Joe Jurevicius Has Surgery Again - Season in Question

by Chris Pokorny on Jul 1, 2008 10:21 PM EDT in General News Comment 15 comments

I think we all had a feeling this was coming, especially if you've been reading some of the "rumors" over at the OBR the past few days. Earlier today, the OBR broke the news that wide receiver Joe Jurevicius had a surgical procedure again late yesterday to clean out his knee.

Shortly after the OBR's story, the official site of the Cleveland Browns released the following:

BROWNS MEDICAL UPDATE ON JOE JUREVICIUS

In the process of his recovery and preparation for the upcoming season, Browns wide receiver Joe Jurevicius has had ongoing swelling and discomfort in his knee. Joe had a further clean out to help him in his recovery and control his symptoms. The procedure was performed late yesterday at the Cleveland Clinic. No determination has been made on Joe's status for training camp, which opens July 23rd.

Here's some more bad news: a fairly reputable poster at the OBR is reporting that a "source" of his believes that Jurevicius will retire because the condition of his knee is much worse than originally thought.

If these rumors are indeed true, it would make a lot more sense as to why the Browns were exploring the option of trading for San Diego Chargers wide receiver Eric Parker. Losing Jurevicius may not seem like a big loss on the surface because we have Donte Stallworth (thank you Phil Savage), but it would definitely raise some questions. Tim Carter was not very good as a third receiver for the Browns last year, and without Jurevicius, the candidates for our slot receiver (not including Kellen Winslow) are Travis Wilson, Kevin Kasper, and Joshua Cribbs.

What's common about all three contenders? None of them are proven.

Ring for Parker?

Please note: Nothing has officially stated that Jurevicius will even miss training camp. However, when he's having another surgery this late into the year, I can't imagine him being ready for the start of the regular season.

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Crap.

by rufio on Jul 1, 2008 11:47 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Sigh…... Damn it.

by Bernie19Kosar on Jul 2, 2008 12:29 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I figured there would be no sense in me attaching a “Does this news upset you?” poll to this post, as I’m sure almost all of us are echoing the comments of rufio and Mr. Kosar…:-(

Dawgs By Nature - Find out why Pittsburgh still sucks.

by Chris Pokorny on Jul 2, 2008 12:55 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Say it ain't so Joe!

EOM

by vincefitz on Jul 2, 2008 1:47 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Haha, I swear that I was going to make that the title of this post originally (Say it ain’t so, Joe!)

Decided to go for a headline that the news crawlers would pick up easier though :-(

Dawgs By Nature - Find out why Pittsburgh still sucks.

by Chris Pokorny on Jul 2, 2008 10:23 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Is there a bright side?

If this is true and Joe is out, this is probably why we are hearing so many rumors about acquiring a WR. I guess we may find out how good Kasper and/or Wilson are…Cribbs may see the field some more which everyone agrees would be nice. I could see more sets with Winslow flanked out which they do a lot anyway. I still don’t see us signing another wideout when we NEED to sure up the secondary.

by bellar on Jul 2, 2008 10:14 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Right —if Rucker turns out to be a good receiving threat at the NFL level, Winslow can be shifted to the slot (much like last year) more often.

Dawgs By Nature - Find out why Pittsburgh still sucks.

by Chris Pokorny on Jul 2, 2008 10:27 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Do you really think Kasper is the next guy to include on the list? What about him do you see as putting him ahead of the other guys we have?

by rufio on Jul 2, 2008 1:52 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I would expect we keep Travis Wilson and Hubbard before we keep Kevin Kasper. I also think we should try and make a move for Shaun McDonald from the Lions since Marinelli has emphasized that he wants to the team to be a run-oriented offense.

by Roger Dorn on Jul 2, 2008 6:52 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Well, at least this explains all those WR rumors.

Matt Jones looks better now….

Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then seek to win.

by BringBackKosar on Jul 2, 2008 11:11 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

No it was more a list of options

Kasper has 24 career catches Wilson has played in like 3 games. Cribbs is too valuable on special teams so those seem to be the real options. Hubbard excites me even less but I did like the idea of Rucker at TE and flexing Winslow out as we often did last year. If Harrison sees more action we could get him involved in the passing game more. What current other guys did you have in mind? Steptoe, Sanders, ????

by bellar on Jul 2, 2008 4:47 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

It takes a lot for Romeo to praise someone, and probably even more to make it out of his doghouse and on to his “players that made a good impression” list. Wilson is in his 3rd year, the classic “breakout or be out of a job” season for WRs. He could be a guy to step up this year.

Efrem Hill had a really good preseason last year before he got hurt. He might be the only other guy that we don’t expect to contribute that actually ends up contributing this year. Beyond him, there are a few guys with upside.

I love Hubbard, but think he would be well served using his rookie season to refine his routes, learn more about the game, and work on catching. How can you not be excited about him? He is the classic “upside” WR. Big, tall, long, fast, jumps high, doesn’t know the position, drops some he should catch. He looked really fast in OTAs, and if that athleticism can translate to the field, he’ll be sweet. One helluva big “if”, though.

Lance Leggett was a nationally ranked track runner at “the U”. He is 6’3”, 200. Another upside guy. We are going to have to wait till at least training camp to see if any of these guys are close to being able to step in and help this year.

This is a tremendous problem to have. “Who do we have after our potential pro bowl, workhorse RB, pro bowl WR, pro bowl pass catching TE, really fast smaller receiver who was just part of the most prolific passing offense in history, underrated 2nd TE, versatile FB, “lightning in a bottle” 3rd RB, 2nd best Olineman in the league, and best Oline in the league?” Its like the Colts, who are apparently worrying because they don’t have anyone behind Harrison, Wayne, and Gonzales.

Our O will be fine. We have versatility. We could split 2 TEs outside if Rucker is ready, and still put Heiden on the line, and Heiden can still catch passes! Vickers can catch the call. We can just have one running play and one passing play called, and if the other team plays nickel to cover Winslow, we can run at them. If they have a base formation, or bring another safety up in coverage, we can use the pass play and throw it over their head. Our offense can be great, and we can still probably trade a QB for a first round pick next year.

by rufio on Jul 2, 2008 11:27 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Even if we assume Jurevicius is done for the year, I still like our receiving corps better than last year. To me Stallworth is an upgrade to Joe just because he is younger and his skill set compliments Braylon and Kellen well.

Travis Wilson has only one way to go and even if (insert WR who makes roster) does nothing the whole season, he has already matched Tim Carter’s productivity.

by Roger Dorn on Jul 2, 2008 6:55 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs