TheClevelandSound Posted August 13, 2009 Report Share Posted August 13, 2009 I took the time yesterday to attend Cleveland Browns training camp yesterday and I saw many surprises, insecurities, improvements, organizational flaws, and strict conduct. Let me show you what I mean. QB BATTLE: Brady- Ive always had a little bias towards Brady Quinn because of his wonderful career in college and his hometown loyalty. He is an accurate quarterback who has yet had the chance to prove himself in the NFL. But yesterday, he did not fit that profile. Maybe he was having a bad day but Quinn (during 2 min drills) spent way too much time in the pocket, got picked off by Rod Hood, and had 2 incomplete passes. All wasn't negative though. He threw two touchdown passes to newly aquired TE Robert Royal, who has impressed me the most in recent days. Derek Anderson impressed me by being more accurate than usual. In one case, he rolled out for 20 seconds trying to escape would-be tacklers in real games. Even after almost running out of bounds, DA threw a 35 yard pass to the corner of the endzone for Mohammad Massoquai. So I will continue to have mixed feelings about Derek. Brett Ratliff and Richard Bartel got around 2 snaps a peice and were hard to judge. Now I truly see why Mangini is having such a hard time picking a starter. My vote still goes to Quinn. WHAT KELLEN?: Like I said, what left the longest lasting impression yesterday was TE Robert Royal. Royal seemed to always be open and caught everything that was thrown to him (yes, we are talkiing about you Derek). Royal also seems bigger and has more brute force than Kellen ever did. He is also taller and about the same speed. I can't imagine Royal's blocking is worse than Kellens. So I think this could possibly be the best pickup of the offseason. Or maybe im just being optimistic. RECIEVERS GALORE: With the loss of Donte Stallworth and Braylon Edwards not fully in practice with the team, all four quarterbacks always had someone to throw to, and recievers (mostly) got it right. Brian Robiske is turning out to be a training camp stud. The tallest reciever in the group, he is an easy target and will most likely get double teamed (especially if Braylon isnt catching anything). Mohammad Massoquai was impressive early on, making athletic, Braylon-like catches. But on one of Quinns drives, he slipped in the endzone but still managed to catch the ball (that wasnt intended for him). He also misread a quick pass for him, which in a real game could have lead to an easy pick. Paul Hubbard was all over the ball as well. Norwood was being thrown to as well, but his height is going to cause alot of mismatches. Lance Leggit and Braylon Edwards rode bikes all day. RUNNING BACKS...I MEAN...LEWIS: Jamal Lewis was the only running back to be in full practice yesterday, and man, hes still got his feet. He still runs like a rookie and doesnt look like he is aging at all. He still has 5 years (AT LEAST) in the tank. Lets just hope Brian Daboll makes good use of the legendary player. Jerome Harrison rode the excersize bikes all day, and James Davis was nowhere to be seen. Lawerence Vickers and Charles Ali also barely practiced. OFFENSIVE LINE...ALWAYS A HIGHLIGHT: The offensive line looks unbreakable. With the whole right side changed, one would think the core would have chemistry issues. But this line looks like they have been playing together for a decade. John St. Clair was a great addition and is almost unstoppable. Floyd Womack is very underrated and could be the next lineman in our probowl roster. Joe Thomas was his usual. Eric Steinbeck looked mediocre, but he also looked tired. What alot of people arent paying attention to is the battle for Center. Alex Mack is a great blocker and fresh to go. Hank Fraley is a seasoned veteran who still knows the proper techniques to be one of the best centers in the AFC. Ryan Tucker is doing better but holding penalites may lose his chance of starting all season. D-LINE POWERHOUSE: These guys look like they are from another planet. Their size is gigantor and their speed is incredible. Shawn Rogers is still the beast in the middle. And his deception (whether intentional) is uncanny. He almost limps off the field in between plays, but during the 2 min drill, he was nonstop action. Corey Williams is looking like the guy who played for the Packers with Favre. Robaire Smith got a some time in, and so did Maiuva, who was very impressive. C.J. Mosely was also in for a few plays. Not to be too omptimistic, but Adrian Peterson has a bit of a challenge on opening day. LINEBACKERS: D'Quell Jackson is once again the leader of this newly formed defense. Leading the league in tackles last year, he is sure to come off with some energy and balance. Newly drafted Veikune will also bring an impact to the team but may not start because of his movement from D-Line to LB. Kameron Wimbly looked his usual, getting pressure on the QB. Eric Barton is much taller than I had expected and will offer some speed and agility for our LB core. It doesnt seem like the loss of Andre Davis will haunt our team. SECONDARY: With a plethera of depth in the secondary, Rob Ryan has to feel lucky. The return of Brandon McDonald and Eric Wright will help immensly, and they were all over the recievers yesterday. Rod Hood looked the most impressive, intercepting three passes from three different QBs. I really hope he starts on September 13th. Corey Ivy is a taller CB with speed. He looked fresh as well. Brodney Pool looked the same, making a presence of himself, and Abram Elam looked phenominal (with the exception of getting burned on a play of two). For all you sportswriters out there, don't count the Browns out just yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fooleeze Posted August 13, 2009 Report Share Posted August 13, 2009 That's an awful lot of optimism for a realist to take!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D Bone Posted August 13, 2009 Report Share Posted August 13, 2009 Super Bowl baby! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Earl34 Posted August 13, 2009 Report Share Posted August 13, 2009 That's an awful lot of optimism for a realist to take!!! That was my thought but if you can't show a little optimism in pre-season then you're really depressed, right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gips Posted August 13, 2009 Report Share Posted August 13, 2009 QB BATTLE: Brady- Ive always had a little bias towards Brady Quinn because of his wonderful career in college and his hometown loyalty. He is an accurate quarterback who has yet had the chance to prove himself in the NFL. But yesterday, he did not fit that profile. Maybe he was having a bad day but Quinn (during 2 min drills) spent way too much time in the pocket, got picked off by Rod Hood, and had 2 incomplete passes. All wasn't negative though. He threw two touchdown passes to newly aquired TE Robert Royal, who has impressed me the most in recent days. Derek Anderson impressed me by being more accurate than usual. In one case, he rolled out for 20 seconds trying to escape would-be tacklers in real games. Even after almost running out of bounds, DA threw a 35 yard pass to the corner of the endzone for Mohammad Massoquai. So I will continue to have mixed feelings about Derek. Brett Ratliff and Richard Bartel got around 2 snaps a peice and were hard to judge. Now I truly see why Mangini is having such a hard time picking a starter. My vote still goes to Quinn. I also have had a bias in favor of bq but i see possible potential in DA who is also a young fairly raw qb as well...i would love to actually see them both in camp but i trust what i read here DA has always looked ok in practice its under live pressure i get itchy with him under center...its a strange itch because i trust DA but i dont trust DA (dr jekyll and mr hyde) I have a tendency to view DA as a great backup but a sub par undisciplined starter some say he will never get any better and at times it looks that way but he is getting a little better and in time under a disciplinary coach he may very well become the right guy to start but that time isnt now imo... BQ is by most accounts a little behind DA in camp or doesnt look as crisp which means nothing right now...he has 3 years of benchrust to shake off while DA is quite familiar with playing on the first team but bq really needs to shake the rust saturday night because I suspect the BQ and DA we see against greenbay will largely determine who starts..im a big domer fan and watched bq develop and play..and always believed he could lead the browns to the promised land unfortunately 3 years of RAC induced benchrot later and bq still looks like a rookie and hasnt yet shown he deserves to start anymore than DA has...they are both dissappointing thusfar and if one of them cant pull well ahead of the other by 2 games or both are making costly decisions mangini should man up and start ratty let him finish out the preseason if ratty outperforms bq and da name him the starter...and trade/waive whichever qb had the poorest performance...ending the qb controversy until next year when bq and ratty compete for the final end to the controversy... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AZBrowns Posted August 13, 2009 Report Share Posted August 13, 2009 No way jamal Lewis has five years left in the tank........... One good practice session will never make me believe that. In fact, I have heard numerous reports that he has been very up and down in camp. Also, I could have sworn my Twitter update said Rod Hood picked off Anderson, not Quinn. I'll go back and double check that though. Either way, thanks for the post, unbiased perspectives are always welcome. EDIT - It was DA that threw the INT to Hood, but it was a tipped pass... Link - http://cle.scout.com/2/887687.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Masters Posted August 13, 2009 Report Share Posted August 13, 2009 Quinn has only been on the bench for 2 years, not 3. Also, DA isn't that raw. He is a guy entering his 5th season in the NFL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Squintz Posted August 13, 2009 Report Share Posted August 13, 2009 Good stuff. I don't know why they don't just settle on BQ now and get it over with. At the very least you know what you got in DA and can always bring him in if it doesn't pan out with Brady. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AZBrowns Posted August 13, 2009 Report Share Posted August 13, 2009 Good stuff. I don't know why they don't just settle on BQ now and get it over with. At the very least you know what you got in DA and can always bring him in if it doesn't pan out with Brady. Mangini isn't just going to cave and settle on a quarterback. That's what the fans and media want him to do, but as we know, by most accounts, fans and media or mostly morons who don't have a clue how to run a football team or prepare for a football game. I don't think mangini NEEDS to settle on anything. The preseason is completely overblown. The Browns had their best team since their return when they didn't have a true starting QB until week 2. Id rather see patience than rush someone on the field. While most seem to favor Quinn, he has done ab solutely nothing to be given the clear-cut starting job as of yet. He hasn't really earned it at this point. Do I think he should start? Yes, but that's because I have watched Anderson perform in real games for years and doubt he will get much better. However, mangini hasn't coached Anderson yet and needs to do his due dilligence on this decision. I hope him and Daboll continue to evaluate it closely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Masters Posted August 14, 2009 Report Share Posted August 14, 2009 While most seem to favor Quinn, he has done ab solutely nothing to be given the clear-cut starting job as of yet. He hasn't really earned it at this point. Just keep in mind, the very same thing can be said of DA. If not more so, since DA has 20+ NFL starts under his belt already. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hammertime Posted August 14, 2009 Report Share Posted August 14, 2009 Most 1st round picks arn't forced to show they are a hall of famer before they even take the feild. There are some perks to being drafted in round one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeadWombat Posted August 14, 2009 Report Share Posted August 14, 2009 Browns go 16-0 from the sound of this report. Maybe Wedsday's camp was just a good day for everyone..... or maybe someone's been drinking that browns kool-aide... Either way, thanks for the detailed post on camp. I always like to read HOW everybody performs rather than the cut-and-dried numbers that you see in tweets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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