From the top of the organization on down, the Browns have a lot of work to do to quiet their national critics.
Browns owner Randy Lerner (left) and team president Mike Holmgren talk during a practice in Berea.The Cleveland Browns are not getting any respect in the various power rankings (USAToday.com, ESPN.com, FoxSports.com) as the NFL season approaches.
Nor are Browns' individuals now held in much esteem nationally.
Beginning at the top.
Michael Silver and Yahoo! Sports ranks the owners of the league's 32 teams. At No. 29, from the Cleveland Browns:
Randy Lerner: I hope Lerner sent a thank-you card to LeBron James this summer; only “The Decision” could make Cleveland fans forget the debacle of this checked-out boss’s stewardship. Since the recast Browns rejoined the league in ’99, only the Lions have a worse record, and Lerner’s disinterested management style and impulsive directional shifts are a big reason why. The low point came last November when Lerner, in an effort to show the increasingly riled-up fan base he truly cares about the Browns, hosted a meeting in his office with the fat guy who wears the giant dog bone on his head on Sundays and another disgruntled fan. Lerner, according to Dawgpound Mike, “listened to everything we had to say” and “asked our opinions on a number of things.”
Once a team takes the field, there isn't much an owner can do. Quarterback is the most critical position between the sidelines. John Clayton ranks the league's signal-callers for ESPN.com. There are 32 teams. Starting at quarterback for the Browns, at No. 33:
Jake Delhomme, Cleveland Browns
Analysis: Interceptions in the playoff loss to Arizona in 2008 led to a downward spiral for a quarterback who won a lot of games for John Fox and the Panthers. At 35, Delhomme has no chance of being a starter anywhere else if he doesn't cut it in Cleveland.
Chance of being elite: 0 percent
And, of course, the ultimate indignity: disdain from the fantasy leaguers. On ESPN.com, scroll all the way down to No. 60 to find the highest-ranking Brown among the NFL's offensive "skill position" players.
The Browns certainly won't be lacking for motivation when they open the season next Sunday at Tampa Bay against the Buccaneers.
Browns watch
Plain Dealer Browns coverage includes beat writer Tony Grossi's report that cornerback Brandon McDonald "tweeted" he was among today's roster cuts; a Bill Livingston column regarding the Jim Brown/Ring of Honor ceremony controversy; beat writer Mary Kay Cabot's report that rookie running back Montario Hardesty will miss the season with a knee injury; Cabot's Cleveland Browns Insider; a Starting Blocks fans poll.
Look out
FoxSports.com previews this season's Browns. After some nice things written about quarterback Jake Delhomme, a mention of the Browns' pass defense in the preseason games:
Quarterback is set, but the Browns have some major concerns on defense. While Delhomme was tearing up opponents, starting quarterbacks were shredding the Browns secondary. Aaron Rodgers, A.J. Feeley and Matt Stafford combined to complete 30 of 36 passes.
Opponents threw 96 passes. The Browns produced one sack. A sack isn't the only statistic that matters, but the Browns did not get much pressure on the quarterbacks.
The Browns traded Kamerion Wimbley, their 2009 sack leader, to the Raiders in the offseason for a third-round draft pick. But it wasn't like they traded Lawrence Taylor. Wimbley had a pedestrian 6.5 sacks last season.
Run to daylight
A look at the Browns' AFC North Division by Pete Prisco for CBSSports.com.
Jeff Schudel of the News-Herald questions the Browns' drafting of Montario Hardesty.
James Walker of ESPN.com answers some readers' questions about the Browns and the AFC North.