A knee injury to rookie Montario Hardesty leaves Jerome Harrison as the undisputed feature back, which Harrison believes he deserved all along.
"I don't think people believe in me all the way yet," Browns running back Jerome Harrison admitted on Saturday. "People doubt me. That does nothing but motivate me to have a big off-season training, and stuff. So I have no complaints, man."CLEVELAND BROWNS TRAINING CAMP LOG
JULY 31
What happened: Top draft pick Joe Haden agreed to a contract for $50 million over five years. The cornerback missed the morning session but did participate in the evening session. Coach Eric Mangini said rookie running back Montario Hardesty would miss a couple of weeks because of a knee injury suffered a few days earlier.
Come again: Attendance for the morning session was 3,673 -- the most since records have been kept in 2005.
Whack a mole: In his first practice since suffering a torn pectoral muscle on Oct. 18, linebacker D'Qwell Jackson drew cheers from the crowd and his teammates by knocking down fullback Peyton Hillis in a one-on-one blocking drill.
What an arm: Quarterback Seneca Wallace displayed a strong arm on two deep sideline outs on successive plays, completing the passes to receiver Josh Cribbs and tight end Evan Moore. Frozen ropes, they were.
Injury report: Nose tackle Shaun Rogers, defensive lineman C.J. Mosley and cornerback Coye Francies remain on the physically unable to perform list and won't practice until passing physicals. Working alone or with trainers were offensive linemen Tony Pashos, Paul Fanaika and Scott Kooistra.
Sunday's schedule: One practice 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. For updates, call 877-627-6967.
— Tony Grossi
BEREA, Ohio -- One day into training camp, rookie Montario Hardesty is out with a knee injury, leaving Jerome Harrison as "the guy" in the Browns backfield.
Hardesty twisted a knee in a drill earlier in the week before the veterans arrived, coach Eric Mangini said, and will be out "a couple of weeks." Mangini said the injury was not related to Hardesty's previous knee injuries at the University of Tennessee. Hardesty had three knee surgeries in four years.
Harrison doesn't wish ill on any person, much less a teammate. But as a back constantly being doubted because of his size, Harrison found it ironic that it's his durability that is always in question.
"I don't have trouble with injuries," Harrison said, looking his interrogator squarely in the eyes. "The thing that kills me with reporters and people who talk about small backs ... So Eddie George has never been hurt? Jerome Bettis never been hurt? Jamal Lewis never been hurt? Steven Jackson has never been hurt?
"The list goes on of big backs who get hurt, but people make excuses for them. I mean, that's a bunch of [baloney] when they say little guys get hurt. I bet you I can name way more bigger backs that got hurt than little backs."
Harrison does not deny that he arrived at camp with a chip on his shoulder.
He thought had erased doubts when he carried the ball 34, 39 and 33 times in the Browns' final three wins last season, gaining 286, 148 and 127 yards. Instead of winning a long-term contract, he was given a take it-or-leave it, one-year tender. Then they traded three draft picks to move into the second round and anoint Hardesty as their future feature back.
Away from the media throng that surrounded other players, Harrison sat on a bench and vented feelings that have built up over his entire athletic career.
"I don't think people believe in me all the way yet," he said. "People doubt me. That does nothing but motivate me to have a big off-season training, and stuff. So I have no complaints, man."
Harrison's 286 yards against Kansas City was the third-largest total in NFL history. His 39 carries against Oakland set a Browns record. Yet Hardesty ran with the first team at minicamp, and probably would have started there at training camp if not for the knee injury.
"I'm still not respected," Harrison said. "I still don't get credit. But I don't strive for it. As long as I earn the respect of my teammates and coaches, that's all that matters.
"Being 5-9, at my weight [205 pounds], it's never going to be good enough. Guys like Leon Washington, people still say he's too small after making Pro Bowls. [Darren] Sproles. Maurice Jones-Drew. It comes with the nature of our size. It's motivating.
"This is nothing new. When I got to high school, there was a bigger running back [ahead of him]. When I got to junior college, same thing. College, the same thing. All you have to do is just score touchdowns, win games, and [the criticism] goes out the window."
Harrison was earmarked to be Mangini's Leon Washington a year ago, but an ankle injury caused him to miss a lot of time in training camp. As that injury lingered into September, Mangini was forced to commit to Jamal Lewis -- perhaps against his better judgment.
Except for a 121-yard game against Cincinnati in October, Harrison was pretty much on the shelf until his rushing outburst in December.
"I've always found Jerome to be confident, and I like that in Jerome," Mangini said. "He believes in himself, he believes in the things that he can do and I think he showed that he can back that belief in himself. He worked diligently last season to correct the things that we wanted him to correct, and I respect that. We sat down and talked about it, identified some areas where we want him to improve and he did that.
"I look for that same thing this season and he will have some great opportunities to show what he can do."
Hardesty was known as a bruising runner at Tennessee with the speed to get outside despite his bigger frame of 6-0 and 225 pounds. When he and Harrison are healthy, it will be interesting to see if Harrison is reduced to the so-called complementary back role.
"Not one day in my life did I ever think I was just a third-down back or receiving back," he said. "Are there things I can work on? Yes. But there's not one day I haven't thought I was a complete back."
He said this is the "most I've been excited in a long time. I'm just ready to get back here and start playing. I read a lot of things, seen a lot of stuff I didn't like, so I'm very, very, very motivated ... very motivated."
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