HEAV
03-31-2005, 05:54 AM
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/broncos/article/0,1299,DRMN_17_3663964,00.html
Others are not sold on four former Browns
By Jeff Legwold, Rocky Mountain News
March 31, 2005
The song says Cleveland Rocks and the Denver Broncos apparently were ready to sing the tune all the way through March.
In a free-agent shopping spree that has landed four former Cleveland Browns defensive linemen in the Broncos' Dove Valley complex in a three-week span, Denver's decision makers have gone where few, if any, teams have gone before.
Not only have they acquired four players - Gerard Warren, Courtney Brown, Ebenezer Ekuban and Michael Myers - from the same roster, they have taken all four players from the same meeting room inside the Browns' Berea, Ohio, complex.
Warren, Brown and Ekuban are former first-round draft picks who have struggled to meet those expectations. Plus, Brown and Ekuban have medical questions and will not be able to run all out until at least May. So why have Brown, Warren and Ekuban not played up to the potential most teams believed they had when they were drafted?
The Rocky Mountain News on Wednesday surveyed six personnel executives - four in the AFC, two in the NFC - to seek some answers.
Brown was the first pick of the 2000 draft, Warren the third pick of the 2001 draft and Ekuban the 20th pick of the 1999 draft.
Denver coach Mike Shanahan, meanwile, has lauded the potential of the group, particularly Warren and Brown, and it is clear the Broncos believe they can do with the four what the Browns were unable to.
DE Courtney Brown
The consensus among the personnel evaluators was Brown simply has been injured too much to find how far his ability can take him. Though some teams did not consider Brown the top player on the board in the 2000 draft, virtually all teams projected him among the top five, so there is little question he is the kind of player teams are seeking at the position.
Shanahan has even called Brown "a freak."
But Brown has missed 33 games in the past five years because of injuries, including 14 this past season with a torn ligament in his left foot. He failed a physical before his release at Cleveland earlier this month and will not be ready to go all out until at least later this spring.
Because players rarely get healthier as they get older, Brown's injury-marred past is a concern, the executives said. His health also has impeded his progress on the field, they say, because he has not put together a long string of games - at least two seasons worth - to take the rough edges off his technique.
Instead, he seems to always be rehabilitating, only to be injured again once he begins to find a rhythm. For an example of what Brown can be when he is at his best, most point to a seven-game stretch in 2003 when he made six sacks and forced three fumbles.
However, the personnel executives say Brown simply might not be physically strong enough to survive the poundings he takes because he often is rehabbing from specific injuries instead of conditioning his whole body.
Shanahan has countered the injury risk by saying Brown is "tired of being hurt" and is ready for a fresh start.
DT Gerard Warren
He is the biggest enigma of the group, the personnel executives say. They all were quick to say Warren is a talented player with top-shelf athletic ability, yet Warren has yet to be voted to a Pro Bowl or record more than 51/2 sacks in a season.
The personnel executives look at the fact there were 10 games in Warren's first three NFL seasons in which he was credited with two or fewer tackles and say his effort might be questionable at times.
They also say Warren does not play enough to an offensive lineman's weakness or vary his approach enough when attacking an opponent week to week. Opposing linemen know what he is going to do and simply wait for what is expected.
Shanahan has said he believes Warren simply needs "to get in great shape" and that the Broncos' off-season program will play a key role in whether it was a good deal to surrender a fourth-round pick in the April 23-24 draft for the 26-year-old.
DE Ebenezer Ekuban
The Broncos' trade for Ekuban was formally completed Wednesday when Denver running back Reuben Droughns passed his physical at Cleveland.
And Ekuban, recovering from knee surgery and a shoulder injury, also is not yet at full speed. He was cleared Wednesday by the Broncos medical staff, thus completing the trade, but he also underwent surgery in 2001 to repair a herniated disc in his back.
He did lead the Browns in sacks last season with eight, but four of the six personnel executives contacted by the News considered him a "plateau" player.
That means he already has reached his developmental peak and he had leveled off the past two seasons. Some of that might stem from the fact Ekuban, a native of Ghana, was late coming to football and doesn't play as instinctively as some who grew up playing the sport.
He did not play football until he was a junior in high school and played tight end at the University of North Carolina for two years before moving to defense.
The evaluators were universal in their belief Ekuban needs more power at the point of attack.
DT Michael Myers
He was added to the deal for Droughns as injury insurance for the Broncos in case Ekuban needed more time to recover.
Considering Myers, a former All-Southeastern Conference selection at Alabama, is scheduled to earn $667,000 this season, the personnel executives believe he might be the best pure value among the four players.
The Broncos added a year to the one Myers had left on his deal with the Browns to make it even more salary-cap friendly.
The 300-pound Myers has played some defensive end in his career. Browns coach Romeo Crennel was going to play Myers at end in Cleveland's 3-4 look, so the Broncos could do the same when they implement the scheme as part of their nickel package.
Shanahan believes quality defensive linemen have become some of the more difficult players to find, saying, "It's hard to find really a great defensive lineman, because they've got to be able to play the run, play the pass, (be) great against the run, great rushing the passer.
"It's hard to get a guy who can do both."
The Broncos are hoping they have done just that by doing their shopping in one place.
Others are not sold on four former Browns
By Jeff Legwold, Rocky Mountain News
March 31, 2005
The song says Cleveland Rocks and the Denver Broncos apparently were ready to sing the tune all the way through March.
In a free-agent shopping spree that has landed four former Cleveland Browns defensive linemen in the Broncos' Dove Valley complex in a three-week span, Denver's decision makers have gone where few, if any, teams have gone before.
Not only have they acquired four players - Gerard Warren, Courtney Brown, Ebenezer Ekuban and Michael Myers - from the same roster, they have taken all four players from the same meeting room inside the Browns' Berea, Ohio, complex.
Warren, Brown and Ekuban are former first-round draft picks who have struggled to meet those expectations. Plus, Brown and Ekuban have medical questions and will not be able to run all out until at least May. So why have Brown, Warren and Ekuban not played up to the potential most teams believed they had when they were drafted?
The Rocky Mountain News on Wednesday surveyed six personnel executives - four in the AFC, two in the NFC - to seek some answers.
Brown was the first pick of the 2000 draft, Warren the third pick of the 2001 draft and Ekuban the 20th pick of the 1999 draft.
Denver coach Mike Shanahan, meanwile, has lauded the potential of the group, particularly Warren and Brown, and it is clear the Broncos believe they can do with the four what the Browns were unable to.
DE Courtney Brown
The consensus among the personnel evaluators was Brown simply has been injured too much to find how far his ability can take him. Though some teams did not consider Brown the top player on the board in the 2000 draft, virtually all teams projected him among the top five, so there is little question he is the kind of player teams are seeking at the position.
Shanahan has even called Brown "a freak."
But Brown has missed 33 games in the past five years because of injuries, including 14 this past season with a torn ligament in his left foot. He failed a physical before his release at Cleveland earlier this month and will not be ready to go all out until at least later this spring.
Because players rarely get healthier as they get older, Brown's injury-marred past is a concern, the executives said. His health also has impeded his progress on the field, they say, because he has not put together a long string of games - at least two seasons worth - to take the rough edges off his technique.
Instead, he seems to always be rehabilitating, only to be injured again once he begins to find a rhythm. For an example of what Brown can be when he is at his best, most point to a seven-game stretch in 2003 when he made six sacks and forced three fumbles.
However, the personnel executives say Brown simply might not be physically strong enough to survive the poundings he takes because he often is rehabbing from specific injuries instead of conditioning his whole body.
Shanahan has countered the injury risk by saying Brown is "tired of being hurt" and is ready for a fresh start.
DT Gerard Warren
He is the biggest enigma of the group, the personnel executives say. They all were quick to say Warren is a talented player with top-shelf athletic ability, yet Warren has yet to be voted to a Pro Bowl or record more than 51/2 sacks in a season.
The personnel executives look at the fact there were 10 games in Warren's first three NFL seasons in which he was credited with two or fewer tackles and say his effort might be questionable at times.
They also say Warren does not play enough to an offensive lineman's weakness or vary his approach enough when attacking an opponent week to week. Opposing linemen know what he is going to do and simply wait for what is expected.
Shanahan has said he believes Warren simply needs "to get in great shape" and that the Broncos' off-season program will play a key role in whether it was a good deal to surrender a fourth-round pick in the April 23-24 draft for the 26-year-old.
DE Ebenezer Ekuban
The Broncos' trade for Ekuban was formally completed Wednesday when Denver running back Reuben Droughns passed his physical at Cleveland.
And Ekuban, recovering from knee surgery and a shoulder injury, also is not yet at full speed. He was cleared Wednesday by the Broncos medical staff, thus completing the trade, but he also underwent surgery in 2001 to repair a herniated disc in his back.
He did lead the Browns in sacks last season with eight, but four of the six personnel executives contacted by the News considered him a "plateau" player.
That means he already has reached his developmental peak and he had leveled off the past two seasons. Some of that might stem from the fact Ekuban, a native of Ghana, was late coming to football and doesn't play as instinctively as some who grew up playing the sport.
He did not play football until he was a junior in high school and played tight end at the University of North Carolina for two years before moving to defense.
The evaluators were universal in their belief Ekuban needs more power at the point of attack.
DT Michael Myers
He was added to the deal for Droughns as injury insurance for the Broncos in case Ekuban needed more time to recover.
Considering Myers, a former All-Southeastern Conference selection at Alabama, is scheduled to earn $667,000 this season, the personnel executives believe he might be the best pure value among the four players.
The Broncos added a year to the one Myers had left on his deal with the Browns to make it even more salary-cap friendly.
The 300-pound Myers has played some defensive end in his career. Browns coach Romeo Crennel was going to play Myers at end in Cleveland's 3-4 look, so the Broncos could do the same when they implement the scheme as part of their nickel package.
Shanahan believes quality defensive linemen have become some of the more difficult players to find, saying, "It's hard to find really a great defensive lineman, because they've got to be able to play the run, play the pass, (be) great against the run, great rushing the passer.
"It's hard to get a guy who can do both."
The Broncos are hoping they have done just that by doing their shopping in one place.