2010 NFL Offseason: Cleveland Browns

[BernietheKid]

2010 NFL Offseason: Cleveland Browns

Draft Grades, Season Previews, Offseason Needs, Free Agents





Cleveland Browns (Last Year: 5-11)

Season Summary:
It was pretty obvious that things wouldn't go well when the Browns essentially traded the No. 5 pick to the Jets for nothing. Instead of landing Mark Sanchez, Cleveland acquired Alex Mack and a bunch of scrubs. So, it was no surprise that the Browns began the year 1-11. However, they deserve credit for finishing the season with four consecutive victories. Now, in addition to losing out on Sanchez, they won't have the chance to obtain Jimmy Clausen or Sam Bradford! Terrific. With this cunning strategy, you have to wonder how Cleveland hasn't made the playoffs since 2002.

Offseason Moves:
Browns cut WR Donte Stallworth



Offseason Needs:

1. Quarterback: It's really a shame that the Browns won their way out of the Jimmy Clausen and Sam Bradford sweepstakes. They may attempt to trade for Donovan McNabb, but I'm not sure he would be willing to re-sign with Cleveland. Most likely, Mike Holmgren will have to acquire Matt Hasselbeck and draft a young quarterback in Rounds 2-3 (Tony Pike, Colt McCoy, etc.)
2. Free Safety: Brodney Pool is a talented player, but he already has four concussions in his career. The Cleveland Plain Dealer suggested recently that his playing days might be over. There will be plenty of safety talent in the second and third rounds of the 2010 NFL Draft.
3. Cornerback: Eric Wright is a solid corner, but the Browns have nothing across from him. They can't go another season rotating between Brandon McDonald and Mike Adams. Joe Haden is a major option at No. 7 overall.
4. No. 1 Wide Receiver: Brady Quinn was terrible last year and his deep accuracy is downright depressing, but it's not like he had anything to work with either. It might not be a bad idea to spend a Round 2-5 pick this April on a wideout.
5. Inside Linebacker: The Browns need someone to go along with D'Qwell Jackson in the middle of their defense. The 2010 season could also be Jackson's final year in Cleveland. There will be some options in Rounds 3-4 this April.
6. Rush Linebacker: Kamerion Wimbley began the year strong, but fizzled out, recording just 1.5 sacks in his final eight games. Matt Roth played well in December, but someone must be added to push Wimbley.
7. Strong Safety: As you can see, Cleveland's secondary is a major issue. Abram Elam isn't very good, but with so many needs, the Browns will likely roll with him again in 2010.
8. Right Tackle: John St. Clair has allowed 15.5 sacks the past two seasons from the right tackle position. Taking someone like Sam Young or Ciron Black in the middle rounds of the 2010 NFL Draft could work.
9. Slot Receiver: More than one wideout is needed to optimize Cleveland's pedestrian offense.
10. Return Specialist: It goes without saying that this will be a big need if the Browns can't come to terms with Joshua Cribbs.
11. Running Back Depth: It might not be a bad idea to add depth behind Jerome Harrison. Cleveland still doesn't know what it has in James Davis. A late-round pick could be used here.
    
    2010 NFL Free Agent Signings:
    
    
    Cleveland Browns Free Agents:
    Salary Cap (As of Feb. 15): No cap.

1. 1. D'Qwell Jackson (RFA), ILB, Browns. Age: 26.
      The Browns really missed D'Qwell Jackson last year; he played in only six games because of a chest injury. He's slightly overrated, but still a very good player.
   2. Jerome Harrison (RFA), RB, Browns. Age: 27.
      You have to wonder why Eric Mangini didn't use Jerome Harrison earlier in the year. In his final three games, Harrison rushed for 561 yards and five touchdowns despite running behind an offensive line that needs major help on the right side. Harrison is also a solid pass-catcher.
   3. Brodney Pool (RFA), FS, Browns. Age: 26.
      Brodney Pool is a very talented free safety who is great in coverage. He would be ranked higher, but he has suffered four concussions in his career. One more could finish him off as an NFL player.
   4. Matt Roth (RFA), DE/OLB, Browns. Age: 27.
      Where did this come from? Matt Roth was thoughtlessly waived by the Dolphins in November. He signed with the Browns and went on to accumulate four sacks in his final six contests. Roth was already good against the run, so his ability to get to the quarterback was a huge spark for Cleveland's four-game winning streak at the end of the year.
   5. Rex Hadnot, G, Browns. Age: 28.
      A sound run-blocker, Rex Hadnot helped Jerome Harrison finish the year on a strong note.
   6. Lawrence Vickers (RFA), FB, Browns. Age: 27.
      Did a good job leading the way to Jerome Harrison's dynamic finish this season.
   7. Jason Trusnik (RFA), ILB, Browns. Age: 26.
      Jason Trusnik played well at multiple linebacker positions for the Browns, but he'd be better as a reserve.
   8. Abram Elam (RFA), SS, Browns. Age: 28.
      Can be a solid reserve safety. Struggles in coverage.
   9. Blake Costanzo (RFA), ILB, Browns. Age: 26.
   10. Brett Ratliff (ERFA), QB, Browns. Age: 25.
   11. Mike Furrey, WR, Browns. Age: 33.
   12. Arnold Harrison (RFA), DE/OLB, Browns. Age: 27.
   13. Syndric Steptoe (RFA), WR, Browns. Age: 25.
   14. Ryan Tucker, OT, Browns. Age: 35.

[DawgFan]

I have said this often...but here it goes again.

When you have an average/solid player next to a poor player, the average player looks bad because he is always helping out on the bad player.

When you have an average/solid player next to a good/great player, the average player looks good/great as he is RECEIVING help from the great player.

So, with that said, a lot of these remarks about how average or poor Browns players are makes me laugh.

The Browns definitely have holes...but this article doesn't take into consideration the synergy that exists on a TEAM.

Anyway...I think with DQ healthy we will finally get the chance to see Veikune. With DQ out, we just didn't have the guy with the range to put in the rookie.

The Roth comment was interesting because he slammed Wimbley with the same sentence...when in fact it was the attention to Wimbley that allowed Roth to get to the QB consistently.

If the Browns add a RDE (Williams is NOT the guy), then our OLB's will suddenly become much more formidable...and you will likely see Wimbley in the backfield much more often.

As for Harrison...it could be that Hadnot finally being healthy, and the threat of a TE that could catch, played a big part in why the last 3 games were huge. Before then...not so much.

OK, off my soapbox.

[Enigmatic Evil]

Originally Posted by BernietheKid

Cleveland Browns (Last Year: 5-11)

Season Summary:
It was pretty obvious that things wouldn't go well when the Browns essentially traded the No. 5 pick to the Jets for nothing. Instead of landing Mark Sanchez, Cleveland acquired Alex Mack and a bunch of scrubs. So, it was no surprise that the Browns began the year 1-11. However, they deserve credit for finishing the season with four consecutive victories.

Offseason Needs:

1. Quarterback: It's really a shame that the Browns won their way out of the Jimmy Clausen and Sam Bradford sweepstakes. They may attempt to trade for Donovan McNabb, but I'm not sure he would be willing to re-sign with Cleveland. Most likely, Mike Holmgren will have to acquire Matt Hasselbeck and draft a young quarterback in Rounds 2-3 (Tony Pike, Colt McCoy, etc.) Not a terrible strategy though I don't really see QB as our #1 need either, it's definitely in our top 3 "needs."
2. Free Safety: Brodney Pool is a talented player, but he already has four concussions in his career. The Cleveland Plain Dealer suggested recently that his playing days might be over. There will be plenty of safety talent in the second and third rounds of the 2010 NFL Draft.
   
3. Cornerback: Eric Wright is a solid corner, but the Browns have nothing across from him. They can't go another season rotating between Brandon McDonald and Mike Adams. Joe Haden is a major option at No. 7 overall. I would be excited if we acquired Haden. Though Berry has more up-side I would be surprised if Berry fell as low was #7. Berry would be able to fill our FS or SS role as well he's that versatile.
4. No. 1 Wide Receiver: Brady Quinn was terrible last year and his deep accuracy is downright depressing, but it's not like he had anything to work with either. It might not be a bad idea to spend a Round 2-5 pick this April on a wideout. He's not really wrong, Brady Quinn has by no means "good" he was mediocre without looking as bad as DA. He NEEDS a #1 Wide out.
   
5. Inside Linebacker: The Browns need someone to go along with D'Qwell Jackson in the middle of their defense. The 2010 season could also be Jackson's final year in Cleveland. There will be some options in Rounds 3-4 this April. If we re-sign DQJ this offseason, why would 2010 be his last season? Would we trade him or is this writer just assuming we would only get DQJ a one-year deal? He's only 26, he's in the prime of his career. You'd think we would want to keep him around. I don't disagree that he's overrated, but that doesn't mean he's not good.
6. Rush Linebacker: Kamerion Wimbley began the year strong, but fizzled out, recording just 1.5 sacks in his final eight games. Matt Roth played well in December, but someone must be added to push Wimbley. Roth was added to push Wimbley. I agree we could use an upgrade here but I think his reasoning is a bit of a stretch here. Wimbley has gotten better every year and Roth was a good acquisition for us. I wouldn't be upset if these were our two starting OLB next season but it couldn't hurt for us to upgrade either.
   
7. Strong Safety: As you can see, Cleveland's secondary is a major issue. Abram Elam isn't very good, but with so many needs, the Browns will likely roll with him again in 2010. This is a sad truth, despite Brodney Pool being a good player, its really hard to rely on him being healthy for a whole season if he plays again. Mangini was high up on Elam, maybe because he plays hard, but he has some pretty glaring weaknesses so I don't really understand it.
8. Right Tackle: John St. Clair has allowed 15.5 sacks the past two seasons from the right tackle position. Taking someone like Sam Young or Ciron Black in the middle rounds of the 2010 NFL Draft could work. Pretty much ANYBODY would be an improvement over St. Clair. This should be higher up on the list. Higher than Linebacker.
9. Slot Receiver: More than one wideout is needed to optimize Cleveland's pedestrian offense. I'm blaming the non-impact that Chansy Stuckey made here on this. We brought him in effectively asking him to fill Braylon's shoes. We got nothing. I don't know who to blame for Robiskie not recieving any playing time. Maybe Robiskie didn't show enough in practice, maybe Mangini was holding him back to mature him. The fact that our offense was so 'pedestrian' and we yet did not try him out at all is somewhat curious to me. Hopefully its not indicative of Robiskie's value, I have hope he will make a splash next season.
   
   2010 NFL Free Agent Signings:
   
   
   Cleveland Browns Free Agents:
   Salary Cap (As of Feb. 15): No cap.

1. 1. D'Qwell Jackson (RFA), ILB, Browns. Age: 26.
      The Browns really missed D'Qwell Jackson last year; he played in only six games because of a chest injury. He's slightly overrated, but still a very good player.
   2. Jerome Harrison (RFA), RB, Browns. Age: 27.
      You have to wonder why Eric Mangini didn't use Jerome Harrison earlier in the year. (Especially since Jamal Lewis wasn't making much of an impact prior to his injury/retirement) In his final three games, Harrison rushed for 561 yards and five touchdowns despite running behind an offensive line that needs major help on the right side. Harrison is also a solid pass-catcher.
   3. Brodney Pool (RFA), FS, Browns. Age: 26.
      Brodney Pool is a very talented free safety who is great in coverage. He would be ranked higher, but he has suffered four concussions in his career. One more could finish him off as an NFL player. I don't have much hope that Pool will continue to play for much longer.
   4. Matt Roth (RFA), DE/OLB, Browns. Age: 27.
      Where did this come from? Matt Roth was thoughtlessly waived by the Dolphins in November. He signed with the Browns and went on to accumulate four sacks in his final six contests. Roth was already good against the run, so his ability to get to the quarterback was a huge spark for Cleveland's four-game winning streak at the end of the year. I think Roth was a surprise hire. He had a big impact for the Browns, I hope we keep him.
      
   5. Lawrence Vickers (RFA), FB, Browns. Age: 27.
      Did a good job leading the way to Jerome Harrison's dynamic finish this season.
   6. Jason Trusnik (RFA), ILB, Browns. Age: 26.
      Jason Trusnik played well at multiple linebacker positions for the Browns, but he'd be better as a reserve.
   7. Abram Elam (RFA), SS, Browns. Age: 28.
      Can be a solid reserve safety. Struggles in coverage. I don't see Elam as starter safety material.