Category: Cleveland Browns (Page 43 of 114)

The Browns really needed this one. It wasn’t pretty at times, especially when they were down 21-3, but they rallied to snatch a 24-21 victory on the road.

Charlie Frye made some great plays, and he also missed some open receivers. He also made a stupid throw late in the 4th quarter near the end zone that almost cost the Browns the game.

“I thought it was a bonehead play by me,” Frye said. “I forced it. That was a no-no that late in the game.”

The defense gave up some big plays, but the special team units responded with huge returns by Josh Cribbs and Dennis Northcutt to get the Browns back in the game.

Cornerback Gary Baxter will miss his second consecutive game this Sunday with a pectoral strain.

“My arm feels kind of weak, like it’s not a part of my body sometimes,” he said. “I’m doing everything I can to rehab, lift weights and get some strength.”

Cosey Coleman and Brian Russell were upgraded to probable and several others remained questionable but still participated in all the drills. Willie McGinest and Kellen Winslow, Jr. were held out parts of the team practice. Crennel has said in regards to those two that he wants to take it easy with them and make sure they are ready for Sundays and not do too much with them during the week. It would undoubtedly be a huge loss if Winslow and McGinest are unable to go but I hope the coaching staff is just being extra cautious with them.

The injury report may appear long, but several players are working their way back from injuries and should be able to play Sunday. Eleven players are listed in this week’s injury report, all of which are questionable.

They are Baxter (chest), Coleman (finger), tight end Darnell Dinkins (hamstring), Droughns (shoulder), defensive end Nick Eason (ankle), Fraser (shoulder), receiver Joe Jurevicius (ribs), linebacker Willie McGinest (calf), Roye (shoulder), safety Brian Russell (elbow) and tight end Kellen Winslow Jr. (knee).

Droughns and Roye have declared themsleves ready to go and the only player listed who wasn’t in pads in practice was McGinest. Everyone else practiced to some extent on Wednesday. It sounds like Jurevicius still might be a week away and it’s still up in the air if Baxter is ready yet.

Baxter, who sat out last week, said, “I’m trying. I’m going to do my best to get out there.”

The Browns will gladly welcome back their 1,200-yard rusher Reuben Droughns. They need his services if they have any chance of running the ball. Let’s hope McGinest’s calf is healed enough to play by Sunday because we saw what a positive affect his presence had on the defense last week. He provides great rush ability and the Browns’ defense really showed some fire with him on the field.

The Browns hope to carry over their positive performance against the Ravens when they travel to Oakland this Sunday to face the Raiders. Both teams are winless and the Silver and Black are coming off a bye week. With Aaron Brooks injured, they will be forced to throw out Andrew Walter at quarterback, who will be making his first career start. They have had trouble getting anything going offensively, despite having a star in Randy Moss on the outside. The offensive line has been shaky and without a strong front line, we all know how difficult it can be to win.

For the Browns, they must find a way to run the football. Otherwise, defenses will continue to pin their ears back and come after Frye, who can’t afford to take the shots he did last week every week. The Raiders defensively are strong against the pass but second to last against the run so if there’s a time to get the running game going, this would be it. If they can bring the same amount of intensity they showed against Baltimore to the West Coast, there’s no reason the Browns can’t pick up thier first victory of the season.

After Week 3, the Browns sit #28 in the NFL Power Rankings.

You can question letting Charlie Frye throw the ball at the end of the game, but at some point you have to trust your players to make plays.

Even after last week’s nailbiting loss, the Browns have a lot of positives to take into Oakland this upcoming Sunday. They really turned the corner and came together as a team during the 15-14 loss to the Ravens. They showed that they are a much better team than the standings would indicate and we can only hope it will be a springboard for this team going forward.