A.M. Cleveland Browns links: Colt McCoy could leave coach Mangini with a tough decision

Another good performance by rookie quarterback Colt McCoy could leave Browns coach Eric Mangini with a tough choice to make after the bye week.

It's getting to be decision-time for the Browns, at least according to cbssports.com. Cleveland is at 1-5, and likely to be 1-6 going into the bye week after this Sunday's game with the defending Super Bowl champion Saints in New Orleans.

Here's how the site's Andy Benoit put it:

McCoy’s Week 6 showing (22-33 for 281 yards, a touchdown and two picks) is not what got him this week’s starting job, however. Veteran quarterbacks Jake Delhomme and Seneca Wallace  are both still sporting walking boots because of high ankle sprains. The Browns have a bye in Week 8, so it makes sense to be patient and let the quarterbacks rest in Week 7.

If McCoy plays well against the complex, blitz-happy Saints defense, Mangini could have a very difficult decision on his hands. The Browns have basically already reached their annual “playing for next season” point, so going back to Delhomme or Wallace might not make much sense. Mangini, however, might be reluctant to develop the rookie because that could cost the team some games, which could ultimately cost the head coach his job. Then again, Browns president Mike Holmgren understands the situation and may be willing to give Mangini the benefit of the doubt.

But one step at a time: the Browns have a game against the Saints this week. And they’re counting on Colt McCoy to lead them.

That's going to be tough, minus Josh Cribbs and Mohamed Massaquoi, whom the young quarterback referred to as "our best playmakers on offense" in Plain Dealer writer Mary Kay Cabot's Browns Insider column today. Neither is likely to play, since both are still recovering from the concussions suffered in hits by Steelers linebacker James Harrison.

Making the grade
Add Chris Pokorny of cleveland.sbnation.com to the list of those who give Colt McCoy good marks on his NFL debut. In his blog, Pokorny rates the various positions. Not so surprisingly, considering the 18-point margin of victory in the 28-10 Cleveland loss, the Browns defense failed across the board.

   * DL (FAIL): The Browns held Rashard Mendenhall to a low YPC average, but for all the times the Steelers were backed up, where is a player like Shaun Rogers getting pressure in Roethlisberger's face?

    * LB (FAIL): Our linebackers have tackled well all year and gotten decent pressure from their outside linebackers, but that wasn't the case against Pittsburgh. Tackles were missed, Roethlisberger couldn't be brought down when three defenders were on him, and the "clutch play" was just never there.

    * DB (FAIL): Eric Wright continues to get picked on, as he was largely responsible for giving up two touchdowns (although the all-out blitzes don't help either). T.J. Ward also gave up a big pass play to Mike Wallace. Joe Haden had a nice first-quarter interception, but that's not enough to counter the Steelers' big plays.

Far be it from a Starting Blocks author whose lone play in the defensive backfield in peewee football involved watching some 8-year-old do his impression of Paul Warfield and score, but ... Wright needs to become Joe Haden's backup. Watercolor paint in a monsoon could provide better coverage than what Wright's shown thus far this season.

Internal debate
You know talk in most NFL locker rooms this week is about the fines for big hits levied on players like James Harrison and Dunta Robinson. The Saints, whom the Browns play at the Louisiana Superdome this weekend, are no different. But you know, it's got to be interesting when offensive and defensive players gather around the pregame meal table to partake of a little jambalaya. John Varney of the New Orleans Times Picayune explains why:

"It's obvious something had to be done because no one wants to see guys hurt on the field, no one wants to see guys with concussions and career threatening injuries," safety and special teams ace Pierson Prioleau said. "Those are things we don't want to be a part of this game."

Prioleau's remarks came just moments after Coach Sean Payton confirmed the Saints put cornerback Randall Gay on injured reserve because of nagging symptoms he has suffered, including headaches, since sustaining a concussion at San Francisco on Sept. 20. It remains unclear if Gay, a seven-year NFL veteran, will be able to continue in pro football.

"But as a special teams player, a defensive player in this league, we are trained to play it a certain way, and that's the only we you can actually play the game -- to stop offenses to stop the other team from doing what it is trying to do, " Prioleau said. "And everything we've been trained to do is within the rules. So it's my job to play the game within the rules as hard as I can, and pray that no one gets hurt."

Amen.

From The Plain Dealer
Those hits, fines and the potential impact (sorry; couldn't help ourselves) they could have on the game are the subject of Browns' beat writer Tony Grossi's centerpiece story. Interestingly, one of James Harrison's victims -- the one whose hit was NOT deemed fine-worthy -- used his Twitter account to absolve him. Josh Cribbs tweeted,  "I have no bad will towards LB James Harrison. That's what he's suppose to do knock people out, it's what makes him one of the best ..."

We already mentioned Mary Kay's Browns Insider column and the part of it that dealt with Colt McCoy. But there are other items, including a discussion about how the Browns will fill Tony Pashos' spot on the offensive line now that he (and defensive lineman Robaire Smith) have been put on injured reserve.