{mosimage}They could conceivably be 3-1. The Browns, 3-1. I know it seems ridiculous, but if not for Phil Dawson not being able to clear the Raiders line on his second crack at winning last week’s game, the Browns would be tied for first in the AFC North. In the back of my mind I know that there is no way Derek Anderson is an NFL quarterback and equally little chance that this team makes the playoffs, but I'm allowing myself to fall into the hopeful trap that has crushed me so many times before.While the Ravens have not been very impressive this year, most agreed that they would be able to beat the Browns as they had done the previous five times these two played.

The formula: crushing run defense with an overpowering running attack. While both the run game and run defense was working for Baltimore, the pass defense let them down. Chris McAllister bit on a Braylon Edwards fly route that ended in a 78-yard touchdown. If that doesn't look right to you, it shouldn't. A fly route has no fakes or double moves involved, but McAllister jumped it anyways hoping for the pick. What he got was a big old helping of humble pie and a likely locker room thrashing from Brian Billick and Ray Lewis.

Don't look now, but Braylon Edwards is developing into a fine receiver. He still suffers from the drops from time to time, but he has had several spectacular games and is averaging over 90 yards and a score a game. Couple that with the Pro Bowl caliber play of Kellen Winslow, and the Browns have the ability to stretch the field like they've never had before.

Unfortunately, the run game leaves something to be desired. I'm feeling fairly confident that Jamal Lewis's huge game against the Bengals was an aberration. Lewis should continue to be a decent option for this year, but the Browns need to remedy the running back situation as soon as possible.One of the big stories of the game was Derek Anderson's continued solid play. Anderson was efficient in completing 10 of 18 passes for over 200 yards and two scores. Against Cincinnati he threw five touchdowns, but he also routinely missed on slants and short routes. It was the least impressive five touchdown passing game I've ever seen. While I'm not drinking the Anderson Kool Aid quite yet, he showed some encouraging signs this week against an elite secondary. Unfortunately, the longer Anderson performs, the longer Brady Quinn will ride the pine. I've never been a fan of throwing rookie quarterbacks into the fire, at least not since the Tim Couch debacle, but are the Browns really content to let Quinn sit on the sideline for much longer after trading next year's first round pick for him? I doubt Anderson will continue to play as well as he has, so Quinn should see significant playing time by the second half of the season. If he doesn't, Cleveland fans will wonder why the Browns traded a first round pick to get a clip board holder.

Leigh Bodden had his second interception of the year, continuing to build his fan base in Cleveland. I think that Bodden is very underrated as a corner. Bodden is the kind of player that few people know nationally, but he has the respect of his opponents and often comes up with big plays (SEE: Chad Johnson like catch for a game-ending interception against Cincy).Despite this impressive victory, the Browns still have a lot of work to do. The run D is porous at best, and the run offense needs to be more consistent if they want to compete in the AFC. Willis McGahee racked up over 100 yards on just 14 carries. This begs the question, why didn't they continue to pound the ball when they are getting over seven yards per carry? The answer is, I have no idea. I know they were down 14 early, but you can't abandon the run game in the second quarter when it is that successful. Baltimore screwed up big time by letting Steve McNair throw 53 times. He's not the same Steve McNair who can strap a team to his back like he was in his MVP season in Tennessee. Here's to hoping that this victory was more about the Browns' improvement than the Ravens' mistakes. We'll find out next week when Cleveland travels to Foxboro to take on the juggernaut that is the New England Patriots. Leigh Bodden will have his chance to show people what he’s made of when he faces off against the league’s best receiver (after a two year hiatus), Randy Moss.

TrackBack URI for this entry

Comments (0)

Subscribe to this comment's feed

Name

Email

Website

Title

Comment

smaller | bigger

Subscribe via email (Registered users only)

I have read and agree to the Terms of Usage.

Add Comment