Browns QB Competition Not Finished Yet

Cleveland Browns head coach Eric Mangini announced on Monday that his ongoing QB competition will continue for one final week, as QBs Brady Quinn and Derek Anderson battle for the starting day job.

The Browns have yet to name a starter for their final preseason game on Thursday against the Chicago Bears, much less for the season opener against the division rival Minnesota Vikings on Sept. 13.

Mangini has repeatedly said that rotating QBs during the regular season is not an option in his mind. He does not plan to switch QBs once he decides upon his starter.

Quinn outplayed Anderson on Saturday night in the Browns’ 23-17 win against the Tennessee Titans, throwing the only TD pass that either QB has thrown all preseason. He hit WR Braylon Edwards with a 20-yard strike in the end zone after starting with a short field from the Titans’ 34 yard line.

Quinn finished Saturday with a great stat line: 11-for-15 for 128 yards, 1 TD and 0 INTS. Anderson didn’t play much worse, going 7-for-11 for 77 yards, however; Tennessee CB Tenard Davis did drop a should-be interception of Anderson’s.

Monday, August 31, 2009 at 10:45 pm by bryan

Anderson makes his case in win

Derek Anderson seems determined to make his decision on who his starting quarterback will be as difficult as possible.

Anderson, in a heated battle with former No. 1 pick Brady Quinn to lead the Cleveland Browns under center in 2009, went 8 of 13 for 130 yards and an interception in a 27-10 win over the Detroit Lions Saturday night. His counterpart was just 3 of 5 for 29 yards. With two more preseason games to go, however, head coach Eric Mangini is still going to wait and see before committing to either QB.

Despite his performance and experience advantage over Quinn, Mangini would probably be better served going with the former Notre Dame star. Yes, parity reigns in the NFL and as Cleveland itself showed a few years ago, a team can catch lightning in a bottle and compete for a playoff spot. But realistically, that’s not going to happen for the Browns this season, so making a commitment to develop its QB of the future (or simply to find out if Quinn IS the QB of the future) is the logical move.

No head coach wants to admit that his team needs to build toward the future, but that’s what Mangini needs to do. He isn’t on the hot seat and fighting for his job; he has the leeway and support of ownership at the moment. He’d do well to put his team in a better position for next season, not this season. And in the meantime, it’s not like Quinn is a rookie whose play is going to demoralize the rest of the team. He’ll at the very least be serviceable while getting a chance to gain invaluable experience.

Sunday, August 23, 2009 at 6:55 pm by reggy10

Anderson Starts in Browns’ Home Opener

Coach Eric Mangini kept his lips locked when asked about his starting quarterback for this weekend’s preseason contest against the Lions this week, providing no end in sight to the Browns’ ongoing QB battle.

Because QB Brady Quinn started last week’s game against the Packers (which the Browns dropped, 17-0), Anderson got the starting nod this week.

Anderson immediately led the Browns to break their offensive woes, as the Brownies found the end zone tonight for the first time in what feels like forever (remember, they’d had a scoreless streak dating to LAST SEASON). Jamal Lewis punched in the Browns’ opening drive with a 4-yard run, putting the Browns on the board early en route to a 27-10 win against the lowly Lions.

Anderson finished 8-13 for 130 yards with an INT; Quinn completed 3 of 5 passes for 29 yards and no TDs or INTs.

The Browns gave No. 1 draft pick QB Matthew Stafford a rough introduction to being a starter in the NFL, pressuring him into a 5 for 13 night for only 35 yards and an INT to boot.

The other excitement from the Browns came from RB James Davis, who rushed 12 times for 116 yards, including an 81-yard TD run that he ripped off with only seconds left in the fourth quarter.

Saturday, August 22, 2009 at 9:47 pm by bryan

Edwards Calls Drops Part of Game

Embattled WR Braylon Edwards is in the headlines again after his dropped TD pass last week in the Browns’ first preseason game, where they were shut out 17-0 against the Green Bay Packers.

Coach Eric Mangini suggested earlier that Edwards’ catching troubles, which appear to be recurring from last year, could be cured by catching balls from the JUGS pass-catching machine.

The Cleveland Plain Dealer quoted Edwards’ response: “I can catch 1,000 passes on the JUGS machine, but at the end of the day it’s not a game, it’s not Brady [Quinn] throwing the ball, it’s not Derek [Anderson], it’s not a DB covering me. That’s just muscle memory. The ball doesn’t actually come out like that.”

Edwards went on to say, “It’s just part of football. I felt good in the game for the most part. Just making sure I felt good and felt healthy, that was the biggest thing I was concerned about. That felt good. That said, I feel good about this game and the rest of the season.”

When asked specifically what happened on the dropped touchdown pass, he responded, “I jumped the gun. It is what it is. I think we’re making too much here about that play.”

Edwards has a chance to back up his words as the Browns play Detroit in their home opening preseason game on Saturday night. It’s definitely worth keeping an eye on how Edwards catches the ball from both QBs, Brady Quinn and Derek Anderson, both still engaged in a QB competition for the right to be the opening day starter.

Wednesday, August 19, 2009 at 11:19 pm by bryan

Browns Shellacked In Preseason Opener

The Green Bay Packers put a-whuppin’ to the Cleveland Browns in both teams’ preseason opener, with the Packers winning 17-0 decisively.

And new head coach Eric Mangini still needs a starting QB.

The Packers’ switch to a 3-4 defense befuddled both Brady Quinn and Derek Anderson - Quinn went 7 of 11 for 68 yards and an INT in two series, and Anderson did not complete a pass in two tries during two series.

After the game, ESPN quoted Coach Mangini as saying, “What I wanted to see was smart football, I want to see toughness and I want to see us be able to outhustle our opponent. I don’t really think we achieved any of those objectives.”

With Quinn earning the starting nod, he did provide the Browns one bright spot by completing four straight passes in the 2-minute offense just before halftime, moving the Browns to the Packers’ 6 before the drive stalled. Embattled WR Braylon Edwards dropped a sure TD pass first, and on the next play, Quinn misfired behind Edwards and Packers safety Anthony Smith came up with the ball.

“That was a poor decision on my part,” Quinn said. “Especially in that situation, you want to come away with at least some points. If it’s not a touchdown, a field goal. I put that on myself and I apologize to my teammates.”

Sunday, August 16, 2009 at 6:41 pm by bryan

Stallworth suspended for season

Roger Goodell made the predictable move of suspending Cleveland Brown wide receiver Donte Stallworth for the 2009 season. The details of his problems stemming from his guity pleat to DUI manslaughter in March has already been well-documented in this blog as well as every sports news outlet, so I’ll spare you the long, repetetive details again.

Instead, let’s take a minute to focus on who this announcement really hurts (through no fault of their own, might I add): the Cleveland Browns.

The team signed Stallworth to a seven-year, $35 million contract in 2008 to be rising star Braylon Edwards sidekick. Together, the two were supposed to give Derek Anderson or Brady Quinn dangerous weapons that would help end the Browns’ playoff drought.

Just a year later, Cleveland is now facing a bitter reality: Edwards has taken at least one step back and doesn’t appear to be in the team’s future, after they spent all offseason trying to negotiate a trade to ship him out of town, and Stallworth is already out for this season. And who knows what he’ll bring to the table upon his return? Meanwhile, it looks as if David Patten is going to be the No. 2 WR this season. Good luck with that.

Between this and the uncertainty at the quarterback position, the Browns are poised for yet another dismal season. Two seasons ago, they were the talk of the NFL, a team that challenged for a playoff spot up until the final week of the year, and a team with a solid foundation for success. The hope that Cleveland fans held not too long ago is officially gone for the time being.

Thursday, August 13, 2009 at 9:02 pm by reggy10

Stallworth Can Leave Home to Train

A judge ruled Tuesday that suspended Browns WR Donte Stallworth is now permitted to leave home confinement and train with a strength and conditioning coach five times a week, according to court documents.

ESPN reported that Stallworth’s attorney Christopher Lyons submitted the motion so Stallworth could “maintain an elevated degree of physical conditioning.”

Originally, Stallworth was not allowed to leave his house except for work, community service or other court-approved activities.  Court documents reveal that he may now train with coach Pete Bommarito at a local high school in the Miami area.

Under the previous terms of his house arrest, Stallworth could not leave his residence except for work, community service or other approved activity. He will now be allowed to train with coach Pete Bommarito at a local high school, according to court documents.

Stallworth’s prosecutor, Patrick Trese, objected to the motion, saying, “the fact is that he’s presently not formally employed by the NFL.  And absent him being formally employed by the NFL, he’s not in a position where I think it’s necessary for him to worry about those types of issues.”

Stallworth was involved in a DUI incident on March 14 of this year when he struck and killed 59-year-old Mario Reyes with a blood alcohol content of .126.

Wednesday, August 12, 2009 at 11:14 pm by bryan

Shaun Smith Cut From Browns Roster

Veteran defensive lineman Shaun Smith, who started 19 games in two seasons with the Browns, was released on Saturday to free up a roster spot, according to head coach Eric Mangini.

Smith, a 6-foot-2, 325-pounder who could play defensive end or nose tackle, made nine starts last season, ending the season with 47 tackles in 11 games.

He might have been best known from his weight-room confrontation with QB Brady Quinn last December.  Smith reportedly punched Quinn in the face after an intense argument - Quinn was sidelined by a season-ending finger injury at the time.

Smith signed a four-year, $8.6 million contract with the Browns in 2007 after playing two seasons in Cincinatti.

“I think Shaun did a good job while he was here, and in terms of his experience prior to me getting here, I wasn’t familiar with all of those things,” said Mangini, who came to the Browns in January after they fired Romeo Crennel.

Monday, August 10, 2009 at 9:15 pm by bryan

Mangini Disputes Agent’s Injury Claims

Two days after news broke that WR Syndric Steptoe’s agent Jerome Stanley was blaming new Browns head coach Eric Mangini for an injury Steptoe suffered during practice on Saturday, Coach Mangini was on the defensive.


”Seventy-nine other guys were able to practice effectively,” Mangini said Sunday. “And really the play that he was injured on didn’t have anything to do with the elements.”


Steptoe was injured in Saturday’s practice when he tore his labrum diving for a ball, a common practice move for Steptoe according to the coach. Mangini reportedly cut Saturday’s practice 20 minutes short due to inclement weather.


Steptoe’s agent blamed the injury on Mangini’s practice habits. Stanley believes Mangini originally scheduled walk-through drills, which the players had expected, but turned Saturday into a full-speed practice in heavy rain.


”I haven’t talked to Syndric Steptoe’s agent. I don’t know what he said,” Mangini said. ”The practice we had planned is the practice that we executed Saturday.”

at 6:37 pm by bryan

Steptoe’s Agent Blames Mangini For Injury

New Browns head coach Eric Mangini has established a radically different training camp atmosphere than former Browns coach Romeo Crennel used to run. Now, reserve WR Syndric Steptoe’s agent is coming out and blaming Mangini’s practice habits for Steptoe’s season-ending torn labrum, which he suffered in practice on Saturday.


According to the ESPN report, “[Steptoe's] agent Jerome Stanley said a last-minute change of plans from walk-through drills, which the players had expected, to a full-speed practice in heavy rain was the root of the injury.”


The Cleveland Plain Dealer and ESPN reported that Saturday’s practice consisted of no-contact drills in shorts and jerseys with no pads and no live tackling.


“Obviously, hindsight gives one a different perspective,” Stanley said. “But if the practice had stayed a walk-through, Syndric wouldn’t be preparing for season-ending surgery right now. The decision produced a bad result for the kid and the team.”


Injury details were not released. Steptoe, the Browns’ seventh-round pick in 2007, started five of 16 games last year.

Sunday, August 9, 2009 at 11:17 pm by bryan