"Massaquoi striving for improvement"

[Koa]

Massaquoi striving for improvement
Matt Florjancic
Contributor to ClevelandBrowns.com
03.31.2010

It has only been a few months since Browns wide receiver Mohamed Massaquoi last stepped onto the field at Cleveland Browns Stadium, but when he returned to the team's training facility for offseason workouts, he was ready to get back to work.

"(I'm) just trying to gain some weight and get a little bit faster, understand the game better," he said. "You watch some of the older guys play and they don't have the abilities that they used to have, but they're so smart and so sound and so technical that it makes up for all of that."

Gaining weight and getting faster can only help Massaquoi improve on his rookie season in which he tied for the team lead with 34 catches and set the pace with 624 yards receiving, 18.4 yards-per-catch and 3 receiving touchdowns.

Massaquoi was on the receiving end of the longest pass play of the season, a 59-yard touchdown from Brady Quinn, which gave the Browns a 10-3 lead in an eventual 38-37 loss to the Lions at Ford Field on November 22, 2009.

"It was definitely an eye-opener because you see a lot of guys that you've watched growing up and you do become star-struck," Massaquoi said. "The first game, we played Brett Favre and Adrian Peterson. You go on and play Charles Woodson, Champ Bailey, just great players that you know so much about and you've always watched. It was special, but at the same time, you want to go out there and do your best. You don't know as much as they do, so you just go out there and play hard."

Though Massaquoi made the adjustment from college star to professional athlete over time, he knows that he'll need to make some more changes heading into the 2010 season. With the acquisitions of quarterbacks Jake Delhomme and Seneca Wallace since the end of last season, Massaquoi and the other receivers need to learn just as much about their new signal callers as they do about the Browns offensive system.

"Both guys are here and both guys are in the program," said Massaquoi. "Both guys are eager to learn and get used to how we do things over here and really come over here and win. It's funny because Jake was actually in Carolina when I was in high school. He used to come and watch a couple of my high school football games and we joke about that, how old he is, but at the same time, I've had the chance to see him play first hand and know how good he is. I'm just eager and excited to work with him.

"Every piece is connected some way, some shape, somehow," he added. "Just to be on the same page, it makes up for a lot of things. Even when things go wrong, if you're both on the same page, you can end up getting it right."

Massaquoi helped form the team's offensive identity during the team's four-game winning streak at the end of the 2009 season. He is working hard to carry that momentum into the 2010 season.

"Definitely, winning is contagious," he said. "The Cleveland Browns, they have a very rich tradition that I didn't know about as much when I came here, but I learned about it. Just to see the way the city is still behind us, they still come out every year and they're optimistic about having a better year. Just ending on that, we're undefeated right now. We want to continue being undefeated going into next year, so that's what we're going to push and strive for."

[slowmo411]

Nice read, thanks. He does have potential I just dont think its as a #1 WR, #2 for sure. I hope he does improve, i actually hope he proves me wrong and becomes the #1 we've been missing.