Roby and running back Carlos Hyde both are practicing with the team after off-field incidents in July, but neither are working with the first team.

Ohio State cornerback Bradley Roby has been forced to work with the second team, not the first team, as a punishment, but he did get to field some punts on Wednesday.Terry Gilliam, AP

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Ohio State has the best second-team cornerback in college football. Of that, there is little doubt.

The Buckeyes' fourth practice of the preseason on Wednesday was the first in which reporters were allowed to watch the entire time. That meant checking out All-American candidate Bradley Roby running with the second team, an obvious punishment for his July arrest on a misdemeanor battery charge. Urban Meyer is still weighing a penalty while waiting for Roby to make his way through the court system.

The same could be seen with running back Carlos Hyde, who has been suspended for the first three games of the year after a nightclub incident. Jordan Hall, whom coaches had planned to use mostly in the slot position, worked a lot with the running backs Wednesday, where he seemed to share the first-team load with Rod Smith. Then in the pecking order of repetitions came Bri'onte Dunn, Warren Ball, freshman Ezekiel Elliott, and then Hyde.

Both are getting their work in. But they aren't doing it with the guys they're used to playing alongside.

“I feel like it's a humbling experience for him,” senior safety Christian Bryant said of Roby. “Just stepping down with the twos right now, I feel like it's to show an example, just because he was starting last year and nothing is ever guaranteed, even if you do a few things off the field. I feel like he's doing a pretty good job of taking that role and understanding what he needs to do and showing the young guys he doesn't really have problems.”

The usual bounce in Roby's step seemed to be missing; this can't be fun for him. But he did make plays when it was time, intercepting one pass near the endzone from Kenny Guiton that was intended for Michael Thomas. He did it all in front of more than 10 NFL scouts who watched practice. Roby is viewed by most draft analysts as a sure first-round pick.

If Roby misses time with a suspension, it would seem the most likely candidates to replace him in the starting lineup would be sophomore Armani Reeves or true freshmen Eli Apple and Cam Burrows. Burrows was out of practice Wednesday with a minor physical issue, though, according to safeties coach Everett Withers. Apple lined up with Roby on the second team. So it was another true freshmen, Garcon Conley, who lined up opposite Doran Grant as the second starting corner most of the day. Apple and Burrows both enrolled early for spring football, but Conley didn't, so he was a first-teamer in just his fourth college practice. And he seemed to draw praise from cornerbacks coach Kerry Coombs more than once.

BEACHWOOD, Ohio – Current Beachwood wrestlers Sammy Gross and Ryan Harris, along with 2005 graduate Jordan Lipp, earned medals at the 2013 Maccabiah Games held July 18-30 in Israel. Gross won the gold medal at 60kg in freestyle, Harris won the bronze at 74kg in freestyle and greco-roman, and Lipp won a bronze at 66kg in freestyle.

Beachwood wrestler Ryan Harris, at left during the state tournament in March, competed along with teammate Sammy Gross at the Maccabiah Games July 18-30 in Israel. - (Joshua Gunter, The Plain Dealer)

BEACHWOOD, Ohio – Current Beachwood wrestlers Sammy Gross and Ryan Harris, along with 2005 graduate Jordan Lipp, earned medals at the 2013 Maccabiah Games held July 18-30 in Israel.

Gross won the gold medal at 60kg in freestyle, Harris won the bronze at 74kg in freestyle and greco-roman, and Lipp won a bronze at 66kg in freestyle.

Beachwood boys soccer coach Brian Greene also participated at the games, winning bronze as a member of the Team USA Master’s (45-and-over) soccer team.

Gross, a 2012 Division III state champ who finished third at 120 pounds last season, went 4-0 in the freestyle competition.

Harris, who won the Division III state title at 160 pounds in March, was 2-1 at the games.

Both Gross and Harris will be seniors this fall.

Meanwhile, at the JCC Maccabi Games for Jewish teens in Austin, Texas, July 28-Aug. 2, members of the Beachwood girls soccer team helped Team Cleveland finish third.

The Beachwood players included Jaime Rotsky, A.J. Eisenberg, Hannah Cantlie, Sydney Eisenberg, Lexi Stovsky and Hannah Kahn.

CLEVELAND, Ohio - Benedictine senior Matt Merimee only has one year of varsity football under his belt but that didn't stop him from catching the attention of college recruiters.  Last week, he made an oral commitment to play football at Miami of Ohio.

Benedictine wide receiver/safety Matt Merimee orally committed to play for Miami of Ohio. - (Courtesy of Benedictine Athletics)

CLEVELAND, Ohio - Benedictine senior Matt Merimee only has one year of varsity football under his belt but that didn't stop him from catching the attention of college recruiters. 

Last week, he made an oral commitment to play football at Miami of Ohio.

The 6-foot-3, 200-pound wide receiver/safety made 13 catches for 167 yards (12.8 average) for the Bengals. He caught one touchdown pass, a two-point conversion and added a safety.

Merimee's highlights

As a defensive back, he ranked among the team leaders in tackles with a total of 51, including 15 solos and 36 assists. Merimee was second on the team with three interceptions, with 58 return yards. He also had a fumble recovery. 

He accomplished this in his first year playing varsity. He was unable to play during his sophomore year due to transfer rules.

Merimee also considered Air Force Academy.

Bengals first-year head coach Joe Schaefer, in his third year on the Bengals coaching staff, gives Merimee high praise for his work ethic and his natural athletic ability.

"Matt is a hard-working young man who deserves the opportunity he has been given to play at the next level,” Schaefer said in a statement. “He is a student-athlete with tons of potential."

Merimee holds a 3.2 cumulative grade-point average. He plans to major in kinesiology.

Merimee, who lives in Strongsville, is the third-oldest of nine children (five boys and four girls). His younger brother Paul is a sophomore at Benedictine.

Ryan Raburn could have filed for free agency at the end of the season, but signed a two-year extension instead. There are several other potential free agents on the Tribe's 25-man roster and GM Chris Antonetti sounds as if he's talked to more than a few.

Could Scott Kazmir follow Ryan Raburn's example and sign an extension with the Indians instead of testing free agency at the end of the season? (Lynne Sladky, Associated Press) 

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- GM Chris Antonetti approached Ryan Raburn before the All-Star break about his two-year $4.85 million contract extension that was announced Wednesday. It's believed he's approached a few other Indians as well.

"There are a lot of guys on the roster who are potential free agents," said Antonetti. "Each guy is a little bit different. I wouldn't want to comment on anyone in particular."

Scott Kazmir, Ubaldo Jimenez, Mark Reynolds, Brett Myers, Rich Hill and Joe Smith are among the Indians eligible for free agency.

Kazmir, who has resurrected his career with the Indians, came to spring training on a minor league deal just like Raburn. Unlike Raburn, whose value to the Indians is as a versatile bench player, Kazmir, 29, seems to have rediscovered the form that made him a legitimate starting pitcher.

The left-hander told reporters Tuesday that he would give the Indians extra consideration since they gave him a chance to rekindle his career.

"I want to be careful about getting too detailed about a particular player," said Antonetti. "What I can say about Scott is how much we appreciate what he's done for the team this year and how far he's come. He's re-established himself not only as a major league pitcher, but a very successful one and I know he's going to have a lot of opportunities this winter.

"At that point, we'll probably explore that."

Antonetti has heard many players speak favorably of the Indians in the past, only to discover the player's agent does not share the same thoughts.

"Sometimes there's a disconnect between those two parties," said Antonetti.

There was no disconnect with Raburn.

"We talked to Ryan a little and explored his interest of extending his stay here," said Antonetti. "He was very interested. Actually, the day we finalized terms, he went out and hit two home runs."

That would be Aug. 1 against the White Sox.

If the Indians didn't talk to him, Raburn was going to talk to them.

"They talked to me right before the All-Star break," said Raburn. "I had a mutual feeling as well, but I thought it was a little early to bring it up. For them to bring it up first really meant a lot to me."

Raburn, 32, made the Indians as a spring training invitee. He's making $1 million this year.

The extension will pay him $2.25 million in 2014 and 2.5 million in 2015 with a $3 million club option for 2016. The option includes a $100,000 buyout.

Raburn was cut by the Tigers at the end of last season after winning their second base job in spring training only to have a terrible regular season. This year he's hitting .277 (51-for-184) with 14 doubles, 13 home runs and 38 RBI in 66 games. He's made 37 starts in right field, seven in left field, two at second base and five at DH.

"For me this is a great opportunity," he said. "The organization has been great to me. I'm enjoying every day coming to the ballpark. It's been a pleasure. I think there's great things to come from this team."

Raburn is the second bench player to sign a multi-year deal with the Tribe. Mike Aviles signed a two-year deal with a club option for 2015 after being acquired from Toronto in November.

Bad news: The fickle middle finger of fate has flipped off the Indians again.

Corey Kluber will miss four to six weeks with a sprained right middle finger. He was placed on the disabled list before Tuesday's 5-1 loss to Detroit after pitching 7 1/3 scoreless innings in Monday's 4-2 loss.

The injury could end Kluber's season.

Before Kluber's injury, the Indians announced that rookie Danny Salazar would start Wednesday against the Tigers. They were going to go with a six-man rotation for one turn to give the starters extra rest. Now Salazar will get a chance to stay in the rotation for the rest of the season or until Kluber returns.

"I felt it throwing a curveball to Jose Iglesias (leadoff hitting in the eighth inning)," said Kluber. "It felt weird, I don't know how to describe what I felt. It got stiff and filled with fluid."

Zach McAllister spent seven weeks on the disabled list earlier this season with the same kind of injury.

"It's very disappointing," said Kluber, 7-5 with a 3.54 ERA. "That's the worst part. We're in the middle of a pennant race and now I've just got to sit back and watch."

The injury is not as rare as one might think. Antonetti said 12 to 15 finger injuries are reported every year in the big leagues.

"I just hope his isn't as bad as mine," said McAllister. "It's a big loss. He's been pitching great all year."

Switcheroo: Manager Terry Francona has flip-flopped his starters for Friday and Saturday against the Angels. Kazmir will start Friday after being originally scheduled to start Saturday. Ubaldo Jimenez will move from Friday to Saturday.

Francona wanted Kazmir to get two starts before the next off day, Aug. 15.

The freshman defensive back from Toledo looks like a redshirt with an injury that should sideline him for three months.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Ohio State lost a freshman Wednesday when safety Jayme Thompson of Toledo went down, and the Toledo Blade reported that Thompson's father said his son broke his ankle and should be out three months.

That sounds like a redshirt coming for Thompson, who had been given senior safety Christian Bryant as his mentor for camp.

Bryant indicated that Thompson had a chance to maybe help on special teams before he went down.

"He's doing pretty good,” Bryant said before the news of the broken ankle. “He's a little banged up right now, he's trying to fight through those things, but I feel like he's going to overcome those things because I feel like he knows what he has to do to contribute to this team, whether it be on special teams or defense or whatever."

That now will have to wait.

Here's other news from Wednesday's two-hour practice, the fourth of the season, which reporters were allowed to watch the entire time with the Big Ten Network on hand.

View full sizeUrban Meyer observes practice on Wednesday, Aug. 7, as the Buckeyes held their fourth practice of preseason camp.Terry Gilliam, AP

* Starting left guard Andrew Norwell went out with some kind of foot injury and didn't return to practice. Chase Farris and Pat Elflein replaced him with the first team, while Jacoby Boren had plenty of first-team reps at center while Corey Linsley works his way back to full health after foot surgery. But Linsley was out there practicing.

* The second-team offensive line looks like Kyle Dodson at left tackle, Farris and Elflein at left guard, Boren at center, Tommy Brown at right guard and Darryl Baldwin at right tackle. But several of those guys can play multiple positions. Remember the coaches really liked Elflein in the spring.

* The defense ran a lot of dime looks Wednesday, though Christian Bryant said the Buckeyes hadn't done much of that before. They have multiple options for the extra two defensive backs in that defense, with redshirt freshman Tyvis Powell the top guy and freshman Cam Burrows, senior Corey Brown and freshman Vonn Bell among the other options.

* Curtis Grant barely got on the field, if at all, during defensive scrimmages, because in that nickel or dime look, the Buckeyes had Ryan Shazier and Josh Perry as the only two linebackers on the field.

* The most interesting thing in the dime was how the Buckeyes lined up the three defensive linemen – Noah Spence and Adolphus Washington on the edge, and freshman Joey Bosa, a 6-foot-5, 270-pound projected pass rusher, on the nose. That's three guys who should be able to get after the quarterback.

* Tight end Marcus Baugh, suspended for the first game of the year, is practicing as well, like Bradley Roby and Carlos Hyde, but there was a moment when he probably wished he wasn't. After catching a pass and fumbling near the goal line, though it looked like Baugh may have been in, the freshman from California was lit up by tight ends coach Tim Hinton. Hinton ran to Baugh and roared in his face, “it can never come out,” for at least 20 seconds. Practice fumbles aren't good.

* Former defensive coordinator Jim Heacock was watching practice, and while there was a report that he had been hired to a small staff position, Ohio State said that hadn't happened. At least not at this point.

* Urban Meyer said Tuesday that freshman Dontre Wilson was a running back, and he's listed that way, but he lined up primarily at receiver and scored several touchdowns in scrimmage situations, catching short passes and going, and once beating a corner on the throw to the end zone. Quarterback Kenny Guiton and receivers coach Zach Smith both met him for flying congratulations after various plays. The Wilson loves continues.

* Sophomore Devan Bogard, continuing his comeback from an ACL tear, worked mostly on the side. But safeties coach Everett Withers said Bogard is progressing well.”He had a little bit of a strain today on the outside part of his knee, but I think he's going to be fine. He's developing.”

* Freshman safety Chris Worley drew a flag – there are officials at these practices – for a high hit on Nick Vannett that might have led to an ejection in a game under the new targeting rule. The coaches and players are still getting used to the new regulation.

* Mike Vrabel was on freshman defensive lineman Michael Hill a lot during individual drills, but Hill handled himself pretty well during the scrimmage situations.

* Offensive coordinator Tom Herman got a little fired up at the defense at one point and looked like he wanted to have some words with defensive coordinator Luke Fickell. Then senior receiver Philly Brown wrapped Herman up and took him out of the situation.

Ahh, camp.

Zach McAllister, with the help of Indians trainer Lonnie Soloff and former pitcher Jake Westbrook, was able to compare notes on his finger injury with St. Louis ace Adam Wainright.

Zach McAllister said talking to St. Louis starter Adam Wainwright about his finger injury eased his mind.(Plain Dealer photo) 

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Seen and heard at Progressive Field.

Clubhouse confidential: Corey Kluber has Zach McAllister to commiserate with about his sprained right middle finger. Who did McAllister have while he spent seven weeks on the disabled list earlier this year recovering from the same injury?

Try St. Louis ace Adam Wainright.

Lonnie Soloff, Indians head athletic trainer, contacted former Indians pitcher Jake Westbrook, who is in the same rotation as Wainright. Westbrook put Wainright and Kluber together.

"Adam Wainright had the same injury a long time ago," said McAllister. "I was able to talk to him and it was re-assuring because he's bounced back and had a great career."

McAllister injured his finger throwing a curveball. So did Wainright.

"He told me once he was cleared to throw it, that he just had to trust it," said McAllister.

Goon squad: The Indians' bench players have come up with a name for themselves: "The Goon Squad."

"I think one of you guys called us the Bench Mob, but I think the Goon Squad fits us a little better," said Ryan Raburn. "We ain't nothing but a bunch of characters on the bench."

Raburn said Mike Aviles came up with the nickname.

"He's the biggest goon of all of us," said Raburn.

Stat of the day: When Justin Masterson allowed five earned runs to Detroit in Tuesday's loss, it ended a stretch of 25 straight games in which an Indians starter had allowed four or fewer earned runs.

Browns coach Rob Chudzinski has ruled out Trent Richardson and T.J. Ward for the preseason opener against the Rams tomorrow night, and running back Dion Lewis is slated to start.

 BEREA, Ohio -- Browns running back Trent Richardson (shin) and safety T.J. Ward (hamstring) are among the key players that have been ruled out of Thursday night's preseason opener against the Rams at FirstEnergy Stadium because of injuries, and running back Dion Lewis will get the starting nod at tailback.

Also scratched for the 8 p.m. contest are right guard Shawn Lauvao (ankle), rookie cornerback Leon McFadden (groin) and running back Montario Hardesty (hamstring tendon).

Browns coach Rob Chudzinski and running backs coach John Settle both assured fans that Richardson's absence is precautionary and that they have nothing to worry about.

"He could go if we wanted,'' said Settle. "We've got him on a pitch count so to speak as far as reps, and when his time comes he'll be ready. We don't want it to linger and show up here again in week four or week five, that type of thing, so we're just going to be smart here at the beginning of the season.''

Settle said ideally Richardson, who missed all four preseason games last year, will see action in at least the next two preseason games. Starters typically sit out the fourth contest.

"It's good to play a couple of plays here and there to get a feel for the competition,'' Settle said.

Chudzinski said he's not concerned about Richardson's durability.

Lewis will start at tailback, and Chris Ogbonnaya might be on the field for the first play at fullback. He's also expected to see time at tailback now that the team is down to three, including Brandon Jackson.

"(Ogbonnaya) has done nothing but gotten better at doing both things,'' said Settle. "Fullback was new to him, introduced to him in the spring and he's done a good job of taking hold of that and working on the small things, the details to play the position, so I'm excited to see these guys play against some competition and see what we have.''

With Ward out, second-year converted cornerback Johnson Bademosi will start at strong safety, and with Lauvao missing, Jason Pinkston will start at right guard. Lauvao hasn't been seen since he suffered the ankle injury in practice on Monday, but Chudzinski had no update on how serious it is. Chudzinski said Ward also could've played if it had been a regular season game.

McFadden sufferes the pulled groin muscle on Tuesday and was a surprise scratch. McFadden is vying for playing time behind Chris Owens and Buster Skrine.

Other players who were idle today and will sit out include receiver David Nelson (knee), defensive end David Kruger (concussion), tight end Brad Smelley (hamstring), fullback Brock Bolen, and offensive linemen Ryan Miller (concussion) and Oniel Cousins (ankle).

ROOKIES SHORN: Barkevious Mingo and a few other rookies experienced some hair-razing hazing before practice today. The veterans got ahold of them and shaved off patches of their hair, leaving random chunks. Victims included Brandon Bogotay, Martin Wallace and Armonty Bryant.

“I know we have some bad barbers in the locker room, based on some of the haircuts I saw,'' quipped Chudzinski. "As long as it’s positive and the guys embrace it, I’m all for that and have no problem with that.”

Said Haden: “Oh man I was watching. Big Phil (Taylor) was the professional barber.”

He said the defensive backs escaped the ordeal. "They didn't even come into the locker room,'' Haden said.

So Mingo and the gang are looking good for their debut tomorrow night?

"They look terrible,'' said Haden.

Haden never had to undergo such rookie humiliation.

“Oh man no. No. When we came in with me and T.J. (Ward) were talking about it earlier, we had a bunch of older players like D-bo (David Bowens),'' said Haden. "They weren’t really worried about that. They just wanted us to take their pads in and then I had to buy the whole defense iPads. So that was a lot worse than getting my hair cut. I would’ve much rather got a chip out of the side of my head.”

iPads for the DBs or the whole D?

“The whole defense.”

KICKERS ALTERNATE: Bogotay will split field goal attempts with veteran Shayne Graham if there are any.

"We want to make sure we're getting them both snaps,'' said Chudzinski. "If one guy is getting longer kicks and one guy is getting shorter kicks, we will try to balance it out. Generally, we are trying to alternate kickoffs and kicks.”

Observers call it the most physical Steelers training camp since the mid-80s.

{Editor's note: This is the first in a series of training camp visits around the AFC North}  

LATROBE, Pa. – The HBO cameras may be trained on James Harrison and the Cincinnati Bengals, but its his former team running a training camp filled with hard knocks.

The clash of shoulder pads and the dull thud of running backs tackled to the ground is providing a vintage soundtrack to Pittsburgh Steelers practices at St. Vincent College. In a league in which tackling is virtually nonexistent except for game days, coach Mike Tomlin has included live hitting in camp.

The Steelers tackled six of seven days last week during at least one designated period of 11-on-11 drills. On Wednesday, first teamers were spared contact, but reserves were not.

The franchise’ s camp has not featured such physicality since the mid-1980s, said team radio analyst and former Steelers offensive lineman Tunch Ilkin. The intensity around Chuck Noll Field is as unmistakable as Brett Keisel’s beard.

“You had better be ready to go because no one wants grass stains on their back,” said the defensive end with the facial forest.

NFL training grounds bred a more hostile work environment prior to league-instituted roster limits and the 1994 salary cap. The Dallas Cowboys were still live tackling during Super Bowl week in 1993. Nowadays, most teams don’t want to increase the risk of injury.

On the third day of camp and the first day in pads, however, Tomlin stunned his players. Like many squads, the Steelers occasionally have tackled in goal-line situations, but these drills were full-speed, full-contact – albeit restricted to running plays.

“We are young in a lot of areas, particularly on the lines,” Tomlin told reporters. “We have young, talented defensive linemen and young, talented offensive linemen. The only way to improve is to play football. I have, of course, stated that many times. It is something that I believe in, and I’ve been given an opportunity to do that and show what they are capable of.”

The Steelers also are installing a new zone-blocking scheme in hopes of improving their uncharacteristic 26-ranked rushing offense (96.1 yards). The players, though, believe the hitting is about more than youth and adjusting to blocking schemes.

The Steelers went 8-8 last season and have gone back-to-back years without winning a playoff game for the first time since Keisel was a clean-shaven junior at Brigham Young in 2000.

“We were physical last year, but we weren’t Pittsburgh Steelers physical,” cornerback Ike Taylor said. “There’s a difference.”

The NFL has endured a rash of high-profile, training-camp injuries in the past two weeks: Baltimore tight end Dennis Pitta (dislocated hip), Philadelphia receiver Jeremy Maclin (torn ACL) and Green Bay left tackle Bryan Baluga (torn ACL) – all lost for the season. The Steelers have suffered some bumps and soreness from tackling, but nothing serious. Rookie guard Nik Embernate sustained a knee injury in a one-on-one drill that’s part of every NFL camp.

Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert said he’s fine with Tomlin’s decision, but Ilkin recalls Colbert’s reaction as he watched first-team offense and defense get after each other.

“I was like, ‘Finally, something interesting to watch in training camp,’” Ilkin said. “Kevin looked at me with an expression on his face like he drank sour milk. I said, ‘Don’t you like this? He said, ‘It’s all fun and games until someone gets hurt. He was just joking. But his job is to bring guys in and there’s not a lot of guys to bring in if you lose someone.”

Ilkin calls the tackling drills “refreshing” and that it’s brought “something to this camp we haven’t seen in a long, long time.”

The Steelers are a franchise in transition. Gone are mainstays Harrison, Casey Hampton, Mike Wallace, Max Starks and Willie Colon. 

The club hopes it repopulated a diminishing pool of playmakers in the draft, selecting outside linebacker Jarvis Jones, running back Le’Veon Bell, receiver Markus Wheaton and safety Shamarko Thomas. The hard-hitting Thomas was a fourth-round choice acquired with a pick from the Browns in exchange for a 2014 third rounder.

Jones, a sack master from Georgia, is likely Harrison’s replacement. He appears strong and agile. Memo to Browns quarterback Brandon Weeden: Jones has batted down at least four passes in training camp.

Although the Steelers finished first in total defense a season ago, they haven’t been generating the big plays that were a staple of their Super Bowl runs. Jones wants to restore the intimidation factor which has waned through injury-filled seasons for Harrison and safety Troy Polamalu.

Perhaps, the full-contact periods will be a step in that direction.

“All I know is the Steelers want to hit you and want to run,” Jones said. “That’s all Coach Tomlin has talked about – hit and run.”

Quarterback Ben Rothlisberger, 31, remains one of the NFL’s top-10 quarterbacks, but the lack of a consistent ground game has hindered his play-action. The Steelers were comically bad – committing eight turnovers, including five fumbles – in a 20-14 loss to the Browns on Nov. 25.

The addition of Bell might stabilize their rushing attack. The Michigan State product has been likened to Eddie George. The 6-foot-1, 244-pounder makes his preseason debut Saturday against the New York Giants.

Tomlin is tapering the tackling in advance of the first game, yet a tone has been established.

“You only have so much time to evaluate young guys and the only way to truly do that is at full speed,” Keisel said. “We’re trying to find out who can play for us and one way to do it is full go.”

Salazar's effortless fastball stirs memories of Indians' greats.

In just his second big league start, Danny Salazar worked into the eighth inning against the Detroit Tigers on Wednesday.Chuck Crow, The Plain Dealer 

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Forget that he did not win and very easily could have taken the loss. Think about the show Danny Salazar put on in only his second game in The Show.

What a crowd of 20,169 at Progressive Field on Wednesday night might have seen was a righthanded Herb Score. If you only heard Herb broadcast a baseball game for the Indians, you have no idea what a dominant pitcher the one-time rookie of the year might have been -- had it not been for Gil McDougal 's line drive to his eye.

It sounds crazy, maybe it is crazy off just two starts, but Salazar has overpowering stuff.

Asked if he had any concern about sending El Kid (my nickname, hope it sticks) out to face the Detroit Tigers, defending American League champions and bullies of the Battle of Lake Erie, manager Terry Francona said, "Did you see the Toronto game?"

In a dominating victory in his big league debut on July 11, Salazar retired 15 of the first 16 Blue Jays he faced and probably made them wonder why they bothered to pack their passports.

"Not matter what I gonna give my 1000000% tonight," Salaazr tweeted before the game on his account, @DannySalazar67.

He added in another tweet, "And we are gonna win. #gotribe"

That was effortless power speaking. It was an overdue chirp of defiance, for the Indians are 3-12 against Detroit this season.

At the end of the night, however, Francona should have remembered his own words, spoken before the game about Ubaldo Jimenez, the pitcher whose start Salazar took. "When you're over 100 pitches and you're early in the game, that means hitters have seen a lot of pitches, maybe a third time through the order. That makes hitters more dangerous, in my opinion," said Francona. "Then they've seen everything you have. That third or fourth time, I think it's time to get a reliever in."

Yet Francona let Salazar face Miguel Cabrera, the best hitter in baseball, a fourth time with two out in the eighth and the Indians ahead, 3-2. Cabrera had struck out three times previously. He had flailed futilely at a 100-mph belch of smoke and once on an 88-mph changeup. But the fourth time, on the last of Salazar's 103 pitches, Cabrera had seen everything El Kid had, and he maced a 98-mph fastball 449 feet over the centerfield fence for a two-run homer.

Salazar went 7 2/3 innings with 10 strikeouts (two of them were also against Prince Fielder) and one walk. He allowed two homers and threw just 30 balls in his 103 pitchers.

The contrast between the 23-year-old Salazar and young fastballers of the Indians' past is in his mechanics.

Score had a flaw in his follow-through. His eyes would roll upward after a pitch, like Fernando Valenzuela of the Dodgers. It took Score's eye off the flight of the ball and hindered any chance to catch the line drive that changed Indians' history.

Jaret Wright, one of the major reasons the Indians reached the World Series in 1997, was a former high school football linebacker. When in trouble, that mindset took over. Wright tried to throw harder and harder, with the violent delivery taking a toll on his arm. The problem with that approach is that hitters like Cabrera and Fielder might say, "Hello, room service, please send up a nice order of fastballs."

But Salazar's changeup can tie hitters sitting on the fastball into some of  the gnarlier knots in the Boy Scouts handbook.

Of course it is the fastball that fascinates. Salazar makes it look as easy as Cleveland Olympian Jesse Owens running the 100. Of Jesse it was said, "He ran like a man in a rocking chair." It meant smoothly, with no wasted movement or visible strain, and yet overpoweringly.

Too bad, after hitting 100 mph four times, Salazar wasn't sitting in the dugout.

Watch Mary Kay Cabot's and Terry Pluto preview tonight's game against the Rams plus a video with Brandon Weeden on what he wants to accomplish in the game. Watch video

 BEREA, Ohio -- Plain Dealer's Cleveland Browns beat writer Mary Kay Cabot and columnist Terry Pluto preview the Browns first pre-season game tonight against the Rams.

Topics include: Who will not see action due to injury?  Will we see Brandon Weeden throw down field?  Devon Bess who is becoming a favorite target of Weeden on third down.   Jason Campbell who will see action in the 2nd and 3rd quarters. Dion Lewis starting at running back due to injury to Trent Richardson.  Joe Haden excited about the improved pass rush on defense.   First round draft pick Barkevious Mingo playing in his first game.

Players are off tomorrow and return to the practice field Saturday at 4 p.m.  

Follow on Twitter: @CLEvideos

Keep updated with the latest developments from Oak Hill Country Club all day Thursday as the PGA Championship begins.

PITTSFORD, N.Y. – How will Tiger Woods follow up his big WGC-Bridgestone Invitational win earlier this week in Akron?

Is his long major drought dating back to 2008 about to come to an end this week at the PGA Championship, the final major of the year?

Follow Woods and all the other golfers Thursday during the first round of the PGA Championship from Oak Hill Country Club outside Rochester, N.Y.

Keep updated with the latest developments from Oak Hill all day long in the box below, which features Twitter updates from the PGA Tour, the official PGA Championship account, and more.

Woods tees off at 8:35 a.m. with Davis Love III and Keegan Bradley. See all the Thursday and Friday tee times here.

And look for a similar post Friday through Sunday for the remaining rounds.

Yes, the Browns want Brandon Weeden to throw long, but they also want to see if he can improve his short passing game.

Can Brandon Weeden be the leader the Browns need this season? Joshua Gunter, The Plain Dealer 

1. Fans will expect Brandon Weeden to throw deep, and that may happen a few times. But offensive coordinator Norv Turner has been pushing Weeden to throw shorter passes to his running backs or a tight end. At his press conference Wednesday, Weeden made at least three comments about "throwing the ball underneath" for short yardage. He also discussed raising his completion percentage (57 percent last season), another goal the coaches have set for him.

2. Weeden said he is an "aggressive thrower" and does like to "throw into tight windows," meaning risky passes into defensive coverage. It's the high risk/high reward approach. The coaches want him to pick the right spots to attempt those passes.

3. Dion Lewis will start for Trent Richardson at running back. The Browns believe he can be very productive catching short passes and then using his quickness to gain yardage. The same is true for Chris Ogbonnaya , who has emerged as the starting fullback.

4. The other point Weeden made was "getting the ball out quick." That means not holding it too long. Find an open receiver, and throwing it to him. Don't think...react.

5. Let's see if the Browns can develop an uptempo offense, setting up quickly at the line of scrimmage and smoothly starting plays. Last season, it seemed the Browns often were near the end of the play-clock before the ball was snapped. The new coaches want to change that.

6. Weeden also said, "We must be good on third down" this season. Last year, the Browns ranked 29th in converting third downs into first downs.

7. With Shawn Lauvao (ankle injury) out, Jason Pinkston will start at guard. Those two are competing for the job, and I sense the coaches favor Pinkston. The key for Pinkston will be staying healthy after missing part of last season with blood clots in his lungs. John Greco will start at the other guard.

8. Coach Rob Chudzinski called the offensive line "thin," because Ryan Miller (concussion) also is out. Two rookies who will see action are Garrett Gilkey (a seventh round pick) and undrafted free agent Caylin Hauptman.

9. Rookie Leon McFadden (hamstring) is out. It seems that Chris Owens had won the starting cornerback spot over the third-round pick early in camp, but the injury makes it even harder for the rookie. Buster Skrine appears set as the nickel back in coverage. McFadden may help later in the season, but his inexperience and hamstring problems are hurting him now.

10. I'm curious to see how backup Jason Campbell performs. In 2010-11, he was 11-7 as a starter for Oakland and was solid. Last season, he was a backup with the Bears, and was 32-of-51 passing with two touchdowns and two interceptions. He looked shaky at times, but that could be because he played so little. Weeden is the starter, but in the NFL, you need a reliable backup because very few quarterbacks remain healthy enough to start all 16 games.

11. This is a good chance for Travis Benjamin to secure a starting spot at wide receiver while Josh Gordon sits out his two-game suspension. Benjamin has impressed the coaches.

12. In the last few weeks, veteran running back Brandon Jackson has caught the attention of the coaches. He has a good chance to beat out Montario Hardesty (hamstring injury) for a roster spot.

Northeast Ohio civic leaders earlier this year set in motion a plan to extend the current Cuyahoga County tax on alcohol and tobacco, commonly known as a sin tax. Get Mark Naymik's take on the issue in his latest "Hey, Taxpayer!" video.

Northeast Ohio civic leaders earlier this year set in motion a plan to extend the current Cuyahoga County tax on alcohol and tobacco, commonly known as a sin tax. Money raised from this tax have paid to build three sports facilities since 1990: Progressive Field, Quicken Loans Arena and Browns Stadium, recently named FirstEnergy Stadium.

The sin tax, which was extended in 2005 to pay for a football stadium, expires in the summer of 2015.

As The Plain Dealer reported first last month, local leaders convinced legislators to insert language into the recent budget bill that allows Cuyahoga County voters to extend the tax. But it first will need the backing of the Cuyahoga County Council, which formally places it on the ballot. The money will pay for major repairs and improvements on the sports facilities.

Over the years, the team owners have gotten richer selling their teams, which benefited from good facilities. Cavs owner Dan Gilbert has spent $50 million on repairs and upgrades to the arena since buying the team. The other teams have paid for certain amenities that they have wanted.

Gateway Chairman Timothy Offtermatt told me this week that he expects the sin-tax issue will be put before voters less than a year from now -- in May 2014.

For more details and my take on the issue, watch my latest "Hey, Taxpayer!" video above.

Manager Terry Francona sent Danny Salazar out for the eighth inning Wednesday night with a 3-2 lead against the Tigers. Salazar and the Indians lead to not make it through the inning as Detroit rallied for a 6-5 victory in 14 innings.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Rookie right-hander Danny Salazar should have been done after seven innings Wednesday night at Progressive Field.

Salazar had a 3-2 lead against the best team in the AL Central in just his second big league start. Manager Terry Francona should have patted him on the back, said "Good job, kid. Now go take a shower." Instead Francona sent Salazar back out for the eighth.

Six innings later, the 14th to be precise, the Tigers beat the Indians, 6-5, for their 11th straight victory. The Tigers are 12-3 against the the Indians this year and stretched their lead division lead to a season-high six games in the Central.

Salazar started the eighth by retiring pinch-hitter Andy Dirks on a pop up and striking out Austin Jackson. Torii Hunter singled to bring Miguel Cabrera to the plate. Salazar struck out last year's AL Triple Crown winner three straight times, the last one coming on a 100 mph fastball in the sixth inning.

It made Salazar the only pitcher this season to strikeout Cabrera three times in the same game. He never got close to No.4 because Cabrera crushed his first pitch 449-feet over the center field wall for a two-run homer and a 4-3 lead.

"I got him a couple of times with my fastball," said Salazar. "I was going to try it again, but I left the fastball in the middle and he hit it. He hit it good."

Cabrera has hit six home runs against the Indians this season and 32 in his career.

Francona removed Salazar after Cabrera's homer, but the question is why send him out there in the first place?

"To that point, I would have had a hard time justifying not having him pitch," said Francona. "That's how good I thought he was."

As for letting Salazar face Cabrera, therefore putting him in line for a loss after pitching so well, Francona said he did it "because he was throwing about as well as he could. That would have been his last hitter."

Salazar ended the night with 10 strikeouts in 7 2/3 innings. He allowed four runs on seven hits and one walk, while throwing 103 pitches.

"Besides a couple of mistakes, I thought he was tremendous," said Francona. "The poise, the competitiveness. . .I wish I could be sitting here talking about a win, but it doesn't change the fact of how he pitches or how we feel about him. That was pretty awesome."

The Indians lost the game on Prince Fielder's two-run double off Marc Rzepczynski in the 14th. Fielder's double gave the Tigers a 6-4 lead, but the Indians came back with a run in the bottom of the inning on Michael's Bourn's double before Joaquin Benoit struck out Drew Stubbs for his 14th save.

Austin Jackson started the winning rally with a leadoff double against Bryan Shaw (2-3), working his third inning of relief. Jackson took third on Hunter's fly ball to right. After Shaw walked Herman Perez, Rzepczynski relieved to face Fielder.

"It's my job to come in and get Prince," said Rzepczynski. "I had him down 0-2, but he's faced me a lot when he played in Milwaukee and I was in St. Louis. He knew I was going to throw a slider and I left it up. Right now, I wish I would have thrown a fastball."

Jeremy Bonderman (2-3) started the 11th and earned the win with three scoreless innings.

The Indians' offense managed one run on three hits over the last six innings. It was just their second extra-inning loss of the season against seven wins.

"Their bullpen did a great job against us," said Francona.

The Indians took Salazar off the hook when they tied the score, 4-4, on Yan Gomes' RBI grounder in the eighth after consecutive doubles by Michael Brantley and Carlos Santana. Brantley only made it to third on Santana's shot to left center because he had to hold at second because it appeared Andy Dirks had a chance to make the catch.

Still, the Indians should have done more in the inning, but pinch-hitter Ryan Raburn struck out against Bruce Rondon, who relieved lefty Drew Smyly.  After Gomes' grounded to short for his second RBI of the game,  and Aviles popped up to short to end the inning. 

The Tigers missed a chance to win it in the ninth when they loaded the bases with one out. Cody Allen retired Jackson and Hunter on fly balls to right to escape. Stubbs, who entered the game in the seventh as a pinch-runner for Nick Swisher, made a nice running catch on Hunter's drive for the third out.

After the Indians tied the score in the eighth,  Rondon, Jose Veras and Jeremy Bonderman retired 13 straight until Stubbs singled with one out in the 12th. 

The Tigers took a 1-0 lead  in the second on Iglesias' bases-loaded single to center.  A strong throw from Bourn cut down Pena at the plate for the third out.

The Indians took a 2-1 lead in the third. Gomes opened the inning with a homer into the left field bleachers off Doug Fister. It was his eighth of the season.

Bourn walked and scored on Swisher's double.

Salazar, working with a lead, retired nine straight, but Jackson ended the streak with a leadoff homer in the sixth to make it a 2-2 game.

He is the first Indians rookie to strikeout 10 batters in a game since Kaz Tadano did it against the Reds on July 2, 2004. Salazar's 17 strikeouts in his first two starts are the most since Luis Tiant had 17 strikeouts in his first two starts in 1964.

"I went out there and gave 100 percent, every inning and every pitch," said Salazar. "I feel great."

The Tigers threatened in the seventh when Kelly doubled into the right field corner and continued to third when the ball bounced past Swisher for an error. Salazar retired the next two batters to freeze Kelly at third.

Swisher made up for the error in the bottom of the seventh with a double to  score Mike Aviles for a 3-2 lead. It was only Swisher's fourth RBI since the All-Star break.

The third baseman/first baseman hit .218 in May, .187 in June, .098 in July and had three hits in nine at-bats in August.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Mark Reynolds' disappearing act as an Indian is complete.

The Indians designated Reynolds for assignment on Thursday and recalled right-handed reliever Preston Guilmet from Class AAA Columbus.

After a robust April, the streaky Reynolds could not maintain his swing and was benched. The third baseman/first baseman hit .218 in May, .187 in June, .098 in July and had three hits in nine at-bats in August.

Mark Reynolds, shown hitting a homer against Washington earlier this season, has been designated for assignment by the Indians.Chuck Crow/PD

Reynolds said recently that he always had been given a chance to hit his way out of slumps, but after being benched that was not possible. He made eight starts in the last 21 games.

The Indians have 10 days to trade, release or put Reynolds on waivers. The Indians signed him to a one-year, $6 million deal in December after Baltimore let him walk. He leaves Cleveland hitting .215 (72-for-335) with eight doubles, 15 homers, 48 RBI and 123 strikeouts in 99 games.

"Mark carried us the first month of the season,'' manager Terry Francona said. "From that point to here, it's been pretty rough. We all felt like he had another hot streak in him. But with (Ryan) Raburn swinging the bat the way he is, and (Mike) Aviles playing really well, it was becoming harder to find him the at-bats to where he would be able to get hot. And we needed a pitcher.''

Even with his struggles, Reynolds was tied for the team lead in homers and ranked fourth in RBI through Wednesday.

"I think it was becoming harder for Mark to handle not playing,'' Francona said.

Francona said Reynolds did not ask for his release. Francona and General Manager Chris Antonetti are willing to live with a thin bench for the time being.

"You always need to be cognizant of, if there's an injury somewhere, all of a sudden you're looking for a bat,'' Francona said. "But you need to make decisions. Going into (Thursday night), from where we sit, we think we're a better team with an eight-man bullpen. The best way to derail a season is to get your bullpen out of whack, so we won't do that.''

Reynolds' benching began in late July. Two weeks into it, Francona was asked how he anticipated handling Reynolds. Francona said: “Honestly, I don't know.”

Reynolds entered this year with a .235 average and 181 homers in 853 major-league games. He once hit 44 homers in a season. But Francona had games to win, and the Indians were contending. Francona could not afford to keep waiting and hoping for the bounce-back, lest the relevant part of the season run out of games.

“You try to strike a balance between knowing that you have a guy who has a dangerous bat but who hasn't been swinging it, and knowing that you have other guys who have,'' Francona said in July. "As a manager, you kind of walk the fine line of: Where do you become stubborn as opposed to patient? You do the best you can.”

Reynolds had said that the streaky nature of his game made it especially difficult to sit.

“In the past, when I've struggled, they're still throwing me out there every day because they know eventually I'm going to get myself out of it,” he said in July. "Everybody in here wants to play. My play lately has gotten me to the bench, but I told Tito that I'll be ready every chance I get and go out there and try to turn this thing around.”

Francona, asked Thursday if the sporadic playing time might have perpetuated the slump, said: "Not in those words, but I knew it."

Just because he is a veteran who has lived through slumps didn't make Reynolds immune to the games they play with the mind.

"It's a confidence thing,'' he said in July. "You get in these funks and it's tough to get out. Things start snowballing on you and it gets in your head. Hopefully, I'll be laughing about this in a couple of weeks.''

Neither he nor the Cleveland organization is laughing now.

"That's the unfortunate thing about baseball,'' said Jason Giambi, whose locker was next to Reynolds'. "Guys loved him in the clubhouse. He played well for a time, then struggled. Sometimes, moves need to be made.''

Guilmet begins his second stint with the Indians. He was closing in Columbus.

"He doesn't overwhelm you with stuff,'' Francona said of Guilmet. "He doesn't throw 95 mph. But he has some funky arm action and competes like crazy.''

The Cleveland Browns play their first preseason game tonight at FirstEnergy Stadium against the St. Louis Rams. Give live updates from the stadium and post your comments about the game.

cleveland.com photo 

The Cleveland Browns play their first preseason game tonight at FirstEnergy Stadium against the St. Louis Rams at 8 p.m.

Quarterback Brandon Weeden and the starters are expected to play the first quarter. Will the offense show improvement under new offensive coordinator Norv Turner?

Get in-game updates and chat live with cleveland.com's Glenn Moore (@GlennMooreCLE), in the comments below, plus get the latest on Twitter from cleveland.com's Mary Kay Cabot (@marykaycabot) and Tom Reed (@treed1919). You can also get a live box score here.

What's the area of major concern going into the season for the Cleveland Browns?

CLEVELAND, Ohio - The Cleveland Browns tried to address several issues during the NFL Draft and during free agency, but was it enough?

Questions remain when it comes to which holes the Browns need to fill, but which are the biggest holes?

The Browns will try to answer those questions during training camp and during the preseason, particularly when it comes to the fullback and the cornerback position opposite Joe Haden.

That's not all.

Several fans, when asked during today's pregame question of the day, said the Browns need to find out if Brandon Weeden is the quarterback of the present and future, and how will the team find a replacement for Josh Cribbs when it comes to the return game?

Adam Scott ran off five straight birdies early in his round at soft and vulnerable Oak Hill, and finished with a 15-foot par for a 5-under 65 that gave him a share of the lead Thursday with Jim Furyk in the PGA Championship.

PITTSFORD, N.Y. -- With every major, Adam Scott is making a convincing case that he isn't satisfied with just a green jacket.

Scott ran off five straight birdies early in his round at soft and vulnerable Oak Hill, and finished with a 15-foot par for a 5-under 65 that gave him a share of the lead Thursday with Jim Furyk in the PGA Championship.

Scott finally became a major champion at Augusta National in April when he won a playoff at the Masters. Just three weeks ago, he had the lead on the back nine at Muirfield in the British Open until he made four bogeys to fall back. In the last major of the year, Scott at times looked unstoppable.

His five straight birdies quickly put him atop the leaderboard with Furyk, and after a 71-minute delay when storms moved into the area, Scott added a sixth birdie on the par-3 15th to reach 6 under. He was on pace to tie the major championship record at Oak Hill until a three-putt bogey on the 16th.

"Just got on a bit of a roll and hit a few shots close," Scott said. "I didn't have too much putting to do. You've got to take advantage when it happens, because it doesn't happen too much in the majors. Nothing to complain about in 65."

There were hardly any complaints on Oak Hill, a course that has yielded only 10 72-hole scores under par in five previous majors. It's only Thursday, and the players felt as if they got off easy. Rain overnight and humid conditions kept the course soft, and birdies were dropping at an alarming pace.

Except for Tiger Woods.

The world's No. 1 player made only two birdies despite playing in the still of the morning, and he watched his round fall apart with a bogey on par-5 fourth and a double bogey on his final hole when his flop shot out of a deep rough floated into a bunker. Woods had a 71, not a bad start at Oak Hill, except on this day.

There were 35 rounds under par, compared with only a dozen rounds in the 60s when the PGA Championship was here 10 years ago.

"The round realistically could have been under par easily," Woods said.

Furyk, who won his lone major at the U.S. Open in 2003, has gone nearly three years since his last win at the Tour Championship to capture the FedEx Cup and win PGA Tour player of the year. Still fresh are the four close calls from a year ago, including the U.S. Open.

He was as steady as Scott, rarely putting himself in trouble until the end of the round. Furyk missed the fairway to the right and had to pitch out because of thick rough and trees blocking his way to the green. That led to his only bogey, but still his lowest first-round score in 19 appearances at the PGA Championship.

"Usually disappointed with ending the day on a bogey," Furyk said. "But you know, 65, PGA, is not so bad."

David Hearn of Canada, an alternate until a week ago, had a 66 in the morning. Also at 66 was Lee Westwood, who had his best score ever in the PGA and offered evidence that there was no hangover from losing a 54-hole lead in the British Open last month.

There were no record scores at Oak Hill despite the soft conditions, just a lot of low rounds.

"If you don't hit it in the fairways, then you won't score well," Westwood said. "These guys are good. There are a lot of good players playing in the tournament. Somebody is going to hit it straight, and somebody is going to shoot a good score."

Even Rory McIlroy got in on the act. The defending champion, at the end of a major season that has been a major disappointment, came out firing with three birdies on the opening four holes and made the turn in 32 until back-to-back bogeys. He wound up with a 69.

A resurgent Paul Casey was in the group at 67, while U.S. Open champion Justin Rose, British Open runner-up Henrik Stenson and the ageless Miguel Angel Jimenez were among 11 players at 68.

British Open champion Phil Mickelson wound up with the same score as Woods, only they arrived at 71 on vastly different roads. Woods had only two birdies. Mickelson shot 71 despite two double bogeys. On the par-5 fourth hole, he hooked his tee shot out-of-bounds and nearly lost the next tee shot in the same place. And on the closing hole, Mickelson looked as if he was back at Winged Foot -- wild left off the tees, a reckless attempt into the trees and another double bogey.

He headed straight to the practice range, even summoning coach Butch Harmon down from the Sky Sports television booth.

Scott hasn't won since the Masters, though he has shown full control of his swing. He looks at these next 10 years as a chance to win more majors and establish himself as a major force in his generation.

"I put a lot into my game the last two years with a focus on the big tournaments," Scott said. "Everyone around me has had the same focus, as well. We come here to do business."

Browns fans give their grade of Brandon Weeden's performance tonight against the Rams via Twitter.

What grade would you give Brandon Weeden's performance tonight against the Rams? (AP Photo/David Richard)

The new offensive scheme seemed to make Weeden feel comfortable.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- OK, it's the preseason, so none of this counts.

But if you're a fan, your heart had to beat a little quicker watching the first team offense during Thursday night's preseason opener against the St. Louis Rams. And not just on Travis Benjamin's sizzling 91-yard punt return for a touchdown.

Brandon Weeden showed so much more poise than almost any time a year ago. He had a very good idea of what he was supposed to do nearly every time he was asked to throw the ball. That may sound rather elementary, but there were times when it seemed Weeden was stuck in pre-school trying to understand last year's West Coast offense.

But the schemes designed by offensive coordinator Norv Turner and head coach Rob Chudzinski placed Weeden in a comfort zone.

One of the changes was placing Weeden in the shotgun, where he threw nearly all of his passes at Oklahoma State. Last season, Weeden was only in the shotgun for 43 percent of his passes, ranking 39th out of 40 quarterbacks who threw at least 100 passes.

With the new coaching staff, 10 of 13 passes came from the shotgun formation. That matches the approach taken by Chudzinski and Turner, who had their quarterbacks in the shotgun about 75 percent of the time last season. That also may be the reason that Weeden seemed more composed; the offense made sense to him.

From the shotgun, Weeden drilled a 21-yard completion to Josh Gordon, and a 30-yarder to tight end Jordan Cameron.

One of Weeden's throws bounced off Cameron's hands, but Greg Little out-jumped some defenders to transform that into a 14-yard gain. The problem was not the pass, but Cameron's failure to make the catch.

Weeden also threw a couple of nice screens. One came from under center, and it went for 16 yards to Dion Lewis. You can see why the new front office traded for Lewis, the 5-8, 190-pound back from Philadelphia. He quickly changes direction, and has more power in those short legs than you'd guess from a first glance.

But much of this night was about observing Weeden. You'd never have guessed this was Weeden's first preseason game in a new offense. Didn't you love it when it was third-and-2, and Weeden found Davone Bess for seven yards and a first down? That was Weeden's second pass of the game. It went to the veteran receiver imported from Miami who knows how to help a quarterback pile up those first downs.

Sure-handed, veteran receivers such as Bess build confidence in inexperienced quarterbacks such as Weeden, whose first drive was 67 yards on 15 plays, ending with a 25-yard field goal by Brandon Bogotay.

The next time the Browns had the ball, they drove 74 yards, ending with a 2-yard touchdown pass to Lewis. Give Weeden 113 yards on 10-of-13 passing, six players catching passes. The Browns were 3-of-4 on third downs. When he picked out a target, it was the right one. The man was open, the pass went where it should and at the proper time.

He did have one ball tipped at the line of scrimmage. St. Louis didn't bring much pressure. And yes, it's an exhibition game.

But Weeden delivered a very promising preview of what should be some entertaining coming attractions for the offense this season.