The Rankings By Jeff Walcoff, Staff Writer January 15, 2006 The Browns won two more games in 2005 than in ?04 and one more than in ?03. Ultimately, that?s the only number that matters. When a team wins the Super Bowl, nobody cares about its third-down conversion percentage. However, for a franchise trying to build a strong foundation and a positive future, these sorts of statistics are important. Surely, head coach Romeo Crennel and his coaching staff have spent time during the past two weeks reviewing all of the club?s statistics and rankings, studying how they match up against their competition. When comparing 2005 with the Browns? two previous seasons it appears on the surface that, despite the coaching change, the team succeeded where it had before and struggled in the same spots as well. For instance, the Browns? defense ranked 16th out of 32 teams in the NFL this season in yards allowed per game (316.8) compared to 15th in both ?04 (325.9) and ?03 (309.9). Also similar to the past, the defense was 30th against the run (137.6) and fourth against the pass (179.2), compared to 32nd and fifth in ?04 and 23rd and seventh, respectively, in ?03. The same goes for the offense, where the team ranked 26th in yards per game this season (284.3), compared to 28th last season (280.1) and 26th in ?03 (281.5). It was 25th in rushing (93.4), compared to 23rd (103.6) in ?04 and 20th (104.4) in ?03. In passing, the unit was 23rd in the league (190.8) this season, compared to 25th in each of the two previous seasons. Some rankings weren?t the same, however. Here are some more statistical odds and ends from the ?05 season: Most impressive offensive ranking: The unit ranked 17th in the league in passing yards per play (6.13). That means, when the team did pass, they were gaining respectable yardage. Biggest improvement offensively: Not too much improved drastically, but the team did average 14.3 more passing yards per game than in ?04, moving from 25th in the league to 23rd. That?s 223 more passing yards on the season. Biggest offensive decline: The unit fell from 27th (17.3) to a league-worst 32nd (14.5) in points per game. The team?s 22 touchdowns were the fourth-fewest in a season in team history. Most impressive defensive ranking: The team was fourth in the league in passing yards allowed ( 179.2 per game ). While the pass rush was slow to develop, the secondary was tough and it was difficult to pass on the new 3-4 defense. The Browns also ranked 11th in the league in points allowed per game ( 18.8 ) ? allowing the fewest points for the club in a season since 1994. Biggest defensive improvement: The team?s red zone defense went from 24th in the league in ?04 (allowing a touchdown 58.5 percent of the time) to fourth (44.0) in ?05. Biggest defensive decline: Most categories got better, but the team did fall from 21st to 30th in sack percentage ( 7.00 to 4.88 ). The club?s 23 sacks were the fewest by the Browns during a full season since the team began keeping track of the stat in 1963. Most impressive special teams ranking: Phil Dawson ranked second in the league in field goal percentage (93.1), while Dennis Northcutt and the punt return unit ranked fourth in return average (10.1) despite having two touchdowns called back due to penalty. Biggest special teams improvement: The team?s kick coverage units ranked eighth (21.1 yards per return) in ?05, compared to 22nd (22.6) in ?04. Biggest special teams decline: The special teams units went from seventh in the league (6.5) to 26th (9.6) in average punt return allowed. From HERE
