).
Posted 11:47 AM, 09/22/2008
"How is switching to a QB with less experience than the one you have going to fix any of those things?" Let's say a veteran surgeon has had several patients die due to his mistakes during the past year. You have been scheduled for bypass surgery tomorrow morning with him. Oh, he has a young intern on staff who studied for 3 years under Dr. DeBakey in Texas and was at the head of his class. Would you stay with the proven butcher, or demand a change to the up and coming youngster? What has Quinn proven? To ask that question is moronic. Anderson has proven to be a bottom-tier QB. Let's see what Quinn can do! He certainly hasn't proven that he can log a QB rating of less than 40, as Anderson has proven.
Wooster, Oh
Posted 11:47 AM, 09/22/2008
If Anderson was prospering on another team, say Minnesota, and Quinn was struggling with the injury-plagued Browns, fans would be crying about that horrible trade and how moronic the "brain trust" is. Face it, wining solves everything, losing exposes everything.
Copley, OH
Posted 12:18 PM, 09/22/2008
Spend time with your family on Sunday afternoons rather than sitting in front of the TV watching this gang of overpaid babies.
Posted 12:19 PM, 09/22/2008
Fact is winning last year hurt this team. DA was lucky last season hundreds of passes that should never have been thrown were made into special play by good receivers. DA could not even pretend to be good against a sad Bengals team when it counted. I seen the question what has Quinn proved and the answer is nothing but remember Anderson was giving the job under the same scenario and since then has proved he won't get better and he wont win big games. My opinion give Quinn a chance see if we need to look to draft or trade next year this season is a bust already.
Posted 12:58 PM, 09/22/2008
To all those saying the veteran QB needs to keep the starting job because they are the veteran: look no further than Pryor vs. Boeckmann for the Buckeyes and Frye for the Browns last season. I'm not saying throw Anderson to the curb and put in Quinn, but experience isn't everything. You should have learned that from Charlie.
Posted 01:09 PM, 09/22/2008
If you should have learned something from Charlie or the Browns since 1999, it should be not to rush young QB's into bad situations.
Stow, OH
Posted 03:31 PM, 09/22/2008
Jonathan, you don't understand ,this season is pretty much over , making the playoffs are already a distant memory.The fans want to see Quinn play because it is more entertaining than watching DA trip over his 2 left feet! In case you haven't noticed we have not had a good team around here for 15 years so saving Quinn for what ?If we wait to put Quinn in when we are good he will be 40 yrs. old !Right now the fans need a reason to waste a Sun. watching this mess.
Wooster, Oh
Posted 03:40 PM, 09/22/2008
Rumors are circulating that Lerner is mightily upset. How he expresses his rage is looming a big question in the hallways of Berea.
Posted 06:03 PM, 09/22/2008
Wow, I expected some of this fan reaction, but some of you are crazy if you think canning Crennel or replacing DA with Quinn will solve anything. If the Browns can't turn thing around against Cincy it will be very sad. And to all of the fans that think they should be running the team, that is hilarious. Most of you don't know half of what these professionals do. You'd be crumbling to the pressure in the first week. 16 starting QBs in a season, 4-5 coaching changes in a season. And the team would still suck. Good teams don't go through constant change.
Posted 07:43 PM, 09/22/2008
I agree with steve. Rash decisions very seldom work. This situation can be turned around. To say Romeo Crennel is a quarterback killer, please qualify that statement!! All NFL teams have a quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator who interact with this position more directly than the head coach. Such statements show a true lack of knowledge of how a football team works. Yes the browns have played horribly!! But to give up on them with 13 games left is crazy( and I am a steelers fan)!!! A lot can happen in the next 14 weeks. Nobody predicted that the giants would lose tiki barber to retirement and jeremy shockey to injury and eli manning playing subpar;and end up superbowl champs. This team has to eliminate stupid mistakes and find its' offensive identity. They do that and play average defense they can make a run at the playoffs. Focus one week at a time!!!!
