Return of the Browns

[Cap Ologist]

The city of Cleveland was buzzing with excitement. Their beloved team had left after the 1995 season to become the Baltimore Ravens. As part of the settlement, the Browns' legacy and colors would remain in Cleveland, and a new team would be created for the 1999 season.

In early 1998, the new owner of the Browns hired Michael Ryan as team president and general manager. Ryan began interviewing and assembling the coaching and scouting staff.

Ryan selected Hunter Vogel, a successful college coach to be the first coach of the reborn Browns. Vogel is relatively young at 45 and he is hired not only for his reputation as a disciplined coach, but also for his potential to grow with the team. Vogel, in turn, selected Norm Farrell who is an experienced NFL assistant who does a solid job coaching quarterbacks and offensive lineman, but is famous for his work with running backs and wide receivers. He is also regarded as a great teacher for young players, a necessity for an expansion team. For the defense, Vogel selected Amos Price, another experienced NFL assistant. Price uses an aggressive front 7 to pressure opposing teams and is more than capable of holding a secondary together. Ryan then picked Tony Gamez to run the personnel department. Gamez is held in high regard for his ability to find offensive and defensive line talent. He has also proven successful at finding running backs, linebackers and secondary players.

These men would form the brain trust of the organization going forward. As the dawn of free agency approached, the team issued their price list for tickets. The cheapest tickets start at $20 for the upper deck, $30 for the end zone seats, $35 for mezzanine seating, $50 for sideline seats and $140 for club seating. Luxury boxes could be purchased for $72,000 also. Fan loyalty seemed to be relatively high already, and the front office wanted to continue to build on that. They were confident in their ability to lead this team to a championship, but they were also realistic that their on-field product would be from far that the first season or two. According to league sources, the gameday experience of a trip to the new stadium was the 9th most affordable.

Their strategy for free agency was fairly simple, find a group of players that would provide the core of the team going forward in terms of leadership, work ethic and talent without mortgaging the salary cap future of the franchise. They also discussed the impact of targeting division rivals free agents and decided as much as possible, they would try to pursue players that fit. With every roster spot opened, their success in this stage would dictate what they could do during the upcoming draft, where they held the first selection.

They initially made offers to:
Rich Gannon QB - Mentor 3 years, 2.7 million
Chris Warren RB - 3 years, 2.58 million
Glyn Milburn RB - 3 years, 2.25 million - brilliant returner
Charles Johnson WR - 3 years, 3 million (Steelers)
Raghib Ismail WR - 3 years, 2.55 million
Chris Calloway WR - Mentor 3 years, 2.7 million
David Dunn - WR 3 years, 2.1 million - another great returner, (Steelers)
Dave Wohlabaugh - C 3 years, 3.15 million
Jim Pyne - G 3 years, 2.25 million
Lincoln Kennedy - T 3 years, 2.25 million
Zack Wiegert - T 3 years, 2.1 million
Tom Hutton P - 3 years, 2.25 million
Cary Blanchard K 4 years, 10.10 million
Rich Owens - DE 3 years, 2.85 million
John Burrough - DE 3 years, 2.85 million
Kelvin Pritchett - DT Mentor, 3 years 2.85 million
Dan Footman - DT 3 years, 2.55 million
Rex Oberheu - MLB 3 years, 1.65 million
Eric Hill - MLB 2 years, 4 million
Wayne Simmons - WLB 3 years, 2.4 million
Mike Morton - SLB 3 years, 2.4 million
Jamir Miller - WLB 4 years, 12 million
Tito Paul - CB 3 years, 2.4 million
Darryl Lewis - CB Mentor, 3 years, 3 million
Larry Brown - CB 3 years, 10.56 million
Devin Bush - S 3 years, 2.4 million
Chris Hudson - S 3 years, 2.55 million
Melvin Johnson - S 3 years, 2.4 million

Now it was time to sit back and see how the market played out.

[Cap Ologist]

Good news comes quickly as Chris Calloway, David Dunn, Raghib Ismail, Kelvin Pritchett, Tito Paul, Devin Bush, Chris Hudson and Melvin Johnson sign their initial offers. As expected, their is stiff competition for LB Jamir Miller and CB Larry Brown, the two highest profile targets. New offers were dispatched to both players. Eric Hill rejected the Browns offer and signed with the Steelers, so the Browns extend an offer to veteran Todd Collins, 3 years 2.7 million.

Week 4 brings the signings of Rich Gannon, Chris Warren, Dave Wohlabaugh, Lincoln Kennedy, Rich Owens, Todd Collings and Mike Morton. Jim Pyne rejected the Browns 3 year offer and will return to Detroit on a 1 year deal. The Browns responded by sending a 2 year, 1.1 million contract to Tre Johnson.

Week 5 sees the signings of Cary Blanchard, John Burrough, Tom Hutton, Tre Johnson, Darryll Lewis, Glyn Milburn, Jamir Miller and Rex Oberheu. Dan Footman signs a 1 year deal with the Colts. The Browns send an offer sheet to DT Kelvin Crockett, 3 years, 2.1 million. The Colts have taken over the lead in the Larry Brown sweepstakes. After meeting together, it was determined to send out one more offer for the CB, and send out a backup offer to CB Antonio Langham for 3 years, 2.7 million.

Week 6 sees Wayne Simmons, Zack Wiegert and Kelvin Crockett joining the team. The Browns have pending offers to only 3 players, Larry Brown, Charles Johnson and Antonio Langham, with the offers from the Browns being the best at this time. Their first foray into free agency was shaping up quite nicely for the expansion team.

Week 7 brings the last three signings of the initial offerings. The Browns now have 29 players signed for $31.25 million of the 78.7 million salary cap, but they decided to send out a few offers to add more depth.

LB Bobby Houston - 3 years, 2.7 million
FB Larry Centers - 3 years, 2.7 million
TE Tyji Armstrong - 3 years, 2.7 million
QB Chris Miller - mentor, 3 years, 2.25 million
RB Terry Kirby - mentor, 1 year, .6 million
FB Fred McCrary - 3 years, 1.62 million
TE Frank Hartley - 2 years, 1.16 million
WR Eric Guiliford - 3 years, 2.13 million (great returner)
C Marc Raab - 1 year, .52 million (long snapper)
DT Shane Bonham - 3 years, 1.71 million
MLB Brian Jones - 1 year, .8 million
SLB Quentin Coryatt - 4 years, 21 million
S Tito Wooten - 3 years, 2.22 million

The front office was pleased with how their first foray went, and they felt that this next group of players would help fill in holes and give them more options in the upcoming draft.

Week 8 brings Larry Centers, Eric Guliford, Marc Raab, Brian Jones, Bobby Houston and Tito Wooten to the Browns. Week 9 brings Quentin Coryatt, Frank Hartley, Terry Kirby and Chris Miller. Week 10 rounds out the roster moves for free agency as Tyji Armstrong, Shane Bonham and Fred McCrary all sign.

With that, all focus shifts to the upcoming amateur draft.

[Cap Ologist]

Forgot to do interviews during free agency, doh.

Heading into the draft, the Browns have put together a decent team for their first season back in the league. They have the top pick in the draft, and their are several players they're interested in and all meet a need, so the front office begins to work the phones and sends their first pick to Philly for their 1st, 2nd, 4th, 5th and 6th of this year.

1. Philadelphia - RB Ricky Williams
2. Houston - WR Donald Driver

Back on the clock at #3, and the Browns still have options they like, so they deal down to #5, receiving the Bengals 1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th.

3. Cincinatti - QB Donovan McNabb
4. San Diego - QB Akili Smith

Back on the clock, the top 4 players on the board are all defensive players, 2 DTs, 1 DE and 1 CB. A few minutes later, and their representative in New York turned in a card that read:

5. Cleveland - CB Chris McAllister
6. NY Giants - QB Jeff Garcia
7. New Orleans - DT Gregg Kelly
8. Indianapolis - ILB Al Wilson
9. St. Louis - DE Mike Rucker
10. Tampa - DT Cletidus Hunt
11. Minnesota - RB Edgerrin James
12. Chicago - S Anthony Poindexter
13. Arizona - CB Champ Bailey
14. Oakland - DE Paul Spicer
15. Detroit - OLB Keith Newman
16. New England - WR Damon Griffin
17. New York Jets - S Rich Coady
18. Jacksonville - ILB Barry Gardner
19. Carolina - WR Marty Booker
20. Denver - ILB Wali Rainer
21. Baltimore - WR Torry Holt
22. Atlanta - WR Peerless Price
23. Houston - WR Travis McGriff
24. Detroit - T Mike Rosenthal

At this point, Cleveland works out a deal with Miami, sending 2.2, 4.4, 5.3, 5.5 for 1.25
25. Cleveland - RB Olandis Gary
26. Green Bay - CB Jerry Azumah
27. Washington - CB Daylon McCutcheon
28. Buffalo - OLB Chris Claiborne
29. Seattle - DE Willie Whitehead
30. Kansas City - OLB Roosevelt Colvin
31. Tennessee - OLB K.D. Williams
32. Dallas - DT Russell Davis

Here is the rest of Cleveland's picks:
2.1 DE Patrick Kerney
3.1 G Edwin Mulitalo
3.5 G Jim Bundren
4.1 QB Pete Gonzalez
4.2 T Jon Jansen
5.1 QB Kevin McKenzie
6.1 TE Dan Campbell
6.2 WR Wane McGarity
6.4 C Grey Ruegamer
7.1 DT Ernie Brown

[Cap Ologist]

Local and national media graded the first draft class as an A-. But time would tell how that grading would hold up. In the weeks between the draft and training camp, the Browns added veterans G Jerry Crafts, T Marcus Spears and DE Ernie Logan to help tutor some of their young draft picks. They also took fliers out on FB Stacey Mack, G Matt Stinchcomb, MLB Khari Samuel and CB Jacoby Rhinehart.

After training camp, they were quite impressed with their rookies. Chris McAllister was as good, if not better than they hoped he'd be. Olandis Gary showed promise of being a dependable running back. Patrick Kerney QBs Gonzalez and McKenzie showed signs of great potential, though both were still very raw. Undrafted free agent Stacey Mack earned a position on the roster. Edwin Mulitalo and Jim Bundren both looked like they would see significant playing time this season and Matt Stinchcomb looked capable of developing into a solid reserve. Ernie Brown had a solid camp, but was upstaged by 2nd year player Kelvin Crockett who had a monster camp. Dan Campbell and Wane McGarity both would be serious contenders to make the team. Jon Jansen might be the only who didn't have an amazing camp, but he could definitely develop into a solid reserve.

All in all, despite not having an interviews to go on, they were pleased with their success.

[Cap Ologist]

The inaugural season of the Browns saw them post a 4-12 record.


Front Office Football 2007
Cleveland Browns 1999 Regular Season Schedule

Week Opponent Result Attend Weather
Week 1 CINCINNATI BENGALS L, 14-24 61,500 Sunny, 67, 8 mph.
Week 2 SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS L, 10-24 60,900 Sunny, 48, 4 mph.
Week 3 NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS L, 15-20 60,900 Rain, 44, 3 mph.
Week 4 TENNESSEE TITANS L, 10-31 60,900 Sunny, 66, 10 mph.
Week 5 at Jacksonville Jaguars L, 14-21 46,000 Sunny, 68, 4 mph.
Week 6 at Houston Texans W, 17-10 53,900 Sunny, 72, calm
Week 7 at Baltimore Ravens L, 13-24 66,400 Rain, 64, 5 mph.
Week 8 INDIANAPOLIS COLTS L, 17-27 59,300 Sunny, 46, 12 mph.
Week 9 PITTSBURGH STEELERS L, 14-26 59,300 Sunny, 42, 10 mph.
Week 10 OPEN
Week 11 at Cincinnati Bengals L, 17-27 46,900 Sunny, 36, 2 mph.
Week 12 ARIZONA CARDINALS W, 20-17 58,700 Sunny, 44, 1 mph.
Week 13 at San Diego Chargers W, 24-3 35,400 Sunny, 57, 3 mph.
Week 14 at Seattle Seahawks L, 3-27 56,200 Sunny, 60, 3 mph.
Week 15 at Pittsburgh Steelers L, 9-10 62,100 Rain, 41, 15 mph.
Week 16 at St. Louis Rams W, 27-20 34,300 Sunny, 45, calm
Week 17 BALTIMORE RAVENS L, 13-14 58,700 Snow, 25, 13 mph.

Home Games in ALL CAPS

Season Tickets Sold: 57,200
Stadium Capacity: 72,300

At the end of the season, it was clear that neither Gonzalez or McKenzie were the long term answer at quarterback. One would be traded in the offseason, and the team would look to draft a quarterback with it's 1st or 2nd round pick.

Rookie Report:
Olandis Gary showed promise of being a reliable option at running back, posting 887 yards with a 3.7 avg.

Wane McGarity caugh 21 passes for 230 yards (10.95 avg/catch) as the 5th WR, and returned 32 punts for a 12.3 avg and 1 touchdown.

DE Patrick Kerney played in all 16 games, but only managed 5 tackles and 0 sacks. He showed signs of improving and will see more playing time next season.

CB Chris McAllister quickly emerged as one of the top cover corners in the league, giving up only 25 receptions on the season and intercepted 3 passes.

Gs Edwin Mullitalo and Jim Bundren only allowed a total of 5 sacks and combined for 26 key blocks, providing stability in the middle of the line.

The other rookies had limited playing time, and didn't make much of an impact.

The coaching staff was retained for another season, and much of the offseason proved uneventful. The Browns signed QB Shane Matthews, another veteran they hoped to use to mentor their young quarterbacks. Rich Gannon was angry over his lack of playing time on such a bad team and was demanding a trade.

The Browns traded QB Pete Gonzalez to the Chargers for their 4th round pick in the upcoming draft, 4.2. After conducting their allotment of interviews, there was one quarterback that stood out, Tom Brady from Michigan. And when the Chargers selected RB Mike Anderson with the first overall selection, the rejoicing in Ohio over a Michigan guy was deafening.

The Browns would add:
2.1 DT Cornelius Griffin
2.25 WR Darrell Jackson (Traded 3.2 and 4.2 to move up)
4.1 C Corey Withrow
5.1 C Shaun O'Hara
6.3 K Rian Lindell
6.9 ILB Michael Hawkes
7.2 ILB Jack Golden

After the draft, Rich Gannon was released after no team was willing to trade for him. After training camp, it looked like another solid draft had been put together by the front office staff of the Browns. Now it was a matter of getting on the field.

[Cap Ologist]

Front Office Football 2007
2000 Summary for Cleveland Browns
   
Year                2000                                      
Record              8-8                                       
Winning Pct.        .500                                      
All-Time            13-35                                     
Winning Pct.        .270                                      
Playoffs            0-0                                       
Playoff Visits      0                                         
Bowl Wins           0                                         
Head Coach          Hunter Vogel                              
Record              12-20                                     
Winning Pct.        .375                                      
Off. Coord.         N. Farrell                                
Def. Coord.         A. Price                                  
   
Cleveland Browns        Team      Rank  
Rushes per Game         27.3      19          
Rushing Yards           108.9     16 (T)      
Yards Per Carry         4.00      13          
Pass Attempts           33.3      16 (T)      
Completions             23.1      2           
Completion Pct.         69.2      2           
Passing Yards           235.9     17          
Yards Per Attempt       7.08      17          
Yards Per Catch         10.23     30          
Total Yardage Gained    330.1     13          
3rd Down Conversions    41.6      13          
Points Per Game         21.8      15          
Pass Rush Pct.          20.9      11 (T)      
Pass Defense Pct.       54.1      19          
Turnovers               17        1 (T)       
Turnover Margin         +11       5 (T)       
   
Opponents               Team      Rank  
Rushes per Game         26.4      15          
Rushing Yards           95.9      7           
Yards Per Carry         3.64      4           
Pass Attempts           32.9      12          
Completions             20.0      13          
Completion Pct.         60.7      16          
Passing Yards           239.5     20          
Yards Per Attempt       7.27      22          
Yards Per Catch         11.98     26          
Total Yardage Gained    321.0     13          
3rd Down Conversions    39.9      16 (T)      
Points Per Game         18.9      8           
Pass Rush Pct.          17.1      4           
Pass Defense Pct.       34.4      1           
Turnovers               28        13 (T)      
   
Week  Team  Versus        Oppnt  
1     14    at PIT        21      
2     27    WAS           14      
3     21    at BUF        27      
5     30    DEN           13      
6     30    OAK           3       
7     27    at SDO        10      
8     18    at KCY        41      
9     15    at BAL        13      
10    28    PIT           14      
11    10    at CIN        23      
12    33    PHI           21      
13    14    HOU           24      
14    10    at NYK        17      
15    37    BAL           14      
16    12    at DAL        19      
17    23    CIN           29      
   
Passing                 Pos   Att   Comp  Yards Y/Att TD    Int   Rate  
12 T. Brady             QB    518   361   3688  7.12  21    10    95.2    
**Team                  ---   533   369   3774  7.08  22    10    95.2    
$$Opp                   ---   527   320   3832  7.27  27    19    85.0    
   
Rushing                 Pos   Att   Yards Y/Att TD    Fum  
20 O. Gary              RB    262   961   3.67  5     4       
29 C. Warren            RB    148   761   5.14  5     2       
Front Office Football 2007
**Team                  ---   436   1742  4.00  10    24      
$$Opp                   ---   422   1534  3.64  5     20      
   
Receiving               Pos   Targ  Catch Yards Y/Ctc Y/Tar Drop  TD  
85 T. Armstrong         TE    89    68    637   9.37  7.16  0     2       
86 D. Jackson           WR    91    61    670   10.98 7.36  5     3       
83 C. Johnson           WR    88    58    882   15.21 10.02 5     8       
81 D. Dunn              WR    76    43    420   9.77  5.53  5     3       
20 O. Gary              RB    54    41    321   7.83  5.94  4     1       
88 W. McGarity          WR    58    37    334   9.03  5.76  2     2       
28 S. Mack              FB    21    18    115   6.39  5.48  0     1       
80 C. Calloway          WR    22    16    208   13.00 9.45  1     2       
29 C. Warren            RB    18    16    103   6.44  5.72  0     0       
   
Defense                 Pos   Tack  Asst  Sack  Hurr  Ints  Defn  PDPct  
50 Q. Coryatt           OLB   84    18    9.0   1     2     10    80.5    
43 A. Langham           CB    63    20    0.0   0     3     7     80.2    
94 T. Collins           ILB   62    24    0.5   0     1     6     79.0    
27 C. Hudson            S     59    16    1.5   0     1     3     75.4    
52 J. Miller            OLB   55    15    1.0   0     0     3     75.0    
23 L. Brown             CB    54    14    0.0   0     3     6     76.4    
32 D. Bush              S     53    21    1.5   0     7     4     83.4    
71 K. Pritchett         DT    53    21    2.5   11    0     0     81.5    
21 C. McAlister         CB    50    10    0.5   0     2     10    78.3    
74 J. Burrough          DE    45    25    10.0  25    0     0     80.3    
70 R. Owens             DE    39    9     8.5   26    0     1     80.8    
76 C. Griffin           DT    30    10    2.0   9     0     0     80.2    
79 K. Crockett          DT    19    7     0.5   0     0     0     81.2    
56 M. Morton            OLB   17    7     0.0   0     0     1     77.2    
35 T. Wooten            S     16    6     0.0   0     0     1     71.4    

The second season was pretty promising. Brady showed signs of the player they hoped he would be. The highlight of the season had to be when the team handed 8-0 Pittsburgh it's first loss of the season, although the season sweep of the Ravens was a close second.

Front Office Football 2007
2000 Regular Season Standings
   
  AC North              W   L   T   Pct   PF    PA    Conf    Div  
Pittsburgh              12  4   0   .750  393   264   9-3     4-2       
Cincinnati              8   8   0   .500  375   371   6-6     4-2       
Cleveland               8   8   0   .500  349   303   6-6     3-3       
Baltimore               4   12  0   .250  281   373   2-10    1-5       
   
  AC South              W   L   T   Pct   PF    PA    Conf    Div  
Tennessee               14  2   0   .875  470   334   11-1    5-1       
Jacksonville            9   7   0   .563  337   342   7-5     4-2       
Indianapolis            9   7   0   .563  420   390   8-4     3-3       
Houston                 4   12  0   .250  273   417   4-8     0-6       
   
  AC East               W   L   T   Pct   PF    PA    Conf    Div  
Miami                   11  5   0   .688  352   243   9-3     5-1       
New England             10  6   0   .625  348   335   8-4     4-2       
New Jersey              6   10  0   .375  306   361   4-8     2-4       
Buffalo                 4   12  0   .250  303   396   3-9     1-5       
   
  AC West               W   L   T   Pct   PF    PA    Conf    Div  
Kansas City             9   7   0   .563  356   375   6-6     3-3       
Oakland                 7   9   0   .438  321   374   5-7     3-3       
Denver                  6   10  0   .375  282   330   5-7     3-3       
San Diego               3   13  0   .188  191   331   3-9     3-3       
   
  NC North              W   L   T   Pct   PF    PA    Conf    Div  
Minnesota               11  5   0   .688  438   344   8-4     5-1       
Green Bay               10  6   0   .625  419   286   8-4     3-3       
Chicago                 9   7   0   .563  366   337   7-5     2-4       
Detroit                 8   8   0   .500  423   401   5-7     2-4       
   
  NC South              W   L   T   Pct   PF    PA    Conf    Div  
Carolina                9   7   0   .563  359   298   6-6     4-2       
New Orleans             9   7   0   .563  308   310   6-6     3-3       
Atlanta                 8   8   0   .500  346   331   6-6     2-4       
Tampa Bay               7   9   0   .438  283   298   5-7     3-3       
   
  NC East               W   L   T   Pct   PF    PA    Conf    Div  
Dallas                  11  4   1   .719  447   302   9-2-1   4-1-1     
New York                10  6   0   .625  352   273   8-4     4-2       
Philadelphia            9   6   1   .594  307   320   7-4-1   3-2-1     
Washington              1   15  0   .063  191   454   0-12    0-6       
   
  NC West               W   L   T   Pct   PF    PA    Conf    Div  
San Francisco           11  5   0   .688  374   305   7-5     4-2       
St. Louis               9   7   0   .563  324   326   7-5     5-1       
Arizona                 5   11  0   .313  254   337   5-7     3-3       
Seattle                 4   12  0   .250  235   322   1-11    0-6       

The Browns were in the hunt for the playoffs until the last week of the season, and aside from a thrashing they received from 5-1 Kansas City, every game was competitive. The future looked bright for the expansion team.

Wild Card week would see Green Bay dismantle Carolina, 48-19, and Miami would handle Jacksonville 34-13. New England edged Kansas City 31-23 and Minnesota would beat the Giants 33-21.

Green Bay's dreams would end at the hands of the Cowboys, 40-35. Pittsburgh would dominate Miami in a 21-3 contest. San Francisco put their traditional beat down of the Vikings in the playoffs, winning by a score of 37-18. Tennessee would handle New England by a score of 26-10, as all 4 teams with a bye won.

In the conference championships, Pittsburgh squeaked by Tennessee on the road, 28-27. Dallas would go on to blowout San Francisco, 47-21, setting up a classic Steelers-Cowboys Super Bowl.

The Cowboys would jump out to an early 7-0 lead as Aikman found Ricky Proehl, and then increase to 14-0 when Aikman found Karl Hankton for another score. Pittsburgh would answer with 3 straight scores as former Cowboy quarterback Jason Garrett found Hines Ward for 3 touchdowns. With 2:58 left in the game, Aikman found Johnny Mitchell for a touchdown to tie things up at 21. Garrett led the Steelers on a last drive which led to a 45 yard field goal by Kris Brown to take a 24-21 lead. The Cowboys made one last attempt to get into range to tie and force overtime, but ran out of time.

Heading into the offseason, there were 3 clear priorities:
1. Improve the pass rush. DE Patrick Kerney has continued to develop nicely, but has yet to record a sack in 131 pass plays. His playing time will be increased to help take the load off of Burrough and Owens.

2. Find a #1 receiver. Draft picks McGarity and Jackson have both proven to be solid players, but for the offense to really take off, Brady needs that guy that puts fear into other teams.

3. Find a #1 running back. Gary has proven to be a solid, yet unspectacular running back, and with his yards per carry dropping slightly while grizzled veteran running back Chris Warren ran for over 5 yards a carry en route to a nice 761 yard season.

[Cap Ologist]

The offseason began with a few retirements:
RB Chris Warren
CB Darryll Lewis
LB Bobby Houston
DT Cornelius Griffin (yes, my 2nd round draft pick retired after one year)

A few more veteran role players were brought into the fold:
LB Peter Boulware
WR Russell Copeland
S Toby Wright
S Chad Cota
DT Ryan Kuehl
G Greg Bloedorn
RB Chuck Levy
DE Shane Burton
T Jimmy Herndon

The draft brings:
WR Chris Chambers 60/60 (1.16)
LB Zeke Moreno 31/58 (2.15)
CB Michael Jameson (26/43) (3.1)
T Jeff Backus 30/52 (3.2)
WR Robert Ferguson 32/57 (4.1)
RB Correll Buckhalter 33/43 (5.1)
C Dominic Raiola 27/52 (6.1)

Front Office Football 2007
Cleveland Browns Roster, Scout Overview
   
  Player                #   Pos   Start Exp  Current Estimate  Future Estimate Cntrct 
Brady, Tom              12  QB    QB    2    59                71                4 yrs
Matthews, Shane         7   QB          9    37                37                2 yrs
McKenzie, Kevin         4   QB          3    34                48                3 yrs
Gary, Olandis           20  RB    RB    3    46                46                2 yrs
Buckhalter, Correll     34  RB          1    33                43                3 yrs
Levy, Chuck             36  RB          8    28                28                3 yrs
Kirby, Terry            37  RB          9    24                24                2 yrs
Mack, Stacey            28  FB    FB    3    50                50                2 yrs
Armstrong, Tyji         85  TE    TE    10   54                54                2 yrs
Campbell, Dan           82  TE          3    39                39                3 yrs
Chambers, Chris         89  FL    FL    1    60                61                4 yrs
Johnson, Charles        83  FL          8    51                51                3 yrs
Copeland, Russell       80  FL          9    42                42                3 yrs
Ferguson, Robert        84  FL          1    32                57                4 yrs
Jackson, Darrell        86  SE    SE    2    57                57                3 yrs
##Dunn, David           81  SE          7    41                41                3 yrs
Withrow, Corey          59  C     C     2    49                51                3 yrs
Raiola, Dominic         51  C           1    27                52                3 yrs
Bloedorn, Greg          76  LG    LG    5    47                47                3 yrs
##Bundren, Jim          78  LG          3    30                30                1 yr.
Mulitalo, Edwin         61  RG    RG    3    57                57                2 yrs
Stinchcomb, Matt        68  RG          3    26                35                2 yrs
Backus, Jeff            77  LT    LT    1    30                52                4 yrs
Wiegert, Zack           69  RT    RT    7    45                45                1 yr.
Jansen, Jon             62  RT          3    36                36                3 yrs
##Herndon, Jimmy        66  RT          6    33                33                3 yrs
Hutton, Tom             5   P           7    67                67                1 yr.
Blanchard, Cary         13  K           10   91                91                2 yrs
Owens, Rich             70  LDE   LDE   7    52                52                3 yrs
Burton, Shane           97  LDE         6    51                51                3 yrs
Kerney, Patrick         99  RDE   RDE   3    55                55                2 yrs
##Burrough, John        74  RDE         7    52                52                1 yr.
Pritchett, Kelvin       71  LDT   LDT   11   49                49                2 yrs
Crockett, Kelvin        79  LDT         4    45                45                1 yr.
##Kuehl, Ryan           75  LDT         6    35                35                3 yrs
Bonham, Shane           72  RDT   RDT   8    37                37                3 yrs
Collins, Todd           94  MLB   MLB   10   47                47                1 yr.
Moreno, Zeke            92  MLB         1    31                58                3 yrs
Golden, Jack            90  MLB         2    28                28                2 yrs
Coryatt, Quentin        50  SLB         10   45                45                2 yrs
Miller, Jamir           52  WLB   WLB   8    56                56                2 yrs
Morton, Mike            56  WLB         7    50                50                3 yrs
Boulware, Peter         53  WLB   SLB   5    46                48                3 yrs
##Langham, Antonio      43  LCB         8    40                40                3 yrs
Paul, Tito              26  LCB         7    23                23                2 yrs
McAlister, Chris        21  RCB   LCB   3    82                82                3 yrs
Brown, Larry            23  RCB   RCB   11   50                50                2 yrs
Jameson, Michael        46  RCB         1    26                43                3 yrs
Wright, Toby            41  SS    SS    8    51                51                3 yrs
Bush, Devin             32  FS    FS    7    59                59                1 yr.
##Hudson, Chris         27  FS          7    58                58                1 yr.
Cota, Chad              33  FS          7    57                57                3 yrs
Wooten, Tito            35  FS          8    49                49                3 yrs
   
$$ - player is suspended, ## - player is inactive,  
** = player is injured, %% - player is on IR.  
   
Players Under Contract: 53
Inactive: 7
On Active Roster: 46
   
Salary Cap: $86,700,000
Cap Room: $16,820,000
Maximum for New Player: $17,130,000
Cap Room Lost (to old contracts): $2,630,000
   
Cap Room Lost Next Year (to old contracts): $90,000
Cap Room Required Next Year: $63,770,000

[Cap Ologist]

Front Office Football 2007
2001 Summary for Cleveland Browns
   
Year                2001                                      
Record              9-7                                       
Winning Pct.        .562                                      
All-Time            22-42                                     
Winning Pct.        .343                                      
Playoffs            0-0                                       
Playoff Visits      0                                         
Bowl Wins           0                                         
Head Coach          Hunter Vogel                              
Record              21-27                                     
Winning Pct.        .437                                      
Off. Coord.         N. Farrell                                
Def. Coord.         A. Price                                  
   
Cleveland Browns        Team      Rank  
Rushes per Game         24.6      27          
Rushing Yards           98.6      24          
Yards Per Carry         4.02      17          
Pass Attempts           35.2      11          
Completions             23.5      3           
Completion Pct.         66.8      2           
Passing Yards           251.9     12          
Yards Per Attempt       7.16      12          
Yards Per Catch         10.72     30          
Total Yardage Gained    331.7     18          
3rd Down Conversions    42.7      9           
Points Per Game         24.2      7 (T)       
Pass Rush Pct.          21.3      11          
Pass Defense Pct.       52.2      16          
Turnovers               21        7 (T)       
Turnover Margin         +2        12 (T)      
   
Opponents               Team      Rank  
Rushes per Game         27.6      17 (T)      
Rushing Yards           117.5     27          
Yards Per Carry         4.26      25          
Pass Attempts           32.1      6           
Completions             18.9      3           
Completion Pct.         58.9      10          
Passing Yards           238.9     15          
Yards Per Attempt       7.45      24          
Yards Per Catch         12.66     32          
Total Yardage Gained    345.0     21          
3rd Down Conversions    40.0      21          
Points Per Game         21.8      18          
Pass Rush Pct.          22.7      28          
Pass Defense Pct.       32.5      2           
Turnovers               23        25 (T)      
   
Week  Team  Versus        Oppnt  
1     30    at BAL        10      
2     37    at MIN        10      
3     30    DEN           14      
4     34    at BUF        20      
5     0     PIT           26      
6     19    MIA           13      
7     16    at NJY        28      
8     14    NED           34      
9     35    BAL           24      
11    34    at CIN        13      
12    38    CHI           16      
13    24    at IND        37      
14    20    DET           6       
15    32    CIN           37      
16    17    at GBY        37      
17    7     at PIT        24      
   
Passing                 Pos   Att   Comp  Yards Y/Att TD    Int   Rate  
12 T. Brady             QB    563   376   4031  7.16  31    7     100.7   
**Team                  ---   563   376   4031  7.16  31    7     100.7   
$$Opp                   ---   513   302   3823  7.45  24    12    88.0    
   
Rushing                 Pos   Att   Yards Y/Att TD    Fum  
20 O. Gary              RB    232   940   4.05  7     9       
34 C. Buckhalter        RB    141   618   4.38  2     6       
Front Office Football 2007
**Team                  ---   393   1578  4.02  9     33      
$$Opp                   ---   441   1880  4.26  13    31      
   
Receiving               Pos   Targ  Catch Yards Y/Ctc Y/Tar Drop  TD  
86 D. Jackson           WR    138   86    1180  13.72 8.55  14    11      
89 C. Chambers          WR    121   78    873   11.19 7.21  5     8       
85 T. Armstrong         TE    75    57    546   9.58  7.28  1     3       
83 C. Johnson           WR    58    35    429   12.26 7.40  1     1       
84 R. Ferguson          WR    55    35    472   13.49 8.58  1     5       
20 O. Gary              RB    43    32    217   6.78  5.05  1     0       
34 C. Buckhalter        RB    27    21    128   6.10  4.74  1     0       
   
Defense                 Pos   Tack  Asst  Sack  Hurr  Ints  Defn  PDPct  
41 T. Wright            S     87    41    0.0   1     2     11    81.1    
94 T. Collins           ILB   76    23    0.0   2     0     0     71.5    
21 C. McAlister         CB    71    9     2.0   0     4     16    79.7    
71 K. Pritchett         DT    62    21    5.5   8     0     0     81.5    
32 D. Bush              S     52    11    0.0   0     1     10    81.3    
26 T. Paul              CB    51    17    0.0   0     1     3     74.5    
23 L. Brown             CB    46    17    0.0   0     3     11    80.8    
70 R. Owens             DE    39    15    3.5   25    0     1     81.2    
99 P. Kerney            DE    37    12    7.0   21    0     0     81.9    
92 Z. Moreno            ILB   33    11    0.0   0     0     1     73.4    
53 P. Boulware          OLB   30    12    0.0   0     0     0     73.0    
72 S. Bonham            DT    29    19    4.0   5     0     0     82.1    
50 Q. Coryatt           OLB   29    10    2.0   1     0     3     77.3    
52 J. Miller            OLB   27    10    0.0   0     0     2     74.3    

A three game losing streak to end the season knocked us out of the playoffs.

[Cap Ologist]

In the wild card round, Arizona defeats Detroit 13-7. Kansas City edges Indianapolis, 34-31. Cincinatti beats Miami 23-9. Seattle beats Tampa Bay 23-6

In the divisional playoffs, Dallas squeaks by Arizona, 13-7. Cincinnati beats New England 24-20. Tennessee routs Kansas City 38-17. Green Bay takes Seattle 27-7.

In the conference championships, Tennessee pulls away from Cincinnati 31-6 and Green Bay demolishes Dallas 45-16.

In the Super Bowl, Green Bay handles Tennessee 47-28.