About what I expected

I'm typically not a great pigskin prognosticator, but you've got to admit, missing the actual spread by one point last week and two this week isn't too bad. As I said last week, the Browns aren't a good team. This week, that should have been pretty clear to everyone.

The reason they aren't a good team is that they just don't have a lot of good players. (Duuuuhhhh, do you really think so?) Nothing's fundamentally wrong with the offensive or defensive schemes, they just lack the players to execute them right now. For example, when you've got to convert Kennard Lang to linebacker in order to play a 3-4, you've got personnel problems. The mouth breathers among the fan base will immediately jump on that to say that the Browns' need to change their schemes, go back to a 4-3 defense, start Charlie Frye, William Green or the ghost of Ernie Davis on offense, fire Crennel, hire Vince Lombardi or Knute Rockne and then sign every top free agent in the league, regardless of cap considerations or the fact that those players don't want to play in Cleveland. Don't believe me? Just listen to the call-in shows today, and then tell me if I'm wrong.

Look, the Browns aren't going to the playoffs this year, and probably not next year, no matter what happens. The unflushed turd of a football team that Butch Davis bequeathed to Savage and Crennel will take at least that long to fix. They know it, and have taken a long-term approach that focuses on developing offensive and defensive schemes that they can build the core of a team around. They have made plenty of mistakes, but I also think they've shown more promise than any of their predecessors.

That being said, I think the coaching staff got flustered by the way the game started, and their play calling certainly helped the Browns to dig the hole in which they quickly found themselves. I'm still pretty high on Maurice Carthon, but three possessions without a running play is a little ridiculous, especially when you've got Trent Dilfer as your QB. By the way, have you noticed his sack count rising at an alarming rate? After avoiding sacks for the first two games of the season, Dilfer's been sacked 10 times in the last three games. If the Browns don't make Droughns a more integral part of the game plan soon, that's only going to get worse.

Anyway, I don't think fans can or should expect much from this team this year. But, as I've suggested in previous posts, I do think the team's coaching staff and front office is much more capable (or at least a lot less delusional) than the last group. If they draft well, I'm guardedly optimistic about their chances to build a contender here over the next three years.