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Browns QB
Tim Couch
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Most everyone in this season-preview edition of Pro Football Weekly picks the
Cleveland Browns to finish last. Worse yet, they’re the worst last-place team around,
ranking sixth in the AFC Central. Every other division has five teams.
But let’s not lament the fact the Browns are last. Let’s talk about their two
firsts, DE Courtney Brown and QB Tim Couch.
It’s early in both of their careers to make any grand statements, but here’s
one man’s assessment so far: Brown appears to have been the right choice with the top
pick in this year’s draft, while the jury is still out on Couch as the first
selection in 1999.
The Browns are one of just a handful of clubs in NFL history that has had consecutive
No. 1 overall picks. Barring any unforeseen injuries or contract disputes (and neither
player seems like the type to stir up trouble), Brown and Couch should grow up together,
leaders on both sides of the ball. They already are the most important players on their
respective units; in a recent issue of PFW (Vol. XV, No. 6), we projected Couch and Brown
as Cleveland’s offensive and defensive MVPs, respectively.
Through three preseason games, neither had played like an MVP. Surprisingly, Brown had
yet to record a sack. But you could see signs of the greatness within him.
In the Browns’ second exhibition game, vs. the Bears, Brown barely got a hand on
Bears QBs Cade McNown and Shane Matthews but made his presence felt in other ways.
The Bears double-teamed Brown a fair amount. That won’t do much for your
individual stats, but it will help out your teammates.
Not that Brown ever has been about personal glory. "The Quiet Storm," as one
of his Penn State coaches once called him, never engages in trash talk.
"It’s hard to get him to talk, period," Browns DL mate Stalin Colinet
says.
"Perfect rookie," Browns OT James Brown says. "Doesn’t talk at
all."
Yapping up a storm is not a job requirement. It works for John Randle, Colinet’s
ex-Vikings teammate, but it isn’t for everyone.
"It’s OK with me," Colinet says. "As long as you go out and
perform, you don’t have to talk. You can be silent. A mute. Just play."
Courtney Brown personifies the notion that actions speak louder than words. And while
he did not have a sack vs. the Bears, he made a couple of plays that popped.
In the first quarter, Brown, bursting from his DLE position, knifed into the
Bears’ backfield and brought down RB Curtis Enis for a one-yard loss. Yes, I know;
the plodding Enis is easier to tackle than a starving "Survivor" cast member
these days. But the fact of the matter is, Brown wasn’t supposed to be in the
Bears’ backfield. Only the late, great Walter Payton might have gotten back to the
line of scrimmage.
In the second quarter, Brown showed off his amazing athleticism on a play that
didn’t show up in the box score. After McNown faked a handoff to Enis, the
Bears’ burly back cut down his former Nittany Lions teammate with a perfectly
executed block, Enis’ shoulder pads whamming into Brown’s thighs. But the cut
block didn’t stop Brown. He used his hands to keep his balance and continue his
attack on McNown, who released the ball just before Brown arrived.
Near-misses don’t count in football, but neither do preseason games, and I
don’t think Brown has revealed his full arsenal. Opposing offensive tackles better be
wary of Brown’s spin move, one of many that have impressed teammates and coaches in
practice.
"You’re looking at it like, ‘Wow.’ Only he can do it,"
Stalinet says. "It’s just so fast, it’s just so quick. Some guys have to
slow down. He does it at full speed."
Stalinet says the best of Brown is yet to come. How good can he be? "As good as he
wants to be," says Orpheus Roye, another of Brown’s DL mates.
Regardless of his preseason sack total (which isn’t an accurate barometer anyway;
Brown has yet to play a full game, and it usually takes just one sack a game to lead the
league), the Browns appear to have made the right choice by taking Brown over ex-teammate
LaVar Arrington. Arrington, who may very well turn out to be great, has had some attitude
problems in Washington. I’d just as soon avoid any problems if I could.
But was Couch the proper pick? We may not know for years. Oftentimes, it’s hard to
tell with quarterbacks in the first few seasons. Rick Mirer beat out Drew Bledsoe for
Rookie of the Year honors in 1993, and look how that turned out. The Browns easily
could have passed on Couch for Donovan McNabb or Akili Smith; they ended up going 1-2-3.
None of the members of the QB Class of ’99 has pulled away from the others. There is
no Peyton Manning-Ryan Leaf disparity just yet.
Word out of Cleveland is that Couch has not had the best summer. At times, he has held
on to the ball too long. At others, he has locked on to top target Kevin Johnson. The
latter may explain why Couch threw three interceptions vs. the Bears; Johnson was out with
a hamstring injury.
Couch could have thrown four picks (one was dropped), and he looked more like a rookie
than a vet. He often appeared to be in a hurry, hopping around in the pocket and getting
rid of the ball before he needed to. On two of the interceptions, Couch forced the issue,
firing into double coverage over the middle. It made one wonder whether he had ever looked
off a safety.
Browns head coach Chris Palmer was quick to defend Couch, pointing out that he was
throwing to rookies.
"It’s everybody’s fault," Palmer said. "You guys want to put
the blame on one individual. It’s not one individual. It’s a matter of guys
getting on the same page. It’s not just him, but the wide receivers with him."
Couch may take a step back in his second year and be better for it down the road. Even
No. 1 overall picks experience growing pains. |
