Cleveland Browns: A View From Up Close

I attended my first Cleveland Browns game of the season Monday night and remembered why I prefer to sit in the comforts of my own home while watching a football game.

While certainly there are some benefits to watching a game live, I missed my big screen, TIVO, and refrigerator where I can grab a beer for significantly less than the $6.50 per Randy Lerner charges me.

At the same time, seeing the game in person certainly does give one a different perspective, especially when you are as close to the field as I was.

Here are just a few observations from my vantage point.

Wow these guys are big!

It is not as if I have never seen NFL football players before, but it never ceases to amaze me how ridiculously large these players are.

The television screen just cannot do justice to players like Joe Thomas and Shawn Rogers. Even players who are smaller by NFL standards look super-human up close.

When I started watching NFL football as a little boy, today’s linebackers were the size of defensive linemen. Jamal Lewis might have played offensive guard in the late 1960s, early 1970s.

However, I do want to give special mention to wide receiver Brian Robiskie.  

Mr. Robiskie would do well to seriously hit the weight room in the offseason if he wants to survive in this league. Brian, don’t be afraid to mix in a protein shake and a steak with those salads.

Favorite sign of the night

One thing about Cleveland sports fans that you have to like: they sure can be creative when describing their disappointment in their team.

I saw a little boy with a brown, paper bag over his head that brought back memories of the New Orleans Ain'ts.

I saw some other pretty inventive ways Browns fans were voicing their displeasure with Eric Mangini and ownership, but my personal favorite was from the fan holding up a sign that says it all:

“HEY BALTIMORE CAN YOU TAKE THIS TEAM TOO?”

“A” for effort for the defense

The Cleveland Browns defensive unit deserved a better fait against the Ravens. Outside of an ill-advised gamble by cornerback Brandon McDonald, the defense played their hearts out.

Linebacker David Bowens in particular played a fantastic game. Making the shift from the outside to the inside due to injuries, Bowens was all over the field.

Although it didn’t show up in the stat line, Shawn Rogers disrupted the Ravens attack with his ability to manhandle the middle of the line of scrimmage. He was so fast off the ball that it appeared as if he already knew the snap count.

The defensive backfield showed up big, allowing only three catches to Ravens wide receivers in the entire game. That is an amazing statistic for a team that ended up on the losing side of a football game.

The Baltimore Ravens have a diverse group of weapons on offense that makes them difficult to defend. The players and coaching staff held them in check for most of the game.

My hat is off to a defense that has been depleted by injuries for keeping their energy up on a team that has nothing to play for—that is no easy task.

I feel like I am watching a high school offense

Those were the words I used to describe the Browns as I watched, in dismay, the Brown's anemic offense.

Off tackle plays, screen passes to wide receivers, and the inverted wing-T (“wildcat”) on third-and-long are plays teams use when they do not trust their quarterback and offensive line.

Offensive coordinator Brian Daboll may have good reason not to trust either, but at some point you have to throw caution to the wind and let the ball fly. This is the NFL not Friday Night Lights.

Three plays that should concern Brady Quinn fans

Please don’t pepper me with Derek Anderson comparisons. The real question is, “Is Brady Quinn an NFL quarterback?”

I am not going to completely cast the blame on Quinn for the two interceptions. Those interceptions could have been caused by an array of factors of which I do not have the answer: miscommunication, off-target throws, inability to haul the ball in by receivers, bad routes by the receivers....

He also inexplicably has fallen prey to the bad habit of patting the football which has slowed his release. In fact, that habit caused a near-interception on a short pass over the middle that was open for a split second.

But, all-of-the-above can be corrected in practice and film study.

What was of more concern to me were three plays that had very little to do with the outcome of the game, but each pointed out concerns about Quinn’s arm strength that cannot be corrected.

The first was on a long out-pattern to running back Lawrence Vickers on the first play of the second series of the game. Quinn floated a wobbly pass over Vickers’ head that had no chance of success.

The second and third were desperation heaves to end the game that looked as though someone shot the ball in mid-air as they landed harmlessly out of bounds.

Improved play-calling, a wide receiver that can make plays down the field, and an offensive line that can keep the quarterback upright are not going to make a bit of difference if the Browns do not have a quarterback who can get the ball down the field.

So unless the Cleveland Clinic can perform a transplant by attaching Quinn’s head onto Anderson’s body, the Browns' quarterback search will continue.

What were you thinking Eric Mangini?

I do not take issue with the play call. Hey, at least they appeared to play the game to the final whistle.

But, at what point do you take your star player off the field on a meaningless play at the end of regulation?

Joshua Cribbs had no reason to even be on the field for the last play of the game, let alone putting him in a defenseless position on a hook-and-ladder.

The Ravens wanted payback for a perceived "cheap shot" by Brady Quinn earlier in the game—and Eric, you gave them a perfect opportunity to take out what is now your best player.

Cribbs and his agent have every right to be mad.

The fans failed walk-out attempt

There was a growing ground swell from some Browns fans who wanted to stage a walk-out on the national scene of Monday Night Football.

Some believed that by not showing up until the second quarter it would leave an undying impression on the owner that, “we’re not going to take it anymore!”

That protest quickly lost steam when fans realized that they paid $20 for parking, and $32 to $280 for their seats. For those prices, I am not going to miss any action even to watch a bad team.

I was lucky enough (or unlucky enough) to get my ducats for free, but here is a note to Cleveland Browns fans who really want to send a message to Randy Lerner about the state of the team, “stop buying tickets!”