The "plan" at backup QB is becoming clearer and boils down to: 1) Go into camp with Dorsey and see how he does. 2) If he doesn't seemt o measure up, bring in Testeverde. I'm a bit relieved to see that this is being openly discusssed, even if waiting that long is a bit alarming.
A return to Cleveland for Testeverde would be far from the worst thing for the Browns. The upside is obviously that Testeverde presumably knows the offense well enough to step right in. He's older than dirt, but in many ways I think the Browns would benefit from an old pro at the helm, particularly since if Testeverde plays it means there's been some unfortunate drama at the QB position. The Browns offense figures to be good enough that the Qb should not have to be a world-beater for the team to be competitive. And since Testeverde has stated he doesn't want to go to camp for any team, there shouldn't be more than another team or two in the market for his services come August.
The problem is, I think, that Testeverde is Plan B and not Plan C or D. I'd hope that Dorsey can be adequately judged right now during mini-camp, at least enough to know whether another guy should be present when camp starts. If he looks fantastic in minicamp then okay, proceed with optimism and don't bring another guy to camp. If there are any questions, then sign another guy to at least go through the motions for the next 4-8 weeks. If Dorsey winds up not being the guy, and if Testeverde for whatever reason not signed by the Browns, having brought another veteran though camp will have proved to be essential.
Couple good signs from minicamp:
Bentley sounds like he's ready to roll. I don't know why, but I'm a little concerned he'll ease up after landing a monster contract and coming home a hero. Of course, you'd think playing at home would motivate him as well, and that's obviously what we are hoping for.
Frye looks good. But that doesn't mean much at this point. In fact, it means almost nothing. But, hey, it's nice to hear he's sharp and has done all the offseason work that it sounded like he'd done. By all accounts he's really taken to the task of being a leader. Let's hope it all shows up on the field come September.
Braylon Edwards is running, even sprinting. Cool. But, if you've ever even tweaked your knee, you know that doesn't mean you can stop or change direction. Every time I read or even think about Edwards' injury I think the same thing: It's a good thing we got Jurevicious.
And finally, Crennel is giving the "he's got a lot to learn" treatment to Travis Wilson. I suspect Crennel is right, and it almost sounds like Crennel wasn't a guy in the draft room favoring selecting this guy. Regardless, I like it when a coach immediately challenges this sort of rookie -- the kind of guy w ho has talent and maybe even the right motivation, but not necessarily the focus or committment necessary. Whether this will increase the odds of Wilson being a contributor I don't know, but Crennel's tactic should at least ensure we find out what we have in Wilson relatively quickly.
Meanwhile, the an offseason of concern seems to be continuing for the Steelers with Santonio H olmes getting arrested. This caught my eye:Before the draft, Holmes said he was hopeful that he would go high in the draft so he could support his three children.
???? How did I miss this? I'm going to totally sound like a unsympathetic suburban white guy when I say -- what is up with fathering three children before even graduating from college? But seriously, I can totally understand 1 or even 2 presumably unplanned pregnancies by that age. But I also imagine playing division I football and being a top-shlef NFL prospect would leave little time to father (verb) three kids and and next to none to actually be a father (noun) to them. And you couple this with the fact that Holmes picked up a disorderly conduct arrest in Miami Beach a couple weeks back, and I just don't get the impression this guy has his head screwed on straight. Let's see, I got three kids, just got drafted in the first round and face a huge challenge busting into the NFL over the next few months. Should I get things situated at home in Columbus, stay and shape and train, spend some quality time with my kids this summer before the long ride of my first NFL season starts, and perhaps organize a way to still be with my family during the season? Or should I go down to Miami Beach and party it up? I don't know, maybe I am getting old and crotchedy but I don't care. I think it's fair to expect a guy on his third child to have done quite a bit of growing up already. I bet they'll be happy for training camp to start in Greater Pittburgh.
It's perhaps a bit ironic that the Steelers selected Holmes over Chad Jackson, who slid on some teams boards because teams were concerned he was going to exhibit the sort of behavior that santonio currently is.
And oh yeah -- Ohio State football, no better than many other schools and worse than most, is a football factory that doesn't give two craps about it's players. That's not me saying that -- it's just what the evidence overwhelmingly suggests. I don't buy the Tressel aura for a second. He's easier to take than John Cooper but in some ways I think I preferred Cooper, who was such a stereo-type of a football-factory head coach that no one could possibly be duped into thinking otherwise.
I'm only writing this hoping that Savage's Browns drafts look so good as the Ravens 2001 draft that netted Todd Heap, Gary Baxter, Casey Rabach and Ed Hartwell in the first four picks.