Coming back from winter vacation, I see that the Browns team is rapidly transmogrifying. Right now, the car’s jacked up, tires off, and loose wires hanging everywhere. How will master mechanics Davis & Co. put this baby back together? And will it be roadworthy for Division St., Playoff Ave., or Super Bowlevard?
A fond farewell to cornerback Corey Fuller, who played tough for four years, took a pay cut, switched positions when asked, even switched jersey numbers, and provided the type of leadership and character in painfully short supply on this roster. Along with Orpheus Roye and Earl Holmes, Fuller was a bright spot on an otherwise disappointing defense last year. Now he’s a dreaded Raven and a Brown nevermore…
Gone too is Holmes, signed just last year to replace Wali Rainer at middle linebacker. His release also surprised me, given that the team’s other top linebackers, Dwayne Rudd and Jamir Miller, were also cut (though they hope to re-sign Miller for less money).
Another cap casualty, not so unexpected, is center Dave Wohlabaugh, who immediately signed with the Rams, so it’s clear there’s plenty of gas left in his tank. Wohlabaugh, like Fuller, Miller, and tight end Mark Campbell, who was traded to Buffalo for a potential future draft pick, had been a Brown since their re-emergence in 1999.
All this was too much for Ryan Kuehl, another pioneer new Brown, and a prized long snapper. Kuehl jumped ship yesterday, believing the Giants, not the Browns, are headed in the right direction.
That’s called blowback. By swinging too heavy an axe at the team’s productive veterans, coach Davis is alienating the remainders, who must be wondering whether the Browns still resemble a playoff team.
It surely says something about today’s NFL business — I’m not sure what, but it ain’t good — that nifty back Jamel White is peeved at being offered a $1 million raise. That “tender” means it would cost another team a first-round draft pick to snatch him away from Cleveland. I support that offer, because White is a special player and deserves the money for his talent and work ethic. But I understand why he would feel stuck here, playing second-fiddle for a coach who seems tone-deaf when it comes to team harmony.