Photo: Joshua Gunter/Cleveland.com

The Denver Broncos were scheduled to play host to the Cleveland Browns Sunday, but Cleveland decided to send a high school junior varsity team instead. On a serious note, today's game between the Browns and the Broncos was by far the most painful thing I have watched since Schindler's List (good movie...but it's not something you want to watch again the next day). Cleveland showed no real signs of having an NFL level offense, and if it was not for two botched field goal attempts, the score would have been 33-6. The Browns did not even block the field goals; the kicker just missed them on his own. All in all, Cleveland put on a disaster of a performance, and I am going to be hard-pressed to sort through all of the mess that was left on the field Sunday.

Golden Opportunity Wasted - The Browns caught a big break to start the game when Denver fumbled the opening kick off on the 22 yard line. I love Phil Dawson as much as any Cleveland Browns fan, but I did not want to see him on the field unless he was kicking the point after on that possession. When an offense is struggling as much as Cleveland's is, you have to get in the endzone to get excited about what you are doing. This game would have been totally different if the Browns put 7 points on the board after that turnover, but I guess the whopping 22 yards they had to travel was just too much.Quinn. The Browns' offense was 1st and goal on the Broncos 7 yard line and proceeded to run Jamal Lewis off the guards on 1st and 2nd down for a grand total of 3 yards. Add the incomplete pass on 3rd down and you have another Phil Dawson field goal.

Rookie Mistake - After Cleveland's defense forced Denver to punt on their first possession, rookie center Alex Mack delivered a rolling shotgun snap that resulted in a first and goal possession for the Broncos, and yes, Denver took advantage of the turnover and scored a touchdown...I know it is a foreign concept to the Browns, but if you put the ball in the endzone it is worth 6 points and more than likely it's going to be worth 7. The Broncos' touchdown was a product of one of the worst shotgun snaps I have ever seen. I know Alex Mack is adjusting to the NFL, but that snap was unacceptable.

Photo: Peggy Turbett/Cleveland.com

On Sunday afternoon, the Cleveland Browns played host to the Minnesota Vikings to open up the 2009 regular season. Eric Mangini's first half as the Cleveland Browns' head coach was promising, but in the end, the result was all too familiar for Browns fans. Cleveland carried a 13-10 lead over the Vikings into the locker room at halftime, but the running game of the Vikings was much too fierce for the Browns in the second half. The Vikings scored 24 straight points and defeated the Browns 34-20. Cleveland now falls to 1-10 in season openers since returning in 1999.

Starting Points - After not playing in the preseason, Shaun Rogers started at NT. Also, rookie Alex Mack got the start at center over veteran Hank Fraley. With backup running back Jerome Harrison out due to injury, rookie RB James Davis also got a good amount of playing time.

The Good -When you give up 24 straight points in the second half, it's hard to give praise to your defense, but that is just what I am going to do. I thought the first half we saw glimpses of just how good this defense can be. The Browns defense forced the Vikings into 4 three-and-outs in their first 6 possessions. Cleveland only gave up 45 yards rushing in the first half to one of the top rushing teams in the league, and Adrian Peterson was held to one yard rushing in the second quarter (granted that was a 1-yard TD). I also feel that it is tough to blame the defense for the 24 straight points scored by the Vikings in the second half; when your offense can only stay on the field for six and a half minutes in a 27 minute span, your defense is going to get tired, and that's just what happened to the Browns' D. I also liked the pressure the Browns' pass rush got on Brett Favre. Cleveland had 4 sacks and 6 QB hits. Those stats are what we would see in a 3 game span under Romeo Cernnel.

The other thing I would like to focus on in the positive column is something very easy to see: Josh Cribbs. Cribbs broke off a 67-yard punt return TD in the second quarter that allowed the Browns to take a 13 to 10 lead. With his 7th career return TD, Cribbs is now tied with Eric Metcalf for most in Browns history. The offense also showed Cribbs early in the wildcat formation. Cribbs converted a 3rd down with a 5-yard run via direct snap.

Photo: Jon Fobes/Cleveland.com

Editor's Note: It was previously stated that George Foster would be in the mix on the offensive line. One major hiccup to that is that he was cut last week. Also, Ryan Tucker has been placed on injured-reserve instead of being waived.

You could feel it on the RTA, on the walk into the stadium, and sitting inside Cleveland Browns Stadium Saturday night: Browns' fans want to get excited about this team. Granted, a six-point win in the third preseason game where much of the work was done in the second half against some of Tennessee's 2nd team cannot be blown out of proportion, but there is an energy that I haven't felt in the last few seasons.

-If Saturday night was the final test for the quarterback battle, I think Brady Quinn won the job. Of course, everyone is entitled to their opinion, but Eric Mangini's is the only one that matters. The Browns have tried to be incredibly equal with the opportunities given to both Anderson and Quinn. However, I could see how Anderson might feel a bit slighted after Quinn was allowed to come out and get two third quarter drives after Anderson's night was done. Until those last two drives, the two were quite even on production for the evening. Each had led the team to three points in two drives. Then, Quinn made the best of the short field as a result of the special team fumble recovery and hit Lewis on a short pass then a perfect pass to Edwards from 20 yards out for six.

-Braylon Edwards looked comfortable with both quarterbacks, and he made some nice catches, nabbing 3 for 51 yards and the Quinn score. Mike Furrey continues to carve out his role as the third down go-to guy, and Josh Cribbs has shown that he can make guys miss at receiver as well. I'll be quite interested to see whether Furrey or Cribbs wins the job, but both will see plenty of action when the season starts.

Photo: Jon Fobes/Cleveland.com

Some thoughts that I have after watching the Browns' much improved effort Saturday night against the Lions.

-Derek Anderson was in danger of falling behind in the quarterback competition by enough that he may not have had time to make up ground before Eric Mangini made his decision. Instead, rocket-armed DA showed up and the Browns showed flashes of the '07 look as Anderson connected on several medium-deep passes. In turn, the running game was much more balanced as the safeties weren't allowed to "cheat up" at the line of scrimmage as often. Anderson connected on 8 of his 13 passes for 130 yards, but his weaknesses were still apparent. He continues to miss on the short screen passes, and that led to his costly interception that prevented the Browns from shutting out the Lions in the first half. The fact that he had 49 seconds to work with and an already-spectacular evening under his belt, Anderson still chose to go for broke. DA's screen pass to RB James Davis sailed off the outstretches arms of Davis and was an easy pick for the Lions, who used the turnover to setup a 51-yard field goal as the second quarter clock expired. It's still the classic give-and-take with Anderson: do you deal with the poor clock management, inaccuracy on short passes, and awful decision making at times in exchange for the rocket-arm and deep ball threat?

-Meanwhile, Brady Quinn didn't really do much to hurt himself in the two-man race. Much like Anderson's playing time last week, as the backup, Quinn's action was limited. He connected on 3-of-5 throws for 29 yards. For some reason, Mangini wanted to let Quinn start the second quarter mid-drive on a 3rd and 1. On that play, Eric Steinbach missed a block coming from left to right across the line and Quinn didn't have a chance to find a receiver deep. Quinn continues to show me a better presence than Anderson. In other words, I feel more comfortable with him under center. Does that mean he's more talented or he's a better quarterback right now? Quite honestly, no I don't think it means that, but what goes on inside the head of Derek Anderson terrifies me at times. I try to ignore the visions I see of Anderson losing us several games this season in the final two minutes.  However, I believe Anderson was near the top of his game tonight.

Photo: AP/Jim Prisching

Despite those sharp-looking brown pants to match the white jersey tops for the Browns, they were unable to put together much of anything on the offensive side of the ball which resulted in the Green Bay offense wearing down the Browns' defense as they dominated the clock. Here are my quick hit thoughts from what was quite a boring, basic preseason game, even by preseason standards.

-It's disheartening to see our biggest defensive offseason acquisition, safety Abe Elam, get burned on the first drive by Donald Driver for a touchdown on 3rd and 10. To compound things, there was no pressure by the defensive line on the play either so Aaron Rodgers had plenty of time to load up the deep ball.

-Mike Furrey impressed me with a couple of nice third down receptions on the opening drive. Perhaps he can fill the role that Joe Jurevicius was supposed to before he got injured and was subsequently released.

Photo: Peggy Turbett/Cleveland.com

 With the Brown and White Scrimmage taking place yesterday at Cleveland Browns Stadium, I feel it's long overdue for CofC to get into Browns mode. Keeping that in mind, here are my initial thoughts on issues surrounding the team right now.

-I really question why DE Shaun Smith was cut now as opposed to at the end of last season when the Brady Quinn incident was fresh in everyone's minds. Perhaps the new regime wanted to give him a chance in the new system? Smith apparently squandered that, dogging it in drills and continuing to flap his jaws. Maybe they really do want to keep DT Ahtybaa Rubin, their sixth-rounder from last season. I feel that with Kenyon Coleman, Shaun Rogers, Robaire Smith, C.J. Mosley, Corey Williams, and either Rubin, Santonio Thomas, or Louis Leonard, the team will be just fine on the D-line.

-Ha! You thought I was going to start with the quarterbacks, didn't you? Well, for the sake of being different I didn't. But, the two-man battle between Brady Quinn and Derek Anderson is certainly action-packed. Read into it how you want, but Anderson was with the Brown team in the scrimmage yesterday which looked awfully like the first-team offense, including Jamal Lewis, Robert Royal, Braylon Edwards, and five of the top linemen. I'm rooting for Quinn, but it doesn't mean that his drawbacks don't scare me. If he can't throw the deep ball, people are right in assuming that they are just going to stack the box and/or bring safety pressure. But, Anderson's decision-making and pick-prone style terrify me. Anyone forget that Bengals game and DA's 5 boo-boos that kept Cleveland out of the playoffs two years ago? Because I sure didn't. I think Brady gets first crack, but let's face it, injuries happen and both of these guys will probably get a chance to start this season.

Photo: John H Reid III/ClevelandBrowns.com

The Cleveland Browns 2009 draft day began with hopes of a big name at the #5 overall pick, but what ensued could not be predicted by anyone. Cleveland started draft day sitting with the #5 pick, waiting to see what the 4 teams did in front of them. After Aaron Curry came off of the board one pick prior to Cleveland, Eric Mangini made a deal with a not-so-old friend, Mike Tannenbaum of the New York Jets. The Browns traded their 5th overall pick to the Jets for their 1st round pick (17th overall), 2nd round pick (52nd overall) and three Jets players that Mangini was fond of having. The Browns proceeded to trade down two more times, from 17th to 19th and 19th to 21st. Finally, Cleveland picked at the 21st overall spot in the draft. The Browns started the draft with only five draft picks and many glaring holes in their roster. Cleveland ended up with eight total picks in the 2009 draft. I am going to analyze what Eric Mangini and George Kokinis (AKA: Mankok) did or did not do with those eight picks to make this roster better.

Round 1:

What Happened?: The Browns traded down out of the 5th pick three times in a move that said Cleveland wasn't enamored with any player's ability to help this franchise at the price they would have to pay with the 5th, 17th or the 19th overall pick. Essentially, Cleveland gave up the 5th overall pick for a 1st round pick (21st overall), 2nd round pick (52nd overall), two 6th round picks (191st and 195th overall), and 3 players previously in Mangini's system.

What Cleveland Got: With the 21st overall pick, Cleveland selected the top rated center in the draft, Alex Mack out of Cal. With that selection, Cleveland has now entered the secret world of Alex Mack. Cleveland also recieved DB Abram Elam, DL Kenyon Coleman and QB Brett Ratliff from the New York Jets.

What Cleveland Gave Up: As I previously stated, the Browns gave up the 5th overall pick and traded down three times to pick at 21. What they effectively gave up was anyone picked between 5 and 20. This list includes players such as DT BJ Raji, WR Michael Crabtree, RB Knowshon Moreno, DE Brian Orakpo, OLB Brian Cushing, DE Robert Ayers and DE Larry English. With the 21st pick, the Browns choose to pass on OLB Clay Matthews, ILB Rey Maualuga, WR Hakeem Nicks, and RB Chris "Beanie" Wells.

Analysis of the 1st Round: I 100% agree with Mangini and Kokinis in their decision to trade down out of the #5 spot. Picking at #5 would have given Cleveland a better player in an area of greater need than center, but with the money the Browns' former staff spent on free agents, getting out of the #5 spot was a good move. I also really like the players Cleveland got from the Jets. Maybe the players do not WOW me, but they are Eric Mangini's guys. We picked up two starters from the Jets. Abram Elam will be starting at strong safety and fills a much needed spot on the roster as Sean Jones left via free agency in the offseason. Kenyon Coleman will also likely start for the Browns (or at least be in the defensive line rotation). Coleman started in Mangini's system for the past two seasons, and while not providing much pass rush, Coleman is a solid run stopper recording 136 tackles over the last two seasons with the Jets. Ratliff is just a guy that Mangini had a man-crush on. Ratliff is a back-up QB project that stole Mangini's heart with his work ethic, strong arm, and size. He will more than likely never see the field for the Browns, but if he has to, he will probably look much better than Ken "noodle-arm" Dorsey.

With two of the three coveted USC linebackers on the board, Cleveland chose to use their first pick in the draft to address the offensive line. By drafting Alex Mack, Cleveland now has a center that will be an anchor on their offensive line for years to come. Mack will more than likely start in place of the diminishing Hank Fraley. Mack is a big strong center that will be a great football player in Cleveland for a long time, but Cleveland could have addressed their pass rushing deficiencies with this pick. In fact, I think all the players I mentioned in the "What Cleveland Gave Up" section above would have been a bigger help in a much more pressing area for the Browns than Mack at center. So, in a move that is probably not going to win over any more of the Dawg Pound faithful, Mankok didn't make the pick for Clay Matthews III or Rey Maualuga and the Browns' pass rush did not improve.

1st Round "What They Got" Grade: A: With the trade, Cleveland got three players that will start next year, and that's tough to do in the entire draft let alone in one round.

1st Round "What They Gave Up" Grade: D+: Cleveland may have missed a golden opportunity by not drafting a LB or DE with any one of the first round spots they could have drafted.

Overall 1st Round Grade: B+: Although Mangini and Kokinis did not address their linebacker situation, the Browns did save a ton of cap space by trading out of the # 5 spot and got three starters in the process. They did not do anything that had the city of Cleveland dancing in the streets, but the Browns did get better in the first round I promise you that. My personal opinion is that I am very disappointed that Cleveland did not grab Clay Matthews III or Rey Maualuga, but that does not change the fact that the Browns got some pretty good football players out of their first round transactions that will contribute next year.

The Browns finished off their 2009 NFL Draft with 3 sixth round selections. They took two cornerbacks, Don Carey from Norfolk State and Coye Francies from San Jose State. They then took RB James Davis from Clemson with their final selection. Carey comes from a non-Bowl Subdivision school in Norfolk State, but he was a four-year starter and has good size at corner at 5'11". The concerns with him are unsure hands, too much physical play that may draw flags, and lack of strength. Francies is another corner with size at 6'0" and he has good speed. He only has 15 starts under his belt at college, and again physical play is an issue. He also needs to add weight at just 185. Davis was part of a "Thunder and Lightning" combo with C.J. Spiller at Clemson. He's 5'11" and 218 pounds. Davis had 2 1,000 yard seasons in college (his sophomore and junior years). He had 751 yards, a 4.4 yard average, and 11 TDs in his senior season. He is not a good pass blocker, but his game-breaking ability and when he gets out in space, he can be dangerous. He sounds like an attempt to replace third-down back Jason Wright who left for free agency.

J.V. will be writing a post-draft analysis article in the next day or so. Stay tuned. CofC

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Day 2 for the Browns kicks off with the Browns finally getting their USC linebacker. Unfortunately, it's not Rey Maualuga, Brian Cushing, or Clay Matthews III; it's the fourth starter of the bunch, Kaluka Maiava. Maiava impressed many scouts when those scouts came for his fellow linebackers. Maiava is only a one-year starter and is undersized at 5'11" and 229 pounds, but he is an excellent special teams player. He can play all three (four in the Browns' case) linebacker positions, and he had 66 tackles with 1 interceptions last season for the Trojans. He's not a pass rusher necessarily, but he has good instincts. He sounds to me a lot like D'Qwell Jackson and the departed Andra Davis. I don't think he'll come in and start, but he'll be in the mix at linebacker and be a key guy on special teams. The starters at linebacker will most likely be Kamerion Wimbley and Alex Hall on the outside and former Jet Eric Barton and D'Qwell Jackson on the inside. The Browns do not pick again until the sixth round where they have three selections. Expect the Browns to take some chances on guys there. CofC

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Yes! The Browns have finally attempted to address their defensive woes with the pick of David Veikune, DE from Hawai'i.Veikune had 9 sacks last season with the Warriors and 16 in the last two seasons. He recorded 73 tackles and 16.5 tackles for a loss in his senior season. He's moved around from Colorado to Fresno City College to Hawai'i, but his motor runs high according to scouts and he is undersized at 6'2" and 257 pounds but gutsy. He is ranked as the number 10 overall defensive end by ESPN/Scouts Inc. Let's hope he can provide some pass rush for the Brownies as they liked waited around too long to get an impact blitzer. He could convert to an OLB in the 3-4 scheme that the Browns will employ. CofC

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Apparently, the Browns are satisfied with their defense, because they continue to pick offensive players. This time it's another wide reciever, Mohamed Massaquoi of Georgia. Massaquoi was projected as a late first or early second round pick, so he's good value at 50. The only thing I can suspect here is that the Browns feel VERY uncertain about their receivers and they may still be looking to deal Braylon Edwards for something. They now add Robiskie and Massaquoi to Edwards, Stallworth (in his orange jumpsuit), Cribbs, Steptoe, and Patten. Someone's got to go there. Massaquoi is supposed to be a good blocker but with uncertain hands at times. He had 920 yards receiving and 8 TDs. He's 6'2" and 210 pounds, so he has good, physical size. In my opinion, 920 yards is pretty good for a run-heavy conference that is low-scoring like the SEC. CofC

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Photo: TotalProSports

With the NFL Draft on Saturday, it's about time that CurseOfCleveland gets with the program and gives you its take on the Browns' prospects in this key draft for the franchise.

First and foremost, here are the draft picks that the Browns currently have:

1st Round - 5th overall pick
2nd Round - 36th overall pick
2nd Round - 50th overall pick
4th Round - 104th overall pick
6th Round - 177th overall pick
**Thank Phil Savage for the lack of picks in the 3rd, 5th, and 7th rounds.

Biggest Team Needs: DE, DT, LB, WR, S

• The Tribe has not yet played a game that counts, but David Dellucci has already found himself in a familiar place, on the disabled list.  Dellucci's injury opens the door for Trevor Crowe, a 25-year-old switch-hitting outfield prospect who had just been sent down to Triple-A Columbus earlier in the week when Josh Barfield won the last position player spot on the team.

• In my opinion, this is good news for the Tribe's overall roster quality.  David Dellucci hit 29 homers during one season while only hitting 72 long balls in his other 11 years in the league.  What does that lend itself towards?  *COUGH* Steroids *COUGH*.  All kidding aside, Dellucci is old (35), he's injury-riddled, and he should collect his paycheck from the Tribe in a ski mask.  His average in the .230s the last two years along with just 15 homers and 67 RBI in over 500 at-bats is far from what the Tribe paid for in a 3-year, 11 million dollar contract.

• Meanwhile, Crowe gives the Tribe a number of things they are short on.  He has the speed to pinch-run in late game situations, and he can also get on base himself and steal bases.  This spring, Crower did a solid job of getting on base and doing the little things well.  Trevor can play all three outfield positions as well.  Last season, Crowe split time between Akron and Buffalo and hit a combined .302 with 9 homers and 41 RBI while stealing 18 bases in 25 attempts.  At 25, the time is now for Crowe, and he is ready to be at the big league level.  Furthermore, the time has come for the Tribe to cut ties with Del-loser and send him to old folks home where he can take all the 'roids he pleases.