Written by Thomas Moore

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After playing four games in the span of 18 days, the Cleveland Browns find themselves at the quarter-mark of the 2012 NFL season.

The Browns are 0-4 for the second time in the last four years and only one team has made the playoffs after starting a season 0-4 – the 1992 San Diego Chargers. Of course, the Browns were not making the playoffs this year anyway, but anytime a team is 0-4 people feel obligated to bring up the Chargers.

The last time the Browns started the season this poorly, in 2009, they were outscored by 69 points in the first four games (an average of 17.25 points a game); while this year the four losses have come by a total of just 25 points.

While 0-4 is not what you want to see from the guys in Orange and Brown, things are certainly better than they were in 2009 – maybe not playoff-caliber better, but better nonetheless.

Let’s see where the Browns are as they prepare to face the New York Giants on Sunday.

Like: Rookie quarterback Brandon Weeden has struggled – he is a rookie after all – but the game has never seemed to be too big for him. Weeden bounced back from a disastrous Week 1 performance (the infamous four interception, 5.1 quarterback rating) with a big showing against the Bengals and decent showings against the Bills and Ravens. He’s also not afraid to take chances downfield.

Dislike: While Weeden digs the long ball, he’s not very accurate when he goes deep – connecting on just three-of-23 attempts on passes beyond 20 yards. He has struggled with both over-throwing and under-throwing receivers, most notably in Week 1 when he missed a wide-open Mohamed Massaquoi in the end zone. Weeden also needs to improve his accuracy overall. After completing 70 percent of his passes his last two years at Oklahoma State, Weeden is at 53.9 percent so far this year. Finally, Weeden needs to stop staring down his receivers, something he continually does. No matter how strong his arm is, NFL defenses are going to be able to get to the ball if Weeden tips them off as to where he is throwing.

Hopes: That Weeden improves and becomes a better quarterback in the second half of the season. The Browns will have a good read on his progression when they play Baltimore and Cincinnati for the second time later on this year.

Fears: Weeden is Derek Anderson 2.0. When he’s on he will put up numbers like he did against Cincinnati (322 yards, two touchdowns); but when he’s off he will have more games like the on against the Eagles.

Quote of note: “It’s getting better, but I’m not even close to satisfied,” Weeden said. “We haven’t won a game yet and that’s my main goal. Until we start winning games, it’s tough to be satisfied whether you played (well) or not.”

Like: Everything about rookie running back Trent Richardson, who has shown so far this season why he was the top running back selected in the draft. Richardson has scored four touchdowns already this season – Josh Cribbs led the Browns last year with five – and has shown both his power (the touchdown reception against the Bengals) and his speed (the touchdown rush against the Ravens). He’s shown good hands and of the 13 missed tackles he has forced, nine of them have come after a reception.

Dislikes: The offensive line, which has struggled so far. Rookie right tackle Mitchell Schwartz has been up-and-down, while guards Jason Pinkston and Shaun Lauvao has sort of just ... been there, although Pinkston is improving. According to Pro Football Focus, after posting a Run Block Rating of more than -0.5 only four times last season, Pinkston has exceeded that number every game so far and has posted an overall rating of +1.4 (baby steps, people). Then there is Alex Mack and Joe Thomas, who have been called for numerous bogus penalties in the season’s first four games as no one apparently told the replacement refs that you don’t call penalties on Pro Bowl players. Finally, fullback Owen Marecic really needs to not be on the field when the Browns have the ball on offense.

Hopes: That Richardson stays healthy, keeps scoring touchdowns and puts up more days like the one he had in Cincinnati.

Fears: The offensive line continues to have trouble opening holes, Marecic can’t get out of the way and the coaching staff forgets that Richardson was the third overall pick in the draft. The Browns have thrown the ball at least 35 times in each game so far (it was 43 and 52 in the past two games) while Richardson only rushed 12 and 14 times. There is no scenario where that is a winning formula for the Browns.

Quote of note: “We all know that (Trent) started the year and was less than 100 percent,” coach Pat Shurmur said. “I think he’s getting where he’s at a place physically where he needs to be. The rush-per-carry thing, we’ll talk about that as we go along. I think that we kind of got a feel for what types of runs he’s good at. The one thing I will say about Trent ... it’s about points. He finds a way to get in the end zone, and that’s what is important.”

Like: The run defense, which has improved tremendously since Week 1, when the Browns gave up 5.0 yards per carry to the Eagles. After ranking at or near the bottom of the NFL in rushing defense for years (for example, they were 28th and 27th against the rush under former coach Eric Mangini), the Browns are a respectable (for them) 19th in rushing yards allowed, 14th in yards per carry and have given up just one rushing touchdown. The addition of Frostee Rucker, solid against the run, along with the play of rookies Billy Winn and John Hughes, and Ahtyba Rubin, has helped the Browns finally start to reverse a trend that has plagued them for far too long. And, for good measure, the defense is fifth in the NFL with 13 sacks.

Dislike: The pass defense. Maybe teams are not running all over the Browns because its quicker and easier to pass on them. The Browns are 28th in the league against the pass, thanks to a combination of corner back Joe Haden’s suspension, corner back Sheldon Browns advancing age, and the inconsistent play of young defensive backs Tashaun Gipson, Buster Skrine, Trevin Wade and Eric Hagg. The Browns gave up 306 yards and the game-winning touchdown pass to the Eagles, 318 passing yards and three touchdown passes to the Bengals, three touchdown passes to the Bills, and 356 passing yards and one touchdown to the Ravens. That’s not going to cut it. And it might not be a bad idea to tackle someone once in a while.

Hopes: The run defense continues doing what it has been doing and Haden’s return after this week’s game settles down the secondary and gets everyone back into a role that fits their experience and skill level. The game smarts of young linebackers L.J. Fort, Craig Robertson and James-Michael Johnson (once healthy) catch up with the quickness of their young legs and the defensive coaches realize that Scott Fujita can be an asset in the film room – just not on the field.

Fears: Haden returns and, because he’s not in game shape after missing four games, pulls a hamstring or some other muscle and misses more time. Injuries continue to mount in the secondary – T.J. Ward has a broken thumb and Gibson is nursing a knee injury – and the Browns continue to give up major chunks of yardage in the passing game. The rush defense wears down and can’t get the defense off the field when it matters (the Browns are currently 13th in the NFL, allowing opposing offenses to convert 35 percent of their third downs).

Quote of note: “We’re dealing with a couple of different situations with the secondary,” Shurmur said. “Of course, Joe being out is one so that causes us to have to juggle and we’ve had some injuries that we’ve had to deal with as well. We’ve learned a great deal about the guys on our roster and I think our guys have been forced to adjust in a lot of ways and I’m pleased at the way they compete. Our guys fight hard, I think that can be said. Now we’ve just got to make sure we play better.”

Like: The diversity of the wide receivers. The Browns have strong receivers who can break tackles in Greg Little and Josh Gordon, a fast receiver who can stretch the field in Travis Benjamin, a veteran in Josh Cribbs, and Weeden has even turned Massaquoi into a serviceable NFL player – through three games MoMass was on pace for 48 receptions and 773 yards, easily the best numbers of his career.

Dislike: The fact that none of the wide receivers actually do anything in those roles. Gordon is rarely targeted when he is on the field, Benjamin is fast but it seems as if the Browns are still figuring out how best to use him, veteran is just a code word for slowing down and Massaquoi is hurt again, having missed the Ravens game. Oh, and Little can’t hold on to the ball.

Hopes: With more experience Gordon and Benjamin become consistent, reliable targets for Weeden. Gordon didn’t play last year and it shows. Cribbs (concussion) and Massaquoi (hamstring) can bounce back from injury to help the position rebuild its depth and Little starts catching the ball when the Browns need him most. As they see more game time together each week, Weeden and the receivers will start to develop chemistry and grow together into a passing attack that opposing defenses have to at least respect (will work on fearing the offense later; remember, baby steps). If that happens, it can only make Richardson that much better of a runner.

Fears: That it takes until next season for Gordon to get back up to game speed and that Cribbs and Massaquoi can’t stay on the field. While the movie Youngblood taught us that you “can’t hit what you can’t catch,” someone is eventually going to catch Benjamin and he is going to pay the price. Finally, it seems likely that the Browns are going to have to live with the ups and downs of Little, hoping that his inevitable drops don’t come at the wrong time each week.

Quote of note: “With each game, I feel I’m just gaining more confidence and feeling more comfortable with each snap I get,” Gordon said. “Seeing different teams, different defenses, you start to grow more comfortable with it. I’m more familiar with it, to say the least.

“As a wide receiver, I definitely feel as though I can hold my own and I can be placed among those elite-level wide receivers, but making the opportunities for myself and capitalizing on those is the biggest thing. When I get that done, we’ll see what happens. I feel as though when it’s time to go out there and be ready for it, I’ll be able to do it.”

Like: The work that defensive coordinator Dick Jauron has done with the defense, especially considering he has been without the defense’s best player (Haden) for four games and one of his best defensive lineman (Phil Taylor) for the whole season. With the exception of the Buffalo game, the defense has held up pretty well against some talented offenses.

Dislike: The work that offensive coordinator Brad Childress and Shurmur have done with the offense. The most important thing that coaches can do is put their player in positions to succeed and it just seem like the Browns are doing that on offense, especially with Weeden. There is certainly enough film of him at Oklahoma State to know what he does well and what he does poorly, and the coaches should be able to figure it out. If he is more comfortable – and more importantly more successful – in the shotgun, put him in the shotgun. If spreading the field and going with a single back (hint: that should be Richardson) gives the offense the best chance, then let’s get rolling on that. If that is not “pure” to the West Coast offense, then so be it.

Hopes: With each passing week Weeden gets more comfortable and the game plan is built around that. Weeden starts hitting a higher percentage of his passes, which backs the defense off the line of scrimmage and opens up running room for Richardson. The Browns start putting up more than 17 points a game on a consistent basis. Are we really asking for too much here?

Fears: The Browns continue to do what they have always done on offense with the same results. The play calling continues to appear to be drawn out of a hat rather than being put together strategically, the coaches forget why they selected Richardson with the third overall pick in the draft as he only carries the ball 10 times a game and gives way too often to Chris Ogbonnaya, Weeden is only allowed to do his thing when the team falls behind, and fans counted to spend their Sunday afternoons pounding their heads against the wall. What, too harsh?

Quote of note: “We aren’t good until we win,” Richardson said. “We’re almost there, but until we start winning that’s when we’ll be good. The offense is a big part of that – we have to put up points, catch the pass, run the ball hard, make blocks and we have to be on our right assignments. We have to know what we are doing when we run our routes or check downs or whatever it is. We are going to come together and it’s coming along. We are getting there.”

The second quarter of the season starts on Sunday and we’ll find out just how far the Browns have come along.

(Game photos by ClevelandBrowns.com)

(Shurmur photo by The Plain Dealer)