A.J. Green to Cleveland? Not so fast my friend.

[DaBrowns41]

Here's an article that I just typed up about 20 min ago. I don't think we're going to be grabbing A.J. Green personally, and I list some of the reasons why.

Is A.J. Green truly a fit for the Cleveland Browns at the sixth overall pick? That is the question.
The Browns have lacked a true play making wide receiver for years. Despite the emergence of Braylon Edwards in 2007, Antonio Bryant in 2005, Kevin Johnson in 2001, the Browns have never had that go to guy.


It’s safe to say that 2007 was a fluke for Braylon Edwards, and Derek Anderson. The Browns played one of the softest schedules in the league, and Anderson essentially threw the ball up 10-15 times a game, hoping for a big play.
However, it did give the fans hope that their former #3 overall pick from the University of Michigan finally began to make big plays. 2008 was a season of hope as the Browns went in with a seemingly powerful offense, only to face one of the most brutal schedules of the last 10 seasons, and to be a severe let down.


Antonio Bryant made a nice impact in 2005 with Trent Dilfer and Charlie Frye. But he eclipsed the 1,000 yard mark by just nine yards, and never was a big play threat, only catching four touchdown passes. Going back to 2001 with Kevin Johnson, we all know that story. Johnson was actually a nice downfield threat, despite not having great speed. But he was a possession player that made big catches and put points on the board.


But the Browns have failed to have an elite wide receiver. Part of this is due to the fact that they’ve had almost as many quarterbacks start for them since 1999 as the Oakland Raiders, but the other is the fact that they have lacked an explosive play maker.


Enter the West Coast Offense with Mike Holmgren, and Pat Shurmur. It’s official that the Browns will be running the horizontal scheme that focuses on ball control, and short-intermediate passes to turn into excellent yards after the catch.


The WCO usually requires smaller receivers that can work the seam, run slants, ins, outs, hitches, and crossing patterns. These receivers are generally quicker, and create mismatches with linebackers and give man coverage defenses fits, while also exposing holes in zone coverage.


Many draftnik’s and NFL Draft analysts expect the Browns to take a hard look at A.J. Green in the 2011 NFL Draft if he falls to pick six. First of all, Green will have to fall past Carolina and Cincinnati, which is very possible, but not probable, especially with Cincinnati losing Chad Ochocinco and Terrell Owens most likely.


But what makes A.J. Green such a need for the Browns? Green is a physical receiver who uses his body very well, and has very soft hands. He’s a pure possession receiver with above average speed and acceleration, but is very physical and creates mismatches with smaller defensive backs.


Green runs his routes quite well, very fluid in his movements, and getting excellent separation. There’s no doubting his overall ability as a play maker, but there has to be doubt with using him in a pure WCO attack.


The other thing to consider in Cleveland is Tom Heckert’s drafting style in reference to wide receivers. Between 2001 and 2009, the Eagles drafted a total of nine wide receivers. Take a look at the size of these receivers and tell me if you see a trend.

Freddie Mitchell- 6'0 195
Freddie Milons- 5'11 190
Billy McMullen- 6'4 205
Reggie Brown- 6'1 195
Jeremy Bloom- 5'7 180
Jason Avant- 6'0 212
DeSean Jackson- 5'10 175
Jeremy Maclin- 6'0 198
Brandon Gibson- 6'0 210


You may notice that only two of those receivers are over 6’0 tall, and one of them is 6’1. DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin are the most well known, and Jason Avant (the Eagles #3 wide receiver) is a shorter receiver who gets good separation and has excellent hands.


So what makes Browns fans think that they will grab a 6’4 212 pound vertical possession receiver to fit in this offense? Is it the fact that their best two receivers in 2010 were a tight end and running back (Benjamin Watson and Peyton Hillis respectively)? Or is it the fact that Browns fans see a gaping hole in the wide receiver corps and are desperate to fill that need with arguably the best wide receiver in the 2011 NFL Draft.


Green isn’t going to be a receiver in this offense that will get a great amount of yards after the catch, and that’s essentially what the West Coast Offense is all about. I think it’s safe to say that the Browns may consider Green, but may opt to wait on a receiver in the second round or later and look to improve the pass rush by pursuing a defensive tackle or defensive end.


They could also take a hard look at Prince Amukamara who would make an excellent compliment to Joe Haden, the Browns 2010 sixth overall pick.


So what other options do the Browns have that actually will properly fit the scheme?

Titus Young- 5’11 190
This wide receiver class in lined with guys who can outrun entire defenses. Young is another one of those smaller guys who excels in the return game and is heavily utilized in quick slants and screen passes. He’s excellent after the catch.
Projection: 2^nd


Torrey Smith- Maryland- 6’1 202*
Smith has made a name for himself with his speed down the field. He has excellent hands, and gets a good release off of the snap. He’s not the most physical receiver, but he creates separation, and can make big plays all over the field.
Projection: 2^nd

Jerrell Jernigan- Troy- 5’8 190
Troy’s all-purpose receiver can run the ball well, and catch even better. He’s a threat to take it to the house on every touch, but lacks ideal size to play in a vertical offense featuring possession receivers. Look for Jernigan to make a name for himself in the slot, and potentially in a wildcat as well as in the return game.
Projection: 3^rd

Vincent Brown- San Diego State- 6’0 195
Brown is one of the fastest receivers in college football. He’s excellent down the field, and can make plays after the catch. His hands need a little bit of work, but he gets great separation and uses his speed to make defenders miss.
Projection: 3^rd/4^th


Jeff Maehl- Oregon- 6’0 181
Maehl is a pure pass catcher who’s a bit undersized. He’s one of the best overall blocking wide receivers, and is an extremely hard worker. He’ll be a gem in the middle-late rounds in the NFL Draft.
Projection: 4^th

Ronald Johnson- USC- 6’0 187
Johnson is a smaller receiver who fits best in the slot. He has good speed and is solid after the run. He has pretty good hands and makes catches all over the field. He can take a pass to the end zone on virtually every play as he can out run many of the defenders.
Projection: 4^th


2011 NFL Draft: A.J. Green to Cleveland? Not So Fast My Friend! | Bleacher Report

[TheBestPlayersPlay]

I tend to agree with you for the most part, and great stuff btw.

The part where we diverge is I don't think it's a lock we go after a smallish receiver. Yah, I see the track record, but I'm not so sure that they are looking for small receivers, it just turned out that way. They'll take the most talented receiver on the board regardless of size at whatever spot they want him. I'd like to see a bigger target for Colt to throw to other than the TE ...although I think Robo may turn into a decent WR.

I think you're right about Green ...he would have been perfection in last years offense, and exactly what the doctor ordered. With the dink and dunk however, I think we can wait for WR, and draft a DE, LB, or CB in round 1.

It still would be nice to have a true #1 that defenses would have to account for ...but we kissed the vertical passing game goodbye when Holmgren fired Mangenius.

[DaBrowns41]

Yeah, and it's not necessarily about size. I just wanted to get that information out there because I think that trends in the NFL Draft are quite important.

For example, Mike Shanahan has never drafted a RB higher than round 2 in Clinton Portis. So it wouldn't make sense for the Redskins to go Ingram or whoever their top rated RB is, even if they want a true play maker.

But, we will be going after a guy who can catch the ball in the middle of the field, and make plays after the catch. If he's 7'0 250 pounds, but he's quick and agile, he could be our man.

[Anthony]

Justin Blackmon would have been perfect for the WCO. And I wouldn't have been shocked if the Browns just took him at 6 if he had come out.

ALAS...AJ Green is special. He could fit perfectly anywhere. He is SPECIAL.

[Flugel]

Originally Posted by DaBrowns41

Here's an article that I just typed up about 20 min ago. I don't think we're going to be grabbing A.J. Green personally, and I list some of the reasons why.

The other thing to consider in Cleveland is Tom Heckert’s drafting style in reference to wide receivers. Between 2001 and 2009, the Eagles drafted a total of nine wide receivers. Take a look at the size of these receivers and tell me if you see a trend.

Freddie Mitchell- 6'0 195
Freddie Milons- 5'11 190
Billy McMullen- 6'4 205
Reggie Brown- 6'1 195
Jeremy Bloom- 5'7 180
Jason Avant- 6'0 212
DeSean Jackson- 5'10 175
Jeremy Maclin- 6'0 198
Brandon Gibson- 6'0 210

2011 NFL Draft: A.J. Green to Cleveland? Not So Fast My Friend! | Bleacher Report

Impressive write-up, insights and perspective. Thank you DaBrownies!

Just keep in mind, Dwight Clark was really tall as was Terrell Owens and they were both very good in that WCO. Freddie Mitchell was very short lived and never justified the 1st round choice as well as the people's choice. They got more out of a string bean like Todd Pinkston who was very tall. Plus they moved Heaven and earth to add TO.

I think what people need to be looking at for this offense are many of the guys you mentioned; BUT for the main reason they have the hips that offer the change of direction and the wheels that can blaze when/if necessary.

The most surprising feature I found in Julio Jones was his ability for shake and bake seperation in a conference loaded with the footspeed the NFL draft gravitates to. He's got such impressive speed they liked to hand off to him too; and they scored for doing so. The REASON I started to pay more attention to Jones than Green late in the year was the same reason I had to pay more attention to Haden than Berry last year. Green will be gone when we pick. It would be a shock if otherwise.

What I REALLY like about your article is that we can select a Nick Fairley upfield 1 gapper to help us bring forth the next generation of "Crush and Rush" in round 1. Fairley can be the MD Perry while Rubin can be the Ball hitting the wall. And then, there looks to be several good candidates for the playmaker duties at WR for early round 2. One of these days - we have to do better in round 2.

I wouldn't rule out some tall targets though. Jake Reed, Randy Moss and Cris Carter were pretty good in Denny Green's WCO in Minnesota. Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin were pretty good for him in Arizona as was David Boston for a while. I think Hohn Taylor was about 6'2" tall as well.

[golfer704u]

I wonder whether we'll draft a reciever at all in the first 4 rounds.

Holmgren stated during the season he thought Momass and Robiskie were better than the were showing. I belive he thinks the offensive issues were much more due to scheme than players. I can see him believing that Shurmur can improve the production of the offense with out a reciever.

I would not be suprised to see us work on RT and the defensive front 7 early in this draft.

[Brown Warrior]

I wouldn't wonder much, Golf. We're about as weak at WR as any one team of the past five years. I think we'll draft one high, probably first, and also look to sign a prominent free agent. We'll get busy in support of Colt and the WCO.

The Eagles had some "short, quick guys," but the history of the WCO is more about bigger WRs actually, guys with YAC potential like John Taylor, Sterling Sharpe, Terrell Owens, all the current GB receivers who have nice size, Mike Williams doing the renaissance thing in Seattle, etc.

There have been receivers of all sizes who succeed in a WCO, but I would say it trends physical with YAC potential. A lot of draftnicks have said big, bad Julio Jones is ideal for the system, in fact.

We do need a quick slot receiver, though. If we signed a big name WR in free agency, I could see us going smaller and quicker at 38.

But let me say this straight out: I think the chances of us passing on A.J. Green are zero. And I think Julio Jones will be next up. This team lacks speed and playmakers on offense and I'm certain Holmgren and Heckert want to put McCoy in the best possible position to succeed.

[golfer704u]

Originally Posted by Brown Warrior

I wouldn't wonder much, Golf. We're about as weak at WR as any one team of the past five years. I think we'll draft one high, probably first, and also look to sign a prominent free agent. We'll get busy in support of Colt and the WCO.

The Eagles had some "short, quick guys," but the history of the WCO is more about bigger WRs actually, guys with YAC potential like John Taylor, Sterling Sharpe, Terrell Owens, all the current GB receivers who have nice size, Mike Williams doing the renaissance thing in Seattle, etc.

There have been receivers of all sizes who succeed in a WCO, but I would say it trends physical with YAC potential. A lot of draftnicks have said big, bad Julio Jones is ideal for the system, in fact.

We do need a quick slot receiver, though. If we signed a big name WR in free agency, I could see us going smaller and quicker at 38.

But let me say this straight out: I think the chances of us passing on A.J. Green are zero. And I think Julio Jones will be next up. This team lacks speed and playmakers on offense and I'm certain Holmgren and Heckert want to put McCoy in the best possible position to succeed.

That's your opinion.

Here was Holmgrens as of November 2nd.

On other matters:
• Holmgren indicated the team was not interested in pursuing released Minnesota wide receiver Randy Moss. "Our focus, I believe, has to be on developing our young receivers," he said.
• Holmgren expressed dissatisfaction with the way the receivers are used in the system of offensive coordinator Brian Daboll, but said interfering would "throw a monkey wrench into it."
Still, he defended the wideouts. "Let's not jump on the receivers too much here," he said. "I think they're better than OK. I think they're pretty good. It's just that their numbers haven't been very good."

Again, I see Holmgren's offensive minded ego affecting the decision making progress in that he thinks it was more Scheme and not player that affected the Browns passing numbers. So I believe Holmgren thinks McCoy just needs the right SYSTEM to succeed with our current players.

Would I be shocked to see us draft a WR in the first 3 rounds? Nah, but I wouldn't be shocked if we didn't either.

[golfer704u]

Oh and just to remind you. You and I had almost this same conversation last year before the draft when you ASSURED me Holmgren and Heckert were going to make improving the pass offense a priority and then they went CB , S in the first two rounds.

[PlaygroundLegend]

I would be THRILLED with Titus Young at 38!!!

[Brown Warrior]

I could see Young if we got Floyd.

I think the Browns folly became glaringly obvious, Golf. They messed up. They were every bit as bad at WR as I (and most) thought. I would be absolutely STUNNED if WR isn't right at the top of Heckert's offseason to-do list.

[YtownBacker]

There's a big misconception about teams that run the WCO not throwing the ball downfield. Philly is a typical WCO team and they throw the ball downfield and have some small receivers. Nothing says the WCO is purely horizonal. There are so many hybrid versions of the WCO now that the pure San Fran WCO of the 90s has redeveloped itself. You only have to look at what Bradford did last year. they passed to set up the run. They weren't afraid to stretch the filed to open up the shorter routes. And, that was shurmur.

We have some great parts for a WCO. We have a solid TE, which is a necessity. We have two backs that have great hands and our super checkdown guys in Hillis and hopefully a healthy Hardesty. We also have that big slot guy who can find the seems and make the tough 3rd down catches. That is Moore. I wouldn't expect to see him as a TE much next year. He's a Joe J. if we use him right. I also will want to see how they will use Cribbs. He isn't a wideout but could be a solid slot guy or guy to use in special packages on 3rd down.

Now, they need a solid receiver who can get YAC and I don't think he is on the roster. IMO, Robo is the best of the bunch. MoMass gets zero YAC and really hasn't shown any ability to adjust to the ball. A back shoulder throw to him is an adventure to say the least.

Big or small, this team has to have a receiver that is quick, athletic and has great hands. I'm not as high on Julio Jones as some others because he seems to lose focus at times. I think the senior bowl practices will be very interesting to the Brown's draft stratagy. Everybody knows they need defensive linemen but I got to think they are looking for that one guy who can transition this offense.

As much as we think we know and what I just wrote is my opinion and not the Brown's opinion, you got to remember that this organization is now being run by offensive minds. Also, remember that Holmgren likes to draft a developmental QB every year, not early but it does take a mid to late draft pick away from a developmental prospect like a lineman.