Do you want to see a few Browns in Honolulu this February? For the first time since Jamir Miller nearly a decade ago, chances are the Browns will be sending not only one, but several players to the Pro Bowl. According to reports from Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer and Jeff Schudel of the Mourning Journal, these are the most recent tallies for our players:
- QB Derek Anderson: 3rd place (324,127 votes). With three quarterbacks making the Pro Bowl, chances are that Anderson is just barely ahead of Ben Roethlisberger at this point.
- FB Lawrence Vickers: 5th place (58,432 votes). It doesn't look good for Vickers to make it in at this point with the Chargers' Lorenzo Neal dominating the field.
- WR Braylon Edwards: 2nd place (334,402 votes). He is far, far, far, far, FAR behind Randy Moss, but he's still in starter to be a starting receiver.
- TE Kellen Winslow: 4th place (176,112 votes). This one seems criminal. With the exception of perhaps Antonio Gates, I don't see how Winslow could be lower than two other tight ends in the entire NFL, let alone the AFC.
- OG Eric Steinbach: 1st place (370,862 votes). Certainly, his reputation from the Cincinnati Bengals helped here, as we are probably getting the entire state of Ohio to vote for the productive left guard.
- C Hank Fraley: 5th place (85,877 votes). Really? Not that Fraley has done bad or anything, it's just I didn't expect him to get the amount of recognition all around to be voted fifth. Props to him.
- LT Joe Thomas: 5th place (120,654 votes). Since three tackles get voted into the Pro Bowl, Thomas isn't doing too bad. Maybe a little snub, but still, I can't complain.
- FS Brodney Pool: 5th place (43,178 votes). Sorry, but if Pool is the fifth best free safety in the AFC, then the talent level at the position overall in the league has to be pretty down.
- FS Sean Jones: 5th place (44,491 votes). So, not only do we have the fifth best free safety in the AFC, we have the fifth best strong safety? (Note: I'm not actually ignorant enough to believe people feel he is ranked fifth, without including the types of fans that are voting. I'm merely posing questions for the sake of saying something.)
- KR Joshua Cribbs: 2nd place (110,195 votes). It is bullocks that Wes Welker is ranked first right now; he's a contributor as a receiver much more than he is as a kick returner, and that's obviously skewing the votes. Plus, Leon Washington is also getting screwed over.
In other news, special teams linebacker Kris Griffin was placed on the injured reserve with a knee injury. Replacing him is the newly-signed special teams linebacker Colby Bockwoldt, who has been out of the league since the San Francisco 49ers waived him on September 1. Although I'm crediting him as a special teams player, he isn't a slouch in terms of experience. He's actually started at linebacker in 24 of his 48 games played in the NFL. Most of his playing time came from 2004-2005 with the New Orleans Saints. In 2005, he recorded 89 tackles on the season.
The Browns are looking much better on the injury front. It wouldn't be surprising if Ethan Kelley, Orpheus Roye, and Eric Wright all return this week. That would certainly provide a much-needed boost to our defense. Speaking of which, would the recently released defensive tackle Sam Adams be a nice addition to our defense? The issue seems to be that this is about the third or fourth time Adams has been cut in as many years, and every time people speculate that it was a "surprise" move. I wouldn't mind him as a stopgap if our injuries persist, but otherwise I'll pass.
Apologies for the tardiness of the review for the Cardinals/Browns game. The last thing I want to do is remind you guys of that loss again after you're finally getting over it, but I will have the review up and ready on Friday. I'm not happy about getting it up late, but a few projects this week have held me back.