It’s been a busy week of Browns news and views, and so far I’ve resisted jumping into the fray. I’ll be having much more to say about the Browns’ coaching staff and players in coming weeks.

Meanwhile, there are three more tough games for this embattled team to endure. Seems like nobody expects the Browns to come within 10 points of the Broncos today, but an upset win would surely send this team, and Tim Couch especially, a mile high.

Not that I think this is likely.

But I’ll be watching, just in case. A “franchise quarterback’s” future is up for grabs, as if a three-game audition at the end of his fifth year should determine his fate with the team. It will also be interesting to see Lee Suggs get a steady dose of handoffs. Sure, our O-line is this team’s weakness, but no more so than it has been the last few weeks, as Paul Zukauskas returns from bereavement leave to play right guard, after his fill-in, Chad Beasley suffered a grusome leg fracture last week.

Mostly, I’ll be keying on the effort this team puts forth. Will they lay down and die, as they did in Seattle, or will they display the dawgged determination we saw on Monday night, though ultimately to no avail? As a fan, I’d like this team to act with honor, class, and professionalism. Too many players are physical wrecks, and the season is a washout. And more ominously, though it’s subtle, there’s too much evidence of tentative play, a sign that the coaching staff is failing to support players’ confidence by fostering a spirit of positive cameraderie. Where we need merit rewarded, I see favoritism. Where we need leadership that addresses problems forthrightly, I see denials and blame-shifting. Where we need group cohesion and team identity, I see doubt, dissent, and a strange pattern of fraternization with opponents when they invade our end zone.

So the big question for me is this: will these last three weeks reveal a team that has merely taken one step back before and after taking two forward, or has this dreadfully disappointing 2003 season actually caused more damage than it has thus far sustained?