DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Pure Football Forum Training Camp Stuff 2013

Benjamin would have big shoes to fill IF the old kickoff rules were the same. Punt returns? Cribbs, although decent, it is not were his name was made.

Kickoff returns--I could care less who takes them back. More often than not, it's a touch back. The real game breaker will come from the punt return on ST. Let's hops Benjamin can make a name for himself.

Some more Greg Little

http://www.cleveland.com/browns/index.ss...t_river_default

I will say, it was only a small video clip of two or three balls to Gordon, but he looked like he was half-ass'n it. Little struggled to find words for him when he was asked about him....."just a great talent"

I hope he (Gordon) gets it together. Little looks extremely focused to say the least.

Cleveland Browns linebacker Craig Robertson says he won't get comfortable in second season

By Tom Reed, The Plain Dealer



BEREA, Ohio – The Browns will don pads for the first time in training camp Saturday afternoon. But Craig Robertson was still running around Friday with the chip on his shoulder that he brought to town a year ago as an undrafted free agent.

In his mind, it is standard equipment.

He would just as soon step on a field without a helmet or mouthpiece. Sure, Robertson is virtually guaranteed a roster spot this season and he’s likely to start at inside linebacker next to D’Qwell Jackson.

“But I still keep my chip,” Robertson said. “You gotta have your chip. You can’t have your chip and just get rid of it. You can’t get comfortable.”

The second-year linebacker has transformed himself from a player who didn’t earn a training camp invite in 2011 to someone defensive coordinator Ray Horton considers his “ace in the hole.”

Robertson’s quickness, coverage skills and football acumen have allowed him to overcome his lack of size (6-1, 229) and pedigree. He’s excited to play in Horton’s attacking defense, one which emphasizes speed and deception.

“I more than like it, I love it,” Robertson said. “Being able to run around, you have the freedom to be you. You are not confined to be a textbook player. (Horton) makes calls to the strengths on the field.”

He dismisses the notion that he and Jackson are too small to play together at inside linebacker. The North Texas product points to Pittsburgh’s Lawrence Timmons (6-1, 234) and Arizona’s Daryl Washington (6-2, 226) as undersized players who have excelled at the position.
robertson-pick-2012-ravens-jk.jpgView full sizeCraig Robertson demonstrated his ability to be in the right place at the right time with this interception of Joe Flacco in Baltimore last season. Now a second-year linebacker and a likely starter, Robertson is determined to keep his edge in training camp.John Kuntz, The Plain Dealer

“The game of football is not how much you weigh or how strong you are,” he said. “Any way you can get to the ball and get the guy down -- that’s football.”

Robertson arrived last season with hopes of simply making the team, yet finished with the second-most tackles (83) on the team. After recording eight tackles and two interceptions in his NFL debut against Philadelphia on opening day, he quickly revamped his goals.

He called his agent, Cleveland-based Vince Calo, and asked him to make a “goal board.” Agents receive plenty of unusual requests, but rarely are given an arts-and-crafts project. Calo made a computer printout of eight goals -- only two statistical in nature -- and affixed them to a board that Robertson kept by a mirror in his house. He wouldn’t reveal the goals only to say he met six of them.

“That’s just Craig being Craig,” Calo said. “He’s always challenging himself.”

Robertson still has the board, and is making plans for another one this season. Horton sounds as though he’s got plans of his own for Robertson.

“I would say he was what I had envisioned and hoped he would be,” the defensive coordinator said. “(He’s) a young, athletic backer, who is savvy. When I came here I wasn't sure how he would be on picking things up, but he's been everything I wanted. That’s my little ace in the hole.”

http://www.cleveland.com/browns/index.ssf/2013/07/cleveland_browns_linebacker_cr_1.html

Browns training camp: Transcript from news conference with coach Rob Chudzinski
By Nate Ulrich Published: July 27, 2013

Browns coach Rob Chudzinski met with reporters today after the third full-squad practice of training camp. Here is a transcript from the news conference:

Opening statement: “Good afternoon. Just want to start off with Ryan Miller. He was injured early in practice with a head injury during drills. He was taken to the hospital. Our medical staff treated him on the field and was able to transport him to the hospital. At this time, Ryan is doing well. He is responsive and sounds like things are better at this point. We will continue to give you updates on that. I plan on visiting Ryan tonight and seeing how he is doing.”

On Ryan Miller staying overnight in the hospital: “I don’t know that.”

On what exactly happened to cause Ryan Miller’s injury: “It was one-on-one blocking drills. I did not see it. Obviously, two guys were going against each other and hit against each other.”

On the message to the team after a player getting injured: “We got together. We said a prayer, said we would keep Ryan in our thoughts and I would give them updates as we got them. We needed to get back to work at that point and focus back on practice.”

On the team responding to his message: “I thought they did a great job. It really says a lot about them, our coaches, our staff and our players to be able to do that. This team is a family and when something happens to a family member like that, it’s tough. These guys did a great job of staying focused and getting a lot of work done that we needed to get done.”

On the reaction of a player getting injured for the first time as a head coach: “Well, you take the lead in these situations. That’s what I did. Again, I look forward to being able to see Ryan tonight and get a chance to visit with him.”

On Phil Taylor practicing: “He went through individuals today. We will continue to monitor and look at him, eventually upgrade as the time comes.”

On offense working on screen passes: “It was something that was in our installation today. After a few days, we get those guys rushing up the field so much. Screens have always been something that Norv has really excelled, teams that Norv has coached. I have been fortunate to be around Norv and learn a thing or two about screens.”

On executing the screen play: “There is a lot of coordination and timing between the offensive line and the running backs; the timing of it happening, knowing the rushes and the right people to do it against, as well.”

On quarterbacks having a better day: “They did. I thought the offense as a whole had a lot better day. That’s one of the things you’d like to see happen on a day-to-day basis, so it’s not always one side of the ball winning. You’d like to see it where it is offense one day, defense the next day, and when there’s a back-and-forth competition. At the end of the day, you need a balanced team. You have to be able to win games in this league different ways. Sometimes they are going to be high-scoring, sometimes they are going to be low-scoring. Sometimes your defense is going to be dominating or sometimes they are going to be struggling and vice versa. Having a balanced team is a key and it is something we have talked a lot about with the guys.”

On disappointment of having to practice inside due to weather: “I was hoping to get out. When I came in here, early in the morning, it was drizzling, and I saw the forecast for the day. We had a lot of wetness on the field. So, it was a combination of the forecast and the fields all being wet and not wanting to tear those up.”

On how he feels about the skirmishes that happened in practice: “I like the attitude, the competitiveness. We have to keep it under control, be smart. That’s the kind of energy you like.”

On the changes of practicing inside, rather than outside: “It doesn’t change as much. Obviously, we didn’t go full pads. For the first day of full pads, I didn’t want to be inside, on the turf. We will be full pads tomorrow. It’s just a tighter space that we have to work with in here, but we were able to get a lot done.”

On waiting to learn Miller was going to be OK: “It’s difficult. I was very concerned about him. I went over and gave him a tap when he was going out. At that time he was moving around a little bit so that was encouraging.”

On knowing how long he was unconscious: “I don’t know.”

On knowing where Dion Lewis fits into the offense: “I think I’m just learning. He’s a guy that we haven’t seen a lot. Running backs really tend to show more when the pads come on. You see their running skills and the blocking schemes develop a little bit better. Like you saw today, with pads on it’s a lot different. We will continue to look at him as well as all of those guys. We will put them in situations so they can show what they can do.”

On huddling players at mid-field, whether he updated them on Miller: “I did. It was. I gave them an update on Ryan.”

On whether he sustained a concussion: “I think right now calling it a head injury is most accurate until we get more details about it. I don’t want to classify it or call it something that it could be.”

On whether it was a neck injury: “It was just a head injury.”

On scrambling to get the offense ready for the first game: “It’s right around the corner. It seems like time flies. It will be here before you know it. Again, we have a lot of work to do. I’ve been pleased with what we’ve gotten done in the last couple of days. Particularly seeing things like we talked about when things didn’t look so well on one side of the ball. Guys were bouncing back, understanding and making the corrections and executing better on the field. I think that’s the process that you are looking for guys to go through as we are going toward our first game. We will continue to install things in the course of the next week and week and-a-half. We’ll get ready to go out and play.”

On handling a false start during practice: “You saw that, didn’t you? Sometimes, it just depends. There is not always a hard, fast rule with things. In that particular case it was a point of emphasis.”

On whether the player was being singled out for an accumulation of mistakes: “It was a point of emphasis at that particular time. In other cases it could be an accumulation.”

On how cohesive he expects the offensive line to be: “Well, with a new system and new terminology it will take some time. Those guys in my opinion and in my experience are the toughest to coordinate, to get that communication that you need to get those guys playing together that you want. That does take some time. Having George Warhop here, he’s done a fantastic job. He has a relationship with them. I think that has really helped in that way. They are learning a new system, they are learning new terminology. George is here and he can translate to help get them on the right page.”

On Joe Thomas being a good teacher and translator: “Joe is actually used to it. He has heard the terminology before. When I was here before there are a lot of similarities from that standpoint. He’s done a great job from a leadership role. He’s showing guys the right way and the direction we want to go.”

On FB Brock Bolen: “He has a calf strain.”

On OL Oniel Cousins: “He has a knee sprain. I’m sorry, he has an ankle sprain. It will probably be a couple of weeks.”


http://www.ohio.com

Thanks for the articles Pdawg.

Seems like the old times when you could come to this site and get all the news in one place.

Yes, thanks PDawg and Memphis for the information.

A couple of thoughts:

--Lewis is not a rookie. We got him from Philly. I know that most of you know that, but just in case an occasional reader happens by, I didn't want him to be mislead.

--I like this Gipson kid. I think he is good in the passing game. Does anyone know anything about his tackling?

--Gordon better get his crap together. It might be worse that even I thought. It's almost as if his teammates are sick of his junk. That worries me because we know from life's experiences that people mess--up far more times than they are caught.

--I think Benjamin will be good as a returner. He really is fast and can cut on the move. I think back to how silly he made Ohio State look a few years ago on those long returns. He also had that dazzling return last year.

--Being able to run the screen effectively would be nice. Our guards don't have the most nimble feet around. Like Chud said, there has to be a coordination.

--Wonder how Weeden is doing? He was all the talk last year, but haven't read much about his play at TC this year.

--I like Robertson's attitude and quickness. He seems to find the ball. Hope he can hold up in the running game.

--Reporters ask a lot of dumb questions, yet other questions that seem important are left unasked.

*For example, why hasn't a reporter asked for clarification on whether or not Gordon has failed two tests in the NFL and if so, what was he nailed for the first time?

*Why haven't they asked about our plans for FB? Is there a front-runner? Are we going to more one-back sets this year?

*Why haven't they asked about the d-line? We have quite a bit of talent there, but do we want to consider keeping 7 guys there when we are primarily a 3-4 team. Additionally, Sheard and Kruger can actually play some DL when we go to 4 and 5-man fronts. What's their thinking on that? Keep the best players [as in our back-up LBers are not very good] or play it as a numbers game?

*Has anyone asked Chud or Norv about how quickly Weeden has been making his reads? Is he reading the coverages? Is he seeing the field?

*Chud said the OL was learning a new system. What system is that?

Instead, we got multiple questions about why they moved practice indoors and what Chud said to the team following Miller's injury.

I agree with the questions asked and omitted. However, I think some of those you ask are a bit too deep for the average fan reading the newspaper. Most of the questions for those articles are of the what's-so-and-so's-favorite-color variety.

For a peek into what Horton might do in his 4 and 5 man fronts check out this link. Some of it shows how the 49'ers used Aldon Smith and how LSU used Mingo, but it also shows how Horton used Daryl Washington. Some of those plays show LB'ers as DL so that three of them are on the field at once and there's stunts so one of them gets a clear shot at the QB. Very interesting. You'd understand it better than me but still, I got the gist of it enough to be really excited to see what Horton does here.

No one is ever going to answer drug test questions about Gordon or anybody else. All the NFL will do is acknowledge a failed test. Not what the substance was. That's why we have so many players claiming the substance was adderall or cough syrup. The real truth will never come out.

I don't think they're settled on the FB position yet. They have Merecic, Smelly and the new guy. Until they put on the pads and mix it up I don't think they're sure what they have. Obi was mentioned by Norv in a short presser as a type of RB/FB he has used in the past when he was in Washington.

I doubt Chud will reveal how well Weeden is reading defenses. That'd be like letting the cat out of the bag for opponent's defenses. Best to leave that a mystery. A mystery as in what defenses look like to Weeden. hahaha

Lewis sounds a bit like a water bug with his speed and moves. I hope we can put that to use.

I think what Chud meant by the OL learning a new system, more than anything else, is new terminology. Plus, if our guards, especially Grecco, can do it there will be more pulling than we've recently seen. I think Grecco can pull by virtue of his new contract. They wouldn't have extended him had they not seen something they really like and I'd bet one of those things is his pulling ability.

Watching training camp live last night, it looked like we were indeed putting in some zone blocking and Trich wow did he shoot the edge. Looked like OB was at FB and blocked inside, Trich shot off tackle. Wish they showed more of that stuff and less of Mary K lol. Maybe the zone blocking will help Trent get it going.

Norwood running with the 1s was very interesting. Little is looking more and more like TO every day, thats not being insulting either. Physically they look similar, you see them run a route violently, then of course Little wants to be a STAR also lol One of my buddies that was at camp yesterday told me the rookie receivers aren't going down without a fight but its the Bess and Little show right now. Haden is just stuck to Gordon frustrating him big time.



BTW I am a big fan of the screens but thanks to our incompetent screens over the last 4 years, I dont care if i ever see another screen. Between DAbolls 35 WR screen passes against the Ravens and Pats RB screen that was telegraphed so badly that the ref would rush to that side to get a good view of the play before it happened lol.

Anyway The speed on defense is not something we are used to seeing. Power discipline has now been replaced with speed and chaos. Whats funny is DQ is the one looking big and slow out there lol. There are a lot of fast guys out there.

Still, wouldn't you like to know? I would.

Naw, they'll never answer.

I bet you are right about zone blocking. We ran that back when Chud was here before and Lewis was beasting on a lot of runs.

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Watching training camp live last night....

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I missed that last night. It was on but my son was over and had things he wanted talk about. I got a few glances at the screen but never really saw or heard anything that was going on.


The whole receiving unit seems to be an upgrade over what we had a couple of years ago. Granted, some of them are unproven but Gordon and Little have a year under their belts and the additions of Bess and Norwood are the veterans we've been demanding for a couple of years. Guys who can not only set an example for our young WR's but also be effective players.

I want to see screens, but like you, not the way we've seen them run for the past 5 or 6 years. Why is that so difficult? I realize you need the players and the coordinated but is it that damn hard to teach?

I can't believe you mentioned DaBoll.

I noticed a big improvement in defensive speed last season. But a lot has changed in the Front 7 this year. The speed was exciting to watch last year. But the additional speed now, plus the attacking scheme will look blazing fast compared to the Mangini/RAC eras.

I'm excited.

Frostee, Parker, sheldon and Hagg have been replaced with guys like Mingo, Kruger, Bademosi, Skrine and Mcfadden. That is super noticeable, it may just be me but a lot of guys look slim, trim and full of vim also.

Trich looks a lot lighter and indeed quicker. TJ ward looks smaller and faster. Honestly, Sheard looks like he is probably around 240 right now. Rubin has slimmed down a bit. Haden looks bigger though. I know there were some reports about insane workouts these guys were doing with a lot of mma training mixed in and it may have been paying off.

I saw Nelson play some when he was healthy. A big target with very good hands from what I saw.

I think if he can stay healthy that he may be a huge surprise to some.

He and mingo look pretty similar with Sheard just having bigger legs.

That's an intriguing observation. Never having seen either in person and neither side-by-side that is surprising. Guess that means Mingo's upper body is pretty jacked.

What did he weigh when worthlessburger outran his behind?

Context would be helpful.
It's somewhat clearer now that you were probably referring to McGinest. Searched Google and couldn't come up with anything that suggests that Sheard got toasted by
Roethlisberger .

yea we cut Hagg and have been using Wade, Bademosi, Gipson, Skrine and Slaughter at FS thus far. that job is up for grabs.

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I saw Nelson play some when he was healthy. A big target with very good hands from what I saw.

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Thanks for the observation. It's good to hear. I don't remember ever seeing him or if he was there when we played them I didn't notice.

J/C

I like that mix for FS. Many of those guys can cover decently, and they are fast players. If the front seven can get a good push and rush the QB, we could see why they went with the guys they are going with. A throw gets rushed, and a fast DB has time to jump the route while the WR has to adjust to an early throw.

Pittsburgh hasn't really had that good of DBs except Troy, but over the years many of Polamalu's ints came from him jumping the route while playing center field. I got a feeling Horton is going to use Ward closer to the line of scrimmage. I would look for him to get blitz calls similar to what LaBeau does with Troy.

They are not real similar players physically, but Ward is a good tackler when he wraps instaed of jumps lowering the shoulder. I see them using him for run blitzes.

I'm pretty excited about this defense. I feel they will struggle a little at first, but it sure will be nice to see them being aggressive instead of the read and react crap we've had from just about every DC since '99.

Many worry about being burnt by the run, but Pittsburgh has always been tops against the run, and Horton was there for a good while and runs a pretty similar scheme as LaBeau.

We always seem to have a good defense inside the 20, but I think it has been a deceiving stat. I think it came more from letting too many teams drive the field and then try to stop them inside the red zone. Hopefully those days are over.
I am sick of watching the Browns let team after team complete short passes , trying to keep the play in front of them. I want to see pursuit of the QB, and attacking the LOS . Teams will at times beat you over the top in that scheme, but if run right, the negative plays for the offense will stack up and be the difference.

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Just a wrap and tackle guy who gets the guy to the ground. Nothing special.

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In my book that is something special. Forget the big hit highlight real. Get the guy on the ground.

I really am starting to like the dion lewis trade...

I was there today and a few things that were interesting to me:

- Mingo is FAST. Like incredibly fast. I've never seen that much speed around the corner. Some of the drills even were eye-opening. He also did not seem that small up close. He fills out the uniform well and looks like a football player. Definitely passes the eye test.

- Dion Lewis is incredibly interesting. He worked with everything from the 1s to the 3s. The first play that made me pause was a dump-down from Hoyer with the 3s. He made a couple of tacklers look bad. Chris Ogbannaya has disappeared from the field and Lewis is in the backup role that he had.

- TJ Conley was punting as I walked in and I was incredibly disappointed. He was shanking everything all over. Then, as we got further in, he did better and better. By the end of drills, he was clearly out-kicking Lanning, although Lanning was much more consistent.

- Billy Winn is the back-up long snapper. Pray that we never need a back-up long snapper.

- David Nelson looked really good in the drills that he participated in. Great extension, very good hands.

- The punt returners were having some problems holding on to the ball. Benjamin was consistent, but outside that, lots of people getting bad reads and struggling to adjust as the ball was coming down. Benjamin was the only player take the ball while already in stride.

- I've never heard the name Tori Gurley before. But he has incredible size for a WR. I mean, he was a head taller than most of the receivers. I thought he was a TE (and was taller than some of them). Very mobile, good extension, although very little separation from the DBs.

- LJ Fort runs every drill likes its the last thing he will do on Earth. I can see why coaches like him. They were running a pass protection drill with one LB running about two steps behind another and cutting underneath them. Fort was running cuts like a WR, making dives at passes, etc. He and Robertson were the biggest hustlers on the field.

- I personally witnessed Owen Marecic catching passes. And catching them pretty well. I was stunned.

- Phil Taylor going through drills is something to watch. I thought he was going to decapitate one of the dummies.

- It sure looked, regardless of the depth chart, that the coaches like Gary Barnidge more than Jordan Cameron. During some of the drills, he always seemed to find the ball. Consistently, after plays, he was getting taps on the helmet. I saw coaches pulling Cameron aside at least twice after plays, talking cuts/angles. Now, I was standing a football field away, so I don't know what was being said/talked about, but body language said a few things.

Thanks for the report log.