The Browns finally earned their first win on Sunday against the Bengals, but running back [Trent Richardson] didn’t have much to do with it.
Richardson had 14 carries for 37 yards before leaving with a rib injury that was too painful for him to continue. A source told PFT’s Mike Florio that Richardson will have an MRI on Monday.
The Browns had announced Richardson as leaving with a “flank” injury, which is not to suggest that the team views Richardson as a piece of meat.
With Richardson out, backup running back [Montario Hardesty] had 14 carries for 56 yards and a touchdown for the Browns.
Bluez . . . Is that you in the lederhosen?i brought a pair back to the States when i left Germany ..my fat azz cant fit into them anymore . might have something to do with me growing man boobs
(Nice boobs)
To me, there was nothing like a sunny fall Sunday afternoon on the shores of Lake Erie. Days like yesterday were commonplace when I was a kid. Growing up, Sunday Browns Football was my religion. My father and mother both grew up on Browns football, going to the games at Old Cleveland Stadium with their fathers. In a way, The Browns home games brought my parents together. My dad’s father was a season ticket holder in 1946, he had two seats in section 37. Over the years, the family had grown and so did the popularity of the NFL. Two tickets became four, four became eight, and as my father and his two brothers started families of their own, eight became 12. My mother’s father had his two tickets in row one of section 37. My grandfathers knew each other and my dad was checking my mom out at games.
The rest, as they say, is history.
By the time I was in the picture, my uncle had four on the aisle in row three, my dad had four on the in row four, and my other uncle had four in row five, while my grandfather had two right across the way in row 4 of the next section. So we were all together. Our routine was the same every game. My Uncle would pick everyone up at our house and pile into his Suburban. My father, the single greatest sports-traffic-navigator was always the driver downtown. Usually 10 people in the car – a mix of parents, cousins, aunts, uncles, and friends. We would leave promptly at 11:30am for a 1:00pm kickoff. Everyone had their job. My mom was in charge of bringing the deli sandwiches from Davis Bakery – we all had our usual orders (I’m a turkey off the bone with mayo guy, my uncle’s staple was Corned Beef on rye with russian dressing). My dad bought the programs from our same program guy – he always asked for a sandwich. My Uncle bought the pregame hotdogs – A dog with ketchup was referred to as a “wimp dog,” the man swears by Stadium Mustard and rightfully so.
In close games, My father, always the most unselfish guy, would go down to the car before the game ended. He would drive it up to the top of the hill in the parking lot adjascent to the stadium and have a cop sit it in to stay warm while he ran back into the stadium to watch the finish. This was the 70′s and 80′s when you could actually get away with moves like this. When the game was over, we all sprinted to the car, our feet numb from the cold, and jumped into the Suburban. Dad would take over there – nobody was a better aggressive driver out of the madness of traffic after Browns games than him. To quote my uncle, nobody could “Stay Tight” quite like my father.
I didn’t know how good I had it when I was a kid. Not only was I lucky enough to have seats, but the Browns were winners. My formative years were with Bernie, Ozzie, Clay, Hanford, and Mighty Minnie.
Since the Browns have returned, I still watch go to/watch every game, read everything I can about the team, write about the team, but it isn’t the same. I loved going to the games as a family at the old stadium. There was something about that decrepit old relic on the lake; the smells, the disgusting bathrooms, hiking up the hill from the parking lot, walking into the den of fans waiting to get through the turnstiles chanting “Here we go Brownies, here we go, Woof Woof.” Now, like everything else in pro sports, its a bland new stadium with too much commercialism and I am being “wanded” before walking in.
I lived in Chicago from 1999-2006 and would come back for the home opener every year. My father passed away in November of 2004 and going to games without him was extremely hard. When the Browns came back and moved into the new stadium, the core of our family split in terms of tickets. We were down to eight with my mom and my uncle continuing on the tradition, but we no longer had the need for so many seats. Fast forward to 2012 and I am a father of two. My son is now five and loves the game of football. We now have three seats, as does my uncle. One of my oldest and closest friends now has the two next to us and we have started our own new set of traditions.
However, the only traditions that has seemed to stick with the new group are the deli sandwiches and the losing.
I don’t need to tell you how bad the era of “The New Browns” football has been. 8,000 Quarterbacks, two winning seasons, one playoff game, and very little excitement. There has been one failed regime change after another. We’ve had so little to cheer about, especially since the Pat Shurmur takeover. But I look back at yesterday’s [34-24 win over the Cincinnati Bengals] and feel like we, the fans, deserved that one.
The beautifully thrown and incredibly caught bomb from Brandon Weeden to Josh Gordon.
The Josh Cribbs punt return.
The resilience of Montario Hardesty.
The triumphant return of Joe Haden.
The Sheldon Brown pick six.
The Emmanuel Stephens/Billy Winn strip sack.
The victory formation.
I lifted my son in the air to see all of the big plays as the crowd erupted. He was going crazy. I high fived my Uncle and my mother, who were both at the 1964 NFL Championship game as kids. I walked out of the stadium with my oldest friend and we talked about how great it would be if we could have this feeling on a regular basis.
We had such a great time yesterday. Everyone did. The place was as loud as it has been in years. I just can’t imagine what it would be like down there if the Browns became a regular Super Bowl contender. It was so good for me as child of the 80′s knowing my team was going to be competitive every single year. Recently my son asked me why the teams we watch always lose. I tried to explain to him that he was born into this misery just as I was, but that you have to stick with your teams win or lose. Its real easy to be a Yankees. Being and Indians or a Browns fan is a true test of character and it molds you. It teaches you how to appreciate the good times. Our highs are much higher, while our lows are much lower.
He didn’t seem to get it. Then again, he’s only five. But he did understand what sharing that winning feeling with 70,000 of your closest friends was like after yesterday.
Here’s hoping that new Jimmy Haslam regime can keep these good vibes going.
Lord knows we all deserve it.
BPP ..Thanks
Jake yes waking up on Monday morning after a Browns win is sooooooo much sweeter
lets keep this up .
..the last link to 95 has been removed with the Lerners selling the franchise . 
Goggles On
Keep em coming Duff… Today is GOOD day to be a Browns fan.
TD... Keep-er floored this is looking like it may be a FUN ride afterall
Bark Loud and proud Brownies...
Today we celebrate the first of MANY wins to come
Here we go Brownies here we go.
WOOF WOOF!!!
The news is in about the rib injury that forced Browns rookie running back [Trent Richardson] out of Sunday’s win over the Bengals.
It should lead to a sigh of relief from the team. Coach Pat Shurmur gave an update on Richardson’s condition during his Monday press conference and it sounds like serious damage was averted.
“Trent’s fine. He has a right rib cartilage injury and [he’s day to day],” Shurmur said, via Marla Ridenour of the Akron Beacon-Journal.
Richardson had 14 carries for 37 yards against Cincinnati on Sunday before leaving in the third quarter after taking a helmet to the side during a play. [Montario Hardesty] replaced him and ran for 56 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries, which helped the Browns snap their losing streak without one of their leading lights.
If Richardson is able to go next weekend, he’ll have a shot at putting up some good numbers. The Browns face the Colts, who were abused by the Jets run game on Sunday afternoon to the tune of 227 yards that included a huge game for [Shonn Greene]. Richardson is capable of that kind of performance if he’s healthy and that could move the Browns quickly from losing streak to winning streak.
Extra Points …
T-Rich update: Running back Trent Richardson, who took a helmet shot to his right ribs early in the Cincinnati game, has a rib/cartilage injury and is “day to day,” said coach Pat Shurmur.
Richardson was in obvious pain after the injury and tried to play through it but was taken out for good in the third quarter.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that Richardson had an MRI Monday on the injury. The Browns don’t comment on the results of MRIs.
When the Browns promoted receiver Josh Cooper from the practice squad on Friday, one move considered to make room was to release one of their four running backs. Instead, the team opted to put Jordan Norwood (foot) on reserve/injured with the designation to come back in eight weeks.
Shurmur conceded last week that one reason he enjoyed having a surplus at running back was because of the constant turmoil at the position last year.
Big Phil’s return: Defensive tackle Phil Taylor, out since having surgery in May on a torn pectoral muscle, is eligible to return to the practice field this week. The Browns then will have a 21-day window to either activate Taylor or sideline him for the year.
“We’re going to get him in there soon,” Shurmur said. “We can start practicing, then have the 21-day window and all that. I’ll let that play itself out. He’s absolutely where we thought he’d be at this point. We’re going to get him going soon.”
Barring a setback on the practice field, it’s conceivable Taylor could be activated before the Nov. 11 bye. They have games at Indianapolis and at home against San Diego and Baltimore before their bye.
In Taylor’s absence, rookies Billy Winn and John Hughes have held down the fort. They started next to each other against Cincinnati with Ahtyba Rubin out with a lower leg injury.
Winn was on the field for 57 of 71 defensive snaps. He was credited with one tackle and had the big recovery of the Emmanuel Stephens strip-sack at the Browns’ 23-yard line and the 35-yard return to preserve the 34-24 win. Hughes had two tackles.
“I think every game the rookie D-linemen have been constantly progressing, from camp through the first few games,” said linebacker D’Qwell Jackson. “I think with the addition of Phil, it’s gonna make more competition in that room. I think he’s itching to come back because of the way those guys are playing.”
Incidentally, that was Rubin’s first game missed with an injury in his five NFL seasons. When all are healthy, that should be a formidable rotation at the two tackle spots.
Deflection city: Brandon Weeden counted three of his passes batted by Cincinnati linemen on Sunday. One resulted in the interception by defensive end Michael Johnson. Unofficially, Weeden has 10 passes deflected by linemen in six games.
He sounded thoroughly frustrated by the experience.
“You know, it’s tough,” he said in a conference call hookup on Monday. “Sometimes when guys don’t really rush, they’re coached to stick their arms up and try to get in throwing lanes. AS a quarterback, it’s tough … you’re trying to pull the trigger and it’s tough to throw around guys. I’d like to throw a curveball like in baseball, but it’s not that easy. We’ve got to look at that. It’s tough. I mean, that’s a good play by them. As a quarterback, it’s kind of tough to overcome.”
Shurmur said most linemen are taught to raise their arms when they don’t rush and Weeden’s 6-3 height alone is not going to avoid the obstacle.
“It’s not a mechanics issue,” Shurmur said. “You typically want to throw in windows. No matter how tall you are, you can’t really be throwing over guys. It’s a coordinated effort. You throw balls in all areas of the field. You want to throw in windows. You want to get their hands down with some of the quick throws.
“There are ways of getting their hands down. You just don’t want to make it quite an obvious thing.”
One of Weeden’s 97 mph fastballs to the kisser would do the trick.
You ain’t seen nuthin’ yet: Weeden had no trouble spinning the ball through the 19 mph winds inside Cleveland Browns Stadium on Sunday.
“I think yesterday was probably the worst (wind) I’ve played in,” Weeden said. “I played in Lubbock, Texas, but it didn’t swirl like yesterday. Lubbock was just straight into and down wind.”
Note to Weeden: Wait till December.
Victory Monday positive stats: Josh Gordon’s 22.8-yard average on 12 catches leads the NFL among receivers with 10 or more catches … Phil Dawson has 50 points through six games. That pace would give him 133 for the year, which would be a career high for him in his 14<sup>th</sup> NFL season … Dawson is 12 for 12 on field goals this year and has made 18 in a row overall … The Browns have 10 interceptions, tied for third in the league. They had nine all last year … Josh Cribbs washed up? He’s second in the NFL with a punt return average of 15.4 yards and third with a 31.3 average on kickoff returns. Both figures are career highs for him.
