Well, the housecleaning has officially begun in Berea with the firing of Cleveland Browns GM Phil Savage. The news isn't exactly surprising, considering Phil's short list of accomplishments and long list of short-comings.

Among the positives are drafting Joe Thomas, signing then-undrafted Josh Cribbs, and snagging QB Derek Anderson off Baltimore's waiver wire.

However, Savage has also whiffed in the later rounds of the draft, traded spots with the Ravens - allowing them to pick up NT Haloti Ngata and the Browns to take Kamerion Wimbley, who dropped off the face of the earth after his rookie season, mishandled several in-house situations (Kellen Winslow's staph infection, etc.), and replied to a fan's email with, "F--k you, go root for Buffalo."

Gee, who saw this move coming??

EDIT: It was confirmed on WKNR Monday morning that Phil Savage was actually fired on Saturday, before the game.

Now that I've wiped a bit of egg from my face in picking the Browns to handily (based on the score) beat the Cardinals, here's the game in review:

1st Quarter:

The game began with a miscue, when Derek Anderson - unpressured - threw the ball away to the left side. He was called for intentional grounding, and the Browns had already set off on the wrong foot. After what appeared to be the beginnings of a nice drive, Anderson threw a pick-6, and then aborted a snap shortly thereafter.

I couldn't find a pic of "the boot," so I guess a picture of Leigh Bodden getting burned will do.

On the Cardinals' ensuing drive, Kurt Warner threw an incomplete pass that would have brought up fourth down and four - that is, if Leigh Bodden didn't decide to do his best "Phil Dawson" and boot the ball into the bench. Bodden was called for Deglay of Game, and the five yards assessed were enough to give the Cards a first down. Warner and Edgerrin James continued to carry the Cards downfield and capped off the drive with a 5-yard touchdown pass to Leonard Pope.

Definitely a tough first ten minutes to watch...

This week, the Cleveland Browns (7-4) head to Arizona this week to take on the Cardinals (5-6). Coming off a strong win at home, the Browns look to narrow the AFC North lead, held by the Steelers. Arizona is coming off a tough overtime loss to a bad 49er team. Despite their record, last weeks loss, and the team's injury problems, home field advantage gave them 1 point the last time I checked.

That must be one hell of a field. I'm not saying that the Browns are going to beat the Cards like rented mules, but that's a lot to overcome.

That being said, let's take a look at the matchups:

A few things you might have learned about the Browns as well as myself during the 27-17 whooping the Browns handed to the Houston Texans:

#1 - Apparently, I cannot spell the word "recover" on a Treo to save my life. I was previously unaware, but the club section's bar doesn't have to stop serving until after the game is over...probably not a good idea to blog there in the future. Less Drinking, More Blogging - Check.

#2 - Give Jamal Lewis 25-plus carries, and in return, you will get 100-plus yards. This man is truly punishing defenders, and quieting those who said he no longer had what it takes to be a feature back in the NFL. His 134 yards places him just outside of the top ten backs in the league, and if he keeps running as hard as he has been the past couple weeks, he could finish with his sixth 1,000 yard season.

#3 - It seems not only does Brandon McDonald dance, he plays a little bit of Defense, too. The rookie cornerback was bumped up into the Browns' Nickel package after Eric Wright's knee injury, and man did he play well. McDonald finished the game with 4 pass defenses and an interception, his first as a pro. Good to see the young guys step up in a time of need. Good game, Brandon.

I didn't believe it at first, but this is none other than Cleveland's Josh Cribbs crankin' dat. Thanks to Mevs at The Nosebleeds for digging that one up. I was looking around, and apparently Cribbs isn't the only one that can get down.



D-Back Brandon McDonald was caught from at least two angles (this being the better one) doing the Soulja Boy during pregame warm-ups.

What do Derek Anderson's friendly reminder, and Browns gettin' down on the field tell me? That this team is finally starting to have fun - one thing that is truly essential for a team to be successful. It's good to see the players smiling during interviews, laughing a little on the sidelines, and having a good time for once.

The Cleveland Browns have completed their first division series sweep since 2002, when the Browns swept the Bengals. Coincidentally, that was the last time the Browns made the playoffs. This time, however, the sweep was handed to the Ravens after a 33-30 Cleveland victory in overtime.

For the second week in a row, the Browns' defense blew a lead of 13+ points (last week was 15), and pinned all of their hopes on the shoulders of a last-second drive authored by Derek Anderson and a long field goal from Phil Dawson. Last week, one pulled through, while the latter came up just short. It seemed to be a similar story, as Anderson fired a missile to Braylon Edwards, who made a great catch in traffic to put Cleveland in position to attempt a 51-yard, overtime-forcing FG.

After hitting the left upright, Dawson's kick ricocheted through the posts, the ball clearly hit the back extension, causing a mass-confusion in M&T Bank Stadium. The referee originally signaled "no good," fans began to file out of the stadium, and even the Ravens themselves tried to sneak into the locker room with the win.

The refs overturned the call after about 2½ agonizing minutes, and overtime ensued. There was still hope.

The Browns' Injured Reserve list continues to grow as they added quarterback Derek Anderson and defensive lineman J'vonne Parker as the 12th and 13th men on IR.

Anderson's injury is to his shoulder, while Parker's is to his ankle. Both injuries occurred during the Browns' loss to Tampa Bay last Sunday.

Lang Campbell, who had spent the last two training camps with the Browns, has been signed to the active roster as the backup to Ken Dorsey - the starter for the season finale against the Tennessee Titans

Forgive my not immediately informing you of the Brown's at-home ass-whooping, as I wanted to wait until I saw Monday Night Football and a losing team that plays like they have an ounce of pride in themselves.

Atop the loss, Derek Anderson - aside from finally looking like a backup and throwing 4 interceptions - left the game with a separated shoulder leaving the team's hopes in the hands of Ken Dorsey for the remainder of the game and season. He will be the one to face Vince Young and the Titans next Sunday.

There is hope though, fans, the Browns may pick high enough to get a decent tackle in the 2007 NFL Draft, as there are a couple of them that may be worth the top 5 pick Cleveland will likely be handed. Now that the relief of a season not wasted has no-doubt swept over you (please note: the preceding has been overloaded with sarcasm), let's continue.

Braylon Edwards and his "disappoint at all costs" style of late dropped yet another two passes after missing most of the first half, for reportedly missing a meeting after trying to schmooze with the Detroit Pistons days before the game.

The Browns have had quite an influx of injuries in recent weeks, and after 5 players being sent to IR within a lesser number of weeks, it's not looking much better. The Browns have published yet another lengthy list this week, and although Charlie Frye is marked as "Questionable", Derek Anderson has already been given the start.
Cleveland Browns:

Last Name	First Name	Position	Injury	Wed.	Thurs.	Fri.
Andruzzi	Joe	G	Knee	Quest.	Quest.	Quest.
Bodden	Leigh	CB	Ankle	Quest.	Quest.	Out
Coleman	Cosey	G	Toe	Quest.	Quest.	Quest.
Davis	Andre	LB	Concussion	Quest.	Quest.	Doubtful
Dinkins	Darnell	TE	Foot	Quest.	Quest.	Quest.
Droughns	Reuben	RB	Foot	Quest.	Not Listed	Not Listed
Eason	Nick	DL	Foot	Quest.	Quest.	Quest.
Frye	Charlie	QB	Wrist	Quest.	Quest.	Quest.
Jurevicius	Joe	WR	Concussion	Quest.	Quest.	Quest.
McGinest	Willie	LB	Pectoral	Quest.	Quest.	Quest.
McKinley	Alvin	DE	Shoulder	Quest.	Quest.	Quest.
Northcutt	Dennis	WR	Shoulder	Quest.	Quest.	Quest.
Unck	Mason	LB	Groin	Quest.	Quest.	Quest.
Washington	Ted	DL	Knee	Quest.	Quest.	Quest.
Winslow	Kellen	TE	Knee	Quest.	Quest.	Quest.

Baltimore Ravens:

Last Name	First Name	Position	Injury	Wed.	Thurs.	Fri.
Bolden	Juran	CB	Quad	Quest.	Quest.	Quest.
Buchanon	Phillip	CB	Groin	Quest.	Quest.	Not Listed
Cox	Torrie	CB	Neck	Quest.	Quest.	Not Listed
Smith	Alex	TE	Ankle	Not Listed	Quest.	Quest.
Williams	Carnell	RB	Foot	Quest.	Quest.	Doubtful
Winborn	Jamie	LB	Knee	Quest.	Quest.	Quest.
Zemaitis	Alex	CB	Shoulder	Not Listed	Quest.	Quest.

Key:
Probable - 75% chance of playing
Questionable - 50% chance of playing
Doubtful - 25% chance of playing
Out - Will not play

Bold Text - Updated status

Cleveland Browns running back Jason Wright will be done for the season after an MRI showed he had suffered a strained MCL during Sunday's game against Baltimore. He was added to the Injured Reserve List yesterday.

Wright was injured on a last-ditch effort shovel pass from Derek Anderson when he was tackled right at the knees by Ravens cornerback Ronnie Prude.

Rookie Chris Barclay, who was the 2005 ACC Offensive Player of the Year, has been moved up from the practice squad to fill his place. Also, the Browns signed linebacker Clifton Smith to the active roster to fill the spot of the injured D'Qwell Jackson.