Cleveland Browns' risk-taking is a reasonable strategy

[BernietheKid]

Cleveland Browns' risk-taking is a reasonable strategy: Terry Pluto's scribbles

Published: Friday, April 29, 2011, 9:48 PM Updated: Friday, April 29, 2011, 9:48 PM

By Terry Pluto, The Plain Dealer The Plain Dealer


BEREA, Ohio -- Scribbles as the Browns finish the second day of draft weekend.

1. Let's start with the fact that taking is a risk is not always bad. So it's not necessarily a negative to insist that General Manager Tom Heckert is taking more than a few chances from the moment he traded the No. 6 pick to Atlanta for five draft picks. Taking a risk and adding picks is necessary if the Browns are ever to climb out of the deep ditch of losing that has been squeezing the life out of this franchise since its return in 1999.

2. So Heckert took a defensive tackle (Phil Taylor) who was asked to leave Penn State following a fight. He picked a defensive end (Jabaal Sheard) who was suspended during the off-season after being in a fight. He grabbed a receiver (Greg Little) who missed of all last season because of the scandal involving gifts from an agent at North Carolina.

3. Does this mean all of these are bad guys? Of course not. College kids do dumb things, and many players in this draft have had off-field issues. The key will be for the Browns to make sure these young men are in the right setting, mentored and accountable. It's a fresh start for all of them, but it's also a time when they will become instant millionaires.

4. Taylor seemed to grow up in his last three years at Baylor, losing 50 pounds and having no more off-field problems. The Browns desperately need defensive linemen, and Taylor can combine with Ahtyba Rubin to provide twin peaks in the middle of the line.

5. Sheard is a defensive end from Pitt. He was the Big East Defensive Player of the Year, leading the conference with 9.0 sacks and 14.5 tackles behind the line of scrimmage. He fits into Heckert's profile of a quick defensive end -- 250-pounders who can torment a quarterback. Heckert kept saying Sheard "plays hard, hard." Coach Pat Shurmur said it didn't take long to say "wow" when watching tape of the senior.

6. The Browns and other teams are convinced Sheard could switch to linebacker in a 3-4 defense. But it's better than he can remain at his natural position when moving into the NFL and the Browns' 4-3. It's possible the Browns may be finally be able to rush the quarterback, as Marcus Benard could be playing the other end in passing situations.

7. Yes, Sheard was involved in an incident last summer. He said he didn't throw a guy through a window, that it was a fight and he was helping a teammate. Heckert stressed that the Browns talked to "a ton of people," and no one had anything negative to say about Sheard. This is from a Pittsburgh Post-Gazette story by Ray Fittipaldo: "Sheard pleaded guilty to a disorderly conduct charge, was ordered to pay medical bills for the victim and write a letter of apology to him. Charges of aggravated assault, resisting arrest and criminal mischief were withdrawn by prosecutors."

8. In judging players, one question is if a player repeats his poor decision. In Sheard's case, it was one bad move. Former Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt stood behind Sheard, and made him a team captain. Wannstedt has an NFL background, and that should help Sheard.

9. Here's the Sheard scouting report from Dan Shonka at ourlads.com: "Uses the rip and bull rush to pressure the edge. Disciplined within the defense. Can stack the run but needs to get stronger. Explosive pass rush ability. Intense, mobile, and quick. Had a red flag off the field, but was cleared up. All reports are A+ solid."

10. Little seems to be the biggest gamble, because he sat out 2010. He also may be the best pure athlete picked by the Browns. He was the 2006 North Carolina Gatorade High School Player of the Year. He is 6-2, 230 pounds and began his career as a running back, later switching to wide receiver. North Carolina gave him the ball a lot, as he gained 805 yards in 166 carries (4.85 average) for his 3-year career. He ran back 27 kickoffs in three years, and caught six touchdown passes.

11. Shonka's scouting report on Little: "Talented and athletic as any wide receiver in the 2011 draft. The sticky wicket in Little's production lies in the quarterback position where T.J. Yates threw more interceptions than touchdown passes and consistently missed open receivers in 2009. The upside for the big receiver was that almost every catch he made was spectacular and magical. ... Does it all -- blocks, catches, and runs strong after catch. Slashes through arm tackles and finishes the play. Goes up after the ball at the high point with his strong hands and positions his body between the ball and defender. An impact player with long arms and big hands."

12. The Browns believe he'll be ideal in the West Coast offense, which stresses the ability to run after the catch. Shurmur went as far as talk about how Little can "beat bump and run [defenses]" and believes he can eventually become a No. 1 receiver. Nonetheless, he didn't play for a year, so it will take some time to bring him up to NFL speed.

Cleveland Browns' risk-taking is a reasonable strategy: Terry Pluto's scribbles | cleveland.com

[Enigmatic Evil]

Funny I thought a certain someone said that Pluto (or maybe it was Grossi, I don't remember) would be down on this move, looks like Pluto just gave this a thumbs up.

1. Let's start with the fact that taking is a risk is not always bad. So it's not necessarily a negative to insist that General Manager Tom Heckert is taking more than a few chances from the moment he traded the No. 6 pick to Atlanta for five draft picks. Taking a risk and adding picks is necessary if the Browns are ever to climb out of the deep ditch of losing that has been squeezing the life out of this franchise since its return in 1999.

Pluto gets points for this.

6. The Browns and other teams are convinced Sheard could switch to linebacker in a 3-4 defense. But it's better than he can remain at his natural position when moving into the NFL and the Browns' 4-3. It's possible the Browns may be finally be able to rush the quarterback, as Marcus Benard could be playing the other end in passing situations.

See, I like Marcus Bernard but I think he will need to show us some versatility because we can't be a blind poker player, Bernard would be like a warning beacon. "Okay, he's on the field. The Browns are going to rush us hard." I don't know...

9. Here's the Sheard scouting report from Dan Shonka at ourlads.com: "Uses the rip and bull rush to pressure the edge. Disciplined within the defense. Can stack the run but needs to get stronger. Explosive pass rush ability. Intense, mobile, and quick. Had a red flag off the field, but was cleared up. All reports are A+ solid."

The more I read about Sheard, the more I am very, very excited for this pick!

10. Little seems to be the biggest gamble, because he sat out 2010. He also may be the best pure athlete picked by the Browns. He was the 2006 North Carolina Gatorade High School Player of the Year. He is 6-2, 230 pounds and began his career as a running back, later switching to wide receiver. North Carolina gave him the ball a lot, as he gained 805 yards in 166 carries (4.85 average) for his 3-year career. He ran back 27 kickoffs in three years, and caught six touchdown passes.

Heckert saw what we all saw. Greg Little has such high potential and athletic potential. He will find a useful spot on this team and I would not be surprised if he grew to a #1 role. He will work to take that spot too, thats what I like. If I was MoMass/Robo I would be very nervous for my job right now.

11. Shonka's scouting report on Little: "Talented and athletic as any wide receiver in the 2011 draft. The sticky wicket in Little's production lies in the quarterback position where T.J. Yates threw more interceptions than touchdown passes and consistently missed open receivers in 2009. The upside for the big receiver was that almost every catch he made was spectacular and magical. ... Does it all -- blocks, catches, and runs strong after catch. Slashes through arm tackles and finishes the play. Goes up after the ball at the high point with his strong hands and positions his body between the ball and defender. An impact player with long arms and big hands."

After reading this you would have thougt Mangini would've drafted this guy for his special teams potential and work ethic. I love that Heckert gambled on these 'flagged' players and looks like each of them has grown from whatever incident had marked them as a 'risk' and I loved the interviews I've seen from each of our picks thus far. I am liking this draft better than last year!

12. The Browns believe he'll be ideal in the West Coast offense, which stresses the ability to run after the catch. Shurmur went as far as talk about how Little can "beat bump and run [defenses]" and believes he can eventually become a No. 1 receiver. Nonetheless, he didn't play for a year, so it will take some time to bring him up to NFL speed.

I like that Shurmur is showing some excitement and confidence in this pick. I think Little won't have as big a time adjusting to "NFL Speed" as we've speculated here. Greg Little seems hungry to impress and show that he's ready for football at this level and I think we may have finally got that offensive play maker we've all coveted.