Category: Cleveland Browns (Page 62 of 114)

Romeo Crennel’s quote says it all:

“You can only play the card you’re dealt,” Crennel said. “That’s what we did last year. We got some more cards now.”

They sure do. As Terry Pluto explains, the Browns clearly had a plan this year, and they are focusing on the basics as the try to build this football team.

Washington is the latest example of the no-frills approach that Savage has taken to free agency. Along with Crennel, Savage has talked about games being won on the line — offense and defense.

Nothing new there.

By putting big bucks into premier offensive lineman LeCharles Bentley and emerging left tackle Kevin Shaffer on Saturday, then adding Washington to the defense, it shows that the Browns are really serious.

They also signed reliable punter David Zastudil and gritty receiver Joe Jurevicius, more of an indication that they want to improve the basics. They know the game comes down to blocking, tackling, punting, catching the ball and running the ball.

Now,if they can snag Willie McGinest as well, they’ll be in great shape heading into the draft.

Phil Savage is on a roll. In the second day of free agency, the Browns added punter Dave Zastudil of Bay Village and four-time Pro Bowl nose tackle Ted Washington of the Raiders.

Washington is a huge nose tackle (6-5, 365) that can stuff the middle and helps address one of the team’s biggest needs. He’s 38 years old, however, so he isn’t a long-term solution. That said, he can really help this defense get more physical and give the Browns time to develop some young nose tackles.

Savage is also working to get former Detroit defensive end Kalimba Edwards signed by today. Edwards (6-6, 265), can play linebacker in the 3-4 and might be the pass-rush specialist the Browns sorely need.

The Cleveland Browns and Phil Savage are doing a great job of selling the “hometown” players his theory of bringing pride and winning back to Cleveland. When Phil Savage joined the Browns he spoke of tradition, winning and attitude as three key elements that will bring this organization back its winning ways. The last two have come hard for the first few years of the “second” generation Browns. The team has struggled to find quality players and continually had to fight a string of bad luck with injuries.

The signing of LeCharles Bentley and Joe Jurevicius are great signs of the where this organization is heading. These are two quality players that could have found similar money in warm weather cities and teams with current winning records. Savage has a good football mind and is very upfront with players when negotiating deals. The last two signing have really made our offense a unit that has power, talent and stability. This will give Charlie Frye, whom I’m still nervous about, the same type of supporting cast Pittsburgh gave their quarterback (Ben Roethlisberger) to win in this league. The Browns will have to use the draft and the remaining dollars to shore a defense that put up some respectable numbers last year.

Phil Savage and the Browns started the free-agent signing period with a bang, landing center LeCharles Bentley and offensive tackle Kevin Shaffer. This continues Savage’s emphasis on rebuilding the offensive line that he started last season. After years of neglect, it’s refreshing to see this franchise pay attention to one of the most important parts of the team.

Bentley is the big story here. He was ranked by ESPN as the top free agent on the market. Shaffer is also an important addition. he was ranked as the 26th best free agent, and he will step into the hole left by the departure of left tackle L. J. Shelton.

Landing the highly regarded Bentley is a huge acquisition for the Browns, who wanted more bulk and power on the interior of their offensive line. The signing represents a homecoming for Bentley, who is a Cleveland native, attended that city’s St. Ignatius High School, and is a longtime Browns fan.

Bentley can also play guard, so it will interesting to see how the Browns will use him. They have an experienced center and two experienced guards, though the guards had to fight through injuries last season.

It’s a great start. We should expect a lot more.

NFL free agency starts today and everyone in the league is predicting the Cleveland Browns to be very active. The decisions the Browns and Phil Savage make this year will affect the direction of the franchise for at least the next 5 years. The amount of money Cleveland has to spend and the core signings (Kellen Winslow, Braylon Edwards and Reuben Droughns) have the Browns organization heading in the right direction for the first time since they returned as the “new” Browns. The last time Browns fans had this much firepower, we were watching Bernie Kosar, Earnest Byner and Webstar Slaughter run around Cleveland Stadium.

The Browns have decided not to sign L. J. Sheldon this year and this will prove to be a good move. The Pittsburgh Steelers have made a successful run without allowing a couple players to tie up all of their cap money. Savage is evaluating everyone from veterans like David Givens to “risk” players like Lavar Arrington. I still believe a veteran quarterback is necessary for this team to be successful. Charlie Frye hasn’t convinced me that he can lead this team now, or in the future. I don’t want to sign a number of high impact players and then have to wait for Frye to mature. Phil Savage and the Browns are running a tight rope with fan loyalty and I believe they need to win right away. The next couple days are critical for the entire Browns organization and its fans.