Signs Point Toward Montario Hardesty Starting Against Bengals

by Chris Pokorny on Nov 23, 2011 8:56 PM EST

The reward for Chris Ogbonnaya rushing for 100+ yards for the first time in his career this past Sunday? Giving the starting gig back to Montario Hardesty. "If Montario can go he’ll start," said Shurmur when asked what Hardesty's role would be if he was active for the game. He did add that we would still see Ogbonnaya in the game quite a bit.

When asked if Hardesty would participate in team drills Wednesday, he responded by saying, "He’ll practice today. He’ll be out there." Sure enough, according to reports, Hardesty took part in team drills with the first-team offense. Unless he suffers a setback, I think it's safe to assume that he will see significant action against the Cincinnati Bengals this Sunday.

One player the Browns might not have in the backfield is fullback Owen Marecic, who suffered a concussion against the Jaguars. "We have guys that will fill that position so we can call two-back type plays," said Shurmur when asked about who could replace Marecic. "We have a pretty good stable of tight ends that are used to playing in the backfield so that could be the case." Reports indicated that tight end Alex Smith took reps at fullback with the first-team offense on Wednesday.

Lastly, there was some news on running back Peyton Hillis. He participated in practice for the first time today since November 4, but only took part in individual drills, according to the Akron Beacon Journal.

Hillis returned to practice today for the first time since he aggravated his injured hamstring during practice Nov. 4. Hillis was limited upon his return. He did some light work in at least one individual drill by shuffling sideways through bags. Hillis, who is pictured to the right, did not participate in team drills. As the open session ended, Hillis switched from walking to jogging as he moved to the next drill.

For more of Shurmur's Wednesday press conference, click here.

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So after doing it in a game, NOW Alex Smith practices at FB. Awesome.

Even Doug Dieken admits Joe Thomas is the real #73

by Doc's Kid on Nov 23, 2011 9:14 PM EST reply actions

Well, hopefully this actually happens.

With or Without the H

by johnf34 on Nov 24, 2011 12:18 AM EST reply actions

Hillis has been out with a pulled hamstring for what? Six weeks already? Can a pulled hamstring really sideline a guy for that long or is there something going on that they are not telling us? I’ve had pulled muscles, and I’ve pulled muscles playing football before, but I was always fine after a few days, a week at most. Can anyone shed some light on this sort of injury?

by duke4711 on Nov 24, 2011 12:45 AM EST reply actions

If I recall correctly, he did try and come back after a week or two without giving it enough time and re-aggravated the injury. I’ve heard hamstrings can be pretty finicky.

"It is unlikely that anyone has ever read Nietzsche or Derrida and has been inspired to open a soup kitchen"

by troy145 on Nov 24, 2011 1:06 AM EST up reply actions

Hamstrings get nasty sometimes. Had a college teammate miss 5 weeks last winter with one.

With or Without the H

by johnf34 on Nov 24, 2011 10:11 AM EST up reply actions

6 weeks could be legitimate. Especially because he tried to come back and re-injured it.

A “pull” is actually a mild tear, meaning a hamstring could be anywhere from a little sore to almost actually torn when we’re told its a pull or a strain.

But there’s definitely stuff happening in Berea that we don’t know about.

"Statistics are like bikinis. What they reveal is suggestive, but what they conceal is vital." - Aaron Levenstein

by rufio on Nov 24, 2011 10:49 AM EST up reply actions

A "pull" is actually a mild tear

Yes. This is a common misconception. The bottom line is the muscle fibers are “torn”. As mentioned above, a hamstring can be a really serious problem. And a re-injury can be a dicey situation and puts him at a greater risk of permanent injury. They have to be extremely cautious with Hillis especially after the re-injury. Further re-injury could cause problems for him long term (career-wise).

Go, I say go away boy, you bother me.

by burntorangeandbrown on Nov 24, 2011 7:48 PM EST up reply actions

Andre Johnson has been out as long as Hillis, no one has questioned him.

by Roger Dorn on Nov 25, 2011 1:49 PM EST up reply actions

That’s a good point. Maybe we can ship the Plain Dealer to Houston and fix that.

Dawgs By Nature - Where winning, apparently, did some bad things.

by Simmsinns on Nov 26, 2011 6:35 PM EST up reply actions

Hopefully, now that the O-line is playing better, Hardesty will be able to show some of what we were hoping to see when he was drafted.

"Men occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of them pick themselves up and hurry off as if nothing ever happened."
— Winston S. Churchill
I have the best wife - ever.

by JustBob on Nov 24, 2011 10:06 PM EST reply actions