Browns Year in ReviewSunday, January 08, 2006Tony GrossiPlain Dealer Reporter GRADING THE DRAFT The preseason game in Detroit offered a glimpse of exciting possibilities ahead for Braylon Edwards and Charlie Frye. Then they shared one exhilarating quarter together in the 12th game against Jacksonville. Ed - wards' torn knee ligament in that game put the kibosh on further development between quarterback and receiver until next year ? probably after midseason . Frye's five starts were mostly good, though the offense was a physical wreck by then. Safety Brodney Pool got bopped on the first play of the preseason and never caught up . Some bulking up should help him deliver some blows in the future. The rest of the draft was profoundly disappointing. Cornerback / return specialist Antonio Perkins, linebacker David McMillan and defen - sive lineman Andrew Hoffman contributed nothing but practice time. Linebacker Nick Speegle made 11 tackles on special teams. Offensive tack le Jonathan Dunnlang vanished on injured reserve. Overall grade: C GRADING THE COACHES Romeo Crennel's steadying influence on the team helped to avoid emotional peak s and valleys. Crennel and defensive coordinator Todd G rantham earned high mark s for implementing a 3 - 4 system and making it work without any playmakers on that side of the ball. The play of the secondary, in particular, reflects highly on defensive back s coach Mel Tucker. The offense underachieved under coordinator Maurice Carthon. That side was slow in acknowledging Reuben Droughns was a work horse back and acclimating Braylon Edwards into the offense . One can argue that the staff gave Trent Dilfer too mu ch rope in the season?s first two months. The offensive line was improved under line coach Jeff Davidson. Special teams were maddeningly inconsistent under coordinator Jerry Rosburg . Overall improved health of the team speaks well of strength and conditioning coach Joh Lott. Overall grade: B-minus THUMBS UP, THUMBS DOWN Thumbs Up: Season high point : 22- 0 home win over Miami. Only the second shutout win since the Browns came back in 1999, the victory improved the season record to 4 - 6 . Browns staggered to 2-4 the rest of the way. Miami, strangely, went on to run the table with six consecutive wins. 3 - 4 defense : Despite having no playmakers , Romeo Crennel? s new sy stem kept the Browns in most games . In five of the 10 losses, the Browns gave up 20 or fewer points. Overall, they allow ed 18 . 8 points per game, 11th best in N F L . Injuries : Ten players had their seasons end pre - maturely by injury, the lowest figure since the 1999 season. Development : Antonio Bryant had his first career 1,000-yard receiv ing season , tight end Steve Heiden posted career highs in receptions and yards, linebacker Chaun Thompson and defensive end Alvin McKinley led with five sacks apiece , cornerback Leigh Bodden blossomed as starting cornerback, and rook ie kick re - turner Joshua Cribbs survived a conversion from quarterback at Kent State. Thumbs Down: Season low point : 41-0 home loss to Pittsburgh. Coming off a road win in Oakland, the Browns responded to their last chance to win back-to- back games by impersonating a lump of coal on Christmas Eve . The follow ing work week, the machinations of Phil Savage?s dismissal were put in motion, only to explode in a public relations disaster that claimed President John Collins? job instead. Failed Experiment : Kenard Lang?s conversion to out - side linebacker was a bust. Lang had 43 tackles , two sacks , 10 pressures and three pass breakups ? and most of those plays were made when he put his hand down as a defensive end, his natural position. Lee Suggs : For the third year in a row, Suggs began the season with an injury. While it eventually forced coaches to recognize Reuben Droughns as the team?s feature back, Suggs? inactivity for 10 games amounted to a wasted year for the talented back. Pass rush and defense against the run : The most elementary fundamentals of defense were missing most of the year . Coaches ?schemed? to keep scores down by playing deep zones in pass coverage and making opponents go the length of the field a little at a time. BY THE NUMBERS Pretty Numbers 1,232 : Yards rushing by Reuben Droughns, 10 th most in Browns history and first time ov r 1,000 for a Cleveland back since 1985 . 309 : Rushing attempts by Droughns, breaking franchise - record 305 of Jim Brown in 1961. 1,009 : Receiving yards by Antonio Bryant, giving Browns a rusher and receiver over 1,000 yards in same season for third time in franchise history. 931 : Phil Dawson?s field goal percentage on 27 of 29 kicks, best in franchise history. 44.0 : Percentage of touchdowns scored by Browns? opponents after getting inside the 20-yard line, fourth stingiest mark in NFL. Ugly Numbers 1 - 5 : Browns record in AFC North games , avoiding, in 16th game, a season shutout within its division, which would have been a first in franchise history. 232 : Points scored by Browns, fewest in NFL. 241 : First downs made by Browns, fewest in NFL. 28.2 : Percentage of touchdowns scored by the Browns after getting inside the 20-yard line, worst in the NFL. 1-for-8 : Romeo Crennel?s success rate in challenging officials? calls with instant replay review. From HERE
