NFL INSIDERSavage raid possible again on Ravens campSunday, February 26, 2006Tony GrossiPlain Dealer ReporterIndianapolis- Is another Phil Savage raid on the Baltimore Ravens in the works?"We'll see," said Ozzie Newsome, Savage's former boss in Baltimore.A year ago, Savage signed cornerback Gary Baxter in free agency and claimed quarterback Derek Anderson off waivers. He also signed running back Chester Taylor to an offer sheet, which Baltimore matched. One-time Ravens Trent Dilfer and Kyle Richardson also joined the Browns.Savage can do more damage this year to his former team because four Baltimore starters are free agents and all fit Browns' needs.The four Baltimore free agents are defensive end Anthony Weaver, nose tackle Ma'ake Kemoeatu, linebacker Bart Scott and punter Dave Zastudil.Newsome expects Savage to make a run at two of them, at least."All I can do is try to retain them. If we lose them, we lose them," Newsome said.Here's a closer look at players who would fill stated needs of the Browns when free agency kicks off on Friday.Run defense: Kemoeatu, a 350-pound nose tackle, is an obvious, and large, target. Scott has been under the free agency radar screen, but he may be just as valuable. The 6-2, 240-pounder came into his own last season filling in for injured Ray Lewis."Who's going to fit best with Andra Davis? That's really the question we have to answer this year," Savage has said.The answer might be Scott.Pass rusher: There are not a lot of choices. Browns coach Romeo Crennel said Jets defensive end John Abraham is "head and shoulders" the best veteran pass rusher available.Abraham was tagged with the franchise label by the Jets, ostensibly to trade him. A trade partner then would have to negotiate a long-term deal with Abraham and the money would be "way, way up there," Savage said.There are also some red flags that might scare a team from making a huge investment in Abraham.A more realistic target would be Kalimba Edwards of Detroit. The 6-6, 265-pound Edwards had seven sacks last year as a situational rusher in the Lions' 4-3 defense. He could make the conversion to full-time outside linebacker in the Browns' 3-4.Offensive line: Savage said he wants to draft a lineman "of significance," but he also pointed to the injury histories of interior linemen Joe Andruzzi, Jeff Faine and Cosey Coleman.A natural fit would be Cleveland native and Ohio State alum LeCharles Bentley, who can play any of the three positions. The Saints may be unable to keep Bentley, who will command in the $5 million-a-year range. That kind of contract would put him in the starting lineup, however, and the Browns already are devoting a lot of money to the three incumbents.Receiver: Savage and Crennel both expressed the desire for a veteran receiver who brings professionalism and production. The best candidates who fit those criteria are New England's David Givens and Seattle's Joe Jurevicius.Givens is leaving New England to seek a team that would anoint him its No. 1 receiver, and he would not receive that designation ahead of Braylon Edwards in Cleveland. Jurevicius, the Cleveland native, appears a better fit and would demand a lower contract.Punter: Zastudil, of Bay Village, is easily the best punter available.Jurevicius and Zastudil used to share the same agent as Savage, Neil Cornrich of Beachwood. But they will have to use other agents to represent them in upcoming contract talks. Cornrich cannot represent players while under suspension by the Players Association for using NFLPA data while testifying in a court case.Winslow's impact:Skier Jeremy Bloom, who is attempting to resume his football career after a two-year absence from Colorado preparing for the Olympics, said he is OK with having a "no skiing" clause in his contract if he signs with an NFL team.Advertisement"Sure," Bloom said. "I think Winslow took care of that."He was referring to Kellen Winslow Jr.'s motorcycle accident in May that caused him to miss the 2005 Browns season.Now it can be toldenver defensive line coach Andre Patterson said he was amazed a year ago when the Browns "threw in" lineman Mike Myers in the trade for running back Reuben Droughns. The original deal was Droughns for lineman Ebenezer Ekuban. Denver asked for a seventh-round pick because of Ekuban's injury history. The Browns substituted Myers for the draft pick.The Browns used the draft pick on offensive tackle Jonathan Dunn, who spent his rookie season on injured reserve. Myers played in 16 games and had 31 tackles and one sack - almost exactly the same production he had with the Browns in 2004."He would have started for them at end in a 3-4," Patterson said.Still underdogs:Kevin Colbert, chief architect of the Pittsburgh Steelers, claims the Super Bowl champions have not separated from their AFC North division rivals."The division is wide open," Colbert said. "It's [Cincinnati's] division. They won it last year. Baltimore's always been in the thick of things. And Cleveland, I think, is on the right track to getting back in it. There's no way we think we can own the division."The unique thing about our division is every team has a starting quarterback with less than four years experience. As those young quarterbacks get better, the division is only going to get better."Colbert was including Charlie Frye as the Browns' starter in that comment, despite Crennel's contention Frye and Dilfer will have "open competition" for the job.Who's he kidding:Cincinnati coach Marvin Lewis chuckled at Colbert's assessment of the division."We know who the world champions are," he said. "We know who we're still chasing."Tall glass of water:Virginia's D'Brickashaw Ferguson, the consensus No. 1 offensive tackle, has gained 18 pounds since the season ended. He checked in at the combine at 6-6 and 312 pounds. He wanted to get bigger, but he will never be in the 340-pound range.He said he was a fan as a kid of Lomas Brown, the long-time tackle who played the 1999 season in Cleveland."He was a long and skinny individual like myself and I tried to emulate some of the things he did," Ferguson said.Incidentally, he was named by his father after the lead character in the 1983 TV miniseries, the Thorn Birds."It dealt with a priest and some of the issues he had with his religious relationship and his love relationship with a particular female," Ferguson said. "His name was Father [Ralph] de Bricassart and my name was changed slightly."And, yes, he viewed the series when he was old enough to understand it."I had to. This miniseries was where I was named from so I had to watch it. I've seen it a couple of times on TV."
