Braylon Edwards is way ahead of schedule.  He was injured on December 4th against the Jacksonville Jaguars and had surgery to repair his knee on January 3rd.  The thought process was that it would take nine months of rehab before he could play….putting him returning October 22nd against the Broncos.  Edwards though is eyeing the September 10th opener against the New Orleans Saints.

Edwards has given the Browns and their fans a huge lift by accelerating the time table for his return.  Especially on the heels of the devastating news of LeCharles Bentley’s injury.  Last season Edwards played in 10 games (7 starts) and caught 32 passes for 512 yards (16.0 avg.) with 2 TD passes.  Both of the TDs were thrown by Charlie Frye, and the two seem to be on the same mind length both on and off the field.

Edwards return on September 10th would be huge to the offense this season.  With Jurevicius and Winslow on board, the passing game could have alot of juice this season.

The lastest to go in the Indians firesale is second-baseman Ronnie Belliard.  Belliard was hitting .291 this season, he scored 44 runs, hit 8 homers and drove in 44 runs, his OPS was .757.  Belliard rejuvenated a sagging career on arrival in Cleveland.  In 390 games with the Tribe, Belliard hit .285, scoring 192 runs, hitting 37 homers, and driving in 192 runs.  Belliard will be missed.

The Indians got Hector Luna back in the trade.  Luna can play second, third, shortstop and the outfield.  He was plucked three years ago from the Indians in the Rule Five Draft.  Luna stayed with the Cards that whole season and has been a productive bench player for them.  This season Luna was hitting .291, scored 27 runs, hit four homers and drove in 21 runs with a .772 OPS.  In Luna’s career to date, he has batted 533 times, scored 78 runs, hit 8 homers, drove in 61 runs and stole 21 bases.  Luna’s career average in .276 and his career OPS is .734.

Luna might get a chance to replace Belliard at second-base.

In one corner….Daylon McCutcheon who has been with the Browns since their re-birth in 1999.  McCutcheon has played in 103 games in his Browns career and has made 424 tackles with 7 sacks, 12 interceptions, 41 passes defensed and forced 9 fumbles.  McCutcheon has been a rock in the foundation of the defense since the Browns returned but he’ll be facing a stiff challenge from third-year corner Leigh Bodden for the starting job.

Bodden excelled after Gary Baxter was injured last season.  Baxter is back and will be the starting right corner of the defense leaving only the left job open.  Bodden was undrafted out of Duquesne and has made himself into a good football player.  He has played in 34 games and has 99 tackles with 4 interceptions, 16 passes defensed and has forced 3 fumbles.

The loser of the battle will wind up being the nickel back and will still get alot of playing time.

What a blow to the offense and the team as a whole.  Bob Hallen will take over as the starting center.

LeCharles Bentley injured his knee on the first play of 11 on 11 drills in minicamp today. According to the Akron Beacon Journal, Bentley may have torn his patella tendon which would require surgery and cost him to miss the season.

This would be a devastating blow to the offensive line as Bob Hallen (formerly of Kent State) a journeyman type back-up lineman would be the new starter.

The Indians have gotten rid of another productive veteran in Ben Broussard, who they traded tonight to the Seattle Mariners for outfielder Shin-Soo Choo.  Broussard was hitting .321 with 13 homers and 46 RBI as the left-handed part of a platoon at first base.  Broussard immediately improves the Mariners line-up as he will be reunited with his platoon mate in Cleveland Eduardo Perez.  It was a good move for the Mariners as they like young Adam Jones more than Choo.

Choo only batted 11 times for the Mariners before they saw enough.  Choo only had one hit.  Choo has played well at Tacoma (AAA) where he was hitting .323 with 13 homers and 48 RBI.  No word on whether Choo will start in Cleveland or Buffalo.  Only time will tell if Choo is part of the Tribes’ future or not.

With Braylon Edwards on the shelf for the first half of the season, Joe Jurevicius will more than likely be the #1 receiver for the Browns.  It is a role that JJ has never played in his career, but he fits in with the physical style the Browns want to play this season.  Jurevicius is a huge (6’5″, 230 pound) receiver.  In his eight seasons JJ has appeared in 104 games but only started 34 of them.  JJ has caught 233 passes for 3,010 yards in his career with 23 TD catches and 158 receptions that resulted in a first down.

Jurevicius is coming off his best season, helping the Seahawks get to the Super Bowl.  He caught 55 passes for 694 yards and 10 TD catches.  Jurevicius should improve on the catch and yardage numbers, the touchdowns however will depend on the offense and Charlie Frye.

The Indians traded their all-time save leader to the Atlanta Braves for a single-A catcher.  The move saves the Indians over 2 million dollars and was the only reason for the trade.  If the Indians would have kicked in some cash they could have gotten a much better prospect from the Braves.  Wickman (who was acquired for Richie Sexson….ouch) compiled an 8-16 record with the Indians but saved 139 games with a 3.23 ERA.

It could be a very depressing next two weeks for Indians fans as more players will be leaving for players you’ve never heard of.  Last years’ team was a tease.

The halfback position is very important in the Browns new smash-mouth type offense.  Ruben Droughns, who only had 40 carries for 96 yards in the first four years of his NFL career has been very good the last two seasons (2,569 yards rushing, 8 TD, 15 runs of 20+ yards, 129 first downs rushing and 71 receptions for 610 yards and 2 TD).  Droughns is 28 years old, but he still has alot of tread on the tires due to the limited use at the start of his career.  Bigger things are in store for him this year as the Browns brought LeCharles Bentley and Kevin Shaffer in to make the line more physical in the running game.  Droughns wore down last December from the workload, but that shouldn’t be a problem this year.

Lee Suggs is a good player when he’s healthy, which is only about half the time.  Suggs has only played in 25 of the Browns 48 games since he was drafted.  In 2004, Suggs had a good season rushing for 744 yards and caught passes for another 178 yards…all in 10 games.  Suggs should see alot more playing time this season to keep Droughns fresh for the playoff push.

William Green also had a disappointing year last season as he only rushed for 78 yards in 8 games.  If 46 games in his career, he does have 2,109 yards rushing.  Green has not been a complete bust since he was drafted….just a disappointment.

Late last season (due to Suggs and Green being injured), Jason Wright got a chance to play a little when activated from the practice squad, but he didn’t impress (14 carries for 37 yards).  The Browns then used their 5th round draft choice on running back James Harrison from the University of Washington State.  Harrison ran for over 1900 yards for a lousy team….even though the other team knew he was coming.  Harrison will get a chance to be a third-down back and maybe more.  The only thing he lacks is size.

I am going to lay some cash on the Browns in Week #2 against the Bengals in the Jungle.  The last 4 times the Browns have played in Cincy they have covered three times.  Without Odell Thurman (suspended by league for first 4 games), the Browns will expose the interior of the Bengals defense which has been soft against the run.  Rueben Droughns and the improved Browns O-Line will push the Bengals around.  I also have a feeling that Anthony Wright will be starting at QB in that game.  I just don’t see how Carson Palmer can be playing again on a re-built knee in less than nine months.