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Thomas on the field, Wright soon to follow
Steve King, Staff Writer
07.27.2007
It was time for left tackle Joe Thomas to be on the field.
Ditto for cornerback Eric Wright, but that time zone thing got the best of him.
That was the situation involving two of the Browns' prized rookies Friday afternoon as training camp began for the full squad with a one-hour, 20-minute practice.
Thomas, the No. 3 overall pick in the NFL Draft, and Wright, a second-rounder, both agreed to contract terms Thursday night, leaving quarterback Brady Quinn, the No. 22 overall choice, as the only draft pick without a contract and out of camp. Thomas went through the workout, but Wright couldn't make it back to town in time.
"Sometimes these guys forget that they're on the West Coast and have to come east," Browns head coach Romeo Crennel said of Wright's absence. "It takes time to make that trip. There were transportation issues. He'll be here tonight."
While Crennel would like for Wright to have been in camp, he didn't miss that much. The Browns worked in shorts and shell pads. On Saturday they'll go to full pads.
"It really was pretty easy out there today," Thomas said. "We were just knocking off the rust off. Tomorrow is when the real work starts."
Still, to Thomas, football is football, and he's glad he was there when camp opened.
"It was real important to me to be here from the start," he said. "Offensive linemen have the most to learn of any of the position groups to get ready for the season. We need the most camp of anybody."
COMING AND GOING: To make room on the roster for Wright and Thomas, the Browns waived rookie linebacker Kevin Sears and offensive lineman Kevin Lougheed.
INJURY UPDATE: Cornerback DeMario Minter, who missed all of his rookie season in 2006 with injury problems, sat out practice with what Crennel termed "a foot issue" that will take "three or four days" to resolve.
THAT WILL HELP: Following practice, Browns quarterback Charlie Frye presented a $50,000 check to Team Focus from the proceeds from the first Charlie Frye Golf Outing held recently in Ashland, Ohio. Frye has been active the last five years in Team Focus, a non-profit organization that provides fatherless boys with role models and positive influences that build character and create an environment that fosters self-esteem, self-worth and self-confidence. The role models help to develop leadership skills and motivate the boys to aspire to higher positive goals.
YOU BE THE JUDGE: National media people are visiting the Browns as they open camp. Clark Judge of the CBS Sportsline.com was here Friday to do a piece on Thomas, offensive guard Eric Steinbach and running back Jamal Lewis. He was joined by ESPN's Bob Holtzman (Frye, Anderson). Coming Sunday are Sports Illustrated Peter King and ESPN's Chris Mortensen. Here's what Judge had to say about the Browns: "They've got a long road ahead of them, but they're going about it the right way. If you want to win in Cleveland in November and December, you can't depend on throwing the ball. You've got to be able to run it. And by bringing in Eric Steinbach and drafting Joe Thomas, and if Seth McKinney can stay healthy and Ryan Tucker can come back, they have the makings of a good offensive line. It gets even better if LeCharles Bentley is able to add anything. With a good line, you can run the ball and it takes away from the number of plays your quarterback has to make. But it will be another rebuilding year, because the AFC North is such a tough division. So while the Browns are a better team, it may not translate to more wins this year and I don't know if that will be enough to satisfy these fans. I'm a big Phil Savage fan. It's just going to take time. You've got to have some patience. The successful franchises are the ones that don't make a lot of changes every year."
FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH: The first-team offense lined up pretty much the same way it did when the full-squad minicamp ended six weeks ago. The only addition was Kellen Winslow, who has recovered enough from offseason knee surgery to share time at tight end with Steve Heiden. The wide receivers were Braylon Edwards and Joe Jurevicius. Frye was at quarterback, Jamal Lewis at running back, Lawrence Vickers at fullback, Kevin Shaffer at left tackle, Steinbach at left guard, Hank Fraley at center, McKinney at right guard and Tucker at right tackle. But cautioned Crennel, "All positions are open for competition, because this is a competition business. We've got the most competition at this camp since I've been here, and that's a good thing because it will raise our level of play and make us better." He said quarterback (Frye, Anderson and Quinn), left tackle (Shaffer and Thomas) and punt returner (Joshua Cribbs, Syndric Steptoe, Brandon McDonald and a host of others) are the top position battles. He added that stopping the run and running the ball were other key team issues.
FAN FEVER: Even though there were droplets of rain and a strong chance of more of the same -- even severe thunderstorms -- in the forecast for the afternoon, fans started arriving on foot and in cars as much as three hours early to see the opening of camp. A good turnout of about 2,500 were on hand. The fans let out a big cheer when the Browns came out of the building for practice, and then gave Edwards and Winslow more cheers when they trotted out near the end of the group.
JUST VISITING: Former Browns All-Pro cornerback Hanford Dixon took in practice, as did Frye's head coach for his first three years at the University of Akron, Lee Owens, now in that same job at Ashland University.
SQUEEZE PLAY: Despite torrential rain late Thursday afternoon and some rain overnight that drenched the fields and threatened practice for a while, the Browns were able to get their work in under warm, mostly sunny skies. However, they had to practice at the far fields because the ones nearest their training headquarters were still water-logged. Then about 90 minutes after practice, it began raining again.
FASHION SENSE: There were fans sporting replica jerseys of Thomas (73), veteran linebacker Chaun Thompson (51) and Pro Football Hall of Fame running Jim Brown (32), who took in practice in his role as executive advisor to the Browns. This might be the first Thompson jersey at camp, which will make the personable fifth-year pro happy. One woman wore a pink No. 10 Quinn jersey.
SEPARATED AT BIRTH: With their dreadlocks flowing out of the back of their helmets, and the fact they're just an inch apart in height, Cribbs and fellow wide receiver Efram Hill looked a lot alike when they ran through drills.
UP NEXT: The Browns hold their first two-a-day practices on Saturday, with sessions going from 8:45-10:45 a.m. and 5:30-7:30 p.m. This is the first of four two-a-days in a seven-day stretch. There are six two-a-day practices scheduled overall before camp breaks on Aug. 23. Before leaving home, fans, especially those living in outlying areas, are strongly urged to call the Browns training camp hotline at 440-891-5211 to check the status of practice that day. Mostly weather but also other factors can alter the practice schedule and fan availability.
ONE MORE THING: As part of camp on Saturday, the Browns will host the seventh annual Dr. Charles Drew Blood Drive from 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the Kleist Center for Art and Drama at nearby Baldwin-Wallace College. All those who come to donate will receive a free Browns t-shirt and will be automatically entered to win team collectibles. Registered donors will also receive a buy-one-get-one-free coupon for tickets for the opening preseason game on Aug. 11 between the Browns and Kansas City Chiefs at Cleveland Browns Stadium. In addition, every donor will be entered in the Red Cross-sponsored Zero to Hero sweepstakes to win a variety of prizes, including one of six $500 gas cards. Former Browns standout defensive tackle Bob Gain will be at B-W from 11 a.m. to noon to meet donors and sign autographs. The blood drive will be held simultaneously Saturday at 15 sites in Northeast Ohio. For more information, call 1-800-GIVE-LIFE (1-800-448-3543) or visit www.RedCrossDonor.org.
QUOTABLES: "We've been in shorts for a while. We'll be in full pads tomorrow, and we'll start hitting. We'll finally get to play some real football." -- Crennel on the weariness with which he views "fake" football.
Each day in King's Korner, ClevelandBrowns.com staff writer Steve King provides unique insight on the day's events at Browns Training Camp. King has covered the team since 1990.
LINK
Steve King, Staff Writer
07.27.2007
It was time for left tackle Joe Thomas to be on the field.
Ditto for cornerback Eric Wright, but that time zone thing got the best of him.
That was the situation involving two of the Browns' prized rookies Friday afternoon as training camp began for the full squad with a one-hour, 20-minute practice.
Thomas, the No. 3 overall pick in the NFL Draft, and Wright, a second-rounder, both agreed to contract terms Thursday night, leaving quarterback Brady Quinn, the No. 22 overall choice, as the only draft pick without a contract and out of camp. Thomas went through the workout, but Wright couldn't make it back to town in time.
"Sometimes these guys forget that they're on the West Coast and have to come east," Browns head coach Romeo Crennel said of Wright's absence. "It takes time to make that trip. There were transportation issues. He'll be here tonight."
While Crennel would like for Wright to have been in camp, he didn't miss that much. The Browns worked in shorts and shell pads. On Saturday they'll go to full pads.
"It really was pretty easy out there today," Thomas said. "We were just knocking off the rust off. Tomorrow is when the real work starts."
Still, to Thomas, football is football, and he's glad he was there when camp opened.
"It was real important to me to be here from the start," he said. "Offensive linemen have the most to learn of any of the position groups to get ready for the season. We need the most camp of anybody."
COMING AND GOING: To make room on the roster for Wright and Thomas, the Browns waived rookie linebacker Kevin Sears and offensive lineman Kevin Lougheed.
INJURY UPDATE: Cornerback DeMario Minter, who missed all of his rookie season in 2006 with injury problems, sat out practice with what Crennel termed "a foot issue" that will take "three or four days" to resolve.
THAT WILL HELP: Following practice, Browns quarterback Charlie Frye presented a $50,000 check to Team Focus from the proceeds from the first Charlie Frye Golf Outing held recently in Ashland, Ohio. Frye has been active the last five years in Team Focus, a non-profit organization that provides fatherless boys with role models and positive influences that build character and create an environment that fosters self-esteem, self-worth and self-confidence. The role models help to develop leadership skills and motivate the boys to aspire to higher positive goals.
YOU BE THE JUDGE: National media people are visiting the Browns as they open camp. Clark Judge of the CBS Sportsline.com was here Friday to do a piece on Thomas, offensive guard Eric Steinbach and running back Jamal Lewis. He was joined by ESPN's Bob Holtzman (Frye, Anderson). Coming Sunday are Sports Illustrated Peter King and ESPN's Chris Mortensen. Here's what Judge had to say about the Browns: "They've got a long road ahead of them, but they're going about it the right way. If you want to win in Cleveland in November and December, you can't depend on throwing the ball. You've got to be able to run it. And by bringing in Eric Steinbach and drafting Joe Thomas, and if Seth McKinney can stay healthy and Ryan Tucker can come back, they have the makings of a good offensive line. It gets even better if LeCharles Bentley is able to add anything. With a good line, you can run the ball and it takes away from the number of plays your quarterback has to make. But it will be another rebuilding year, because the AFC North is such a tough division. So while the Browns are a better team, it may not translate to more wins this year and I don't know if that will be enough to satisfy these fans. I'm a big Phil Savage fan. It's just going to take time. You've got to have some patience. The successful franchises are the ones that don't make a lot of changes every year."
FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH: The first-team offense lined up pretty much the same way it did when the full-squad minicamp ended six weeks ago. The only addition was Kellen Winslow, who has recovered enough from offseason knee surgery to share time at tight end with Steve Heiden. The wide receivers were Braylon Edwards and Joe Jurevicius. Frye was at quarterback, Jamal Lewis at running back, Lawrence Vickers at fullback, Kevin Shaffer at left tackle, Steinbach at left guard, Hank Fraley at center, McKinney at right guard and Tucker at right tackle. But cautioned Crennel, "All positions are open for competition, because this is a competition business. We've got the most competition at this camp since I've been here, and that's a good thing because it will raise our level of play and make us better." He said quarterback (Frye, Anderson and Quinn), left tackle (Shaffer and Thomas) and punt returner (Joshua Cribbs, Syndric Steptoe, Brandon McDonald and a host of others) are the top position battles. He added that stopping the run and running the ball were other key team issues.
FAN FEVER: Even though there were droplets of rain and a strong chance of more of the same -- even severe thunderstorms -- in the forecast for the afternoon, fans started arriving on foot and in cars as much as three hours early to see the opening of camp. A good turnout of about 2,500 were on hand. The fans let out a big cheer when the Browns came out of the building for practice, and then gave Edwards and Winslow more cheers when they trotted out near the end of the group.
JUST VISITING: Former Browns All-Pro cornerback Hanford Dixon took in practice, as did Frye's head coach for his first three years at the University of Akron, Lee Owens, now in that same job at Ashland University.
SQUEEZE PLAY: Despite torrential rain late Thursday afternoon and some rain overnight that drenched the fields and threatened practice for a while, the Browns were able to get their work in under warm, mostly sunny skies. However, they had to practice at the far fields because the ones nearest their training headquarters were still water-logged. Then about 90 minutes after practice, it began raining again.
FASHION SENSE: There were fans sporting replica jerseys of Thomas (73), veteran linebacker Chaun Thompson (51) and Pro Football Hall of Fame running Jim Brown (32), who took in practice in his role as executive advisor to the Browns. This might be the first Thompson jersey at camp, which will make the personable fifth-year pro happy. One woman wore a pink No. 10 Quinn jersey.
SEPARATED AT BIRTH: With their dreadlocks flowing out of the back of their helmets, and the fact they're just an inch apart in height, Cribbs and fellow wide receiver Efram Hill looked a lot alike when they ran through drills.
UP NEXT: The Browns hold their first two-a-day practices on Saturday, with sessions going from 8:45-10:45 a.m. and 5:30-7:30 p.m. This is the first of four two-a-days in a seven-day stretch. There are six two-a-day practices scheduled overall before camp breaks on Aug. 23. Before leaving home, fans, especially those living in outlying areas, are strongly urged to call the Browns training camp hotline at 440-891-5211 to check the status of practice that day. Mostly weather but also other factors can alter the practice schedule and fan availability.
ONE MORE THING: As part of camp on Saturday, the Browns will host the seventh annual Dr. Charles Drew Blood Drive from 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the Kleist Center for Art and Drama at nearby Baldwin-Wallace College. All those who come to donate will receive a free Browns t-shirt and will be automatically entered to win team collectibles. Registered donors will also receive a buy-one-get-one-free coupon for tickets for the opening preseason game on Aug. 11 between the Browns and Kansas City Chiefs at Cleveland Browns Stadium. In addition, every donor will be entered in the Red Cross-sponsored Zero to Hero sweepstakes to win a variety of prizes, including one of six $500 gas cards. Former Browns standout defensive tackle Bob Gain will be at B-W from 11 a.m. to noon to meet donors and sign autographs. The blood drive will be held simultaneously Saturday at 15 sites in Northeast Ohio. For more information, call 1-800-GIVE-LIFE (1-800-448-3543) or visit www.RedCrossDonor.org.
QUOTABLES: "We've been in shorts for a while. We'll be in full pads tomorrow, and we'll start hitting. We'll finally get to play some real football." -- Crennel on the weariness with which he views "fake" football.
Each day in King's Korner, ClevelandBrowns.com staff writer Steve King provides unique insight on the day's events at Browns Training Camp. King has covered the team since 1990.
LINK
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