What we saw after Game 1

[playerjdd]

So I see everyone is already criticizing the team but lets break down Game 1.

 

QB

 

- Quinn looked Good managing the team well besides the last play.

 

- Anderson looked bad not moving the team at all

 

RB

 

- Lewis looked decent eating up a few yards a carry

 

- Davis looked good on his few runs looked very shifty

 

 

WR

 

-Furry looked good still has it.

 

- Cribbs looked great definately improved from last year

 

- Edwards on the few plays looked of last years Edwards

 

Other Offense

 

- Royal got a few catches

 

- O line seemed to hold up well

 

- Dawson made/missed a 40 yarder

 

I dont have enough space to write on the Defense but this is how i saw it

 

- D-Line couldnt generate a rush against GB

 

- Elam got burnt several times didnt look starter material

 

- Vekune did ok against the 2nd teamers but was overmatched in the 1st teamers

 

Dont worry its only the preseason is the most spoken word of browns fans every year. The second most spoken words is theres always next year

 

 

 

 

[Eastlakeian]

What I saw was:

 

No team speed on either side of the ball. This was glaring.

 

No Fire or intensity everyone was for the first game Flat. It reminded me of some of those RAC games where it was obvious they weren't prepared to play. The first time during what were told a very tough camp they can hit someone else they looked bored just being there. They had so munch more energy at there stadium scrimmage just weird.

 

8-9 in the box they still ran a will on us. How can we rush so many guys and still not get to the QB?

 

We have known all along both our QB's have accuracy issues so I was not surprised by there play. But really like the fact they will have the freedom to change the plays more often.

 

On a positive note our long snapper is a gem.

 

 

[Gips]

What i saw was an extension of last years misery and after the game DA making an excuse for his pick as usual and BQ manning up and apologizing to his teammates...

 

Anderson's night was finished: 0 for 2, one pick, 0.0 rating.

"Obviously a little bit of frustration. We didn't play the way we've been practicing," Anderson said.He said on the interception, he got hit in the knee as he threw and "the ball just kind of fluttered in the air."

 

Edwards said Quinn put the ball where it was supposed to be. "I'm used to jumping, and I didn't need to leave my feet," he said.

Quinn was 7-for-11 for 68 yards, one pick, and a 43.0 rating.

"I felt confident out there," Quinn said. "It's frustrating not to capitalize in the red zone."

He said the interception throw behind Edwards was "a poor decision on my part. You have to come away with at least a field goal there. I apologized to my teammates."

[manbearpig]

What I saw is the same old thing. I have not and will not buy a ticket until they win 6 games. I am sick of this shit and I have waited long enough. I hope next week is better. (cough cough cough!) Against Detroit, it had better be a lot better.

[PlaygroundLegend]

DA's post game interview sucked as well, he seemed a little short with the media, and he diddnt try to bring up anything positive, plus he was making excuses again

 

Quinn stepped up and said the pick was all him (when it wasnt, braylon should have caught both passes) and that he apologizd to the team for it, DA's response was... well, it wasnt really.... I got hit...

[BrownB499]

What I saw

 

Josh Cribbs is a football player!

very few of these on this team

 

No heart,the drop by Edwards typical,not breaking up the int on the next play shows a real lack of effort, yea it was a dumb pass but you gotta make every effort to break up the int not a half hearted reach back

 

Was it Royal that caught the DA flutter pass then dropped it ya gotta make that catch

Ya wonder why our O can't score? start by doing the little things your SUPPOSED to do

Blocking,Catching,Finishing the play,and stop the stupid penalties!

 

We were told that the mentality had changed

What I saw was the same old Ho Hum "guess we gotta play a football game"attitude

[choco]

i was against the cribbs money issue, but you gotta pay that man if he plays like that next week. progression as a WR was pretty good....

 

barton got blocked by an official...vets should be smarter than that....hall needs to start.

 

D'line will be different with rogers, but rubin will be a great in relief...williams looks lost.

 

foster got pancaked a few times....

 

quinns changing my mind.

 

mack still needs time.

 

worrried about elam, bites more than jones did.

 

pleased generally with the rooks and 2nd year guys.

 

 

 

 

[DawgTracker]

Ya wonder why our O can't score? start by doing the little things your SUPPOSED to do

Blocking,Catching,Finishing the play,and stop the stupid penalties!

 

We were told that the mentality had changed

What I saw was the same old Ho Hum "guess we gotta play a football game"attitude

 

I agree and that is obviously why Mangini was so pissed. I am thankful we played a good team last night which exposed certain areas and certain players. If we had played a truely bad team we wouldn't know certain areas of focus

 

[Kosar_For_President]

What I saw is the same old thing. I have not and will not buy a ticket until they win 6 games. I am sick of this shit and I have waited long enough. I hope next week is better. (cough cough cough!) Against Detroit, it had better be a lot better.

 

[Kosar_For_President]

I agree and that is obviously why Mangini was so pissed. I am thankful we played a good team last night which exposed certain areas and certain players. If we had played a truely bad team we wouldn't know certain areas of focus

 

Nice post.

 

The Packers are no joke. AJ is going to have a monster year with the new 3-4 and Dom Capers. Shit that is a story in the making right there.

 

To be honest I saw nothing from J Lew that says he ready for this season. Weak leg churning, slow to hit the holes, nothing. When J Lew ran the ball, it looked like a bunch of Retarded fat kids playing rugby - the wrong way.

[kshutchins]

On a positive note, the reverse was the best I've ever seen. Even on the replay it was hard to catch the handoff. It was a thing of beauty.

 

The Quinn --->Furrey connection was nice.

 

[Sez.EJ]

Strange.. I did not see many of the things that playerjdd saw... I saw Frahley getting manhandled as usual and getting pushed into the QB's lap so they cannot step up in the pocket.. I saw the defensive line getting outplayed physically. Our DL still pretty much sucks other than Rogers. I have been beggin for a talent infusion on the DL for about 4 years now.. Yeah you need LB's in the 3-4 but if you have no DL to keep the guards off of them it's pretty worthless. Might as well run a 4-3. Quinn was the lone shimmer of light..and not a very bright one.. if Braylon catched the TD (right on the money) quinn does not need to throw that last pass and he would have been 8 of 10 with a TD.. Thank goodness it's preseason..but I'm not overly optomistic about this Defense. Packers ran for about 6,000 yards on us last night. Oh..stating the obvious here..still no pass rush.

[Jason J]

Ok, Ok... here's a not-so-quick look at last night's game.

 

 

You've got a lot of moving parts here... but nothing to get all in a tizzy about. Offensively, the front five played, overall a solid game. Moving, creating seams -- not gaping holes -- but seams. The pass protection was adequate. You had the one blown protection on the safety blitz allowing Kampmann to come in clean. But overall, I'd call it a C+ B- effort up front.

 

My best guess is, you're going to see this group pretty much from here on out. Foster is just not as gifted as St. Clair, and Mack still has some work to do. The only other backups there were to take note of was a solid performance by Isaac Sowells, whose moving better than I remember seeing him... until he decided to start collecting penalties, and Ryan Tucker who performed well, but probably not well enough to earn a start.

 

The weak link, in my opinion, is TE Robert Royal in the pass game. He's just not a good pass receiver. He wanders through the secondary, and has unusually weak hands for such a big guy. It seems he can't make a catch and take contact without putting the ball on the grass. Heiden being cleared to play can really help flex this offense. And that's going to have to be the solution short term, because Martin Rucker looks like he's on about step 2 of a 5 step process to becoming a legitimate NFL tight end. I would expect Walker to press for playing time. And, I would not be surprised to see another tight end brought in here off waivers as cuts start to happen.

 

The running backs, in limited action, showed little. Lewis looks like he has a little "camp legs"... a little slow, lacking some of the power that you'd normally see. A couple of days off will do him some good. Harrison moved like his feet hurt. And, Davis and Herron looked like rookies... which is unfortunate, because Herron's been in the league for quite a while. He is about as ineffective in blitz pick up as I've seen from a running back. If he actually does pick up the blitz, he's a haphazard blocker. I just don't see him making this club. Kinda makes you wish the Browns had picked up Herron's replacement at Northwestern.

 

The wide receivers, well... let's start with the positives. Josh Cribbs looks to be rounding into a receiver, Furrey's the pro everyone figured he was, and overall, I like the scheme in the passing game. Edwards was on again, off again. Getting some decent separation at times, but he's still fighting the football. Massoquoi needs to loosen up those hips, he's too vertical to get in and out of his breaks with any separation. Robiskie was as advertised. Polished, few mistakes, but he's just not particularly gifted athletically (by NFL standards). He's not terribly explosive, and doesn't have great top end speed... or rather, doesn't get up to full speed very quickly. It could be camp fatigue... time will tell.

 

And then there's the quarterbacks... Yikes. I certainly hope we can put to rest the post-scrimmage, "What about Ratliff?" talk. Sheesh! He's got a long, long way to go.

 

Quinn looked solid... but... you know how it goes. You can't miss in the red zone. That interception is the kind of thing that drives me crazy. It's not a mental breakdown, it's a physical malfunction. You can't make a spot throw moving to your right off your back foot. It's going to come off slow and right. If he was going to make that throw it has to be lofted another 3 yards to the left, or tuck it and run. You just can't physically dot that one. That's what makes Pittsburgh's #7, well, #7. He makes that throw. He arches that ball to the end line, and leads Edwards away from Smith - one of the league's most inept cover safeties - and goes to the bench. You've got to know what your body will do and what it won't.

 

Outside of that, Quinn was quick and efficient. His mechanics are spot on. He's got good presence, and great feet. On any throw but the INT, slow it down, watch him check off his reads with his feet... rotating his base... then watch that textbook weight shift. That front foot pops just a little bit as he loads up that back leg, then shifts that weight forward, pounding on that front leg. It's near-perfect. He's just got to maintain his mechanics when the pocket breaks down... or be better at managing his body in motion, if he's going to try to make that goal line throw... or more to the point, if he's going to lead a football team.

 

Anderson never really got his legs under him. His timing was off. He threw early, threw late, had no feel for the pocket. He was awful, just awful. He had two throws re-directed because he was too slow on his reads, and had no perception of the rush. The one that Royal tried to fair catch - that's a six man rush. You've got to get rid of that thing. And he's pattering around back there like he's wearing a red jersey. The INT, 5 man with a spy, and he's pump faking. Gotta see that! The swing pass to Harrison was a mess. Although, at least he didn't kill him with it... that's a positive. But his timing was so far off that he actually threw it way to early and led the coverage to the swing route... not to mention it was so early that he actually threw it backward, setting up a potential fumble situation. His mechanics were way off. He looked rattled. The misfire to Cribbs (wiped out by a penalty) he's got his hips and shoulders way ahead of the throw. He's almost parallel to the target when he releases it, like he's throwing darts. Bad stuff. He was completely out of synch Saturday night.

 

But that said, Anderson needs to get some more reps. He needs more of a shot then that offered him. A good play script and a start should give him a legitimate chance to wrest this job away from Quinn.

 

But, the first game goes to Quinn by a nose. It's still neck and neck, I'd think. But that's mostly because Anderson never got going. You're not supposed to go 3 and out, then go 45 minutes before you get the ball back. That's ridiculous.

 

Which brings me to the defense. What do we have? The deal with the devil that is hulking up your 3-4, i.e. getting 300+ pounders to 2-gap the front 3, leaves you vulnerable to base package passing attacks. You just can't create much of a push with heel-deep draft horses up front. You have to attack the line of scrimmage with those OLBs and safeties. You can't generate any pressure otherwise. So, when you're trying to keep it vanilla for the preseason, you end up with quarterbacks picking apart your zone coverages. That straight 3 down cover 3 they kept running, you'll probably never see that in the regular season. For crying out loud, that touchdown to Driver was a triple move, I think. Rodgers was back there forever.

 

So, let's look at the personnel. Rubin had a nice game, but he's obviously no Shaun Rodgers. And not playing Shaun Rodgers makes that a different defense. But as a group the D-line (1st group), held depth, had some cracks, but did a decent job playing 3 on 6 when the Browns laid back on the blitzes. It's nothing to get excited about just yet. I know this group will be much better once the scheme ratchets up.

 

What I don't know is how Titus Brown managed to get the start Saturday night. He's just not ready. He's consistently soft on the corner, he reacts late, slow in coverage, he's a real liability out there. Watch the touchdown toss at the goal line. He's got bad leverage, can't set the edge, bad body position, get's too square on the blocker... it's patently awful. I don't think we ever saw David Bowens... but we will. And I'm reasonably sure that Saturday was Titus' last start of the preseason.

 

The DBs did about as much as they could with a complete lack of pressure most of the time. You could see that when the Browns dialed up the blitz (all vertical blitzes by the way - meaning all defenders were blitzing directly to the quarterback from their positions.. and mostly from their base positions - just the vanilla stuff), the coverage generally held up. When there was no pressure, there were receivers coming open everywhere. I think you're beginning to see what kind of defense this will be. It's going to be shifting, moving, attacking defense, where different combinations are attacking the line of scrimmage from different angle on just about every play.

 

So, really I'm not all that concerned about what I saw on Defense. Wimbley looked good (Nice bullrush a couple of times, little in and out move, and pursuing everything downfield), Jackson is Jackson. Barton had a tough game... he seemed to have a lot of trouble getting his pad level down. That Veikune kid is going to press him for snaps, but obviously not for the starting job. Leon Williams is thinking too much out there... and that's not Leon's strong suit.

 

Corey Ivy needs to show that he still has the physical ability to play this game. He was physically over-matched, slow afoot, and out of position frequently. He needs to be better. Eric Wright flashed some solid cover skills, and Pool looks like he's got the system down. Outside of those starters, that Bernard kid looks like he wants a job, and Louis Leonard showed some decent movement at the nose. Interesting to see Corey Williams taking a couple of snaps over center too. It think we'll be seeing less and less of Adam Hoppel - he's not making this team. Although, I thought Melila Purcell earned some PT for the coming weeks. He might have a chance to stick.

 

Brandon Anderson seemed to be around the ball an awful lot, as did Coye Francies. Which is good for them. Looks like the end of the Nick Sorensen era based on some shoddy takling and the frequent presence of Abdullah. He's one of those "always in the frame" guys. He looks like a ball player. But overall, you really can't scout DB's from the broadcast tape. They're off the screen too frequently. There was unfortunately a good deal of tape on Corey Ivy. He's got some making up to do if he's going to make this team.

 

All told, I'd say your looking at C/C- performance. A couple of B's out there for a couple of guys - Walker, Wimbley, Veikune, Francies - couple of others played themselves one step closer to a new career in the service industry, or at the very least a new team. Other than that, there's not much to get excited over - good or bad. That's just what I saw.

 

-jj

[Guest Masters]

I see we shared some similar observations Jason Though I was less impressed with Cribbs rounding into a true WR than you

[Mark O]

Only disagree with your assesment of the QB's... They both got 2 series with the offense. Quinn in fact had the longer time to sit between chances getting the first offensive drive in the early part of the 1st quarter and then the last 2 minutes of the half. The face that Anderson couldn't get into a rhythm is his own fault. He showed once again that he is completely unable to read a defense or have any sort of feel for a pass rush or have any pocket presence whatsoever. He's a big strong dude who can throw the ball 3 miles but has no football brain. He isn't any better today than he was 3 seasons ago. Still makes the same mistakes he's always made. He can get hot and throw 4 TD's and 400 yards occasionally but he also is just as likely to throw for 150 and 4 ints and no touchdowns.

 

The competition should be over...give the job to Quinn and let's start preparing for September 13th and the Vikings.

[playerjdd]

I know we looked like crap but it is only the first game. I know one guy cant win a game but Rogers on the D will make a huge difference because he demands a double team. Hopefully with him in we will be able to generate some rush up front. I know someone said our offensive line looked like crap but i saw Quinn with tons of time to throw the ball go back and watch the replay. I know Anderson got hit a few times but you cant expect the line to win every time. I dont know why everyone said lewis looked washed. I dont think he even had one negative play. I heard alot from Davis and i see why everyone is buzzing.

 

Just remember preseson means nothing. Detroit went 4-0 in preseason last year and didnt win a single regular season game.

[Jason J]

I see we shared some similar observations Jason Though I was less impressed with Cribbs rounding into a true WR than you

 

I'm not sure "rounding into a true WR" is all that impressed. He just looked substantially less confused than before. He looked much more decisive in his routes. I'm still not convinced he's an every down receiver just yet. I think Furrey at the Z works. Cribbs might be an effective slot receiver if he can get better at settling into zone coverages

 

-jj

[choco]

walker was his name.....lanky TE? he looks like he wants to play.

[Guest Masters]

I'm not sure "rounding into a true WR" is all that impressed. He just looked substantially less confused than before. He looked much more decisive in his routes. I'm still not convinced he's an every down receiver just yet. I think Furrey at the Z works. Cribbs might be an effective slot receiver if he can get better at settling into zone coverages

 

-jj

 

Cribbs did look confortable settling into position for a zone coverage. Of course the one I saw where he did that was where he should have read man

[PlaygroundLegend]

yeah, on that note, abe elam sucked

[Geech]

I think Furrey at the Z works.

 

-jj

 

That's what I've been thinking, except I figured starting him at the X. Most around here are convinced that Furrey is the slot guy, but I'd have him start and let the rooks and projects compete for the slot (Y).

 

-Al

[Jason J]

Hey Jason, would you try Coye Francies at saftey after that hit he layed on that receiver lastnight? Great post by the way

 

I doubt it. Cornerback is such a rare skill combination, you have to exhaust all the possibilities that this kid can be a legit NFL corner before you try him at safety. There's a reason that top safeties make $30 million, and top CB's make $60 million - $80 million.

 

There will be plenty of opportunities to get him on the field in the dime and 7 DB sets. That way you can hone his coverage skills and give him a shot to develop.

 

 

-jj

[Geech]

I think Furrey at the Z works.

 

-jj

 

I'd like to add that you really got me thinking here. Doesn't Braylon play the Z? What are you trying to say here?

 

Maybe I'm just too far out of the loop since moving to Arizona. Choppy Sopcast feeds that work only 30% of the time are no way to get my Browns fix.

 

 

-Al, who is definitely getting the Sunday Ticket this year.

[Jason J]

I'd like to add that you really got me thinking here. Doesn't Braylon play the Z? What are you trying to say here?

 

Maybe I'm just too far out of the loop since moving to Arizona. Choppy Sopcast feeds that work only 30% of the time are no way to get my Browns fix.

 

 

-Al, who is definitely getting the Sunday Ticket this year.

 

Edwards has been working primarily at the X. I'm not sure why. I speculated that it might be in order to dictate some match-ups. I mean, Edwards is more than physical enough to play on the line, it's just unusual that you'd have a clear #1 and play him to your QB's off-hand side. But that seems to be the case. Of course they move the TE's around quite a bit, and you use a lot of 2 TE sets against the 3-4... so the X/Z stuff is a bit fluid

 

-jj

[Earl34]

One thing that's omitted above is the GLARING inability of the running backs to pick up the blitz. They either never entirely "filled the window" or the just got beaten. That led to pressure on the QB all night long. James Davis was perhaps the worst offender.

 

I would worry more about the defense if the Packers did that to us with Rogers in the game. That isn't to say that all was good on that side of the ball because it wasn't.

[Rooster Dick]

Well, defense was our problem for the last however many god damn years. Yet we still draft a Center with the first pick. Lord have mercy on this team!

[RestinPeace]

Well, defense was our problem for the last however many god damn years. Yet we still draft a Center with the first pick. Lord have mercy on this team!

 

LOL. What did you want, some overhyped defensive player who would suck? Listen, the Browns just don't have problems on defense, they have problems running the ball and the poor play at C was a big reason why.

[Guest Aloysius]

What I don't know is how Titus Brown managed to get the start Saturday night. He's just not ready. He's consistently soft on the corner, he reacts late, slow in coverage, he's a real liability out there. Watch the touchdown toss at the goal line. He's got bad leverage, can't set the edge, bad body position, get's too square on the blocker... it's patently awful. I don't think we ever saw David Bowens... but we will. And I'm reasonably sure that Saturday was Titus' last start of the preseason.

I too was underwhelmed by Brown's play. Mangini does have a history of throwing a young guy to the wolves to see if he can step up: when Pete Kendall got traded, he moved Jacob Bender, a late round small school tackle, into the starting LG spot. I think that lasted a week of practices and maybe one preseason game.

 

I'm guessing he was doing the same thing with Brown. Bowens has some sort of nagging injury, so Mangini gave the young guy a shot. Unfortunately, he didn't step up.

 

Wimbley looked good (Nice bullrush a couple of times, little in and out move, and pursuing everything downfield)

How do you think he looked against the run?

 

It seemed to me like he struggled a bit. On the 14 yard run, the Packers motioned a receiver in, who (along with the RT) locked Kenyon Coleman inside. Wimbley could've stopped the play by beating TE Donald Lee, but instead got stood up and pushed back.

 

If he can't hold up against tight ends, I don't know how he'll survive as a strongside OLB, which seems to be the plan for him.

[Guest Aloysius]

Edwards has been working primarily at the X. I'm not sure why. I speculated that it might be in order to dictate some match-ups. I mean, Edwards is more than physical enough to play on the line, it's just unusual that you'd have a clear #1 and play him to your QB's off-hand side. But that seems to be the case. Of course they move the TE's around quite a bit, and you use a lot of 2 TE sets against the 3-4... so the X/Z stuff is a bit fluid

If the plan coming in was to have a rookie be the #2 receiver, wouldn't it make sense to have him play off the line (at the Z)? That'd be especially true for Robiskie, who - as you said - needs an extra step or two to get to full speed.

[Jason J]

If the plan coming in was to have a rookie be the #2 receiver, wouldn't it make sense to have him play off the line (at the Z)? That'd be especially true for Robiskie, who - as you said - needs an extra step or two to get to full speed.

 

Typically, you wouldn't take anything away from your number 1 receiver, even if it's just the yard of space on the strong side of the formation. Not to mention, QB's tend to throw more to their "handed" side. Generally, you'd want to get your ace over there.

 

It's not unprecedented, but it is rare.

 

-jj