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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.
-The first team defense bent at times, but they were incredibly successful in forcing turnovers. The first four drive results were the following: three and out, touchdown, blocked field goal, and fumble recovery. One of Cleveland's major downfalls last season was their lack of playmakers on defense. Sure, they got a fair share of interceptions, but key special teams plays weren't as frequent. Saturday, Robaire Smith came up with the blocked kick and Kaluka Maiava recovered the fumble on the Titans' kickoff return in the third quarter. Maiava is showing that he will be a vital contributor on special teams this season. Add in D'Qwell Jackson's forced fumble at the goal line which Brandon McDonald recovered and Alex Hall's pick six, and the Browns graded out quite well on the defensive side.
-I was shocked to hear that both CB Rod Hood and OL Ryan Tucker were cut today by the Browns. However, I guess I should have seen the writing on the wall. Hood was unable to displace either Eric Wright and Brandon McDonald at starting corner, and he got burned badly on the first Titan touchdown of the game where Justin Gage worked the sideline. In fact, Hood didn't even turn around. Tucker has been listed on the second team, but he has actually been playing more like a third-teamer in the preseason. His injury woes are back, and I'm sure that is the determining factor. With the starting five and Rex Hadnot and either Hank Fraley or Alex Mack as backups, Tucker might not have seen much action anyway.
-Finally, Dave Zastudil got "JACKED UP!" on his first punt of the evening. As Zastudil ran up field, he got absolutely laid out by a Titan defender. It hurt just watching it, and the funny thing was they replayed it on the big replay board about three times.
Kirk
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