After head coach Eric Mangini gave players the day off on Tuesday, the team had to prepare for two sessions on Wednesday as the Family Fun Day this Saturday approaches. What activities did the Browns players partake in this morning?
TRAINING CAMP REPORT - DAY 5 [MORNING] (8/4/10)
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Gerard Lawson's Big Day: You might not hear defensive back Gerard Lawson's name for the remainder of camp, but when a player has two interceptions in 11-on-11 drills, they've earned some recognition. The third year player intercepted Colt McCoy and Seneca Wallace; the pick on McCoy was reportedly taken back for a touchdown on a pass intended for WR Jonathan Haggerty. Wallace's interception was intended for TE Evan Moore.
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Player Carted Off Field: The Browns had their first player of camp carted off the field this morning after defensive back Chris Roberson twisted awkwardly while trying to defend a pass thrown to Joshua Cribbs. As of this moment, Roberson's injury has not been disclosed.
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Cribbs' Great Catch: On the play in which Roberson was hurt, Cribbs reportedly made an outstanding one-handed catch. Both of the players fell as Cribbs hauled in the pass, but unfortunately Roberson wasn't able to get up right away.
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Delhomme's Day: Delhomme suffered an interception when Sheldon Brown grabbed a long pass of his intended for Brian Robiskie. Shortly after that though, Delhomme was able to connect with Robiskie on about a 50-yard touchdown with Mike Adams in coverage. Adams reportedly complained about offensive pass interference, but it wasn't called. Delhomme also had an impressive pass over the middle to tight end Ben Watson. Dawg Scooper also has a nice tidbit on their site about Delhomme throwing a pass blindly but accurately.
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The Other Quarterbacks: If you ask CBSSports.com, their reviews of Seneca Wallace and Colt McCoy weren't so hit today: they said Wallace has cooled down, and McCoy didn't look very good during the morning session. Maybe both quarterbacks received the negative marks for getting intercepted by Gerard Lawson.
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T.J. Ward Forces a Fumble: Defenders should never give up on a play, and rookie satefy T.J. Ward showed why Wednesday morning. Delhomme threw a pass down the sideline to running back Jerome Harrison, and then Harrison took off. When he got to the five yard line, Ward came in and was able to strip and recover the football for a turnover.
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Injury Report: Despite practice being called off yesterday, several players (besides the ones on the PUP) still missed practice. Both fullbacks (Lawrence Vickers and Peyton Hillis) were out, as were cornerback DeAngelo Smith and linebacker Titus Brown. Brown made some noise in last year's camp, but I think we're too stacked this year for him to receive much recognition.
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Returning Players: Back on the field was right tackle John St. Clair. I wonder if Scott Kooistra is seeing action again too, because he wasn't listed on anyone's injury report. If St. Clair, Kooistra, and Tony Pashos are all indeed back, then I wonder who will see less playing time with the first team: Floyd Womack or Shawn Lauvao? Well...
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Today's O-Line Has Lauvao: According to the ABJ, at least for today, the first unit on the offensive line consisted of Lauvao (RG) and Pashos (RT), while the second unit consisted of Womack (RG) and St. Clair (RT). This is an interesting development, because Lauvao is seeing way more time with the first-team offense this early in camp than I ever expected.
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The Nickel Package: The ABJ noted how the Browns' cornerbacks lined up on the first team when in the nickel package. Eric Wright covered the slot receiver, while Sheldon Brown and Brandon McDonald lined up on the outside. At times, Brown would leave the game and Joe Haden would take his spot, not McDonald's. McDonald's chances can only improve with this news, as well as a guy like Coye Francies being stuck on the PUP still.
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Backup Tight End Spot: So far, all we've heard about in camp are Ben Watson and Evan Moore catching the ball, and Robert Royal blocking and catching. I'm really curious as to how Alex Smith has been doing, but I guess we'll have to wait until the preseason games because nobody is mentioning him.
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Cyclone Update: Dawg Scooper has the latest update on the Cyclone formation. Today, there was a play where Joshua Cribbs lined up in Shotgun with Seneca Wallace beside him. Cribbs got the snap, and he handed it off to Wallace who ran for some yardage. I wonder if the Browns should try the Cyclone during the preseason a lot, or save it all for the regular season only?
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James Davis = Leading Candidate?: If you can run, that's one thing. If you can block too, that's the thing that will get you a roster spot in the battle betwen James Davis and Chris Jennings. When speaking to the media, Mangini praised Davis for his rush recognition on two blocks from a recent practice.
- Brownies: The OBR reports that Coye Francies and C.J. Mosley were running sprints off to the side, so they might not be too far off from returning...Roger Goodell will be at camp tomorrow, along with Sirius NFL Radio, so maybe we'll have an update as to whether Shaun Rogers and/or Robaire Smith will receive suspensions...the team has an evening session later, but there is a chance of thunderstorms.
Wednesday's Link Collection / Camp Sources [Morning Session]
- Training camp observations from A.M. practice (Dawg Scooper, Wolf)
- Mangini says Shaun Rogers not close to returning (Plain Dealer, Grossi)
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Observations from Browns training camp, morning practice (Akron Beacon Journal, Ulrich)
- Zastudil having surgically repaired knee re-checked (Plain Dealer, Cabot)
- Browns Rapid Reports (CBS Sports, Gitlin)
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Bobby Engram believes he can add life to Browns' receiving corps (Plain Dealer, Grossi)