Tick tock, tick tock

Thinking out loud . . .

Correct me if I’m wrong but weren’t we led to believe the Browns would grab a quarterback in the recent college football draft? You know, someone who could come in, learn and then become Colt McCoy’s understudy instead of Seneca Wallace and Jake Delhomme.

Strictly a guess here, but they targeted Iowa QB Ricky Stanzi at the beginning of the fifth round. However, Kansas City sneaked in and snagged him two picks earlier.

Would have made a nice story, too, had he been there for the Browns. The lean kid from Lake Catholic High School coming back to play for the hometown team. Too bad they waited so long.

Stanzi is the kind of quarterback who would fit nicely into a West Coast offense. He doesn’t have the strongest arm, keeps mistakes at a minimum and plays the game very well from the neck up. The Chiefs stole one from the Browns. . . .

What are the odds Wallace and Delhomme will be on the roster when (if?) the season launches? Something like even money. Unless Mike Holmgren and Tom Heckert Jr. dip into the free-agent market, that’s what it’ll look like on opening day.

There are some intriguing names out there once this labor mess disappears. Trent Edwards, Chad Pennington, Troy Smith, Brodie Croyle, Kerry Collins and Tarvaris Jackson head the list. Brady Quinn is there, too, but . . . oh, never mind. One very well could replace Delhomme on the roster. . . .

What will it take for Heckert to see he’s got a problem on the right side of his offensive line? Pork Chop Womack and Tony Pashos are getting a little long in the tooth and Pashos is an injury waiting to happen. For a big guy, he pays too many visits to injured reserve.

Billy Yates filled in nicely at right guard last season when Womack moved over after Pashos went down again. But Yates then pulled a Pashos and hit IR. Womack moved back inside and John St. Clair, the turnstile, took over at right tackle. No wonder Peyton Hillis’ numbers decreased significantly the second half of the season.

Shaun Lauvao is still an unknown quantity because of injuries and rookie Jason Pinkston has never played on the right side. He’s projected as a candidate for right guard. . . .

If the Browns don’t place top draft choice Phil Taylor on a weight-control program, they’re making a big mistake. The big guy from Baylor has trouble pushing himself away from the dining table. Failing to maintain his weight was one of the factors that led to his benching at (and ultimate departure from) Penn State. . . .

It’ll be interesting to see if the Browns at least tinker with the idea of playing fourth-round pick Owen Marecic on defense at some time. After all, he played fullback and middle linebacker for coach Jim Harbaugh at Stanford.

The Browns obviously see him as a fullback in the NFL, but if they decide to keep Lawrence Vickers, moving Marecic to defense wouldn’t be out of the question. He’s got the perfect body type and size (6-1, 245 pounds) to be an MLB in the 4-3.