Romeo?
Whether it's ridiculously poor clock management, odd non-gambles on fourth down or shifting the blame where it doesn't belong, coach Crennel has made a mess out of the beginning of this season. Who would've thought that by week 3, the hot seat would have been hotter than it was before last season, Crennel's third as coach of the Browns.
If nothing more, the first three weeks have shown the surprise in Cleveland's breakthrough in 2007 was bigger than the breakthrough itself. But there's no more riding the coattails of that it.
Comeback routes?
The passing game looks absolutely oblivious, as well as success-proof. It's a shame the blame is being shifted to the quarterback. Derek Anderson, when given the time to throw, and the opportunity to throw deep, has looked good. Injuries, Braylon Edwards and weak play-calling from the vaunted 'Chud' have not shed the light very well on D.A.'s cannon arm and improved accuracy. Sure, everybody likes the slant route, but it's not always going to work if the defense is looking for it, and/or the receivers are scared to go over the middle. A little better usage of the comeback routes would definitely prove a way to get some more first downs, as well as give our faster receivers chances to make plays.
That being said, if the team changed to Brady Quinn, and he succeeded, he would without a doubt be the second-coming of Tom Brady.
Creativity?
Off the top of my head, I can think of three or four things we can do on the offensive side of the ball to add a little spice, and take away some of the predictability.
Cribbs was a quarterback in college, right? So line him up in the shot gun a little bit. Cribbs is skilled enough to throw the ball from there. Jerome Harrison is skilled enough to run an option with him. And everybody saw what Ronnie Brown did lined up behind center against the Pats. That's three different options on one play, with one of the league's very skilled playmakers.
Split Winslow out more. He's not getting enough balls thrown his way, and the quarterback isn't getting enough blocking. Not to mention, Steptoe isn't cutting it. Winslow is at least as fast as the aging Isaac Bruce, who STILL plays wideout for the 49ers, and even had a 137 yard performance in Week 2. With Rucker and Heiden, a simple answer would seem to be to put the better-blocking tight ends in. Accentuate that strength, and shore up receiver for the time being. We need to get the ball to Kellen, especially if Braylon's having the kind of struggles he is.
It's getting more desperate every week. At this time, you might even want to try to put Cribbs on defense a little. It's pretty obvious he can tackle. Maybe even go to a little bit of 4-3. We have the tackles for it. Right now it's just not getting the job done.
Anywhere.
Keywords: Cleveland Browns, Derek Anderson, Joshua Cribbs, Offense, Romeo Crennel, Ronnie Brown
