Steelers ripe for upset

Just about everything points to a Browns victory over Pittsburgh Sunday at Cleveland Browns Stadium.

Ben Roethlisberger won’t suit up for the Steelers. Troy Polamalu won’t suit up, either. And the Steelers have become an aging team whose window of opportunity is nearly shut.

Oh, and Joe Haden is expected back in the secondary for the Browns after missing last week’s debacle in Dallas with an oblique injury. His presence in that game arguably meant the difference between winning and losing.

Big Ben has been death to the Browns since coming into the National Football League in 2004. In 15 starts, he has left the field a loser just once, a 13-6 loss in Cleveland in December 2009.

In that one, most fans will recall, Roethlisberger was sacked eight times by the Browns while Cleveland running back Chris Jennings rushed for 73 yards and the game’s only touchdown.

Over the years, Roethlisberger has tortured the Browns, completing nearly 60% of his passes and averaging 231.5 yards a game with 20 touchdowns and just 10 interceptions. Whenever big plays were needed, he provided them.

As a result of attrition at quarterback, however, Charlie Batch will start for the Steelers against the Browns. Yep, that Charlie Batch. As in “is he still in the National Football League?”

Significant injuries to Roethlisberger (throwing shoulder and ribs) and his backup Byron Leftwich (ribs) have left Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin with no other choice than to go with the soon-to-be 38-year-old Batch, whose first pass Sunday will be his first of the season.

He has filled in for Big Ben on seven other occasions over the past several seasons, winning five. One came in 2005 against the Browns in Pittsburgh in a 34-21 victory in week 10. He completed 13 of 19 passes for 150 yards and ran for one touchdown, but sat out the second half with a broken hand, suffered late in the first half.

Roethlisberger also missed the second half of the Steelers’ 31-0 victory in the final week of the 2008 season, suffering a concussion after being drilled by linebackers Willie McGinest and D’Qwell Jackson late in the second quarter.

Batch, in some ways, is better suited to run offensive coordinator Todd Haley’s ball-management offense. Haley prefers to combine a strong running game with a short- to medium-range passing game and the club’s lopsided time of possession (34-26) is proof positive.

Now that running back Rashard Mendenhall is healthy and contributing, look for a more balanced attack against a Cleveland defense that seems to have at least temporarily solved its problems against the run. It will be severely tested Sunday. The Steelers are averaging nearly 140 yards a game on the ground in the last five games.

Unlike Roethlisberger and Leftwich, who can stretch the field with their big arms, Batch’s range is much more limited. So it wouldn’t be surprising if the Browns, coming off their seven-sack game against Dallas, stack the box, choke off the run, force Batch to throw the ball and blitz all afternoon. If that’s the case, Steelers tight end Heath Miller figures to get plenty of looks.

Injuries to the receiving corps forced the Steelers to bring back Plaxico Burress this week, but they expect Antonio Brown back after missing the last couple of weeks. Drafted originally by the Steelers, the 6-5 Burress would seem to be a likely target for Batch in the short passing game.

With Roethlisberger out, the Steelers lose their emotional edge on offense. He is clearly the club’s biggest playmaker on that side of the ball and it’s no coincidence that the offense falls off considerably when he’s not under center. His innate ability to keep plays alive has turned potential losses into victories over the years.

Polamalu, meanwhile, continues to languish on the sidelines due to a calf injury that doesn’t want to go away. Unless the veteran safety has a miraculous recovery in the next few days, the young Browns won’t have to worry about the Steelers’ best playmaker on defense.

The loss of the club’s emotional leader on that side of the ball doesn’t seem to have hurt that much, however. The Steelers’ defense limits opposing teams to only 259 yards a game, just 90 on the ground.

Defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau’s zone blitz scheme will definitely challenge the Cleveland offensive line, which played well for the most part in last Sunday’s loss in Dallas. Even though they’ve registered just 18 sacks this season, the Steelers’ disruptive style of play might confuse the young Cleveland line.

Where Polamalu’s absence has hurt is in the turnover battle. The normally opportunistic Pittsburgh defense has picked off just five passes this season, three by linebackers. The secondary – and the defense overall – clearly misses Polamalu’s playmaking ability.

What makes this game interesting is that the Steelers face a must-win situation in the race for one of the AFC’s wild cards. And with Roethlisberger sidelined indefinitely, the 6-4 Steelers, whose turnover ratio is minus-3, must play mistake-free football.

The Browns, on the other hand, have nothing to lose. And if their coaching staff approaches this one with that in mind, it could wind up in an interesting afternoon. Pat Shurmur, whose job security slips with every loss, must eschew the conservative approach offensively and let it all hang out.

Again, what does he have to lose? It hasn’t been working the other way. If there are any surprises in his arsenal, this would be the game to haul them out. After all, this is Pittsburgh.

Because he’s a relative outsider, it’s hard to figure out whether Shurmur gets the rivalry between these two teams. Some people, most notably Steelers fans, don’t even consider this a rivalry. How can you when the teams have meet 27 times since Cleveland’s return to the NFL in 1999 and the Browns have won just four.

It’s about time the Browns started making this a rivalry again. It won’t be easy because the Steelers still have more talent. However, it’s very tempting to lean in the Browns’ direction because Brandon Weeden is overdue for a big game. What’s holding me back is Shurmur’s conservative coaching when grabbing a lead.

Guessing here he won’t loosen the reins on his rookie quarterback and Batch, provided he remains vertical for the entire game, does just enough to squeeze out a victory. Make it:

Steelers 16, Browns 12

Inflatable flag fiasco

What in the world are the Browns thinking?

The so-called wise heads in the club’s marketing department have allowed themselves to become a part of one of the most hair-brained ideas in quite some time.

Fans entering Cleveland Browns Stadium for Sunday’s game against the Pittsburgh Steelers will be handed inflatable white flags. Except, of course, those 20,000 or so Pittsburgh fans sporting a bright yellow Terrible Towel.

It appears to be a part of a promotion with the NFL Ticket Exchange.

Isn’t it bad enough the Browns are 2-8 and going nowhere for the umpteenth time in the last 14 seasons? Isn’t it bad enough the club’s record makes it enough of a laughingstock without this kind of distraction?

All someone in the club’s marketing department had to say to the National Football League was no, thank you, that’s a stupid idea.

Words fail me as to how embarrassing this is. Brian McIntyre of Yahoo sports couldn’t have put it any better.

“Your team name is Browns,” he wrote. “Your team’s helmets are orange. Each of those colors would have made for a far more suitable choice for a flag than white, which is the universal sign for signaling truce or surrender.”

After all, the Steelers have won 14 of the last 15 meetings between the teams and are 23-4 against the Browns since 1999.

The Web site Deadspin also weighed in with this: There’s nothing that would intimidate the Steelers more than for them to come of the locker room to a stadium full of fans essentially saying, “Stop, please. No more. Mercy.”

That was followed by numerous snide remarks, including “When you sit on (the flags), they play the Browns’ fight song”, “They were going to give away real flags, but reconsidered because we like to throw things” and more pointedly, “As a fan of the better-than-their-record Browns, this makes me sick.”

So are these flags supposed to neutralize the Pittsburgh towels? Are they supposed to serve as a rallying cry in the event the team needs one? What exactly is their significance?

Can’t wait to see how the public relations arm of the team spins this one. The explanation might be more preposterous than the promotion itself.

Memo to Jimmy Haslam III: Can’t you see how silly this looks? You are now the owner and in a position to stop it. Never mind that’s it’s a league promotion. Tell the league to shove it. In a reasonable way, of course.

What takes place Sunday if this promotion is carried out is the definitive answer to the following question: How low can you go?

Time to step in, Jimmy, put a nice bow on it and ship it to another franchise. Like the Steelers.

Monday leftovers

It’s been 10 games now since Brandon Weeden of the Browns took his first snap as a National Football League quarterback. And by now, you would expect to see some improvement.

That, however, has not been the case.

He’s not the worst quarterback in the NFL by any stretch, but he has failed to show any consistency. Every now and then, he’ll nail a difficult pass, but those moments are outweighed by some throws that make you wince, like the fourth-down fade to Jordan Cameron from the Dallas 1-yard line that sailed out of the end zone.

What you look for in a rookie quarterback is improvement not just from game to game, but from series to series, from snap to snap. Correcting mistakes is paramount in the development of an NFL quarterback.

Weeden, who seems like an intelligent sort, says he’s learning from his mistakes, but judging from his progress thus far, he seems to be a very slow learner.

There is no question he has the arm and can play the game from that standpoint. But some of his decisions are head-scratchers and not even a bazooka arm can overcome them.

Weeden, it seems, has trouble playing the game from the neck up. The game has not seemed to slow down for him. Only the three-step drop and pop plays have been his bread and butter.

His problems arise when asked to take five- or seven-step drops. He seems to take much more time getting rid of the ball. The rhythm of the larger drops, especially from the pro set, is lost on him.

In Sunday’s overtime loss to the Dallas Cowboys, Weeden received near-pristine protection from his offensive line all afternoon. At various times, he had as much as seven or eight seconds to unload the ball, but either failed and took a sack or threw the ball away.

Now the Dallas secondary doesn’t exactly boast a bunch of All-Pros, but Weeden and his receivers failed to take advantage. Maybe he was pumped to play in front of friends and family. Many of his throws were high and behind his targets.

His best throws, of course, were the two skinny posts to Ben Watson that wound up in the Dallas end zone. But he missed several wide open receivers and most of the afternoon either held on to the ball to long or delivered the ball late.

You’d expect to see more than a glimpse or two a game that would lead you to believe progress in Weeden’s most important product. He needs to step up and not just take charge of the huddle, but start making plays, especially in the red zone.

What works against Weeden is his age. He’s 29-years-old and the clock is more an enemy than a friend. If he was, say, 22 or 23, a more cautious call for patience would be exercised.

It has reached the point where he must step up in the final six games of the season and put his vast talents on display. He can’t hold back. He must develop a confidence in his abilities and show the people who count that the Browns didn’t make a mistake in drafting him so high.

He needs to come out strong in those six games and prove that yes, he can learn from his mistakes and develop more consistency because if he doesn’t, the quarterback carousel in Cleveland might spin again.

*       *       *

For a while there, it appeared as though the Browns had finally learned that penalties were to be avoided. It was bad enough they lacked the overall talent to win a lot of games. Penalties only added to the struggle.

So when Ed Hochuli and his crew nailed the Browns for 12 penalties and 129 yards Sunday, the red flag was unfurled again. A dozen penalties, all but two of the aggressive type, proved to be the Cowboys’ best friend. A whopping 10 of their first downs came following yellow laundry.

It became embarrassing for Buster Skrine, filling in for the injured Joe Haden. Skrine tried valiantly, but had no chance against a much larger Dez Bryant and drew three penalties in a vain attempt to slow him down. A concussion took him mercifully out of the game.

Suffice it to say if Haden had played, Dallas quarterback Tony Romo would have picked on Sheldon Brown more. As it was, Brown was the ultimate victim on the 35-yard pass interference call that moved the Cowboys into position for what turned out to be a game-tying field goal with just seconds left in regulation.

*       *       *

One of these days, the Browns are finally going to discover the secret to locking down victories. For some reason, they seem to let up and play more passively on both sides of the ball with a lead, especially in the fourth quarter.

The best way to prevent other teams from catching up is to not deviate from a game plan that got you the lead in the first place. There’s no such thing as leading by too many points. Boot to the throat. Repeat.

With only a minute left in regulation and down by three points Sunday, the Cowboys moved into position for the three-pointer with ridiculous ease. That’s because the Browns failed to make a play. No one stepped up and said, “Uh, uh. Not this time.” That’s what leadership does. And right now, the Browns don’t have such a leader.

*       *       *

Notebook: Weeden didn’t throw any interceptions against the Cowboys, but got real lucky when linebacker Anthony Spencer and nose tackle Josh Brent dropped easy picks. If Brent makes his at the Cleveland 10-yard line on the first play of the Browns’ first series in the fourth quarter, he scores easily and there would have been no overtime. . . . Credit quicker developing plays as the reason the Cowboys were much more successful passing in the second half. Romo took too long to deliver the ball in the first 30 minutes and made the correction at the half. The Browns failed to adjust to the new strategy. . . . With the return to health of Phil Taylor and Ahtyba Rubin, it has become obvious interior of the Cleveland defensive line is now considered a strength. Now all defensive coordinator Dick Jauron has to do is move rookie Billy Winn outside opposite Jabaal Sheard to fortify the pass rush from the outside.

Woulda, coulda, didn't

The Browns are the National Football League’s version of The Little Engine that Could. Only one problem. They don’t.

Week in and week out, they chug up that mountain toward a victory – I think I can, I think I can – only to somehow, some way manage to lose. The difference between winning and losing at times can be minuscule. The Browns have proven that far too often.

Losing games the hard way has become somewhat of an art form over the last dozen or so seasons for this franchise. Sunday’s penalty-filled, rollercoaster-ride 23-20 overtime loss to the Cowboys in Dallas, for example, could serve as a microcosm to this season.

Shoot out to a 13-0 halftime lead after battering the Cowboys on both sides of the ball, play soft defense in the second half, especially against the Dallas receivers, and then watch the Cowboys take full advantage and take a 17-13 lead midway through the fourth quarter.

And when Cowboys linebacker Anthony Spencer strip-sacked Browns quarterback Brandon Weeden and recovered the fumble at the Cleveland 18 on the next series, fans began blowing Taps for the Browns and reaching for the hammer to drive the nails into the coffin.

But the Browns would not slink away. Instead, they came right back resiliently and strip-sacked Dallas quarterback Tony Romo, who was dropped seven times overall, getting the ball back at the Cowboys’ 35 with five minutes left in regulation. Six plays later, they had a first and goal at the 6.

I think I can, I think I can.

Two Trent Richardson bull rushes moved the ball to the 1 and that’s when we found out Richardson has no leaping ability. Instead of kicking him outside, the Browns called for the 5-9, 230-pounder to take it airborne. So did Dallas linebacker Dan Connor, who made a similar launch and stuffed the Browns rookie.

A fourth-down fade for Jordan Cameron was badly overthrown. Terrible throw by Weeden, whose inconsistency all afternoon makes it look as though he’s regressing.

Using all their timeouts and benefitting from some seriously bad play calling by Dallas’ Jason Garrett, who called for three runs against a stacked line of scrimmage, the Browns forced a punt. They received a huge break when Dallas’ John Phillips was called for a horse collar tackle when all he did was yank Joshua Cribbs’ braids.

It took Weeden just one play to hook up with Ben Watson from 17 yards out for their second touchdown of the afternoon with 67 seconds left, giving the Browns a 20-17 lead.

I think I can, I think I can.

That’s a way too much time for someone like Romo. But he had a lot of help from the Cleveland secondary. A borderline helmet-to-helmet penalty on T. J. Ward and 35-yard pass interference penalty on Sheldon Brown produced 50 of the 66 yards needed to allow Dan Bailey to tie game with a 32-yard field goal with six seconds left.

So much for I think I can.

It was only a matter of time before the Cleveland patchwork secondary, working hard but decimated by injury, would be the casual factor for the loss. Romo relentlessly went after it.

A highly questionable incomplete call on a pass to Dez Bryant on the Cowboys’ second possession in overtime allowed Dallas to move into position for the game-winning 38-yard field goal by Bailey with 6:09 left in overtime.

It appeared as though the Dallas wide receiver caught a pass, took two steps and then was stripped of the ball at the Cleveland 25 and was recovered by the Browns. It was ruled incomplete, although replays showed he had possession of the ball. Good teams, it seems, receive more breaks from officials.

Tough loss. Maybe the toughest of the season.

The climb to the top is worth it only if the other side is reached. And there is no question the effort is there every week.

But is it any wonder the players haven’t given up? Absolutely. Losing begets losing, which begets frustration, which begets not really caring anymore.

To their – and the coaching staff’s – credit, the Browns cannot be accused of packing it in, although it would be very easy to do so with nothing more to play for now expect perhaps pride and the love of the game.

But that’s awfully hard to do when you see the fruits of your labor continue to wind up in negative results. In order to know how to win, one has to first win. And that’s the mountain the Browns keep failing to successfully negotiate.

This team plays just well enough to lose. Can’t argue the facts. However, the Cowboys loss sure looks as if the Browns are getting that much closer to the day when all that will change.

Several times, this season, they have had victory within their grasp in the fourth quarter only to see it slip away. They keep finding creative ways to lose games they should win.

This one was just another of those agonizing losses in a game they played well enough to win. When Bailey’s overtime field goal sneaked just inside the right upright halfway through overtime, the Browns had every right to hold their heads high as they left the field.

Yes, it was their club-record 13^th straight road loss. And yes, it dropped their season record to 2-8, but they gave the much more talented Cowboys a lot more than they expected.

Losing is always hard to swallow, especially when you play gritty football. And that’s exactly what we got from the Browns in Dallas.

Sometimes, I wonder why the Browns can’t catch a break and get lucky. Why couldn’t Bailey’s attempt for the tying field goal drift wide right? Why, for once, can’t we see a receiver called for pass interference instead of someone in the Cleveland secondary? Poor Buster Skrine, valiantly filling in for  the injured Joe Haden, couldn’t keep his hands off Dallas receivers.

This club is not as bad as its record. With better coaching – and we can look forward to that next season unless Joe Banner shocks everyone and retains Pat Shurmur – we wouldn’t be looking at 2-8.

It’s coming. What we saw against the Cowboys just might turn out to be a sneak preview of things to come. Except, of course, the outcome.

Dallas blowhard at it again

Rob Ryan sure has a big mouth. And he’s not shy about using it.

Upholding what seems to be a family tradition of yapping just to hear yourself yapping, the Dallas Cowboys defensive coordinator said Friday he can’t wait to play the Browns Sunday down in Dallas.

Why? Revenge. That’s why.

Seems that Ryan, never at a loss for words unless he has laryngitis, has a beef with the Browns, for whom he worked for two very long, very vocal and very unproductive seasons as Eric Mangini’s defensive coordinator.

For those two seasons, all we heard was Ryan boasting about how he would turn around the Browns fortunes on his side of the ball. And all we got was empty promises.

Then the Browns had the temerity to fire the self-anointed best defensive coordinator in the National Football League. Oh, and by the way, the Browns were 10-22 under Mangini and his wonderful defensive coordinator.

Asked by the media in Dallas how often he has talked with his defense this week about his problems with the Browns, Ryan said, “Honestly, I’m going to say none. Honestly. Honestly. Honestly, I’m not going to say no. Honestly, I haven’t talked about it. Honestly, I don’t know how that got out there. Honestly, I don’t know.”

Honestly? Huh?

Then he admitted it Sunday will be personal. “Any time you pour everything you have into it and apparently management didn’t see it as if it wasn’t good enough, of course it’s personal,” he said.

“Eric (Mangini) is a good friend. He hired me to do a job. Hell, I did it and got everybody fired anyway. I don’t know why, but I wasn’t in charge of that decision. But I plan on doing something about it.”

Ryan, whose brother, Rex, and father, Buddy, have cornered the NFL market on chutzpah, has coordinated defenses for three NFL teams – the Oakland Raiders (five seasons), Browns (two) and now Cowboys (halfway through his second).

The combined record of those teams during his tenure, including this season’s 4-5, is 42-95. No, that is not a misprint. Last season’s 8-8 with the Cowboys is the closest he has come to a winning season. Throw away the last season and a half and the Ryan record as a coordinator is 30-82.

He has never experienced the wonder and excitement of a playoff game, let alone a winning season. He has been associated with nothing but losers, whether it’s Oakland, Cleveland or Dallas.

None of his teams has led the league in any statistical defensive category. But Ryan, in a cheap move to motivate his team this weekend, hauled out the old bromide about exacting revenge against a former employer.

Never mind that the Browns are 2-7 and headed for the garbage heap once again. Yeah, beating them will be a real accomplishment and give Ryan the warm and fuzzies.

Now the Cowboys might come out and play a hell of game against the Browns, but take into consideration the Cowboys have a more talented roster and should win.

If this is what Ryan needs to motivate his men, that’s a sad commentary. It’s just one game out of 16. Where was he all the other times his teams needed him to coach them up instead of opening up his big mouth?

And once Sunday’s game is over, it’ll be business as usual with Ryan except he’ll have to wait another four years to exact more revenge on the Browns. By then, maybe the rest of the NFL will realize he talks a much better game than he coaches.

America's team? Are you kidding me?

The myth that is America’s Team continues to live hale and hearty down in Dallas, Texas.

Truth of the matter is the Dallas Cowboys have lived that lie now for more than 15 years. They are no more America’s team than the Browns right now.

OK, that’s a bit of an exaggeration, but when the two teams meet up Sunday in Jerry Jones’ palatial football stadium, the chasm that separated the two franchises no longer exists.

The Cowboys are not the scary team that dominated the National Football League in the 1990s. No, the Cowboys of the last 15 years have become quite normal, quite mediocre.

Since 1997, they’ve had their ups with six playoff appearances and their downs with three straight 5-11 campaigns and only seven winning seasons. For the Cowboys fans, that’s considered near disastrous. They are 124-125 in their last 249 regular-season games. Their inconsistency should be proof enough the title of America’s Team is a misnomer.

Jones has hired and fired almost as many coaches since 1997 as the Browns have since the return in 1999. Count ‘em: Jimmy Johnson, Barry Switzer, Chan Gailey, Dave Campo, Bill Parcells, Wade Phillips and Jason Garrett, the current sacrificial lamb.

The one constant is Jones. That’s because he can be. The Arkansas oilman calls all the shots. He’s the owner, president, general manager and team spokesman. He is the Dallas Cowboys. And if Roger Goodell would allow him to coach, Jones probably would do that, too. Everything, it seems, does not move without his approval.

Jones was smart enough to hire Johnson (after firing the legendary Tom Landry) when he bought the team in 1989. And then lost all his smarts when he fired Johnson in a battle of egos and power in 1994 after Johnson won him a second straight Super Bowl.

Jones last hoisted the Vince Lombardi Trophy in 1996 when Switzer led the Johnson-built team past the Pittsburgh Steelers. Since then, it’s been a parade of mediocrity. But you’d never know it by the fawning media.

Every year, it seems, many members of the national media hop on the Jones bandwagon and every year, Jones is left lamenting his club’s failures but never accepting responsibility for those failures.

This season is no different. The Cowboys are a mundane 4-5 entering Sunday’s game against the Browns, who are 1-2 against the Jones-era Cowboys, but the lone victory was registered by the old Browns in 1994.

These Cowboys have a distinct Cleveland favor with the Brothers Garrett, who attended and played football at University School in Hunting Valley. Jason is the head coach, brother John is the tight ends coach and passing game coordinator and brother Judd is the club’s director of pro scouting.

The Garretts spent their time in the Cleveland area when their dad, Jim, was an assistant coach for Sam Rutigliano’s Browns from 1978 to 1984. Jim III still lives in the area and teaches English at US.

The Cowboys got off to a rough start this season, losing four of five after winning two of their first three games. One of the main reasons was the club’s inability to establish a strong running game.

Dallas can’t keep its running backs healthy. If it isn’t DeMarco Murray missing games with a sprained foot, it’s Felix Jones missing games with a bruised knee. Jones is expected to start against the Browns with Murray, absent the last four games, a game-time decision.

The Cowboys average just 85 yards a game on the ground, but let’s not forget these are the Browns they’re facing. The Browns surrender 132 yards a game against the run, but that could change with the return of regular tackles Phil Taylor and Ahtyba Rubin from injury.

The Cowboys’ strength on offense is definitely through the air with quarterback Tony Romo hitting on 67% of his passes, However, the veteran is prone to mistakes as his 13 interceptions certainly prove.

His favorite target by far is tight end Jason Witten, who has caught 66 passes, but don’t be fooled by that impressive number. His effectiveness contributes to extending drives and moving the chains. He has had only one end zone visit this season, a remarkable number considering the frequency he is targeted.

In fact, 31 of Witten’s receptions were recorded in two games. He caught an NFL  record (for a tight end) 18 passes, but did not score, in a 29-24 loss to the New York Giants and 13 more (in 14 targets) with  his lone TD in a 34-18 loss to the Chicago Bears. Expect Romo and Witten to play pitch and catch most of the afternoon against the Cleveland secondary.

Romo’s wide receivers can be just as lethal. Dez Bryant, Miles Austin and Kevin Ogletree check in with 112 catches for 1,603 yards and 10 touchdowns. And with Cleveland cornerback Joe Haden questionable with an oblique injury, trouble looms unless the Browns can get to Romo before he wants to throw.

The Browns are a different team with Haden in the lineup. When he served a four-game suspension for illegal drug use earlier this season, the Browns coughed up 122 points (30.5 a game) in four losses. With Haden in the lineup, the Browns are 2-3 and have permitted just 17.8 points a game.

Considering defensive coordinator Dick Jauron prefers a conservative approach to rushing the passer, the Cleveland secondary could be in for a very long afternoon if Romo stays clean.

Defensively, the Cowboys have been unusually subdued this season. Unusual because defensive coordinator Rob Ryan is an out-there kind of guy who loves to blitz. For whatever reason, though, he seems to have mellowed and eschewed that strategy and it shows in the club’s defensive statistics.

The Cowboys average just two sacks a game and have picked off only four passes. All-Pro linebacker DeMarcus Ware and Anthony Spencer own 13 of the club’s 18 sacks. Ware is his usual quarterback abusing self with nine sacks and four fumble recoveries from the Jack linebacker position.

If what the Philadelphia Eagles did against the Cowboys last week is any indication, look for the Browns to attack rookie Dallas cornerback Morris Claiborne early and often. Claiborne had his hands full with veteran Eagles receivers Jeremy Maclin and DeSean Jackson, who combined for 13 catches.

Now whether Cleveland offensive coordinator Brad Childress chooses to exploit this apparent weakness is another matter. The Browns this season have consistently shied away from taking advantage of other teams’ weaknesses. Perhaps having an extra week to prepare for the Cowboys will make a difference.

How much of a difference will the bye week be for the Browns? Hard to say. We can go only by what they did last season in coach Pat Shurmur’s rookie season.

After splitting their first four games of the season, they emerged from the bye against the Raiders in Oakland. And lost, 24-17.

Some things never change. That will hold true Sunday. The Cowboys drive another nail into Shurmur’s coffin. Make it:

Cowboys 24, Browns 17

Bye-week thoughts

More and more, especially on the collegiate level, we are witnessing the disappearance of the offensive huddle.

That little respite where players get a chance to catch their breaths and prepare for the next play is going the way of the telephone booth.

And it’s not as though some National Football League teams haven’t noticed. Just about every NFL team has a no-huddle scheme in its playbook. Only problem is most use it only when in desperation mode, such as battling from behind with precious little time left in the game.

Then there are those teams that break out the hurry-up in the middle of a game. Or at the beginning of the game.

It is a strategic little gem that teams brave enough to use it usually succeed because it generally catches the opposition off guard. And in the sophisticated football world of today, that mitigates against situational substituting.

The idea of the no-huddle is to keep the opposition from changing personnel between snaps, creating an immediate advantage. If you don’t change your personnel, they can’t. Not enough time.

Teams like the New England Patriots, New York Giants, Green Bay Packers, Denver Broncos and even the Indianapolis Colts run the no-huddle effectively. Why? Smart quarterbacks. Quarterbacks who have no problem identifying opposing defenses on the fly and making the correct call to beat them.

So why do the Colts have a rookie guiding their offense? Because he’s smart, that’s why. Oliver Luck, who has the perfect pro football pedigree, has stepped right in with the Colts and performed like a seasoned veteran.

Sure, he has made mistakes, but his knowledge of the game from the neck up might not be as good right now as that of Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers and Eli Manning, but he’s catching up rapidly.

There are others in the NFL capable of running the no-huddle like New Orleans’ Drew Brees and Alex Smith of the San Francisco 49ers, but their coaches are satisfied they can be just as effective operating outside that world.

The no-huddle is all about quickness and execution, two of the reasons Browns coaches probably have no plans to break it out in the middle of a game. Catch the opposition off guard. Control the tempo of a game. That’s primarily what an effective no-huddle does, requiring the aforementioned attributes.

But it’s not as though Brandon Weeden can’t operate the hurry-up. He gathered plenty of experience in that scheme in his final two seasons at Oklahoma State, where Cowboys coach Mike Gundy’s offense dials up up-tempo for 60 minutes.

Weeden thrived in this offense at OSU, throwing for 9,004 yards in 26 games with 71 touchdowns and 26 interceptions, and completing 69.8% of his 1,075 passes. Breaking that down, he averaged 41.35 passes and 346.3 yards a game, all the while operating the no-huddle from the shotgun.

Weeden obviously has the brain power to operate such an offense. But this is the NFL, where defenses can be complicated and confuse a young quarterback. However, those defenses lose their effectiveness when called on to do something out of the ordinary. Like remain on the field and get ready for the next snap in a matter of seconds.

All it takes is streamlining the play calls. Instead of the complicated nomenclature coaches love to assign plays, a much easier approach is using a number or letter to designate the play. Unfortunately, that’s not going to happen in Cleveland. At least not with this coaching staff.

When Pat Shurmur leaves, his successor hopefully will be much more flexible in his offensive approach to the game. He needs to be open to any and all avenues that take advantage of the personnel on hand.

Shurmur is trying to fit that square peg into that round hole with Weeden and it’s not working. By refusing to take advantage of Weeden’s natural talent by stubbornly jamming the west coast offense scheme down his quarterback’s throat, he’s greasing his slide out of town.

Come to think of it, maybe that’s not a bad thing after all.

*          *          *

Then, there’s the pass rush. Or lack of same.

The Browns have racked up 20 sacks thus far this season, which puts them on a pace to better last season’s total of 32.  But a perusal of the figures reveals some interesting conclusions.

Of those 20 sacks, 10 have been produced by the defensive line, six by linebackers and three by the secondary with one team tackle. Of those 10 sacks, eight were recorded in the first two games and 13 in the first four games.

In the last five games, the Browns have totaled seven sacks, including four in the loss to Indianapolis in week seven. In four of the last five games, they have sacked the quarterback two or fewer times.

The inconsistency is startling and has to be a concern for the coaching staff, which doesn’t seem to know what kind of a defense it wants. Sometimes, it lies back and plays zone, relying on the four men up front to create pressure. Other times, defensive coordinator Dick Jauron employs the blitz with man coverage.

The Cleveland defense does not have a personality. You don’t know what you’ll see from series to series. There’s nothing wrong with disguising the defense. But choosing one approach and sticking with it might not be a bad idea.

Aggressive or passive . . . that’s the question. I’m an aggressive guy who likes to create havoc against the offense and that means pounding the quarterback at every available opportunity. Make him throw the ball before he wants.

Will that happen with the Browns in the final seven games? With the passive Jauron calling the shots, probably not.

*          *          *

New Browns President and CEO Joe Banner says in an interviews with the Plain Dealer that wins and losses will not be the determining factor in how he structures his front office and coaching staff.

He also says the possibility exists that Shurmur and General Manager Tom Heckert Jr. will survive what most believe will be a purge of that front office.

Pardon my cynicism, but I don’t believe a word of that. Not one syllable. At least the part about Shurmur.

But if I’m wrong and Shurmur is retained as the head coach of the Browns next season, it will prove once and for all that this franchise can’t help itself from making the same mistakes over and over and over again.

The dark shadow of doom continues to hang over this franchise. When Mike Holmgren was brought on board, I thought the culture in Berea would change. And then he retained Eric Mangini as his coach.

What is it about this franchise that leads relatively smart men to make dumb moves? Takes those same smart men and moves them in the opposite direction of where they should be heading?

What did Cleveland do to deserve such backhanded treatment? Their fans do not deserve this. Hopefully, Banner is ducking behind a smoke screen and calming any nerves that might be on edge in the current front office.

This offseason should prove mighty interesting. Unfortunately, we’ve been saying that far too often.

For the Browns’ sake, changes better be on the docket. 

Monday leftovers

It’s time for Pat Shurmur to admit being a head coach and play caller for the offense is not working.

It’s time to be the Browns’ head coach only and bring offensive coordinator Brad Childress down from the press box to call the games.

How much longer do we have to hear from Shurmur in post-game and day-after-the-game interviews admit that, yet again, something else had gone wrong to cost his team a shot at winning?

It’s time to take responsibility for the position he was hired. It’s time to separate himself from the two jobs. It detracts from whatever effectiveness he has and it does his team a disservice.

Last season, head coaching and coordinating the offense proved way too much for Shurmur, so he brought in Childress, but zealously – and foolishly – held on to the play-calling duties.

Bringing Childress down close to the action is not out of the question. It’s not as though he is a neophyte at calling plays. He built his coaching reputation in the National Football League on his prowess as a strong offensive mind.

What does Shurmur have to lose? Another game? The Browns are just 2-7 this season doing it this way. Why not try something different?

Even Romeo Crennel in Kansas City gets it. The former Browns coach found that being the head coach and defensive coordinator in Kansas City was too much, so he stepped down as the DC Monday.

Too late, of course. Crennel’s Chiefs are already 1-7 and surrender 30 points a game. All he’s doing is trying to save his No. 1 job, but that probably won’t work.

Shurmur’s dual role is clouding whatever sound judgment he has remaining as a head coach. For example, here’s his take on why he elected to gamble on a fourth-and-2 at his 28-yard line instead of punting with four minutes to go in Sunday’s loss to Baltimore.

“I’d consider something different if I can guarantee getting the ball back,” he told the media. Well, no kidding. Brilliant thinking. Negative thinking. A genuine back-of-the-hand swipe at the defense.

Then came a startling confession, one quite out of character. “I (also) need to give (quarterback Brandon) Weeden a better play there,” he said.

Whoa! An admission of guilt for having literally and figuratively tossed away any chance the Browns had of coming back and at least tying the Baltimore game.

And now, Shurmur is talking about streamlining the offense, something he should have considered a long time ago considering the problem he, as the play caller, has in getting the plays to his rookie quarterback in time. “We need to be better at that,” he said. “I’ll take full responsibility for all of it.”

Asked about the situation, Weeden had a polite, “No comment.” Read between that line.

Sunday against the Ravens, the Browns had to burn three timeouts due to communication problems. The most dumbfounding TO was at the tail end of the third quarter when the Browns, trailing, 14-12, began a drive at their 46. It wasn’t bad enough that guards Shawn Lauvao and John Greco were flagged for false starts before the first snap.

On first-and-20 from the 36, a furious Shurmur called a timeout when communications again broke down. Two pre-snap penalties and a timeout even before the ball was snapped. How much more hopeless could it be? Keep reading.

The play Shurmur elected go go with on first-and-20 was a screen pass, a staple against teams with a strong pass rush. But the Ravens’ pass rush was not scaring anyone Sunday afternoon.

Besides, the Browns execute screen passes poorly. If Shurmur is intent on streamlining the offense, the first move should be tearing all screen pass plays out of the playbook and incinerating them.

Screen passes require good acting and exquisite timing in order to be effective. The Browns do neither very well. And that’s being kind. The next successful screen pass that turns into a success for the Browns will be the first. Stick to swing passes, flat passes and dumpoffs.

It’s a situation that is slowly deteriorating and won’t get any better unless Shurmur is willing to make even further changes. Unfortunately, that won’t happen.

*          *          *

It’s also time to let Weeden be Weeden and incorporate more plays from the shotgun into game plans. While he doesn’t look supremely uncomfortable taking the snap from the pro set, Weeden is much more comfortable in the shotgun.

Washington Redskins coach Mike Shanahan has made Robert Griffin III’s transition to the NFL more comfortable with many plays and sets from the rookie’s playing days at Baylor. And Ryan Tannehill’s modest success in Miami can be traced to Dolphins offensive coordinator Mike Sherman, his coach at Texas A&M.

So why not more shotgun snaps for Weeden? Of the Browns’ 65 plays against the Ravens, only 21 were from the shotgun, just six in the first half and none in the first two series, when the Browns twice went three-and-out. In those first 30 minutes, Weeden was five for six from the gun for 73 yards.

Shurmur and Childress opened it up in the second half, but most of those snaps (nine of 15) came when the Browns were in desperation mode. Overall, Weeden was nine of 16 in 19 dropbacks from the gun for 92 yards, only two running plays, a sack and an interception.

In order to be more effective, he needs to play from that formation on a more consistent basis.

*          *          *

Good offensive teams win first down on a consistent basis. That means at least a four-yard gain on the down, making subsequent downs easier to deal with. Perhaps that explains why the Browns had so much trouble against the Ravens.

Using the four-yard barometer, the Browns won only 12 of 26 first downs, compiling 36 of their 110 first-down yards on three plays. Six times, the offense produced no gain, and five others produced two or fewer yards. No wonder the offense scrambled most of the afternoon.

*          *          *

Notebook: When you stop and think about it, the failure to take one step back cost the Browns a 19-14 lead against the Ravens. One li’l ole step. If running back Chris Ogbonnaya takes just one step back off the line of scrimmage and uncovers tight end Jordan Cameron, that 18-yard touchdown pass to Josh Gordon with about nine minutes left would have counted.. . . . The Browns need to get off to stronger starts in games. They have been outscored, 56-27, in the opening quarter this season (with 14 of those 27 points coming in one game) and 122-68 in the first half. They have been shut out in five of those games in the first quarter. That’s on the coaching. . . . In the second half of games, the Browns outscore their opponents, 101-89. . . . So where was the Cleveland pass rush against the Ravens’ revamped offensive line? Just one divided sack and a measly two quarterback hits. . . . Only four penalties against the Ravens, the back-to-back false starts, an illegal crack back block on Gordon and a roughing-the-passer call on safety T. J. Ward. The latter two were questionable at best. . . . Ishmaa’ily Kitchen. Nothing really. I just like typing the defensive tackle’s first name. It’s a challenge. 

Decisions, decisions

There are times when making command decisions as a head coach in the National Football League is easy. No brainers.

Then there are times when making those decisions can be the difference between winning and losing a ball game.

They are decisions that do not necessarily require immediate attention, but certainly must be given some thought well ahead of actually making them.

Such was the case for Pat Shurmur, who had a miserable day in the decision department Sunday at Cleveland Browns Stadium.

With about four minutes left in regulation and the Browns trailing the Baltimore Ravens, 22-15, after having just squandered a 15-14 lead, the Browns’ head coach was faced with one of those nasty command decisions.

With nearly four minutes left in regulation and facing a fourth-and-2 at his 28-yard line, it was decision time. Punt and get better field position or gamble?

The situation was somewhat similar to a decision he made a few weeks ago in the loss to the Indianapolis Colts. In that one, Shurmur ordered Reggie Hodges to punt on fourth down and a foot from the Indianapolis 41 with 6½ minutes left. He played surrender football and angered his new owner in so doing.

This time, he gambled. And lost when Brandon Weeden’s pass for Greg Little fell harmlessly to the ground, gave the Ravens a short field with which to work and paved the way for a Justin Tucker field goal that sealed the Ravens’ 25-15 victory.

Shurmur twice has had to make that kind of decision and twice he has failed to be correct. In large part, an argument can be made that is one of the reasons the Browns are 2-7 today instead of 4-5, arguably 5-4.

The big difference between what happened Sunday and the Indianapolis game was down and distance and ball position. The Colts scenario begged for a gamble. The Ravens scenario demanded a punt.

No second-guessing in either case.

The Browns still had two timeouts (and the two-minute warning timeout) left and a decent punt by Hodges would have put the Ravens that much farther from the Cleveland goal line. The decision to go for it showed a shocking lack of confidence by Shurmur in the defense and misplaced confidence in the offense.

Not only should Shurmur’s time management skills and decision making be held in question, so, too, should his ability to adequately prepare his team for the start of games.

After the first 15 minutes, it looked as though the Ravens were playing against their scout team on both sides of the ball. Their 14-0 lead was built on two drives that consumed 12 minutes and 17 seconds of the quarter.

Twenty-two plays, 136 yards and touchdown runs of eight and 12 yards by Ray Rice and Bernard Pierce produced that result. The Cleveland defense looked like the wrong end of a tackling sled.

The Browns’ offense, meanwhile, came out throwing even though the Baltimore defense had surrendered 622 yards on the ground in the last three games. Some time between last Sunday and the Ravens game, offensive coordinator Brad Childress and Shurmur, who calls plays, swallowed a bottle full of stupid pills.

What do you do when your opponent has trouble stopping the run, especially with Ray Lewis and Haloti Ngata out with injuries? In Shurmur’s and Childress’ world, why you throw the ball, of course. 

Six plays, four passes, 18 yards and two punts. Third-and-1 on both series and Trent Richardson does not get the ball. What does the rookie have to do to get the coaches’ attention that yes, he can gain a yard when needed.

Richardson already had 18 yards of offense on a nine-yard run and nine-yard pass reception. Ignorance is bliss on some occasions. But not when you’re an NFL coach. In this case, ignorance is ignorance.

Browns fans, stunned at what the first 15 minutes had wrought, steeled themselves for the inevitable onslaught. Gonna be a long afternoon against the hated Ravens.

Then something strange and unusual happened. The Ravens started acting like a normal team and Weeden, whose afternoon could charitably be called uneven, began taking advantage.

The coaches, to their credit, did not abandon the run and starting calling Richardson’s number. The Browns then started playing the horseshoes/hand grenades game. They began creeping closer and closer to the Baltimore goal line.

They visited the red zone on three straight drives in the second quarter, but all they came away with was a trio of Phil Dawson field goals. The Ravens finished off drives with touchdowns. Therein lies one of the big differences between these teams.

The Cleveland defense, meanwhile, began to stuff the Ravens’ running game, shutting off the flanks and funneling everything to the middle. It forced seven straight punts and six three-and outs in a row.

The offense failed to take advantage of wonderful field position to start drives (at their 49, 44, 46 and 43), but managed to squeeze two more field goals out of Dawson to take that 15-14 lead with 8:48 left in the game.

And if Chris Ogbonnaya had not illegally covered tight end Jordan Cameron on the play and drawn a penalty flag, the Browns would have taken a 19-14 lead on a Weeden to Josh Gordon touchdown pass.

But holy cow, from the depths of despair to a one-point lead! What’s going on here? With the Cleveland defense playing shutdown football, the Ravens’ nine-game winning streak against the Browns dangled precariously.

Then that old axiom about good teams finding a way to win and bad teams finding a way to lose kicked in.  The Ravens entered the game at 5-2 for a reason. And the Browns were 2-6 for a reason.

In this case, the Baltimore offense stopped chugging Sominex pills and remembered what got them that early 14-0 lead and flipped the switch. Nine plays and 81 yards later, wide receiver Torrey Smith made Cleveland cornerback Joe Haden feel as though he was on a merry-go-round with a wheel move at the Browns’ 10 that left the Cleveland cornerback flat-footed as he scored on an 18-yard pass play.

It was as though the Browns’ defense had stolen those Sominex pills from the Ravens.   

To make matters worse, the Ravens’ two-point attempt was ridiculously easy as Anquan Boldin, who made only five catches all afternoon but every one moved the chains, caught a Joe Flacco pass in the far right corner with the closest Brown about 10 yards away.

Then came that awful decision as Shurmur made certain he had snatched certain defeat from the jaws of possible victory.

Weeden, uncertain all afternoon, looked dazed, confused and unable to find open receivers. He wound up with two interceptions and was lucky it wasn’t double that as the Ravens dropped at least two others.

And yet, despite all his problems, the Browns still had a chance to win this game. That seems to be the theme with this team this season. So close and yet, so far.

Smart coaches almost always seem to win a majority of their close games. The Browns need a coach like that. They certainly don’t have one now.

Streaky Sunday

John Harbaugh has no idea what it feels like to lose to the Cleveland Browns.

Neither does Joe Flacco.

Nor Ray Rice.

When the Baltimore Ravens arrive at Cleveland Browns Stadium for Sunday’s game against the Browns, they will haul a nine-game winning streak against their AFC North rival.

This is Harbaugh’s fifth season as the Ravens’ head coach. Not once has he crossed the field following a game against Cleveland and commiserated with his coaching rival.

First, it was Romeo Crennel twice in 2008, followed by Eric Mangini, who lost four in a row in 2009 and 2010. And Sunday, Pat Shurmur takes a three-gamer into his fourth meeting with Harbaugh.

Overall, the new Browns have won just seven games against the old Browns in this 27-game series.

So is it a coincidence that Flacco and Rice, who joined the Ravens the same season Harbaugh was tapped to succeed Brian Billick, row in that same boat with their coach? Not really.

Can’t argue with the facts. Nine victories in a row, none closer than six points. In those nine games, the Ravens have outscored the Browns, 226-107.

Flacco has put up relatively modest numbers as a quarterback against Cleveland, throwing just 11 touchdown passes and only five interceptions. He completes 64.5% of his passes for a pedestrian 209 yards a game.

Nothing fancy. All he does is win. At least he is given credit for winning since he’s the quarterback of record. Perhaps the gentlemen who play on the other side of the football for the Ravens have had something to do with that.

Same with Rice, who has compiled 824 rushing yards against Cleveland’s rather porous front seven over that period of time, and more than 1,000 yards when you factor in his skills as a receiver out of the backfield. But he has had trouble getting into the end zone, scoring just three times on the ground and once as a receiver.

Speaking of the Baltimore defense, it has played almost totally out of character this season. The hallmark of this team for the past dozen or so seasons has been the defense. It has virtually disappeared, at least statistically, in the last three games.

Even though they are 2-1 in those games, the Ravens surrendered 622 yards on the ground to Kansas City, Dallas and Houston, a total more apt to be given up by the Browns. That’s an alarming (at least in Baltimore) 207 yards a game.

There is genuine concern that without the normally stingy defense lending more than just casual support, the Ravens’ offense might not be strong enough to outscore the opposition on a consistent basis. The Houston Texans took full advantage a couple of weeks ago with a 43-13 victory.

Already this season, the Ravens have given up 24, 30, 29 and 43 points. They no longer seem to be a big threat to opposing offenses. With linebacker Ray Lewis down for the season with a torn triceps and cornerback Lardarius Webb gone with a shredded knee, that once-vaunted defense seems vulnerable.

Moving over from the outside to replace Lewis at inside linebacker is Dannell Ellerbe, a fourth-year man out of Georgia who racked up a dozen tackles in his first start against the Texans. And Jimmy Smith, a former first-round draft pick, takes over for Webb, one of the best corners in the National Football League.

But the Ravens, who hemorrhage 400 yards a game, are still tough up front with defensive tackle Haloti Ngata and in the back end with incomparable free safety Ed Reed, who has tortured the Browns with 10 interceptions over the years, three winding up in the Cleveland end zone.

Compensating somewhat for the loss of Lewis is the return of hybrid linebacker/ defensive end Terrell Suggs, who made his season debut in the Houston loss after missing the first six games due to off-season Achilles’ tendon surgery and racked up a sack.

Suggs, who has 13 career sacks and seven forced fumbles against the Browns, also brings an attitudinal and emotional difference to the Baltimore defense, an element missing with Lewis’ injury. They’ll need it with Browns rookie Trent Richardson up next.

Richardson, coming off a 122-yard effort in the San Diego victory, ran the ball just 14 times for 47 yards and a touchdown in the clubs’ first meeting in week four and added another 57 yards as a receiver. Quarterback Brandon Weeden was 25 of 52 (with five drops) for 320 yards.

That was also the game Weeden learned a very valuable lesson. Never loop a pass on an out route. Put it in a line. He didn’t while throwing to Travis Benjamin. Baltimore corner Cary Williams jumped the route and took the pick 6 63 yards late in the final seconds of the third quarter to give the Ravens a 23-10 lead.

In that first game, the Ravens’ fourth in an 18-day period, Anquan Boldin torched the Browns’ secondary. The veteran wide receiver caught nine passes, eight in the second half, for 131 yards in the 23-16 victory. He didn’t score, but frustratingly prolonged drives.

Joe Haden was serving his four-game suspension for violating the NFL’s drug policy at the time and Flacco took full advantage with a 356-yard evening in front of a national television audience.

Rice, Baltimore critics say, is not getting enough touches to make a difference and balance the Baltimore offense. The Ravens throw the ball 62% of the time and gain nearly 71% of their offense through the air. But the offensive line protects Flacco well, giving up only 12 sacks in seven games.

However, that line was revamped recently at the tackles with Michael Oher moving from right tackle to left to replace Bryant McKinnie with rookie Kelechi Osemele taking over on the right side.

McKinnie, brought in last season after Oher had difficulties switching from right tackle to left, has been bothered by off-the-field problems this season. Oher began his career as a right tackle before switching to the left side last season.

Chances are very good, now that Haden is back and the Cleveland defense is getting healthy, that we’ll see much more of Rice and the ground game Sunday.

Oh, one more thing. The Ravens are coming off their bye week, licking their wounds after a tough loss, much like the San Diego Chargers were last Sunday. And the Ravens, just like the Chargers, are being criticized for passing the ball too much.

I lied. One more stat. Under Harbaugh, the Ravens have never lost a game following the bye week. That’s going to change Sunday, when two streaks will crumble and another continued. The Browns win their third straight home game. Make it:

Browns 19, Ravens 14