Written by Dave Kolonich

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Is there any doubt Cleveland is still a football city?

With LeBron James and the Cavaliers poised to take a 3-1 series lead against the hated Boston Celtics this afternoon, I would suspect that most of the city’s sports fans are far more concerned with the state of the Browns’ receiving corps – who actually won’t play for some four months.

Of course, I could be wrong.  But then again, what about those receivers?  Sounds familiar.

Grossi on Massaquoi

“If you just came and saw us work, seen how much we’ve grown, I think that question would be answered by itself,” Massaquoi said. “[Robiskie's] primed for a good year. I’m primed for a breakout year. Stuckey’s been working hard. Josh is still going to be the dynamic player that he is.”

Perhaps my earlier assertion regarding the Browns still being more important than the Cavaliers is reflected in Massaquoi’s tone.  After all, it is early May – where optimism reigns supreme….or, is it foolish hope?

Massaquoi is good…yet, far from great.  His rookie campaign proved to be more about survival than actual production.  Of course, there is something to be said for Massaquoi’s actual performance, considering the pre-historic nature of the offense, combined with his own lack of experience. 

If there is a building block in 2010, it would naturally have to be Massaquoi.  However, as for the rest…no one outside of Columbus has any idea about Robiskie, Stuckey is an accessory, and as we have already seen – Josh Cribbs is not a receiver.

So…maybe there’s something to be said about coaching…or the “DA Effect?”

Also, there is the unspoken belief that the addition of Holmgren and top aide Gil Haskell, Holmgren’s longtime offensive coordinator in Green Bay and Seattle, will somehow bring out the best in the receivers.

Massaquoi expects a higher level of play from new veteran arrivals Jake Delhomme and Seneca Wallace.

“We all know how the passing game went last year,” Massaquoi said. “It can only get better.

“You plug in a guy like Jake Delhomme … he’s a Super Bowl quarterback. I was a huge fan of his growing up in Charlotte. He’s very capable. He brings in a lot of knowledge where he and [offensive coordinator Brian Daboll] and Mangini and Holmgren can bounce stuff off each other. He’s going to tell us what he expects out of us. We’re going to be able to learn from him and grow more.”

I guess I’m not the only one who is a little concerned that we’re placing the offense upon the shoulders of Jake Delhomme in 2010. 

Although I’ve tried to restrain myself from making the following statement, it appears that Delhomme will have to serve as a one-year franchise savior in order for the Browns to continue to progress.

As for the alternative – meaning if Delhomme continues his two-year slump.  Well, let’s not ruin a great May morning.

How about we continue the optimistic thread – while we still can…

Terry’s Talkin

2. That said, Hardesty grabbed onto the offensive concepts. He impressed when it was time to draw up plays on the board. He also was in good shape, ran hard and showed more than power — a quick first step and an ability to make sharp cuts. The Browns believe he can step in and combine with Jerome Harrison to give them an excellent 1-2 combination, with Peyton Hillis also in the mix as a short-yardage back.

4. So where does that leave Chris Jennings and James Davis? The obvious answer is the Browns believed they needed an upgrade. With the weather conditions, the inexperience at receiver and the reclamation project that is veteran quarterback Jake Delhomme — the Browns must run the ball well to be effective. That’s why they traded a third-rounder and two fifth-rounders to move up to the second round for Hardesty, who gained 1,345 yards (4.8 per carry) as a senior for the Vols.

I’m usually not one to get overly excited about running backs – especially in this city.  After all, I am the one who originated the Ghosts of Browns Running Back Potential – an exclusive group of despair that includes the likes of Madre Hill, James Jackson, Ben Gay, William Green and Lee Suggs. 

However, it’s hard for me to hold back my excitement regarding Hardesty.  I’m of the opinion that we may have landed one of the top three backs of the 2010 draft class. 

A combination of Jerome Harrison and Hardesty is nothing but exciting – especially when you consider the still limited nature of the team’s passing game.  Also, the continued development of the offensive line should allow the Browns to do something that they have historically – at least within the last twenty years – failed to do…meaning feature one of the league’s best ground games.

And since we’re dealing in unbridled optimism…we just have to “go there.”

3. None of this means McCoy will play soon. He dropped to the 85th pick for a reason — he’s not a blue chip quarterback. But he can learn and develop. He came across as confident, but not cocky. But in an interview with Brian Sipe, the former Browns quarterback said there is no reason to rush McCoy or any other rookie quarterback into action.

4. Since camp ended, McCoy has been on the phone or computer most evenings with offensive coordinator Brian Daboll, as they work through the playbook together. Some of these sessions last two hours. McCoy does have a hunger for the mental side of the game.

First of all, a public service announcement. 

Since I have realized that it will be virtually impossible to stick with my No Colt McCoy News Moratorium, I have decided to re-focus my efforts.  From now on, I will be instituting a No Colt McCoy/Brian Sipe Comparison Policy on this site. 

But only after these next thoughts…

Enough.  Really.  Just because both McCoy and Sipe are tiny, it does not mean that there is some direct link between the two.  Further more, how long did it take Sipe to actually crack the Browns’ lineup in the 1970’s?  He played in parts of four seasons before being firmly entrenched as the team’s starting QB.  Does anyone truly envision the same patience being shown with McCoy – especially considering the immediate nature of today’s NFL?

Or, if we use the same four-year window, can you only imagine how many other QB’s will be brought to town during this span?

Or, in other words – just calm down, Browns Nation.  Such comparisons remind me of Browns fans who annually want to draft nothing but Buckeyes every Spring.  Point being – we should all broaded our prospectives.

As for Daboll teaching McCoy – I find it kind of ironic that Daboll himself is being taught by Gil Haskell.  Does this also mean that Daboll, like McCoy, will be sitting out the 2010 season?

Anyway, with the moratorium now firmly in place, how about we turn back to the players who will actually have an impact in 2010?

Doerschuk – Offensive Starters

John St. Clair came to Cleveland as a 10th-year journeyman with spotty starting experience. It became evident the journey was at an end.

St. Clair is signed through 2010 but likely will be replaced by Tony Pashos or Floyd “Pork Chop” Womack.

Womack also is a 10th-year journeyman, but he played crisply at right guard and right tackle. He’s in a comfortable spot, having been recruited by Mangini in 2009 after playing for Holmgren’s Seahawks from 2001-08.

If Womack outperforms Pashos at right tackle, the door is open for Round 3 pick Shawn Lauvao to make a run at the right guard job. For now, Pashos and Womack shape up as the right tackle and right guard.

I’ve been thinking about a post where I declare that Shaun Lauvao could prove to be the team’s most important 2010 draft pick.  But then, the ghosts of Isaac Sowells and Kirk Chambers tapped me on the shoulder – telling me to come back to reality. 

However, just those names remind me of how important building an offensive line through the draft is….as well as show the lack of attention the Browns have paid to the same unit over the past decade.

I was probably just as excited regarding the Lauvao pick as compared to the ones of Joe Haden and Hardesty.  Of course, had the Browns drafted nothing but right guards and right tackles last month, I could have died a happy man. 

Getting back to reality, though…I am much more comfortable with a Womack/Pashos right side, as compared to a beaten-up Ryan Tucker, Rex Hadnot and John St. Clair combination of a year ago.  If anything, the Browns should feature some more versatility along the right side, as Womack and Pashos can each play two positions. 

Of course, the development of Lauvao, who could add some much-needed youth and athletic ability, would be a most exciting prospect.

Speaking of “prospects”, let’s close with a different sort of optimism – the kind that could be labeled “dodging a bullet.”

Schudel on Savage

As bad as things have been for the Browns the last two years — and let’s face it, a 9-23 combined record is pretty bad — they might have been much worse had the 2007 draft gone the way Phil Savage wanted it to because Savage coveted JaMarcus Russell.

“He will be absolutely fantastic in this league,” the Browns’ former general manager predicted after the first round of the draft on April 28, 2007.

Savage’s words came to mind on Thursday when the Raiders dumped Russell, the first player picked in the draft three years ago.

Savage loved Russell seven years before the draft — probably still does. Had Russell fallen to the Browns with the third pick, there is no doubt in my mind Savage would have drafted the former LSU quarterback instead of Joe Thomas.

Savage’s infatuation with Russell came to light after the Browns traded back into the first round to get Brady Quinn in 2007.

Getting Quinn should have been a feel-good moment, but then Savage went off on a tirade about how Russell was criticized in predraft publications. Weird is the only way to describe the way Savage went on and on.

Savage and Russell are from Mobile, Ala. Russell participated in Savage’s football camp as a teenager. Savage acted as though a family member had been insulted.

“It’s truly amazing that you can meet someone for the first time at 14 or 15 years old and he goes No. 1 in the draft,” Savage said that historic day. “As a Mobilian, I’m very proud and happy for the guy. You don’t know how difficult it’s been for me to sit here and not show my cards on JaMarcus Russell. To see him bashed and knocked around for different things was the most ludicrous and ridiculous part of this process.

“To see him bashed like he was for the last two and a half months was the worst thing I’ve ever seen done to somebody. He emerged from that because he’s that talented. He emerged from the criticism and still became the No. 1 pick. I will come to his defense today and say that he will be absolutely fantastic in this league.”

Savage had a reputation of being a great talent evaluator while working under Ozzie Newsome with the Ravens. He drafted Charlie Frye (third round, 2005), wanted Russell and drafted Quinn.

It’s OK to foul off one pitch, but Savage whiffed badly on three straight pitches doing his quarterback evaluation. Thomas, who ended up as the Browns’ first pick in 2007, has been to the Pro Bowl three times. Savage doesn’t get much credit for that pick because everybody expected Thomas to be a star.

Savage didn’t end his harangue by predicting Russell would be “fantastic.”

“I don’t think it’s right the way this process is set up,” Savage said. “We’re the experts coming out of the fall, and everyone else are experts by the time we get to April. It was very upsetting to watch JaMarcus Russell, Brady Quinn and all of these other players beaten over the head like they have flaws.

What the hell?  Schudel is stealing my stuff.  Doesn’t he know I’m the guy who writes endlessly about the mistakes of Browns’ past?  Has he read any of my 40,000 words on the Dwight Clark era?

Anyway, this narrative is worth re-telling – again.

The “cornerstone” of the current Browns’ offense could very well be Russell today, and not Joe Thomas.  Also worth mentioning is how Russell would have fared in “Camp Romeo”, where the likes of Braylon Edwards and Kellen Winslow basically ran the team.  Of course, the weight room scene featuring Shaun Smith and Brady Quinn probably would have fared much differently had Russell been involved.

Meaning that Smith probably would have attacked a sleeping Russell, rather than a juiced-up Quinn.

Anyway, perhaps the overall point of this story is that no one ever knows what will become of a first-round QB.  Coincidentally, I have about 59 articles warning of the dire consequences of trading up for Sam Bradford. 

Or, maybe the moral to be learned here is that placing an entire franchise in the hands of one person is probably not the smartest thing to do.  While technically, the current franchise is basically owned by Mike Holmgren; at least it appears that the organization now employs several football people who are adding to the overall direction of the team.

And how funny is it that on a day when the Cavaliers likely will take another step towards playing for an actual championship, we’re still talking about Phil Savage?