Cleveland Browns Fumble Away Game Vs St Louis Rams, Sam Bradford

Nothing like a cold splash of water to shake you out of a pleasant dream.

Preseason or not, three fumbles in the first two snaps is not a good way to start any game. While the Browns overcame the early turnovers to take the lead, a loss is a loss is a loss, and constantly putting the ball on the ground certainly didn't help win the game.

To make matters worse, the Browns first team defense was shredded on the first drive by A.J. Feeley.

Take a moment to let that settle in...ahhhh, okay, deep breaths.

Now that we've processed the anger, let's look at the game more objectively. The truth is having a game like this in the preseason is a good thing. Getting the mistakes out of the way when things don't count is the whole point of the preseason.

A lot of good evaluation will come out of Saturday night's debacle of a game, and the team will be better for it.

First of all, quarterback Jake Delhomme overcame the early adversity to put together a 77-yard touchdown drive instead of just falling apart like previous Browns starting quarterbacks tended to do (I'm talking about you Derek Anderson).

Second, expect the fire hose to be used liberally this week during practice.

On the bright side, Peyton Hillis is everything Denver Broncos fans advertised him to be, but I'm sure they're not happy about getting the short end of the deal (I'm talking about you, Brady Quinn).

Hillis' performance really puts pressure on Jerome Harrison, who seemed to have about 25 fumbles in the first quarter and only ran 13 yards on five carries. Harrison, despite his good run of games to close out the 2009 season, doesn't seem to be high on head coach Eric Mangini's list of running backs to keep.

Mangini and General Manager Tom Heckert traded up to draft running back Montario Hardesty; Mangini's 2009 pick, James Davis, still is competing for a roster spot; and there's Chris Jennings to think about as well.

While Hillis technically is a fullback, the Browns also have Lawrence Vickers, and if Hillis can motor down the field and bounce off of defenders like he did last night, Harrison's uneven play may result in Harrison's departure, most likely through a trade.

Despite Hardesty's injury, you can bet he wins the "who to keep" battle at the end of training camp if it comes down to it.

Back to the defense, T.J. Ward and Joe Haden both made good showings again, but overall the unit had trouble stopping what is a heavy work-in-progress known as the St. Louis Rams offense.

Defensive coordinator Rob Ryan did a heck of a job last year with a patchwork unit that had very little talent. There definitely is more talent there this year, but this game showed they're not working as a team yet.

We could sit here all day and list the flaws exposed in last night's game, but it would be a waste of energy. The defense looked bad, it's preseason, let's get it fixed.

Special teams allowed too many good returns, but again, let's look at this as a learning experience and move forward.

The Browns play the Detroit Lions this coming Saturday in Detroit. This is where the team should show everyone how they learned from the mistakes of the Rams game. If another debacle occurs, then it might be time to do some soul-searching.