The battling Cleveland Browns dealt with rainy weather, heavy balls and the Baltimore Ravens on Thursday night at M&T Bank Stadium.

And while the Browns gave a better effort than they did just four days prior, they still ended the night on the wrong end of the scoreboard, falling to 0-4 on the season after a 23-16 loss to the Ravens.

The Browns had some good moments – like the 11-play, 94-yard touchdown drive in the second quarter – and some bad – like converting just three-of-15 third downs, rushing for just 2.5 yards per carry, and Cary Williams’ pick six – in losing their ninth consecutive game to the Ravens and their 10th game overall.

“Offensively, there were flashes of good play,” Browns coach Pat Shurmur said. “I do think we gave away some gimmes early in the game. We had some drops, not acceptable. There’s a zero tolerance for that. I will say this, we have some tough guys out there playing that are not catching the ball efficiently enough, and we just need to keep working with them. That’s the reality of it. In the passing game, of course, there were some inaccurate throws, there were times when he got pressured. We played an outstanding defense, and I think our guys battled. I think that’s kind of how it goes.”

Read more...

Sweet Methuselah, what a beat down the poor oddsmakers took this week.  How will they feed their pet pandas or afford vacations on the space station after this?

I won the week with a sad 7-9 record, which looks less lame in comparison to DJC's 6-10 and BT's lowly 3-13.  Even BT's Executive Lock of the Week finally failed, as the Saints joined the Browns as the only Defeated teams left.  YTD, that puts us at 23-25 (Me), 20-28 (DJC), and 18-30 (BT).

The Bye weeks have begun, with the Colts and Steelers taking the first naps.  The Browns play the Thursday night game this week, so they won't be included either, which makes my plans for Sunday much more relaxed as I'll get to watch games I want to see rather than one that feels more like work - or an epic struggle, if you will - to sit through.

The Big 10 schedule also begins this week, so now it's time to see how bad the Buckeye Defense truly is.

All odds are from VegasInsider.com:

Read more...

One thing that Browns have that the Ravens don't is a rich history.  I’m too young to have any great stories about the Cleveland Browns, so I end up having to settle for some pretty good anecdotes and a lot of dreadful memories.  That’s just the way it is for someone my age; Jimmy Brown and the vintage Browns just aren’t part of our story.  I don’t know much about Paul Brown football.  I couldn’t offer any original thought on Otto Graham, only what I’ve read in books and seen on television.  Frankly, I think about Milt Plum about as often as I think of Milt Palacio.

I know that, at some point, the Browns went all-in on a guy named Mike Phipps, and that history dictates he was a monumental bust.  By the time I came into this world, towards the end of the 1970s, it was the era of Brian Sipe.  The Browns MVP quarterback was a featured player in one of the earlier moments of the Cleveland sports misery montages, the infamous Red Right 88 play.  There are plenty of moments in that montage that still sting, but the Mike Davis interception doesn’t compute the same way with me; it simply isn’t a part of my history as fan.  Sam Rutigliano is just another name that coached the team, and I wouldn’t even wager a guess as to whether Mike or Greg was the better Pruitt.

My history begins with Bernie Kosar taking over for Gary Danielson, the inception of the Dawg Pound at Cleveland Stadium, Marty Schottenheimer, and the cinematic treat, "Masters of the Gridiron".  The Dawg Pound Era put the Kardiac Kids in the past tense, and Browns fans had an easy time getting behind a local guy who played the system in order to be a Cleveland Brown.  I didn’t have to distinguish between the Pruitts because Kevin Mack and Earnest Byner were memorable in their own right, even though I think it took me a few games get Curtis and Clarence Weathers right.  Don’t even get me started on the guy who played Apollo Creed.  Of course, I also couldn’t remember whether Jack Nicholson was the golfer from Ohio or the “Here’s Johnny” dude from The Shining.  I was just a kid, give me a break on this one.

Read more...

The Cleveland Browns head to Baltimore to take on the Ravens in the NFL Network’s nationally televised Thursday night game of the week.

Should be a lovely time.

The Opposition

Baltimore’s record: 2-1
Offensive rank: 4th overall/3rd passing/11th rushing
Defensive rank: 27th overall/28th passing/28th rushing
All-time record: Ravens lead, 19-7
Last meeting: Ravens won, 20-14, on Christmas Eve in Baltimore
The line: Browns (+12)

Read more...