SB Nation - Robaire Smith

The Top Ten Best Tennessee Titans Draft Picks of the Decade

Jimmy — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 18:00:21 -0000

More photos » by David J. Phillip - AP

Cortland Finnegan celebrates being named by MCM as the Titans top draft pick of the decade. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

With the decade coming to an end in a few weeks, we here at MCM decided it would be a good time to do a top 10 list or two- because who doesn't love a top 10 list?

Today we start with the top 10 draft picks of the decade. Here is how this list was compiled- August, gramsey and I all came up with our own list. They sent their lists to me, actually shared it with me via google docs (which are awesome), and I averaged the three lists together to come up with what I am posting here. After the jump I have added a link that lists all of the picks the Titans made in the decade.

So without further adieu I present the top 10 draft picks of the decade:

1. Cortland Finnegan, CB, Samford (2006, Round 7, pick #215 overall)

Obviously this pick came down to Finny and Chris Johnson, but when you look at the fact that the Titans were able to draft and franchise corner, or as gramsey puts it "The best corner to ever wear Titan blue, and that includes Samari Rolle," in the seventh round, Finnegan gets the nod.

2. Chris Johnson, RB, East Carolina (2008, Round 1, pick #24 overall)

He is the best running back in the league. ‘Nuff said.

3. Keith Bulluck, LB, Syracuse (2000, Round 1, pick #30 overall)

You obviously expect big things out of every first round pick, and KBull has provided those big things and so much more. He has been the heart and soul of this defense for a long time. Interesting story on this pick is that the Titans had planned on taking Deon Grant here because they never dreamed Bulluck would fall to them. Looks like they ended up on the better side of that one.

T-4. Robaire Smith, DE/DT, Michigan State (2000, Round 6, pick #197 overall)

August thinks Robaire is overrated. That may be the case, but the Titans got waaay more than they ever could have expected out of a guy they took at #197. This was another testament to pretty much the only thing Floyd Reese was good at besides backloading contracts and early round busts (more on that tomorrow), finding diamonds in the rough.

T-4. David Stewart, OT, Mississippi State (2005, Round 4, pick #113 overall)

The credit here goes to Mike Munchak as much as anyone, but that doesn't change the fact that the Titans got book-end offensive tackles in the same draft. The only thing that gets Big Country the nod over the next guy on the list is that he was selected two rounds and 72 picks later.

6. Michael Roos, OT, Eastern Washigton (2005, Round 2, pick #41 overall)

Roos is a Pro Bowl left tackle. That is a win no matter where they are selected, but it is even more impressive to get one in the second round.

7. Bo Scaife, TE, Texas (2005, Round 6, pick #179 overall)

2005 was a good draft for the Titans. I have been critical of Scaife in the past, but that by no means takes away the successes he has had in this league after waiting until the 6^th round to come off the board. I wonder how many sixth round picks have ever been given the franchise tag..

8. Stephen Tulloch, LB, NC State (2006 Round 4, pick #116 overall)

The Titans drafted three linebackers in the 2006 draft, and Tulloch has been the only one to stick. Tulloch has proved to be a vital member of this defense as he is currently the starting middle linebacker but has also played both outside linebacker positions in his tenure with the Titans.

9. Eugene Amano, C, SE Missouri State (2004, Round 7, pick #239 overall)

We had a little trouble forgiving Pinoy's boy for his transgression on Sunday to add him to this list, but it is impossible to ignore a guy that is a starting offensive lineman selected in the seventh round. Amano highlights two things about the draft strengths of the Titans- 1. they are good at picking offensive lineman and 2. they are good at finding good players from small schools.

10. Vincent Fuller, DB, Virginia Tech (2005, Round 4, pick #108 overall)

Vinny is yet another gem from the 2005 class. Fuller has held down the nickel back job for a couple of years now, and we all saw how valuable he was when he missed a few weeks earlier this year with a broken forearm.

Others receiving votes: William Hayes (2008, round 4, #103), Albert Haynesworth (2002, round 1, #15), and Justin Hartwig (2002, round 6, #187).

Click here to see the complete list of draft picks.

And there you have it. We would love to hear your comments on our list, or even your own list in the comments.

Bengals are playing winning brand of football with powerful rushing offense and dominant defense

Kirkendall — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 17:45:57 -0000

More photos » by David Kohl - AP

23 days ago: Cincinnati Bengals linebacker Rey Maualuga holds up a sign to fans after his team defeated the Cleveland Browns 16-7 in their NFL football game in Cincinnati, Sunday, Nov. 29, 2009. (AP Photo/David Kohl)

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While watching Sunday's game between the Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns, I had this feeling I've never felt before. By the second half I felt so confident that the Bengals were going to win this football game, that I stopped moaning about failed pass protection schemes or the play-calling. Oh, we're going to punt it so our defense can play? The same defense that hasn't allowed any team to gain 100 yards rushing in seven straight games? The same defense that's allowed a third down conversion rate of 22% in the three games leading up to Sunday? The same defense that's only allowed two touchdowns once in a game since losing to the Houston Texans?

Please, bring it.

There's no doubt that the offense is struggling to put up points. Since scoring 45 against the Chicago Bears, the Bengals offense has scored an average of 16.8 points per game. The ten points scored in the second quarter against the Browns is the first time the Bengals have scored double-digit points in any quarter since the 14 points in the first quarter against the Ravens on November 8. Carson Palmer went 12 quarters without throwing a touchdown pass before completing a four-yard pass to tight end J.P. Foschi in the second quarter against the Browns. Palmer's on pace to record 3,384 yards passing, which is only 500 yards more than his career low his first season as the team's starter (not including injury-filled 2008). Even then, he missed three games. His efficiency is down. His touchdowns are down. His yards-per-attempt is down (6.9).

And yet, the belief has always been that the Bengals have to rely on Palmer's arm to win. My cousin called me Sunday night and asked me, do we rely on Palmer anymore? If Palmer were to go down to injury for the season, how much would this team lose? We saw what happened last year. But as he observed, the team was built around Palmer and the passing game. It wasn't until late in the season that a Palmer-less offense started to become efficient by successfully rushing the football with a rising defense.

What if Palmer would go down this year? It would hurt, because defenses still gameplan the Bengals passing game; always a threat, always able to score from anywhere on the field. The truth is, this Bengals team is built to succeed without Palmer. This team is built to run the football. You can see that with the talent they have at running back. You can see that with an offensive line that's built to rush block first. How many Jumbo formations have we seen with at least one extra lineman? Did you see Dennis Roland going into motion against the Browns?

My point, as some may irrationally conclude, isn't anticipating an injury to Palmer. My point is that this team can win any football game, no matter who's playing. Carson Palmer is off? Well, the Bengals only have three running backs with 100-yard rushing games under their belt (how many teams can claim that?). The offense has no rhythm and can't pick up a first down? Oh, there's that defense again, who since allowing 28 points in the loss to the Houston Texans, have only allowed 11.2 points per game and, check this out, only 232.8 yards-per game.

As of this posting, the Bengals have the best scoring defense in the NFL.

I just checked that again.

The Bengals have the best scoring defense in the NFL, allowing 15.8 points per game. There's a chance that New England takes that lead after Monday Night Football. However, the Patriots will have to hold the Saints to ten points or less. Fat chance.

If this isn't the most complete team that the Bengals have fielded since the Sam Wyche era, then I'm afraid I'll never know what a complete team is. More people stand up on this team, contributing towards a winning brand of football than we've seen in ages. This team isn't built or about a single person. This isn't about how well Palmer does, or how he's supposed to put up 30 points a game. Sure, it would be nice if the offense exploded every week. What fan in this world in any sport wouldn't love that? But that's not the reality right now. They're not an explosive offense. They are an efficient offense that consumes the clock, converts third downs and wins field position.

And then there's the defense, whose scoring defense still ranks first in the NFL. I just checked again.

What do most people say about championship football? You win by running the football and stopping the run. Again, this defense hasn't allowed any team to gain 100 yards or more in seven straight games. The Bengals offense has rushed for 100 yards or more in eight of the season's 11 games. Furthermore, the Bengals rushing offense has recorded 150 yards or more five times and 200 yards or more twice.

Powerful rushing offense. Dominant defense. Isn't that championship football? If you're still not convinced, or have a Christmas list of concerns, let's go quickly gloss over some reminders. The Bengals are 8-3. The Bengals are 6-0 in the division. The Bengals have won 11 of the past 14 games. The Bengals have a three-game lead with five games left. The Bengals, as of now, would have the second seed in the playoffs, which means a bye during wild card weekend and hosting at least one home game. Furthermore, the Bengals are a fluke pass and a fumble away from being 10-1. It's that close.

Now, that is what we've been begging for for 20 years. Soak it in. Enjoy it.

Wait. You want Carson Palmer to throw more? With five games remaining, Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer is on pace to record 489 passing attempts. As disbelieving as this may sound, that's only 20 less pass attempts than he had during the 2005 season where the Bengals made the playoffs.

	2005	2009 *
Attempts	509	489
Completions	345	298
Completion %	67.8	61.0
Yards	3,836	3,384
Yards/Att	7.5	6.9
Touchdowns	32	22
Interceptions	12	11
* Projected

Admittedly, the issue isn't just Palmer, if one can even make that assessment. No. It's all the parts. It's the offensive line struggling on stunts and blitzes on the outside. It's receivers not catching passes, or penalties that negate 15-20 yard passing plays because someone was flagged for offensive holding.

Take Sunday's game. On the Bengals first play of the game, the situation is first-and-ten at their own 20-yard line. The offense lines up off-set I with Daniel Coats motioning right. Cleveland brings their front three with eight sitting in coverage. Andrew Whitworth latched onto Robaire Smith, who took an outside step while the left tackle was clipped by Bernard Scott going into his route, knocking Smith free. Palmer, barely completing a five-yard pass to Laveranues Coles, was knocked down by Smith. A few Bernard Scott runs and a first down later, the offense lines up off-set I, strong side left. Kamerion Wimbley lines up at left outside linebacker over Dennis Roland. Wimbley took an inside slant on Roland who clearly lost the battle within the first two steps. Bernard Scott tried to help, but in his mind, he had his own blitzer to worry about in Mike Adams. Wimbley tackled Palmer as the quarterback released the pass to Jeremi Johnson for a for a five-yard gain. Furthermore, Browns cornerback Eric Wright was called for defensive holding. First down.

Two drop backs. Twice Carson Palmer is on the ground. It wasn't that Palmer was on the ground all game -- NFL's Game Center shows he was knocked down six times. However, it shows that Palmer was pressured all game long, most of the time making throws he didn't want to make.

After Larry Johnson's consecutive first down runs (more on that later), Palmer takes the snap under center. Matt Roth sprinted from the outside linebacker spot and sacked Palmer for a four-yard loss. The problem here is miscommunication by the offensive line. Defensive end Kenyon Coleman slanted in, which caused Dennis Roland to move inward with the end. Typically, Roland should have handed Coleman off to Bobbie Williams and picked up Roth, the blitzing linebacker on the outside. Williams saw the problem and pulled out as quickly as he could from his guard position take out Roth on the edge. It was a split-second too late, as Roth sped rushed far enough that there was nothing Williams could do.

Sometimes the issue was miscommunication between Palmer and the receivers. On first-and-15 at Cleveland's 29 yard line, Palmer dropped back threw it to the right with no Bengals receiver in the picture frame. Coles' route went in while Palmer looked for Coles to go out.

But mostly, it was pressure -- whether it was really there or not.

On third-and-17 at the Browns 31-yard line, Palmer takes the shotgun snap, feels pressured on the edges and scrambles up the middle. The Browns only rushed three guys. Wimbley took a wide angle around Roland, who locked up with the defensive end six yards behind the line of scrimmage. Wimbley used his upper body strength to make continued progress -- it was like Roland really wasn't there -- showing up in Palmer's peripheral vision. That was enough for Palmer, who ran for 12 yards, finished with a terribly uncomfortable dive into the turf, setting up the game's first score of the day.

And sometimes you can only say, it was a bad throw.On third-and-five at Cleveland's 47-yard line with 14:02 left in the second quarter, Palmer takes the shotgun snap. With a great pocket, Palmer overthrows Coles, nearly picked by Brodney Poole. Bengals punt. On first-and-ten at the Bengals 34-yard line, Palmer drops back and feels pressure that wasn't there. He rushed the throw to Coles running a crossing pattern, which also fell incomplete.

And sometimes you just take the hit. With 9:12 left in the first half, the Bengals lined up first-and-ten at Cleveland's 42-yard line. Palmer faked the handoff to Larry Johnson. Dennis Roland locked up with Matt Roth, who bull-rushed Roland into the pocket. Palmer saw the pressure, moved up and sidestepped behind Roland. Kamerion Wimbley lined up at the right outside linebacker spot, latched onto Daniel Coats. Once he saw the play-action, Wimbley shrugged off Coats, readjusted to Palmer stepping up and leveled him. Palmer tried to make a throw to the left in an area without any Bengals receivers -- except for Chad Ochocinco about eight yards away. Intentional grounding. On the next play, Palmer watched defensive back Mike Adams come off the edge, unblocked. Palmer let go of the football well before he was ready, forcing a terribly underthrown football to skip to a waiting Laveranues Coles. On third-and-20, Palmer drops back. Protection was very good. He had time. However, being knocked around that much that early in the game causes one to have alarm bells violently ringing in ones head well before they should. Palmer takes off, reaching the line of scrimmage and throwing across the field to Coles in the middle of the field. Incomplete. Drive comes to a merciful end. Thank the lord. Bengals punt.

And sometimes there's nothing left to do. With 11:43 left in the third quarter, Palmer completed a third-and-six pass to Chad Ochocinco for a 15-yard gain. Wimbley came off the right side, using his speed to put Whitworth in a predicament. Either hold the hell out of the defensive end, or let him crush Carson Palmer. Whitworth held, negating a 15-yard pass and a first down. Cincinnati would punt after a six-yard screen pass to Brian Leonard.

As mostly everyone else, I would love for this offense to explode. However, sometimes you have to take what you're given. And the Bengals have been given a powerful rushing offense that's working nearly every week, whereas the passing offense is struggling mightily. So the question shouldn't be why aren't the Bengals throwing the football more. We already know why. It's because it's just not working right now and forcing it to work would be -- in the great words of Mr. Mackey -- "bad, mmmkay?"

Carson Palmer said it best after the game.

“We came in with the game plan that we wanted to take some shots, but they were going to play a certain way and against two shells and have two high safeties. We had a couple plays where we were going to take some shots, but on one of them I scrambled on for seven or eight yards, and the other we took a check-down. They weren’t going to come out of what they were doing defensively. They weren’t going to give us single high looks and let us throw the ball over their heads. They let us run for 200 yards. We stuck with the game plan once we figured out what their game plan was and kept pushing the ball.”

Where the passing offense struggles, the rushing offense flourishes. Let's realize a few things. Cedric Benson has missed back-to-back games and the last 10 quarters. He's still in the top ten with 859 yards rushing. Benson's getting healthy again and when he returns, he's going to run with very, very fresh legs. If that's not scary exciting, then I don't know what scary exciting means. Actually, I don't know what scary exciting means anyway.

Benson has missed the previous two games. What have the Bengals done in Benson's absence? They've averaged 193.5 yards rushing -- which is the best two-game stretch all season. Let me put that further perspective. Before Oakland, the Bengals had the league's 11th best rushing offense, averaging 122.3 yards-per-game. With a Monday Night Football game left, the Bengals are now ranked seventh, averaging 135.3 yards-per-game. They've jumped four points in the rankings, and added 13 yards to their average.

All without Cedric Benson. In the great words of Cleveland, "that's nasty."

But as impressive as Bernard Scott was last week, Larry Johnson's performance against the Cleveland Browns was great. And guess what? It wouldn't have happened with the great effort by the Bengals offensive line.

On third-and-one at the Bengals 44-yard line with 8:34 left in the first quarter, Cincinnati lines up double tight end single back formation. Palmer does his funky right-handed exchange to Larry Johnson. Within the first frame after the ball is snapped, the Bengals offensive line had opened a hole at the point of attack. Daniel Coats and Andrew Whitworth sealed the right side. Bobbie Williams turned Shaun Rogers. Kyle Cook neutralized Cleveland's inside linebacker and the left side of the offensive line eliminated any trailing defenders protecting cutback lanes. Johnson squeezed through the hole between Williams and Whitworth on the right, dodged a tackle by Abram Elam and fell forward for a ten-yard gain and the first down.

On the next play, Johnson gets the handoff. Andrew Whitworth sealed the inside linebacker. Bobbie Williams and Kyle Cook slowed the defensive end and tackle respectively while Jeremi Johnson punishes the outside linebacker for the gull of trying to make a play in the backfield. Johnson sidestepped behind Jeremi, cut back to the right behind Williams' block and ran down the right hashmark for another 12 yard gain.

On second-and-ten at the Bengals 34-yard line with 10:59 left in the second quarter, Palmer hands the football off to Johnson. Cincinnati lined up big-formation with Andrew Whitworth outside of Dennis Roland at right tackle and Anthony Collins at left tackle. Every offensive lineman had a hat on a defensive player. The secondary made first contact on Johnson about eight yards past the line of scrimmage. On the next play, Johnson picked up another seven yards thanks to a kick out block on Wimbley by fullback Jeremi Johnson.

Even Bernard Scott had his moments. After Nate Livings was called for offensive holding, the Bengals were pushed back to their own 27-yard line with first-and-twenty. Every offensive linemen had a hat on a Browns defender. Not just that, the line was pushing back the Browns defense and not allowing the defender to shrug off the block. And it was Jeremi Johnson, once again, who made the initial block that kicked out an outside linebacker looking for glory on a stop in the backfield. Scott fought off a Mike Adams attempted tackle for ten yards, picking up 21 yards and a first down in the process.

When stargazing, you finally find the star named Andre Smith. The problem with watching the offensive line during a live game, is that you don't always know who is in the game before the snap. More than any team, the Bengals employ a rotation with their offensive tackles that no two plays will have the same personnel on the line. On the first play of the second quarter, the Bengals lined up at Cincinnati's 48 yard-line on first down. Andre Smith made his first appearance (that we could tell) at right tackle with Andrew Whitworth on Smith's outside shoulder. Kenyon Coleman was Smith's guy. At the snap, Smith rose and sat in pass protection, ready to receive Coleman, who was very slow off the ball. Smith allowed Coleman an outside move, keeping pace with the defensive end, who even resorted to a spin move. Good job, ol' rook. The play, however, did break down after outside linebacker David Bowens blitzed up the middle. Bobbie Williams did pick him up, but Bowens had already won the battle simply with a quicker step to the outside. Palmer sprinted down the right sidelines for a five-yard gain.

Smith would make sporadic appearances throughout the game. While not noticeable, he made quality blocks.

On first-and-ten at Cleveland's 32 yard-line, Smith lined up at right tackle with Whitworth on his outside shoulder. Smith attacked Robaire Smith with Bernard Scott coming from behind. While Andre didn't move Robaire, the Browns defender wasn't able to make a move on the runner either. Scott picked up 11 yards on the play. On the next play, the Bengals called a sweep to the left away from Andre Smith, who slowed Robaire's progress down the line of scrimmage, looking at the second level for any unsuspecting linebacker to break in half. Good day, ol' rook.

It's my firm belief that this is the most complete Bengals squad that Marvin Lewis has ever put together. It might be the best squad in 20 years of Bengals football. They are winning with a strong rushing offense and a powerful defense. There's things to fix. There always is. But I believe that this Bengals squad can beat any team in the NFL this year because their strengths always dictates championship football. Perhaps I'm banging the homer drum. I've done that before and I'm not afraid to show how proud I am of this squad. So I'm enjoying it. It hasn't happened a lot in my lifetime.

Final Injury/Practice Report: Cleveland Browns (1-9) at Cincinnati Bengals (7-3)

Kirkendall — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 16:31:49 -0000

CINCINNATI BENGALS

QUESTIONABLE	PROBABLE
RB Cedric Benson (hip)	DE Robert Geathers (hip)
WR Laveranues Coles (chest)	DT Tank Johnson (knee)
DT Domata Peko (knee)	CB Johnathan Joseph (foot)
LB Keith Rivers (calf)	G Evan Mathis (ankle)
CB Morgan Trent (knee)	LB Rey Maualuga (foot)

CLEVELAND BROWNS

QUESTIONABLE	PROBABLE
LB Blake Costanzo (shoulder)	LB David Bowens (knee)
TE Greg Estandia (shoulder)	TE Michael Gaines (back)
G Rex Hadnot (knee)	RB Jamal Lewis (ankle)
DT Shaun Rogers (ankle)	C Alex Mack (thumb)
TE Robert Royal (thigh, finger)	DE Robaire Smith (shoulder)
RB Lawrence Vickers (hamstring)	WR Chansi Stuckey (calf)

Practice

BENGALS	WED	THUR	FRI
RB Cedric Benson (hip)	DNP	DNP	LP
WR Laveranues Coles (chest)	DNP	DNP	LP
LB Rey Maualuga (foot)	DNP	LP	LP
DT Domata Peko (knee)	DNP	DNP	LP
DE Robert Geathers (hip)	LP	LP	FP
DT Tank Johnson (knee)	LP	LP	LP
CB Johnathan Joseph (foot)	LP	LP	FP
LB Keith Rivers (calf)	LP	LP	LP
CB Morgan Trent (knee)	LP	LP	LP
G Evan Mathis (ankle)	--	FP	FP

CLEVELAND	WED	THUR	FRI
G Rex Hadnot (knee)	DNP	LP	LP
DT Shaun Rogers (ankle)	DNP	DNP	LP
TE Robert Royal (thigh, finger)	DNP	DNP	LP
RB Lawrence Vickers (hamstring)	DNP	DNP	LP
LB David Bowens (knee)	LP	LP	LP
LB Blake Costanzo (shoulder)	LP	LP	LP
TE Greg Estandia (shoulder)	LP	LP	LP
RB Jamal Lewis (ankle)	LP	LP	LP
TE Michael Gaines (back)	FP	FP	FP
C Alex Mack (thumb)	FP	FP	FP
DE Robaire Smith (shoulder)	FP	FP	FP
WR Chansi Stuckey (calf)	FP	FP	FP

Practice Report: Cleveland Browns (1-9) at Cincinnati Bengals (7-3)

Kirkendall — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 16:00:16 -0000

Untitled Document

Every Wednesday, Thursday and Friday evening, we'll (TRY TO) update the practice/injury chart leading up to Sunday's game. The chart is pretty self-explanatory. If the player is listed as out, they're out for the game. If they did not participate, they didn't practice. If they were limited, then they only participated during a portion of practice (typically means missing 11-on-11 drills). If the player is listed as full participation, it simply means that they practiced fully and that the only reason they're listed is because injury was an issue the week before.

Practice

BENGALS	WED	THUR	FRI
RB Cedric Benson (hip)	DNP	DNP
WR Laveranues Coles (chest)	DNP	DNP
LB Rey Maualuga (foot)	DNP	LP
DT Domata Peko (knee)	DNP	DNP
DE Robert Geathers (hip)	LP	LP
DT Tank Johnson (knee)	LP	LP
CB Johnathan Joseph (foot)	LP	LP
LB Keith Rivers (calf)	LP	LP
CB Morgan Trent (knee)	LP	LP

CLEVELAND	WED	THUR	FRI
G Rex Hadnot (knee)	DNP	LP
DT Shaun Rogers (ankle)	DNP	DNP
TE Robert Royal (thigh, finger)	DNP	DNP
RB Lawrence Vickers (hamstring)	DNP	DNP
LB David Bowens (knee)	LP	LP
LB Blake Costanzo (shoulder)	LP	LP
TE Greg Estandia (shoulder)	LP	LP
RB Jamal Lewis (ankle)	LP	LP
TE Michael Gaines (back)	FP	FP
C Alex Mack (thumb)	FP	FP
DE Robaire Smith (shoulder)	FP	FP
WR Chansi Stuckey (calf)	FP	FP

Nightlink: Bears O too complicated?

Lester A. Wiltfong Jr. — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 22:30:29 -0000

More photos » by Charles Rex Arbogast - AP

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Brad Biggs of the Sun-Times has a nice piece today about the problems with the Bears offense, more particularly the Red Zone offense. He starts off by talking about Ron Turner wanting to scale back the Bears offense. Seriously.

Offensive coordinator Ron Turner said he's ready to start paring back the playbook with the Bears clearly struggling seven games into the Jay Cutler era. At this point, following Sunday's 30-6 victory over the Cleveland Browns at Soldier Field, it's fair to say the Bears aren't doing much of anything very well with the possible exception that Cutler is doing a decent job of getting the ball to Devin Hester on a regular basis.

NFC North Standings

W L T PF PA

Minnesota 7 1 0 244 174

Chicago 4 3 0 159 150

Green Bay 4 3 0 187 134

Detroit 1 6 0 113 205

(updated 11.3.2009 at 1:44 AM PST)

	W	L	PF	PA
Minnesota	7	1	244	174
Chicago	4	3	159	150
Green Bay	4	3	187	134
Detroit	1	6	113	205

Speaking of Devin Hester, he is starting to put up some solid numbers as a WR, the following is from some Bears blog on Sporting News. :)

* Devin Hesterlooked good in the return game, and his 7 catches for 81 yards has him with 35 receptions on the year (tied with Anquan Boldin and T.J. Houshmandzadeh) for 10th in the NFC, and 454 yards, good for 9th best in the NFC. Still not #1 WR numbers, but it's a heck of a start.

Anyway back to the article from Biggs.

He sort of compliments Matt Forte, but points out a missed blitz pick up he had.

Matt Forte, who rushed for the two offensive touchdowns, showed some signs yesterday and looked good on a 28-yard reception to pick up the game's first first down. He got in some open space and took advantage of the room to run. But on the very next play Forte's assignment was to pick up blitzing linebacker Eric Barton and he completely whiffed.

Forte has been real good in his blitz pickups in his young career. Can anyone recall him missing like that in the past?

Turner talked about players executing afterward and he's right. Surely, his call accounted for Browns linebacker Kamerion Wimbleyon third-and-goal from the Cleveland three-yard line early in the second quarter. With an empty backfield after Forte motioned out wide to the left, Wimbley came free off the left side. Tight end Greg Olsen released into the flat and left tackle Orlando Pace blocked down on right end Robaire Smith. I'm not going to venture a guess as to whose responsibility Wimbley was, but when you leave him unblocked what happens is an 11-yard sack and no shot at the end zone.

I'll venture a guess. If Pace blocked down and the guy he blocked down on wasn't double teamed, that tells me Pace did his job. If Olsen released into the flat I'm guessing he should have at least chipped Wimbley allowing Cutler just enough time to read the rush from Wimbley and throw to a releasing Olsen.

Biggs goes on to add 10 more thoughts on the Bears, always a good read.

A Most Delicious Matchup

Mitchell_M — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 23:58:37 -0000

Mmm...Browns...

Now, I know what you're thinking. Historically this season, I've been more negative than some of you would care for. I look at it as being more realistic, but at the same time it comes off as having a serious lack of faith in the team.

Allow me to attempt to salvage my reputation by coming out and saying that this is easily the best matchup of the year for the Packers and that they should absolutely roll on the Browns. Why do I say that? The answer is after the jump.

CLE rushing vs. GB defense: Jamal Lewis used to be the workhorsiest running back in the NFL. He's fallen off, to say the least (67 carries, 233 yards, 0 TDs). Jerome Harrison was supposed to be change-of-pace back in the vein of Leon Washington, Chris Johnson, and Darren Sproles. Needless to say, he has not realized that potential yet (61 carries, 228 yards, 0 TDs). Rookie James Davis looked promising, but was lost for the season. The Cleveland stable of running backs, ranked 18th in yardage, is mediocre at best.

The offensive line isn't much better. Joe Thomas (6'6", 312) is a stud at LT, but he specializes more in pass protection. The rest of the line is not nearly as studly. Eric Steinbach (6'6", 295) is an athletic LG who can move in space, but has historically had problems with sustaining blocks and keeping his base. Rookie center Alex Mack (6'4", 311), backup center/starting RG Hank Fraley (6'3", 310), and RT John St. Clair (6'6", 320) are merely average.

Green Bay has surprisingly turned into a surprisingly stout run defense over the course of the season. They're ranked 16th against the run, but the difference between 10th ranked Tennessee and 20th ranked New England is less than 20 yards. Nick Barnett seems to have recovered fully from his ACL injury, Brandon Chillar has continued to excel as a rotation linebacker, Clay Matthews had a small coming-out party last week, and A.J. Hawk has been relegated to the bench for over 75% of the defensive snaps.

Advantage: Green Bay. Having finally settled on a rotation for the front seven, the defense is starting to hit its stride.

CLE passing vs. GB defense: The only bright spot in the passing offense is rookie WR Mohamed Massaquoi. The Georgia product may not be able to recreate Braylon Edwards' production (or drops), but he has already established himself as a productive member of the NFL. Mike Furrey, former St. Louis safety turned receiver, is a homeless man's Wes Welker. From there, it's all downhill in Cleveland.

Derek Anderson once submitted a stat line of 2/17 for 23 yards and kept his job. That's how bad the quarterback situation is in Cleveland. Between him and Brady Quinn, it's hard to declare a winner. Quinn is easily more accurate than Anderson, but Anderson has the arm that can make all the necessary throws. If you somehow combined them into a super-conglomerate-quarterback, they might be servicable. But until then, Eric Mangini will have to continue choosing between dukey and doo-doo.

And by the way, how in the world does Eric Mangini still have a job? The Brady Quinn Era lasted all of 2.5 games. The second-best player on offense (and second-leading receiver) was Braylon Edwards, who's now a member of the Jets. They were reportedly shopping Joshua Cribbs before the deadline, presumably because they don't want to have any success on special teams.

Green Bay finally is starting to figure out a rotation of linebackers that work well with blitz packages, especially on passing downs. The group of Matthews-Barnett-Chillar-Kampman has produced well, especially when Kampman moves onto the line. Al Harris, Charles Woodson, Nick Collins, Tramon Williams, and finally healthy (for now) Atari Bigby are licking their chops this week. It might get ugly.

Advantage: Definitely Green Bay. The only thing preventing this defense from dominating this week is injuries.

GB rushing vs. CLE defense: Cleveland has a defense which has been exploited like a British colony. Their 30th-ranked run defense is anchored by Shaun Rogers. Is it any coincidence that all the teams that the 6'4" 350 lb. mammoth tackle has played for have been awful against the run? Probably, especially now that Cleveland defensive star D'Qwell Jackson is out for the year. But the rest of Cleveland's front seven are non-descript. Robaire Smith and Kenyon Coleman are the main ends, with former Packer Corey Williams rotating in. Eric Barton, Kamerion Wimbley, David Bowens, and David Veikune will have to step up to replace Jackson's leadership.

Meanwhile, rumors abound of Ryan Grant's imminent departure from Green Bay. Well, perhaps "imminent" isn't the right word, but those in charge at 1265 are not pleased and have been looking for ways to improve the position. Whether or not Ahman Green can be considered an improvement is yet to be seen. In any case, Grant is still producing at a slightly-above-average clip (3.8 ypc). Perhaps his numbers are lower because of the offensive line? After all, Grant did finish last year on a relatively strong note, so maybe he is getting primed for a second-half explosion, a la Cedric Benson in 2008.

Advantage: Green Bay, because Cleveland sucks more at stopping the run than Green Bay does at establishing it.

GB passing vs. CLE defense: I played defensive back in high school, and I was good enough to not get burned on a regular basis. One week, I caught the flu, and tried playing in that week's game after starting to get over it. Two long pass plays later, I was riding the pine for the rest of the game and didn't start the next week.

The point is, if any of the Browns' defensive backs were among the players who caught the flu, they will be in for a long day.

The Browns' pass defense is ranked 23rd, a number that would likely be worse if Cleveland weren't constantly losing and having opponents run the clock out against them. The corners (Eric Wright and Brandon McDonald) are actually not horrible players, but they're constantly left alone by the putrid safety tandem of Brodney Pool and Abram Elam. If you thought Derrick Martin and Jarrett Bush were bad, wait until you see Wright matched up against Donald Driver and pass him off to the safety who isn't there.

Speaking of Green Bay's receivers, they have certainly stepped up in the last few weeks. Seven Packers have over 100 yards receiving on the season, and Driver, Greg Jennings, James Jones, Jordy Nelson, and Jermichael Finley are all averaging over 15.0 yards per catch. As long as the drops don't come back, these guys will get open and get yards.

Oh, and Aaron Rodgers is awesome. Let's hope he stays healthy despite his dangerous work conditions.

Advantage: Green Bay by a long shot.

No-longer-so-preliminary verdict: The biggest thing that worries me about this game is the potential for the team to fall into a trap, given the looming November 1st visit from a certain NFC North team. But before we start repeating the Admiral Ackbar message from Week 3, recognize exactly how different this team is in Week 7. With Atari Bigby healthy, a more suitable replacement for Mark Tauscher, and the reunion of Aaron Kampman and the 3-point stance, this Packers team is far more capable than they were in the first quarter of the season.

Poll

What outcome do you see for Week 7 against Cleveland?

Big GB win.

505 votes

Slim GB win.

61 votes

Too close to call.

6 votes

Slim CLE win.

24 votes

Big CLE win.

16 votes

612 votes | Poll has closed

Previewing the Kansas City Chiefs 2009 Schedule: Week 15

Chris Thorman — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 20:12:05 -0000

More photos » by Tony Dejak - AP

3 months ago: Cleveland Browns quarterback Brady Quinn (10) passes the ball to Josh Cribbs for a first down under pressure from Tennessee Titans defensive end Dave Ball (98) during a preseason NFL football game at Cleveland Browns Stadium, Saturday, Aug. 29, 2009, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)

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Week 15 brings the Cleveland Browns to Arrowhead Stadium. At this point in the season, and at this point in our predictions, we have the Kansas City Chiefs sitting on a record of 7-6.

Crazy? Yeah, it is a little crazy. But we are after all Chiefs fans, no?

If you're a casual follower of the Browns like I am, you know about Dante Stallworth and his legal issues. You've heard about the Brady Quinn v. Derek Anderson debate. And I'm assuming you know that Eric Mangini is now the head coach.

But beyond that I don't know that much. After the jump, SB Nation's Browns blogger Chris answers some of our questions about the Browns. I've also added the Browns' depth chart as of now for more reference.

Make sure you check out Dawgs by Nature for all things Cleveland Browns.

Pos	1st String (Starter)	2nd String (Backup)	3rd String
QB
RB	Jamal Lewis	Jerome Harrison	James Davis Cedric Peerman
FB	Lawrence Vickers
WR1	Braylon Edwards	Mohamed Massaquoi
WR2	Joshua Cribbs	Mike Furrey	Brian Robiskie
TE	Robert Royal	Steve Heiden	Martin Rucker
LT	Joe Thomas
LG	Eric Steinbach
C	Hank Fraley	Alex Mack
RG	Floyd Womack	Rex Hadnot
RT	John St. Clair	Phil Trautwein
Pos	1st String (Starter)	2nd String (Backup)	3ird String
DE	Kenyon Coleman	C.J. Mosley
NT	Shaun Rogers	Ahtyba Rubin
DE	Robaire Smith	Corey Williams
LOLB	Kamerion Wimbley
ILB	D'Qwell Jackson	David Veikune
ILB	Eric Barton	Kaluka Maiava	Blake Costanzo
ROLB	David Bowens	Alex Hall	Leon Williams
LCB	Eric Wright	Hank Poteat	Marquis Floyd
RCB	Brandon McDonald	Coye Francies	Gerard Lawson
FS	Brodney Pool	Mike Adams	DeAngelo Smith
SS	Abram Elam	Nick Sorensen
Pos	1st String (Starter)	2nd String (Backup)	3rd String
K	Phil Dawson
P	Dave Zastudil
H	Dave Zastudil
LS	Ryan Pontbriand
KR	Joshua Cribbs	Gerard Lawson	Jerome Harrison
PR	Joshua Cribbs	Gerard Lawson	Jerome Harrison

What do the Chiefs have to worry the most about...Jamal Lewis and the running game or Braylon Edwards and the passing game?

This question is tough to answer since our game isn't until Week 15, so I'll try to base my answer as if the Chiefs were facing the Browns earlier in the year. I'd definitely pick Braylon Edwards and the passing game. The media has automatically written off the Browns, but there is still some potency on the offensive side of the ball. Just two years ago, Derek Anderson and Edwards were Pro Bowlers. Sure, last season's struggles "might" have shown their true colors, but how can anyone guarantee that Edwards won't go back to having the same type of season he had in 2007? Brady Quinn will probably be the starting quarterback. Although he doesn't sling it as much as Anderson, Brian Daboll (the Browns offensive coordinator) would be foolish to leave out the deep patterns to Edwards.

On the other hand, the running game appears bound to struggle as long as Jamal Lewis is in the lineup. He had a down season last year and has not shown the same power he used to have throughout this year's training camp. Lewis claims he's just "holding back" for the regular season, but I think it comes down to him not having very much left in the tank anymore. Fans in Cleveland like our sixth-round draft pick James Davis at running back, but I'm not going to sit here and say that he's going to be awesome. He was great in the preseason, but the real evaluation will come when he's against first stringers in the regular season. This lack of assurance in the running game almost makes Edwards and the passing game more of a threat by default.

Will the Browns use Josh Cribbs as a WR more often? The Chiefs did that with Dante Hall and it seemed to ruin him in the return game. Any thoughts/concerns on that?

Not only should the Browns use Cribbs as a receiver more often, he should and will be starting opposite Edwards (according to our depth chart). He started in the preseason and did very well. I don't think you can compare Cribbs to Dante Hall or Devin Hester in their transitions to wide receiver because they have different styles. Hall and Hester rely more on elusiveness, whereas Cribbs finds the hole, powers through it and keeps on going. During the preseason, we saw several plays against first-stringers in which Cribbs caught the ball on a quick pattern towards the sideline and then stiff-armed the first cornerback he met before being taken down a little bit later by another defender. I know the Browns took Brian Robiskie and Mohamed Massaquoi in round two this year, but if it were up to me, I'd shelve their growth and give Cribbs the starting opportunity -- I'm that intrigued by him.

The Chiefs are just transitioning to the 3-4 defense. Can you talk a little bit about what the Browns transition to the 3-4 was like a few years ago and how it stands now?

The transition was exciting at first. All we could think about is how our defense was going to be nasty like the Ravens defense. And then, something bad happened -- we saw Romeo Crennel's 3-4 defense in action. Ever since then, it's been a nightmare. We never generated any pressure. We never stopped the run. We never stood out from any other defense in the NFL. Most importantly, we barely had any of the type of players we needed for the system. Last year we acquired Shaun Rogers, but one man can only do so much. I think Mangini and defensive coordinator Rob Ryan have done a better job finding players that are comfortable with the 3-4 alignment, but we're several years into the defense and aren't even half as good as the Ravens' defense.

Many thanks to Chris for stopping by and giving us his answers! Read more about the Browns at Dawgs by Nature.

My prediction for this game is, let's say....17 to 13 in favor of our Chiefs. I don't think we'll have faith in this offense very often this year. Current record at this point: 8-6.

Check out all of our season game previews at this link.

Cleveland Browns Training Camp Report: Day 10 (Morning) - Depth Chart Released

Chris Pokorny — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 22:55:04 -0000

More photos » by Tony Dejak - AP

4 months ago: Cleveland Browns running back Jerome Harrison, left, catches a pass over Cleveland Browns linebacker Alex Hall at the Cleveland Browns NFL football training camp Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2009, in Berea, Ohio. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)

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The Browns had a rare day off on Monday to rest from the scrimmage played on Sunday. They were back to work Tuesday morning in Berea though, and they'll finish off with another evening session later tonight.

Something a little unusual did happen in practice though, and I say that due to the poster who was insistent that QB Brett Ratliff being on Derek Anderson's team was a sign of his position on the depth chart. What happened? Find out below...

TRAINING CAMP REPORT - DAY 10 [MORNING] (8/11/09)

Ratliff Works With First Team: You read that correctly -- Brett Ratliff, who has mostly been working with the second- or third-string teams, had an opportunity to get some time in with the ones. I still wouldn't read much into this, especially when as you'll see below, Eric Mangini has listed "Derek Anderson/Brady Quinn" as "co-starters" on the depth chart he submitted to the league for the Packers game this week.

QB Brett Ratliff worked with the first-team offense in the two-minute drill and scored.

...And He Scored With Them: Ratliff didn't work the entire practice with the first-team. He only received the opportunity when it came to the two-minute drill, a drill the Browns have struggled to score in during camp. Ratliff took the first-team offense down the field for 71 yards with about a minute still left on the clock. Tony Grossi of the Plain Dealer does note that Ratliff did have some luck on his hand.

For example, on a fourth-down play, a tipped pass still found the arms of Jerome Harrison for a first down. On the scoring play, Braylon Edwards caught a pass one-handed, put a move on Brandon McDonald, and went past him 30 yards for the touchdown. Grossi says that McDonald almost stopped playing on the play though, because he thought the referee was going to call Edwards down (the touch tackle rule).
New Role For Francies: With WR Syndric Steptoe out for the season, the person taking his place in backup return duties is rookie CB Coye Francies. Joshua Cribbs and CB Gerard Lawson are still the players ahead of him on the depth chart.
Injury Notes: Today, we were able to welcome FB Charles Ali back to the field. TE Steve Heiden was also practicing after sitting out Sunday's scrimmage. WR Lance Leggett and TE John Madsen were with the trainers, while the work of WR David Patten was limited.
Mangini on Scrimmage: In talking about players who stood out from the scrimmage, he noted WR Mohamed Massaquoi and CB Coye Francies. It feels kind of cool that I had the same opinion at the scrimmage that Mangini did.
Goofing Up The Trickery: The offense tried to run a trick play for a double reverse. After Brady Quinn handed the ball to WR Brian Robiskie, Robiskie tried to hand it to WR Mike Furrey. The exchange was mishandled though, leading to a fumble recovery and touchdown return by DE Robaire Smith.
Positive Day for Wimbley: After not getting a lot of practice as the Sunday scrimmage, LB Kamerion Wimbley was making things happen this morning, beating Ryan Tucker and George Foster off the edge in two instances. I could praise LB D'Qwell Jackson again too, but he's having a good practice every time.

The Browns ran a lot of running drills Tuesday morning, as Jamal Lewis carries the ball here.

Quarterback Derby: Daniel Wolf has this morning's statistics for the quarterbacks in their drills, and it sounds like both Brady Quinn and Derek Anderson had pretty good practices. It figures that they continue the trend of one of them not being able to run away from the other. My favorite play I read about was Anderson lobbing a nice pass to RB Jerome Harrison for about 30 yards, as he was covered by LB Alex Hall. That play can be seen in the picture at the top of this post.
Bubble Watch: After LB David Bowens tipped a pass from Anderson, WR Paul Hubbard was still able to pull the ball in.
False Starts: The word "FOCUS" was painted on the field today around the 20-yard line. Apparantly that had the opposite of the intended effect on the players, as there were more false starts than perhaps any other session in camp. The mishaps didn't go unpunished; players continued to run laps for their mistakes.
Hood Picking Things Up: After some questioning of his ability to make a play on the ball from his days in Arizona, CB Roderick Hood snagged two interceptions, one of them coming off of QB Richard Bartel. It wasn't a very good practice for Bartel, who will probably be considered for the first batch of cuts (I believe those come some time after the first preseason game).
Brownies: There was a heavy focus on the running game in drills...WR Joshua Cribbs continue to catch the ball as a receiver.

Now, let's get to the starting depth chart release by Mangini (credit to Steve Doerschuk for posting):

QB: Derek Anderson/Brady Quinn, Brett Ratliff, Richard Bartel
RB: Jamal Lewis; Jerome Harrison; James Davis; Noah Herron
WR: Braylon Edwards, David Patten, Mohamed Massaquoi, Paul Hubbard, Jordan Norwood
WR: Mike Furrey, Joshua Cribbs, Brian Robiskie, Lance Leggett
TE: Robert Royal, Steve Heiden, Martin Rucker, John Madsen, Aaron Walker
FB: Lawrence Vickers, Charles Ali
LT: Joe Thomas, George Foster
LG: Eric Steinbach, Kurt Quarterman, Dustin Fry
C: Hank Fraley, Alex Mack
RG: Floyd Womack, Isaac Sowells, Fred Weary
RT: John St. Clair, Ryan Tucker, Branndon Braxton

LE: Corey Williams, C.J. Mosley, Santonio Thomas, Melila Purcell
NT: Shaun Rogers, Ahtyba Rubin, Adam Hoppel
RE: Kenyon Coleman, Robaire Smith, Louis Leonard
ROLB: Kamerion Wimbley, Titus Brown, David Veikune
ILB: D’Qwell Jackson, Beau Bell, Marcus Benard
ILB: Eric Barton, Kaluka Maiava, Philip Hunt, Blake Costanzo
LOLB: David Bowens, Alex Hall, Leon Williams, Bo Ruud
CB: Eric Wright, Hank Poteat, Corey Ivy, Brandon Anderson
CB: Brandon McDonald, Rod Hood, Coye Francies, Gerard Lawson
SS: Abram Elam, Nick Sorensen, Hamza Abdulla
FS: Brodney Pool, Mike Adams, Bret Lockett

KR: Joshua Cribbs, Jerome Harrison
PR: Joshua Cribbs, Jerome Harrison
PK: Phil Dawson
P: Dave Zastudil
H: Dave Zastudil
LS: Ryan Pontbriand

It figures that Mangini has to stay mum on the quarterback situation, eh? I would have liked to have seen how Alex Mack fared with the first-stringers even if he isn't projected to start the season. On the defensive side of the ball, Corey Williams is now in the starting lineup, contrary to Sunday's scrimmage. I wonder if that has to do with the coaches not wanting to put too much physical pressure on Robaire Smith yet, since it sounds like Smith has been very good in camp. No surprises in the secondary, but at linebacker Mangini is sticking with the All-Jets group on one side.

Tuesday Morning's Links/Camp Sources

Tuesday 8/11 morning practice (Dawg Scooper, Wolf)
Bartel gets reps with first team (Cleveland Plain Dealer, Grossi)
Abe & the Depth Chart (Orange and Brown Report, Taylor)
Tuesday AM: Ratliff gets chance (Akron Beacon Journal, Ridenour)

Shaun Smith Knocked Off Of Browns Roster

Chris Pokorny — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 17:43:03 -0000

The Cleveland Browns gave the final knockout blow to defensive lineman Shaun Smith by releasing him Saturday. The move does not come as a shock due to Smith's demeanor as a person. He has always appeared to be a hothead, and last year he punched teammate Brady Quinn in the face, making more of an impact than he had all season.

In the offseason, the new regime reportedly told Smith to "shape up and shut up". Smith showed up to camp with mixed reports from fans and the media about him -- some said he looked lazy and out of shape, while others said he was keeping his attitude in line a little bit more. Smith would have added to our depth on the defensive line, but I don't think we should look at this as a significant loss.

A few things might have led to the early release of Smith:

Mangini might want a reputation that he'll at least give players the respect of playing about a week in camp, rather than assuming their attitude from the past will carry over (he could have cut him before camp if he wanted to).
The play of DE Robaire Smith has been encouraging as he comes off of surgery.
NT Ahtyba Rubin seems to have a grip on the backup nose tackle position.
In acquiring DL Kenyon Coleman and DL C.J. Mosley in the offseason, Mangini would rather use our depth on players who have experience in the system.

There is no word on who the Browns will bring in to take the roster space of Smith. Mangini should comment on the release of Smith a little bit later.

Cleveland Browns Training Camp Report: Day 4 - QB Position Still Open

Chris Pokorny — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 23:19:46 -0000

Cleveland Browns head coach Eric Mangini is still waiting for one of the quarterbacks to emerge over the other.

View full size photo »

Practice was closed to the public today, but the media still had the pleasure of watching and reporting on your Cleveland Browns. Here's what happened today, according to the media reports coming in...

TRAINING CAMP REPORT - DAY 4 (8/4/09)

A Tale of Two Sources: Form your own conclusion on how WR Brian Robiskie did in practice today. If you read Tony Grossi's report, Robiskie dropped three balls within a five-play span. If you ask Lane Adkins, Robiskie only had one drop and nearly caught two others that were off target.
Bubble Watch: For the second consecutive practice, WR Paul Hubbard made the most of his reps. Hubbard caught everything in sight, standing out amongst the crowd of receivers. The OBR notes that he has made the noticeable improvement of extending his hands for the ball rather than waiting for the ball to come to his body.
Mass is Matter: It was also a great practice for WR Mohamed Massaquoi, and perhaps his best one yet. He also caught everything that was coming his way, proving to be a threat due to his speed. Massaquoi had a nice catch on a crossing route which he was then able to run past the defensive backs for a long gain.

LB D'Qwell Jackson has been a favorite of Eric Mangini, as he blankets RB Jerome Harrison here.

Quinn Not Excelling: Tony Grossi had some nice statistics from today's practice as to why it's difficult to judge which quarterback truly has the upper hand in practice. Thus far, it seems to be Derek Anderson, but here's what happened today: in 3rd- and 4th-down situations, the offensive units under Anderson and Brady Quinn were each 4-of-9 with an interception. In the two-minute drill, Anderson moved the ball into field goal range with the first-team offense. Quinn, on the other hand, could not manage a first down with the second-team offense in the two-minute drill.
Props to the Defensive Players: I mentioned above that each quarterback threw an interception. From what I can gather, Quinn was picked by S Abram Elam on an errant pass to TE Aaron Walker, while Anderson was picked by LB D'Qwell Jackson. It wasn't an easy play for Jackson, who made a great read, tipped the ball, and then dove to the ground for the interception. Jackson was praised by head coach Eric Mangini when talking to the media for being a leader on defense.
Bad Snaps: It sounds like Alex Mack has had some trouble getting through multiple practices without a bad snap. I'm sure he'll have plenty of time to correct that before the regular season though.
Rogers Motoring Again: Big Baby Shaun Rogers was back at work today, proving to be a powerhouse on the defensive line once again. He did have to run a lap though, something that Ohio.com deemed as him looking like he "virtually tip-toed around the outskirts of the field drawing both applause and laughs from individuals in attendance".

WR Mohamed Massaquoi shouldn't have any problems locking up a roster spot.

Backup Corners: The OBR today pointed out that backup cornerbacks Roderick Hood and Corey Ivy have been providing stable coverage. I presume that means they are better than the Terry Cousin's of the NFL. I haven't heard any updates on CB Hank Poteat yet, and the news on rookie CB Coye Francies has been limited.
Robaire Still Holding Up: Adkins also reports that Robaire Smith continues to look strong in practice, including having a few "epic" battles with LT Joe Thomas.
Cribbs Not Returning Kicks: On kickoffs, Joshua Cribbs took a break from returning the ball in practice and just worked on being on the coverage team. Instead, WR Syndric Steptoe and WR Jordan Norwood handled kickoffs.
Mangini Practices "Icing": Coach Mangini needs to practice too. When Phil Dawson lined up for a 47-yard field goal, he drilled it. However, the kick was negated since Mangini called a timeout just before the snap. Dawson missed the second attempt wide left.

The Browns will practice for the public again tomorrow, with a morning session and an afternoon session. I might be a little late on the morning report tomorrow, meaning the evening recap might not come until some time Thursday.

Also, from the Official Team Site:

SIRIUS NFL radio, a 24-hour NFL talk channel, will be visiting camp with Tim Ryan, a former NFL defensive lineman, and former front office executive Pat Kirwan, hosting "Movin' The Chains" on SIRIUS channel 124 from 3-7 p.m.

Tuesday's Evening Link Collection / Camp Sources

Bell more comfortable in year two (Official Team Site, Florjancic)
Lane's Training Camp Quick Hits (Orange and Brown Report, Adkins)
Training Camp: Day 4 (Akron Beacon Journal, Thomas)
Cleveland Browns training camp log: Day 4 (Cleveland Plain Dealer, Grossi)