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2010 Cleveland Browns Pre-Camp Preview: Offense - Part 2
July 27, 2010 By Jeff Biasella
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Keeping things rolling on the good news train, the Browns have a lot of depth at running back. I'm not sure what to make of Jerome Harrison just yet. It's hard to tell if he would have had a bigger impact if the Browns would have let the Jamal Lewis dream die earlier or if he simply took advantage of defenses saying, "No way they run again." I say that because, as a lifelong Browns fan, it's hard for me to accept what we might have; an elite running back. He's got the between-the-tackles shifty speed, the perfect size to slip through unnoticed (5'9'' 205lbs), and out-of-nowhere power to run through a linebacker. Like I said, he's almost too good to be true.
James Davis is a pick I loved from day one. I just wish that bizarre practice injury never happened so we could have seen more of him. Davis is a virtual copy of what Harrison brings to the table along with pass catching abilities. Montario Hardesty, he's not a pick I loved from day one. He is a great prospect on paper but in his case, paper doesn't beat rock; rock tears through paper. You don't become more durable and less injury prone when you leave college for the NFL. It just doesn't happen which is why every time I hear his name I think to myself, "Who in the hell gave the green light to trade up for this guy and how high was he?" If-if-he stays healthy, I see the Browns using him more like a Percy Harvin; combination of quick screens and slow to develop, "Did you forget about me" plays out of the flats. I'd be shocked to see him get more carries than receptions. That is, if he even can find a spot on the field. He'll be behind Harrison and Davis at running back as well as Lawrence Vickers and Peyton Hillis in the backfield passing game.
Initially, I was confused as to why the Browns wanted Peyton Hillis in the Brady Quinn trade. The more I think about it though, the more I understand. If you're going with a two running back system, it's stupid not to have a two fullback system in place. Vickers takes a pounding opening up holes. Now he can get some rest and the Browns don't have to sacrifice much of his versatility. Hillis is like Jon Ritchie with better speed and hands. He's not the killer blocker like Ritchie was or Vickers is but not too many fullbacks can say that either. But when the 2008 Broncos lost 16,497 running backs to injury, Hillis stepped up and ran like he was the man all along. Options are a great thing to have in the NFL because it makes game planning that much harder for the other team. And the Browns finally have plenty of them and it doesn't stop at running back.
The Browns have quietly established one the best TE corps in the league as well. Not one TE is cut from the Rickey Dudley "no block" cloth but every TE can catch. Robert Royal and Evan Moore will primarily work out of running schemes but both can bail the QB out and make the clutch catch. Then we outright stole Alex Smith from the Eagles who refused to use him last year even though he is a great pass catching TE. I'm a little worried about Ben Watson though seeing as how the Patriots didn't hesitate to let him go elsewhere. Then again, the Patriots are the cheapest organization in the league. So I'm hoping it was strictly a money issue and not a "this guy can't play anymore" issue. Either way, if the Browns are running a West Coast system, linebackers are going to be busy picking up running backs and TE's and the breakdown in coverage will be there. Unless defenses don't have to worry about wide receivers making plays which is a distinct possibility.
The Browns are still without a legit number one wide receiver. Even when Bobby Engram was getting close to 100 receptions and over 1,000 yards, he wasn't doing that as the number one. The fact he only played 5 games last year with the Chiefs and this will be season number 15 for him, makes it harder for me to accept he can produce like a number one wide receiver. Don't get me wrong, I like the pick-up. Last year, Josh Cribbs was the vet at training camp showing Mohamed Massaquoi and Brian Robiskie the ropes. Now at least there is a real wide receiver who knows how to be one at the NFL level at training camp who can help Massaquoi and Robiskie develop. I like how Chansi Stuckey came along at the end of last year but he's a slot receiver and far from a deep ball threat. Syndric Steptoe has a chance to be that guy with his lights out speed and could have a breakout year but his hands are still an issue and he could just be a version of Josh Cribbs. Speaking of Cribbs, I hope this is the year the Browns stop trying to make him a wide receiver. He's a lot of things but not a NFL wide receiver. Let him do his thing on kicks, punts and out of the Wildcat. The last thing the Browns need is Cribbs getting cracked over the middle trying to catch a pass he wouldn't come down with anyway.
Finally, there is the issue of the worst offensive coordinator in the league Brian Daboll or as I like to call him; the NFL's Mike Brown. The exact details of Daboll's offensive system are unknown. I only know the Browns run a West Cost system because that's what it says on Madden. In real life, it's a series of running plays and fullback dump offs in the flats. I like the fact Mike Holmgren is there with a quarterback like Delhomme and how the evidence doesn't suggest Delhomme's 2009 performance was due to Tommy John surgery. But unless Holmgren pulls a Pat Riley on Daboll, I'm hesitant to say I ready to see if Jake Delhomme makes something out of nothing on third and long. Until we know if we're getting pre or post meltdown Delhomme, it's hard to say what type of team the Browns will be offensively. If it's pre-meltdown, the league is in trouble even with our average wide receiving corps because of how good the running backs and tight ends are. If it's post-meltdown, defenses will be stacking the line like they never had before and Phil Dawson will once again score more points than the rest of the Browns combined.
