Browns notebook: A look at Cleveland's 100-game players
Not many Browns have lived to be 100, so to speak.
Today, Jamal Lewis will become the eighth man on the Browns 53-man roster to have played in 100 NFL games.
"Hopefully," said Lewis, who will mark the event where he spent his first seven seasons, "there will be a lot more."
Lewis' new Browns teammate, Steve Heiden, is known on one level as a fitness nut. On another level, the tight end is an old man, part of the small group of Browns to have played in at least 120 NFL games.
"I don't feel old," said Heiden, 31. "The biggest thing is keeping your body in shape and staying fresh mentally, so you at least feel you can do the same things you did when you were 22."
Clayton breaks out
Wideout Mark Clayton was a bright spot in the latest bad Baltimore Sunday of offense. Drafted in the first round 19 picks after Braylon Edwards in 2005, Clayton had an eight-catch, 107-yard game against Cincinnati.
It was sort of a welcome-back game for a guy who suffered a strained Achilles on Sept. 30 at Cleveland. He had three catches for 43 yards before getting hurt in that 27-13 loss.
Clayton told the Baltimore Sun his 107-yard game was " OK, but we need wins, man."
Ryan times three
Today is the rubber match in Browns vs. the 44-year-old sons of defensive icon Buddy Ryan.
Rob Ryan, Oakland's defensive coordinator, beat the Browns in Game 3. Rex Ryan, Rob's twin brother and Baltimore's defensive coordinator, lost at Cleveland a week later. Rex Ryan has been with the Ravens since 1999. He was named NFL assistant of the year by Pro Football Weekly in 2006, when the Ravens led the league in total defense.
Ryan's 2007 unit has hung in there with a secondary blown up by injuries. Defense is the last hope for saving the Ravens' season.
"You're going to see the closeness of this team affect the win-loss total," Rex Ryan predicted recently. "We expect to make a great run at it."
Wild about Rex
Rex Ryan revived sack artist Trevor Pryce's career. After Pryce made just four sacks as a ninth-year Bronco in 2005, he gave the 2006 Ravens 13 sacks. Pryce says Ryan has a knack for translating each player's strengths into playmaking.
"I've played in defenses that don't have that mentality, so it was a breath of fresh air," he said.
Extra points
- Thanks to return whiz Joshua Cribbs, the Browns' starting field position is the 33.9-yard line, best in the NFL. Next best is the Jets at 32.7, which tells you field position gets you only so far if the wrong offense takes the field.
- Something seems just wrong with this line in Baltimore's weekly news release: "Cleveland certainly has its roots in the Ravens' franchise."
- If the Browns win today, the Ravens will have lost consecutive home games for the first time since 2002, when they fell to New Orleans and Cleveland in December.
Reach Repository sports writer Steve Doerschuk at (330) 580-8347 or e-mail steve.doerschuk@cantonrep.com
A look at the Browns with the most NFL experience:
WITH CLEVELAND
Pos. Player Games
PK Phil Dawson 133
DL Orpheus Roye 108
LB Andra Davis 82
TE Steve Heiden 76
LB Chaun Thompson 73
LS Ryan Pontbriand 68
OL Ryan Tucker 67
DB Leigh Bodden 52
DB Sean Jones 41
DE Simon Fraser 41
KR Joshua Cribbs 39
DB Brodney Pool 38
OVERALL
Pos. Player Games
LB Willie McGinest 191
DL Orpheus Roye 169
PK Phil Dawson 133
DB Kenny Wright 130
OL Ryan Tucker 126
WE Joe Jurevicius 126
TE Steve Heiden 120
RB Jamal Lewis 99
OL Hank Fraley 97
DL Robaire Smith 91
OL Lennie Friedman 90
LB Andra Davis 82