Cleveland Browns 2010 mandatory mini-camp

[SJ_Browns]

According to WKNR, Jerome Harrison and Phil Dawson have shown up to mandatory mini-camp. Abe Elam and DQwell Jackson already said they're not going to be at the minicamp. Matt Roth and Lawrence Vickers are no shows (as of right now). Daryll Ryder said he'll ask Mangini why Vickers hasn't shown up. Vickers said he would be at camp on time, but hasn't shown up yet.

[SJ_Browns]

http://www.cleveland.com/browns/index.ssf/...awson_show.html

 

CLEVELAND -- Browns kicker Phil Dawson showed up for minicamp today, but fullback Lawrence Vickers, three other restricted free agents and running back Peyton Hillis were absent.

 

The other restricted free agents not here are linebackers D'Qwell Jackson and Matt Roth, and safety Abe Elam. Jackson is heading too Africa for a few weeks to help a friend open his school, Elam is weighing his options and Roth has asked to be traded.

 

Vickers is a surprise, because he attended organized team activities this week and said he planned to attend the mandatory minicamp. The RFAs are not being fined because they're not under contract. Dawson could've been docked $9,000 per day for not showing.

 

Hillis has been ill and wasn't seen on the field for the final two weeks of OTAs and now minicamp. The nature of his illness is not yet known.

 

Three of the missing restricted free agents are represented by high-profile agent Drew Rosenhaus -- Vickers, Elam and Roth.

 

Dawson did the same thing last season -- boycotted voluntary OTAs and then showed up for minicamp. He is believed to be seeking a new, long-term deal.

 

The RFAs have until Tuesday to sign their one-year tenders.

[SJ_Browns]

i'm sick of players like matt roth. he pulled the same crap with miami and didn't get his way there. now he's trying to pull the same stunt in cleveland. i guess some people never learn.

[USFBrown]

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2010/...lis-absent-too/

 

Four Browns skip mandatory camp, Hillis absent too

Posted by Gregg Rosenthal on June 10, 2010 11:40 AM ET

Abe Elam isn't the only unsigned Cleveland Brown to skip mandatory minicamp this weekend.

 

Fullback Lawrence Vickers, linebacker Matt Roth, and linebacker D'Qwell Jackson are all absent, according to the Cleveland Plain-Dealer. Vickers' absence is a surprise because he was at a voluntary practice this week, and said he would attend.

 

Kicker Phil Dawson, who has skipped most of the offseason in hopes of a new contract, did show up. So did restricted free agent running back Jerome Harrison.

 

Fullback Peyton Hillis was absent for mysterious reasons. He has an illness that prevented him from practicing the last two weeks. (That doesn't sound good.) It's unclear what type of illness has kept him out of action so long.

 

The Browns can't be happy about all the absences, but they can't do much about them since the players are unsigned. The organization ultimately made a tactical mistake by not holding the mandatory minicamp after the June 15 deadline for RFAs to sign their deals.

 

 

Good news is that Phil and Harrison showed up. Only bad news here is Vickers is a no show. I think we'll be fine without DQ and Roth with our new depth.

[Bag O'Browns]

i'm sick of players like matt roth. he pulled the same crap with miami and didn't get his way there. now he's trying to pull the same stunt in cleveland. i guess some people never learn.

 

I don't understand how the guy thinks he has leverage? We've loaded up on the position, DRAFTED for the position and hold all the cards. I'm fine with guys trying to maximize their deals when it is free agency time but there comes a point in time to realize you're beat and sign on the dotted line. You play well for a full season Mr. Roth and these Browns will pay you. He's a tough guy who should be smart and sign now so he can quit wasting time and get on the practice field. I have a feeling this guy will be the last to sign however.....

[SJ_Browns]

I don't understand how the guy thinks he has leverage? We've loaded up on the position, DRAFTED for the position and hold all the cards. I'm fine with guys trying to maximize their deals when it is free agency time but there comes a point in time to realize you're beat and sign on the dotted line. You play well for a full season Mr. Roth and these Browns will pay you. He's a tough guy who should be smart and sign now so he can quit wasting time and get on the practice field. I have a feeling this guy will be the last to sign however.....

 

these type of players let their money grubbing agents feed their brains all of this crap and they soak it up thinking the world revolves around them. this is roth's second time around, you would think he gets the picture now. we shall see.

[Gips]

Any of these guys holding out needs to be punished beyond fines because none of them has a legit reason to not be there jackson included...no excuses get in there and get with the program or sit the season with lesser pay and huge maximal daily fines for not attending camp..i fully support any action coach mangini/heckert/holmgren smack on these me first less than team loyal idiots..

 

I like roth but like others on here i dont see him having the leverage or the time on the field to warrant a multi year contract and i am really not liking his attitude towards the club..

 

Elam i wish would just go away the guy is at his very best tough but mediocre with no speed and poor coverage skill over the top or over the middle and pathetic ground coverage and tackling ability allowing RBs to bolt right past him...

 

Vickers i expected to be there..disappointing..

Jackson should be traded he could be an outstanding LB in the right system but not ours..

 

Im glad to see phil and jerome turn up..the only 2 true keepers in the lot of em..a real team player cant miss the mandatory.. salutes to these 2 guys and may their efforts be proven then rewarded!

[BrownIndian]

After knowing what Roth did to miami and seeing him do the same to us; im not sure I want him on the team.

 

Vickers, Im disappointed but I still feel positive about him after showing up for the voluntary camps.

 

Dawson needs to be resigned. If we cant re-sign our most reliable and long running player it speaks bad about us.

[Zombo]

Hillis has been ill and wasn't seen on the field for the final two weeks of OTAs and now minicamp. The nature of his illness is not yet known.

 

Don't tell me we gave him staph already?

 

Zombo

[SJ_Browns]

according to wknr, vickers is at camp. he was late due to a personal situation. way to go vickers! it's good to see that some guys honor their promises.

[SJ_Browns]

After knowing what Roth did to miami and seeing him do the same to us; im not sure I want him on the team.

 

Vickers, Im disappointed but I still feel positive about him after showing up for the voluntary camps.

 

Dawson needs to be resigned. If we cant re-sign our most reliable and long running player it speaks bad about us.

 

i agree with you, bi. if roth is going to be like that, he can get the hell out of here.

[SJ_Browns]

http://www.cleveland.com/browns/index.ssf/...r_phil_d_1.html

 

BEREA, Ohio -- Observations from the first day of Browns minicamp:

 

* Kicker Phil Dawson showed up after missing all the team's organized team activities practices. Afterwards, Dawson admitted he has to work off some rustiness. He missed one field goal wide left and made two others. Distances were hard to determine because of the position of the fields and restrictions on where the media is allowed to watch. It looked as if the miss and one of his makes were from 50 yards.

 

* Dawson politely declined to answer any questions about his contract status. He seemed to have the attitude that what you don't say speaks louder. Dawson is in the last year of his contract with a base salary of $1 million. That puts him in the bottom half of NFL kickers.

 

* Not a great outing for the offense. Quarterback Jake Delhomme was not sharp, throwing one pass behind tight end Evan Moore that was intercepted by Ray Ventrone and having another batted down. A deep ball thrown by Delhomme fluttered and floated but was caught by Mohamed Massaquoi. The other quarterbacks weren't particularly impressive, either. It just didn't look like the offense was in rhythm.

 

* The safeties on the No. 1 defense were Ventrone and Mike Adams.

 

* Fullback Lawrence Vickers was excused to be about an hour late due to personal obligations.

 

* Vickers and running back Jerome Harrison were the only unsigned restricted free agents in attendance. As expected, safety Abram Elam, linebacker D'Qwell Jackson and linebacker Matt Roth were no-shows. Also, running back Peyton Hillis was absent due to an undisclosed illness.

 

* The No. 1 offensive line unit was the same as Monday's OTA -- Joe Thomas, Eric Steinbach, Alex Mack, Floyd Womack and John St. Clair.

 

 

[beefjerky]

* The No. 1 offensive line unit was the same as Monday's OTA -- Joe Thomas, Eric Steinbach, Alex Mack, Floyd Womack and John St. Clair.

I don't understand the fascination with John St. Clair, I'm fine with him as a backup OT, but is Pashos seriously not better than him?

[SJ_Browns]

I don't understand the fascination with John St. Clair, I'm fine with him as a backup OT, but is Pashos seriously not better than him?

 

i don't know if we should read too much into this. i know steinbach was doing alot of work with the 2s in the otas prior to today.

[SJ_Browns]

sheldon brown is going to be on wknr with reghi after the commercial break for those that have access to that station.

[CLEVELandMILIDH]

i agree with you, bi. if roth is going to be like that, he can get the hell out of here.

 

The problem with doing that is it sends a message to the players that if you wine and cry enough that you want a new contract or want traded it will happen.

 

There setting the bar on how there going to handle player contracts so players know in the future that they must honor there contract and no matter how much complaining

 

they do it wont change

[CLEVELandMILIDH]

I don't understand the fascination with John St. Clair, I'm fine with him as a backup OT, but is Pashos seriously not better than him?

 

Mangini understands competition, he brought Pashos in to beat out St. Clair, but that doesnt happen without pads on. Same with Ventrone and Adams on 1st team defense, he's gonna make Asante and Ward beat them out and earn there spot.

[BrownIndian]

The problem with doing that is it sends a message to the players that if you wine and cry enough that you want a new contract or want traded it will happen.

 

There setting the bar on how there going to handle player contracts so players know in the future that they must honor there contract and no matter how much complaining

 

they do it wont change

 

We do not mean to say that we must acquiesce to their wishes. But rather not offer them a contract and make them sit for one year till the realize that their trade value and salary is going to go down if they dont get playing time. If he was smart he should have came out when the chance to trade him was still there. He waited thinking that this way he will have the upper hand in this situation. too bad for him.

 

 

[SJ_Browns]

The problem with doing that is it sends a message to the players that if you wine and cry enough that you want a new contract or want traded it will happen.

 

There setting the bar on how there going to handle player contracts so players know in the future that they must honor there contract and no matter how much complaining

 

they do it wont change

 

i was just making a statement as a fan saying roth can "get the hell out of here". i didn't mean it literally though, it was more so me saying get that trade me crap out of here.

 

heckert said a while ago they weren't going to trade roth.

[SJ_Browns]

Mangini understands competition, he brought Pashos in to beat out St. Clair, but that doesnt happen without pads on. Same with Ventrone and Adams on 1st team defense, he's gonna make Asante and Ward beat them out and earn there spot.

 

agreed.

[SJ_Browns]

We do not mean to say that we must acquiesce to their wishes. But rather not offer them a contract and make them sit for one year till the realize that their trade value and salary is going to go down if they dont get playing time. If he was smart he should have came out when the chance to trade him was still there. He waited thinking that this way he will have the upper hand in this situation. too bad for him.

 

good post. ofcourse we don't want people like roth on our team. but that doesn't mean we want him to get his way by crybabying out of cleveland via trade. he can sit on his ass and lose money for a whole year and see his value to other teams go down for all i care. i'm sick of these spoiled brat athletes that think they have the world in the palm of their hands.

 

as hard as it is in ne ohio on people financially, to hell with roth's mentality. roth should tell his agent to shut the hell up, then he should get his ass to camp. be a man and earn the respect of the browns fo and show them he deserves a new contract. i guess that's too much like right, though.

[sisky fringo]

no worries about Vickers...he's been attending 5th period at his high school alma mater--

 

he should be totally set for the summer!

 

plus when he arrived he confidently admitted he has everything memorized (aka left his shit at the house).

 

and screw all the Rosenhaus clients.

 

depth is a beautiful thing.

[SJ_Browns]

http://www.clevelandbrowns.com/news/articl...7d-02b4c31c3da9

 

Time-management skills and solid communication were key parts of the offense's ability to make changes at the line of scrimmage during Thursday's morning practice.

Time is always running out in the National Football League.

 

 

Though time-management skills are critical in any profession, when a team has 40 seconds to run a play and just 60 minutes to display a week’s worth of work, every single second of practice matters.

 

 

With the Browns having an NFL meeting early Thursday morning, the team had an increased need for time-management and communication during their first mandatory mini-camp practice.

 

 

“Today, what we’ve done and throughout this weekend, what we’ll be doing is really following the same pattern; it’s just accelerated,” said Browns coach Eric Mangini. “We didn’t have a lot of time to get the install. The guys looked over it last night, but I thought their recall from the OTA days was really good and it’s positive.

 

 

“We’re taking two days, two-plus days of install and combining them into one practice,” he continued. “It’ll be the same thing this afternoon, the same thing tomorrow morning and tomorrow afternoon. It’s nice to see a limited amount of miscommunications. Offensively, we had a lot of shifts, a lot of motions. There was only one penalty this morning and that’s really what I’m looking for and that’s something that I was really happy with, especially considering the number of things that we did. The level of communication really helped everyone get where they needed to be.”

 

 

Early in the practice, Browns quarterback Jake Delhomme was able to shake off a couple of batted balls at the line of scrimmage and read the defenses before deciding whether or not to change the play at the line of scrimmage.

 

 

Delhomme really impressed with his ability to check down to another play or readjust to the original call should the defense make a change in their alignment.

 

 

“I thought he made some good decisions on different plays,” Mangini said. “There were a couple things he checked into that were really good. Then, he realized it was just cat-and-mouse. He checked into something and the defense checked into something and then, he could check back to the original thing.

 

 

“That’s something that he realized and saw, which is really good. That’s an element with his experience that he gives us. He’s intuitive; he understands and he’s anticipating it. Things like that are good to see. I didn’t think he had a bad morning.”

 

 

In addition to getting the offense on the same page, the quarterbacks are also responsible for protecting the football from the snap to the handoff on running plays. While Peyton Hillis is not expected to practice this weekend due to illness, the Browns still have seven running backs and fullbacks participating in drills.

 

 

“I think there is good depth there and I’m happy with it,” said Mangini. “With Jerome (Harrison) and Montario (Hardesty), I think Montario’s done a really nice job for a rookie. He’s taken a lot of reps and Peyton can play there and will play there for us. You’ve got Chris Jennings and James Davis. Both guys did some nice things last year, so it is quite a group.

 

 

“You add Thomas Brown in that mix and I’m excited to see what they do in training camp and then with their opportunities in the preseason games,” he concluded. “It’s a good group and a really conscientious group. They pick up information well, which is good.”

 

 

MITCHELL ADDS TO WR CORPS

 

 

When the Browns drafted Carlton Mitchell from the University of South Florida, they got more than just a 6-foot-3, 215-pound wide receiver. They got a guy with an athletic background that did not rely solely on his abilities on the field to achieve success. He worked and continues to work toward being an impact player on the NFL level.

 

 

That point has been driven home during Mitchell’s time on the field during OTAs and the first practice of mini-camp.

 

 

“One of the things that I’ve liked with Carlton is he’s gotten a little better each day,” said Mangini. “With those guys, they make take a couple steps forward and a step back, but he’s a hard worker. He’s got really good speed, got good size and he’s made some progress in terms of understanding assignments. He’s gotten some good work here in terms of the number of reps he has participated in.”

 

 

VICKERS LIKES THE OFFENSE

 

 

When Lawrence Vickers returned to Berea earlier this week for the final days of Organized Team Activities, he saw a completely retooled offense from the one that played in the last game of the 2009 season, a 23-17 win over the Jaguars in a snow-covered Cleveland Browns Stadium on January 3rd.

 

 

The Browns have added a host of new players, including two running backs with Hillis and Hardesty joining the team through a trade and the Draft as well as new quarterbacks in Delhomme, Seneca Wallace and Colt McCoy.

 

 

While it can take some time to get all of the new players and veterans working in unison, that has not been the case.

 

 

“The offense is looking real good,” Vickers said. “Things are clicking, guys know what to do. I’m excited about it. We’ve got a couple of great quarterbacks in there. Actually, all our quarterbacks are good. All of them are throwing, they’re all challenging. Everybody’s challenging each other out there, so that’s the good part about this.”

 

[SJ_Browns]

a good read about tony pashos:

 

http://www.ohio.com/sports/browns/96014569.html

 

Tony Pashos walks into Penn Station East Coast Subs, orders an Italian sandwich with a side of fries and soaks in some love from Browns fans.

 

Welcome to Northeast Ohio, Tony. Football rules these parts.

 

''As die-hard as the people in Cleveland are for their teams, I think it has a little extra touch here,'' said Pashos, a 6-foot-6, 326-pound offensive lineman who will soon enter his eighth NFL season. ''From pumping gas to being in a restaurant, you get guys coming up to you saying, 'We're gonna win it this year. Let's go.' There's a lot of support and a lot of fans that want to see this team do well.''

 

Pashos has similar hopes for his new team. After playing for the Baltimore Ravens, the Jacksonville Jaguars and, most recently, the San Francisco 49ers, Pashos signed a three-year, $10.3 million contract in March to join the Browns.

 

He has spent the past few weeks competing for a starting job. His quest to secure a spot on the right side of the Browns' offensive line will continue today through Saturday at the Browns' minicamp in Berea.

 

''One step at a time,'' Pashos said of finding his role with the Browns. ''I'm trying to learn the plays, the way to do things around here, the guys around me, schemes and whatnot. Down the road that takes care of itself, but initially I have got to learn to play in this system.''

 

From 2006-08, Pashos started every game in which he played (47-of-47 at right tackle). In 2009, he had only one start in five games with the 49ers before a broken left shoulder — which he insists is fine now — ended his season.

 

Three-fifths of the Browns' offensive line appears to be solidified with Joe Thomas (left tackle), Eric Steinbach (left guard) and Alex Mack (center) expected to return to the positions they played last season. Pashos has worked at right tackle and right guard. Rookie Shawn Lauvao and veterans John St. Clair and Floyd Womack are also battling to win a starting gig on the right side.

 

''He's all football all the time, which is good,'' Browns coach Eric Mangini said of Pashos. ''Where he's going to fit, guard, tackle, starter, backup, I couldn't tell you right now. I think that there's a good group over on that right side fighting it out and we've just got to see who comes out on top.''

 

If Pashos conquers his competition, 40 percent of the Browns' first-team offensive line will likely consist of Lockport, Ill., natives. Although they never faced each other during their prep football days, Pashos, a Lockport High School graduate, and Steinbach, a Providence Catholic High School product, share the same hometown.

 

''He was the big, unathletic lineman when I was playing tight end and defensive end [in high school],'' Steinbach said with a laugh.

 

Despite Steinbach's wisecrack, Pashos has some legitimate bragging rights. In 1997, the two competed as seniors in the Rudy's High School Football Powerlifting Championships in Joliet, Ill., and Pashos led Lockport to the team title, setting a meet record with a total of 1,610 pounds (350 bench press, 660 dead lift and 600 squat).

 

After high school, Pashos went to Illinois and Steinbach attended Iowa. They reunited at the 2003 Senior Bowl, where they discussed the possibility of landing on the same NFL roster.

 

It finally happened about eight years later, and Pashos is excited about what might follow.

 

''I think we can do a lot of great things,'' Pashos said. ''There's a lot of great linemen. But like any team, you've got to get on the same page. You've got to be rolling, put together some back-to-back practices that are good, and that usually carries over to the games.

 

''I want to get back into the playoffs, and I definitely would like a Super Bowl ring. I've been blessed with a lot of good and bad things in my career, and I would like to get what a lot of my peers have now. And that's a Super Bowl ring.''

[SJ_Browns]

http://cle.scout.com/2/976376.html

 

The Browns passing game did not get a passing grade for its performance Thursday morning as the club’s mandatory three-day full-squad minicamp opened.

 

And to gauge just how disappointing it was, you needed only to look at team president Mike Holmgren – and the placement of his hands -- during one particularly hard-to-watch three-play sequence.

 

Holmgren, who knows a thing or two or three about throwing the ball, was standing on the side watching. He went from having his hands behind his back, to holding them on his hips, as quarterback Seneca Wallace’s pass to Alex Smith went off the tight end’s hands, his toss to James Davis went off the running back’s hands, and his throw for wide receiver Chansi Stuckey was broken up by cornerback Coye Francies.

 

Then Brett Ratliff went in at quarterback.

 

It was as if Holmgren, with his hand movements, went from saying, “The weather is beautiful today. I like being out here watching this young team develop,” to “What in the name of the forward pass is going on here?”

 

To be fair, the Browns threw the ball extremely well during the OTA practices, especially in the ones that were open to the media. It was a marked improvement from a year ago, when, even in the season-ending four-game winning streak, the Browns struggled to throw the ball. As such, Holmgren – along with head coach Eric Mangini and offensive coordinator Brian Daboll – had absolutely no reason to be upset with the team’s work this spring.

 

So maybe what happened Thursday morning was just a little hiccup or speed bump. And anyway, it’s better that it happens now, about three months before the start of the regular season, than in early November, when the Browns, with a little luck, could be right around .500 as they try to post just their third winning record of the expansion era.

 

Still, it was a difficult start to the minicamp. Here are some of the other passing plays:

 

*Jake Delhomme went to Mohamed Massaquoi, but the wide receiver slipped when he made his cut to turn for the ball, and it was intercepted by cornerback Joe Haden, the team’s first-round pick in the NFL Draft.

 

*Delhomme’s pass for Massaquoi was knocked down.

 

*A pass intended for Smith was intercepted by defensive back Ray Ventrone.

 

*Ratliff’s pass for tight end Evan Moore was overthrown.

 

*Wallace tried to hit wide receiver Brian Robiskie, but it was broken up by defensive back Mike Adams.

 

*Adams broke up Wallace’s pass for wideout Joshua Cribbs on the next play.

 

*Rookie Colt McCoy was right on the mark to Ryan Moya, but the ball went through the tight end’s hands.

 

*Delhomme’s pass to Robiskie was broken up by linebacker Chris Gocong.

 

*Wallace threw a pass toward Moore and Lawrence Vickers, but the tight end broke one way and the fullback went another direction and the ball went right between them.

 

*Delhomme’s pass to Robert Royal was behind the tight end.

 

*Wallace’s pass was knocked down at the line of scrimmage by defensive end Robaire Smith.

 

*Wallace tried to hit Stuckey, but the pass was broken up.

 

The quarterbacks and receivers have to share the blame. To be sure, some of the throws were off-target, but at the same time, the receivers did not do a good job of coming back for the ball, allowing defenders to slip in and get their hands on the passes.

 

There were some good passing plays as well, the best of them being Ratliff’s right-on-target throw to Carlton Mitchell as the rookie wideout found a seam down the left side.

 

Also, wide receiver James Robinson made a nice leaping, fingertip catch of a Ratliff pass on a crossing route, and Stuckey made a good grab of a Wallace throw.

 

Here are some quick notes:

 

*Two of the Browns’ five restricted free agents practiced. Running back Jerome Harrison and fullback Lawrence Vickers were present, while linebackers Matt Roth and D’Qwell Jackson, and safety Abe Elam decided to stay away.

 

*WR Carlton Mitchell always practices with the sleeves of his jersey rolled up, revealing some well-muscled arms.

 

*Holmgren’s guest at practice was former longtime Kansas City Chiefs general manager Carl Peterson.

 

*As usual, the Browns blared music at practice, with several of the speakers stationed along the west side of the practice complex. The rear of a Baptist church is located only about 15 yards away on the other side of a fence. Some of the lyrics in the rap songs being played were a little edgy for Sunday school. One time several years ago, the Browns were conducting a training camp practice when a funeral was being held at the church.

 

*The best line of the day came as a small bird, separated from its mother and trying to figure out a way to get over the aforementioned fence to get back to her, kept buzzing the head of Browns radio analyst Doug Dieken. Someone quipped that the bird was giving the former Browns left tackle as much trouble as did Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Jack Lambert. Dieken came back, “His legs are about as skinny as Lambert’s, too.”

 

 

[Bag O'Browns]

SJ, thanks for all of the updates! Good stuff! The positiveness of the negative offense is perhaps the defense is looking sharp? Lord knows Ryan wasn't probably pleased the offense has been eating his guys alive. Practice or no, there is still pride at stake.

[SJ_Browns]

http://www.cleveland.com/browns/index.ssf/...out_dqwell.html

 

BEREA, Ohio — Three of the Browns' five restricted free agents failed to show up Thursday for mandatory minicamp, casting even more doubt on their futures with the club. They are linebackers D'Qwell Jackson and Matt Roth, and safety Abram Elam.

 

The two who did show were running back Jerome Harrison and fullback Lawrence Vickers, although Vickers was 1 1/2 hours late.

 

"I had some legal issues I had to handle in Houston," Vickers said. "I had to wake up, get me a 5 a.m. flight and still make it to practice. See? That's dedication. It had nothing to do with my contract."

 

Vickers stressed that the issues were nothing negative against him.

 

"I just had a couple things I had to handle, some family issues," he said. "Coach [Eric Mangini] knew. I called him. Everybody knew what was going on."

 

It's unknown whether any of the five will sign their tenders by Tuesday's deadline. If not, they risk having their offers significantly reduced.

 

Jackson said he's leaving Monday for two weeks in Africa to help his friend, Madieu Williams of the Vikings, open his school for underprivileged children. He said he wasn't sure if he'd sign the tender before then. Two of the missing RFAs, Roth and Elam, are represented by high-profile agent Drew Rosenhaus. So is Vickers.

 

"[Rosenhaus] just wants to make sure that the players are taken care of and making sure we get the best deal for ourselves," said Vickers. "Nothing is promised in this league. You have to make sure you take care of your business and make sure people upstairs get what they're paying for."

 

Vickers said Rosenhaus didn't advise him not to attend minicamp.

 

"I'm confident everything will work itself out," said Vickers. "I'm excited. I'm an emotional guy. I don't really hide things. That should tell you that I'm fine with everything that's going on. I'm confident."

 

The three missing players aren't being fined because they're not under contract. But Mangini still issued a warning.

 

"When you're not here you're missing out on information which is important and you're giving other guys your reps," he said.

 

Hillis ill: Running back Peyton Hillis is sitting out minicamp and missed the last two sessions of OTAs with what Mangini described as a bad cold.

 

"He was sick when he went home last time and had a pretty bad cold so we didn't want him to travel," said Mangini. "He'll be back tomorrow night. I don't anticipate him practicing this weekend, so we'll just make sure he's back on track. He's been building up and he'll be back."

 

Ward, Wright tight: Cornerback Eric Wright and rookie safety T.J. Ward were both sidelined Thursday by tight muscles, Mangini said. Wright left the morning session after tightening up, and Ward missed the whole morning practice. Both were idle in the afternoon. Wright was replaced by rookie Joe Haden, and Ward by Larry Asante. Mangini said Ward's was more precautionary, but wasn't specific about Wright's.

 

Receiver Jake Allen also sat out the afternoon session with a wrapped knee. The injured players who missed OTAs were still resting. They include Eric Barton, Shaun Rogers, Dave Zastudil and C.J. Mosely.

 

Pick parade: The afternoon session featured four interceptions, two by second-year cornerback Coye Francies and two by safety Nick Sorensen. Three were off of Seneca Wallace, and one, by Sorensen, was off of Brett Ratliff. In the morning, Ray Ventrone intercepted Jake Delhomme.

 

Geathers jumpy: Massive rookie defensive lineman Cliff Geathers lost his cool in the morning session and threw several punches at a few offensive linemen after a play. Teammates got involved and had to be separated. But Geathers was back in on the next rep and didn't even have to take a lap.

[SJ_Browns]

SJ, thanks for all of the updates! Good stuff! The positiveness of the negative offense is perhaps the defense is looking sharp? Lord knows Ryan wasn't probably pleased the offense has been eating his guys alive. Practice or no, there is still pride at stake.

no prob, man! in regards to the offense, it sounded like mangini gave the offense a whole bunch of stuff to memroize and a little time to to get it in. probably to see how the o did under extreme adversity? kind of sounds like what he did (at times) last off-season. i think the o is ok esp. since they've been looking good all summer.

[SJ_Browns]

The two who did show were running back Jerome Harrison and fullback Lawrence Vickers, although Vickers was 1 1/2 hours late.

 

"I had some legal issues I had to handle in Houston," Vickers said. "I had to wake up, get me a 5 a.m. flight and still make it to practice. See? That's dedication. It had nothing to do with my contract."

 

Vickers stressed that the issues were nothing negative against him.

 

"I just had a couple things I had to handle, some family issues," he said. "Coach [Eric Mangini] knew. I called him. Everybody knew what was going on."

 

"[Rosenhaus] just wants to make sure that the players are taken care of and making sure we get the best deal for ourselves," said Vickers. "Nothing is promised in this league. You have to make sure you take care of your business and make sure people upstairs get what they're paying for."

 

Vickers said Rosenhaus didn't advise him not to attend minicamp.

 

"I'm confident everything will work itself out," said Vickers. "I'm excited. I'm an emotional guy. I don't really hide things. That should tell you that I'm fine with everything that's going on. I'm confident."

 

it's good to know that vickers is a man of his word.

 

Hillis ill: Running back Peyton Hillis is sitting out minicamp and missed the last two sessions of OTAs with what Mangini described as a bad cold.

 

"He was sick when he went home last time and had a pretty bad cold so we didn't want him to travel," said Mangini. "He'll be back tomorrow night. I don't anticipate him practicing this weekend, so we'll just make sure he's back on track. He's been building up and he'll be back."

 

i'm glad hillis is ok and will be back today. that's good news because i think he can contribute alot to the o.

 

 

[SJ_Browns]

sheldon brown is going to be on wknr with reghi after the commercial break for those that have access to that station.

 

the thing that stood out the most to me in brown's interview was his playing style. he said he's not a gambler and he tries to stay inside of whatever play they're running. he goes for the tackle or to break the pass up first, but if the situation presents itself, he'll go for the int. maybe he can help bmac out because he's the exact opposite.