2000 season-in-review team reports —
AFC Central
As published in print Jan. 31, 2001
|
| Overview |
| While the Browns didn’t harbor realistic visions of achieving
greatness in Year Two, they did expect to show signs of improvement. Albeit a slight
improvement, the Browns raised their win total from two in 1999 to three in 2000. Injuries
played a large part in Cleveland’s small gain. Its top two quarterbacks — Tim
Couch and Ty Detmer — were lost for the season with injuries, as was starting RB
Errict Rhett and OG Jim Pyne. At the end of the year, the Browns had 13 players on injured
reserve. There were feelings that the program was heading in the wrong direction, and that
the players no longer bought into the philosophy of head coach Chris Palmer. The lack of
faith led to Palmer being dismissed after the regular season. |
| Turning point |
| The season began to fall apart when Tim Couch was lost for the season. On
the final play of a Thursday practice before the Browns’ Week Eight game, Couch
smashed his right thumb against the helmet of defender Ryan Taylor. The thumb was broken,
and Couch’s sophomore NFL season was over. That put the offense in the hands of Doug
Pederson, who was barely familiar with the offense — and it showed. |
| Offensive MVP |
| Really, no one deserves to be called the MVP of the Browns’ offense.
The team finished last in the league in scoring and yards per game. But since we have to
honor someone, rookie RB Travis Prentice gets the nod. He led the team in rushing with 512
yards on 173 carries. He also rushed for seven touchdowns, the most for a Browns rookie
since Jim Brown. |
| Defensive MVP |
| It looks as though the Browns nailed the first overall pick in the draft.
With the top selection, Cleveland took DE Courtney Brown, who has all the makings of a
stud lineman. Brown played more defensive snaps than any other team member aside from FS
Percy Ellsworth. Brown was fifth on the team in tackles, first among defensive linemen. He
finished with 4½ sacks, which was third on the team. Brown led the team with 25 QB
pressures. |
| Biggest surprise |
| Before he got hurt, rookie JaJuan Dawson appeared to be on his way to
becoming the best wide receiver on the team. The third-round pick was leading the team in
catches when he broke his collarbone in Week Two, ending his season. The Browns are
hopeful he will become a big contributor in 2001. |
| Biggest disappointment |
| The fact that members of the Browns’ 1999 draft class — the
team’s first since returning to the league — didn’t elevate their games and
become leaders. Everyone except Tim Couch and LB Rahim Abdullah took a step backward in
2000. |
| Rookie recap |
| Courtney Brown is the real deal. WR Dennis Northcutt (second-round pick)
was a disappointment. He was slow to develop after a training-camp holdout. RB Travis
Prentice (third round) had his moments as a starter but is better-suited to be a
backup/role player. WR JaJuan Dawson’s fast start was cut short by an injury. CB
Lewis Sanders (fourth round) made some plays, but he needs to stay healthy. TE Aaron Shea
(fourth round) was a fine addition. He finished with 30 catches for 302 yards and two
touchdowns. CB Anthony Malbrough (fifth round) saw some action in dime situations. QB
Spergon Wynn (sixth round) was pushed into the lineup, though he was clearly not ready. S
Rashidi Barnes (seventh round) still needs to mature physically. |
| Free-agent/trade review |
| DE Keith McKenzie led the team with eight sacks but showed he may not be
an every-down player. Orpheus Roye was moved to defensive tackle to get Courtney Brown on
the field. Roye isn’t a true run stopper and may be shifted back outside. WR-KR David
Patten had a career-high 38 receptions and was a very pleasant surprise. OLT Roman Oben
was adequate. Errict Rhett did what was expected of him before injuring his foot in Week
Five. FS Percy Ellsworth made very few of the big plays he was signed to make. |
Top of page
|
Regular-season record: 3-13
|
| Team leaders |
|
Rushing — Travis
Prentice, 512 yards on 173 carries, 3.0 avg., 7 TDs.
Passing — Tim
Couch, 137-215 attempts for 1,483 yards, 7 TDs, 9 interceptions, 77.3 rating.
Receiving — Kevin
Johnson, 57 receptions for 669 yards, 11.7 avg., 0 TDs.
Scoring — Phil
Dawson, 59 points on 17 PATs and 14 FGs.
Kickoff returns — Jamel
White, 43 for 935 yards, 21.7 avg., 0 TDs.
Punt returns — Dennis
Northcutt, 27 for 289 yards, 10.7 avg., 0 TDs.
Punting — Chris
Gardocki, 108 for 45.5 avg., 37.3 net, 5 TB, 25 inside 20, 0 blk., 67L.
Interceptions — Corey
Fuller, 3 for 0 yards, 0.0 avg., 0 TDs.
Sacks — Keith
McKenzie, 8. |
| Results |
|
| Pointspread Shown Refers to Cleveland. |
| Date |
Opponent |
Spread |
Score |
| Sept. 3 |
Jacksonville |
(+9.5) |
7-27 |
| Sept. 10 |
At Cincinnati |
(+6.5) |
24-7 |
| Sept. 17 |
Pittsburgh |
(+1.5) |
23-20 |
| Sept. 24 |
At Oakland |
(+10) |
10-36 |
| Oct. 1 |
Baltimore |
(+8) |
0-12 |
| Oct. 8 |
At Arizona |
(+4.5) |
21-29 |
| Oct. 15 |
At Denver |
(+12) |
10-44 |
| Oct. 22 |
At Pittsburgh |
(+13) |
0-22 |
| Oct. 29 |
Cincinnati |
(+3) |
3-12 |
| Nov. 5 |
New York Giants |
(+10) |
3-24 |
| Nov. 12 |
New England |
(+7) |
19-11 |
| Nov. 19 |
At Tennessee |
(+16.5) |
10-24 |
| Nov. 26 |
At Baltimore |
(+17.5) |
7-44 |
| Dec. 3 |
At Jacksonville |
(+14.5) |
0-48 |
| Dec. 10 |
Philadelphia |
(+14) |
24-35 |
| Dec. 17 |
Tennessee |
(+16) |
0-24 |
| Dec. 24 |
BYE |
|
|
|
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