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http://www.cleveland.com/browns/index.ssf/2012/08/cleveland_browns_run_defense_h.html

Published: Sunday, August 26, 2012, 6:15 AM

Cleveland Browns' run defense has been the hole-in-the-wall gang since '99

By Tom Reed, The Plain Dealer

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Since their return to the NFL in 1999, the Browns' run defense has ranged from bad to predictably bad to historically bad. During a sunbaked afternoon in Baltimore on Sept.14, 2003, it managed to be all three.

In the days leading up to a Browns' 33-13 loss, Ravens running back Jamal Lewis vowed a career-best performance if he carried the ball at least 30 times. The Browns didn't receive word of the boast through the media, but in a three-way phone conversation that included Lewis and Browns linebacker Andra Davis.

The audacious promise rankled Browns players a year removed from a postseason appearance. Safety Earl Little filled reporters' notebooks in the Cleveland locker room 48 hours before kickoff.

"He's not as great as he thinks he is. You can print that," Little told The Plain Dealer. "He's a good back, but he's no Edgerrin James, he's no Ricky Williams and he's definitely no Priest Holmes."

In the land of crab cakes, Little would be forced to eat crow. Lewis ran for an 82-yard touchdown on his first carry. A 63-yard TD followed. By the time Lewis finished picking Browns' defenders from the bottom of his cleats, he had set a then-NFL single-game record, with 295 yards on exactly 30 carries.

"I guess the dude is Nostradamus," Little said. "He said what he said. He did it, and it's in the history books."

During the past 13 years, NFL running backs renowned and obscure have relished the opportunity to face the Browns' defense. It has been the gridiron equivalent of debating foreign policy with Homer Simpson.

A poor drafting record, lack of depth and continuity, an inability to adapt to the strengths of divisional powers and its own anemic offense have conspired against the Browns' defensive efforts. Since 1999, no team has been worse against the run, allowing an average of 142.7 yards per game – a whopping 13.1 yards more than the next-to-last Oakland Raiders, according to Elias Sports Bureau.

By contrast, the Ravens were the best in that period, yielding just 88.7 yards.

"There are people in this league that will tell you it's not that important to stop the run because it's become a passing league -- that you can't run for enough yards and score enough points to win that way," said Ravens coach John Harbaugh. "That may be true. But if you can't stop the run, what can you stop? To me, it's as old as football: You have to stymie the run.

"If you can't stop the run, you certainly can't stop a good passing team because they are going to keep you off balance."

Acquiring players through the draft and free agency, Browns General Manager Tom Heckert has made run defense a priority during the past two years. But a rash of preseason injuries, including long-term ones to defensive tackle Phil Taylor and linebacker Chris Gocong, will make it tough on the Browns to improve their 30th-place ranking against the rush last year.

Cleveland was a respectable 10th overall in total defense in 2011, as it switched from a 3-4 scheme to a 4-3 under new defensive coordinator Dick Jauron. Yet divisional rivals such as the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Ravens continued to grind out late-season victories against it.

"In our conference and division, once we reach November and December, it's a bunch of nine-on-seven games -- it's our front seven against their offensive line and running backs because of the weather," said linebacker D'Qwell Jackson.

"We've had our battles against it, and we will continue to have our battles with it. We've just got to keep working to correct it and get it right."

Personnel foul

In 2006, the Browns had a chance to select a future three-time Pro Bowl nose tackle with the No. 12 overall pick in the draft. Haloti Ngata was there waiting for them. Instead, then-General Manager Phil Savage opted to trade down one slot with the Ravens, who happily snatched the 340-pound run stopper.

In exchange, the Browns received the Nos. 13 and 181 picks, which they used on linebacker Kamerion Wimbley and defensive tackle Babatunde Oshinowo. After a promising rookie season, Wimbley regressed on a team that never seemed to know how to utilize his talents before it dealt him to Oakland in 2010. Meanwhile, Oshinowo's NFL career consisted of two games.

Former Ravens coach Brian Billick was recently asked why the Ravens have been so stout against the run and the Browns so poor.

"Because the Ravens had good players and the Browns didn't," the Fox analyst said. "A lot of our success was attributed to the quality of players we had, like Terrell Suggs, Ray Lewis, Ed Reed and Haloti Ngata. When you don't have good players, you are going to struggle."

The Browns have had a dubious draft history since 1999 at many positions, the defensive front seven being no exception. They were unlucky with oft-injured defensive end Courtney Brown (No. 1 overall, 2000) and off base with linebackers Chaun Thompson (second round, 2003), David Veikune (second round, 2009) and Beau Bell (fourth round, 2008).

It's not as though the franchise has had a stream of front-seven defenders leave Cleveland and contribute regularly elsewhere. That short list includes Wimbley and tackles Corey Williams and Gerard Warren.

"To stop the run, you have to build your defense from the inside out," said one league source. "The Browns really never made that commitment until Heckert came on board."

The proof is in the Pro Bowl.

The Browns' front seven have sent two players to Hawaii since 1999 -- linebacker Jamir Miller in 2001 and nose tackle Shaun Rogers in 2009. In that same time frame, the Ravens have had nine such players combine for 41 appearances, while the Steelers have had nine players totaling 19.

It's not just a matter of front-line talent, but the dearth of depth that has plagued the Browns' efforts. Last season, Jackson played all 1,096 defensive snaps. Five starters were on the field for at least 80 percent of the plays, including defensive tackle Ahtyba Rubin, the second-best draft choice behind Joe Thomas in the four-year Savage era that ended in 2008.

"It does take its toll if you can't rotate guys in and play in waves," Jauron said. " 'Rube' [Rubin] played too many snaps. [Defensive end] Jabaal [Sheard] played too many snaps. It takes a lot out of you playing against those big offensive linemen."

No support

Jauron is the Browns' eighth defensive coordinator in 14 years.

It's a wonder Jackson's head hasn't exploded like a Fembot in "Austin Powers," with all the information he's been asked to absorb, process, retain, then purge. Drafted in 2006, the middle linebacker has played for three head coaches, three general managers and four defensive coordinators.

"If you are always dramatically changing your organization and changing your beliefs and philosophies on defense, it's going to have an impact on the players," Billick said. "Just as guys start to get comfortable playing in one system, they are having to learn another."

The Browns' offense is also complicit in the defensive failures. Since Ty Detmer took the first snap from Dave Wohlabaugh in a 43-0 shutout loss to the Steelers on Sept. 12, 1999, the Browns have been unable to produce touchdowns.

Field-goal kickers such as Phil Dawson are supposed to complement an offense, not serve as the best hope for scoring.

Jackson has spent far too many Sunday afternoons staring at a fourth-quarter deficit, knowing the opponent is going to keep running the ball and the clock. It's helped NFL backs top the century mark against the Browns on 96 occasions spanning 208 games, according to Elias.

"You have to try to improve it, there's no doubt," Jauron said. "We got creased a number of times [last season]. The great news about the run game last year is we generally kept them out of the end zone, but you don't like those big plays and you don't like being 30th against the run, so we will keep working on it."

Jackson, the league's second-leading tackler last season, is hopeful this season will mark a turnaround. Heckert signed defensive ends Frostee Rucker and Juqua Parker and drafted tackles John Hughes and Billy Winn to provide Jauron with an improved line rotation this season.

"I know we are a better defense, a deeper defense, and I believe we are a tougher defense than we were a year ago," said Jauron, whose unit was the league's fifth stingiest in points (19.2). "How that translates statistically, I don't have a clue."

It's not as though the Browns can get much worse against the run. Of course, they have been saying that since 1999.

Tom Reed had to dig pretty deep in the archives for this story.

The REAL good news: when your run defense is ranked 30th in the league, there's a whole lot more room to move up than there is to fall.

Taylor can't do much on the sidelines either... I don't think he'll ever get to Ngata level, but he's a DARN good player... I really liked what he did his rookie year

so far I've liked what I've seen out of our DTs... I really hope our run defense is better this year.... can't be much worse than it has been the last few years.

This whining and crying from the media, during what should be an exciting time with the season only two weeks away, has got to stop. I dont want to read about Jamal Lewis and his 300 yard game while enjoying my coffee on a Sunday morning. Seriously save the bitching and whining until after the season starts.

Reading a Tom Reed article ranks somewhere between self castration and anal probing but it is still ahead of Marla's crapfest.

They've looked a lot better at stopping the run the past two games than they did the game against the Lions. Couple poor tackles yesterday, but overall, no big breakaway runs and they seem to be converging on the runner a lot better.

I was disappointed by a lot of our tacklign this weekend - I thought we got some nice pressure and were in position to stop several plays that we allowed extra yards because of poor tackling.

Yesterday, sadly, there were poor showings in every aspect of the game.

The 2003 team was a completly different team than what they have put out there in a few evolutions since.
I think the suffering has been a different kind since 2006, it's been pretty much similar results since 2006, except for the play of DA in the 07 season.

One of the comments saying the Ravens just had better players on defense.

Well they did get Courtney Upshaw, one of two players Melvin Ingram and Courtney Upshaw that pre draft some could have seen, they looked like real good football players.