Brown-out period ending

Light could be shined on Cleveland this year

The Cleveland Browns are without picks in the first three rounds of the NFL draft, all but ensuring that they won't be on the league's radar when the annual picking begins next Saturday.

No worries, says general manager Phil Savage.

Savage realizes it will probably be the last time for a while that the Browns are relegated to back-burner status, a spot they've become familiar with since reentering the league in 1999. Times have changed in Cleveland, as evidenced by the Browns being selected for five prime-time games when the NFL released its 2008 schedule last week.

The Browns as one of the league's top draws, along with clubs like the Patriots and Cowboys?

Believe it.

"We went from zero Pro Bowlers to six and from zero prime-time games to five," said Savage, who is entering his fourth year as GM. "We're on the right track and doing a lot of positive things that hopefully will continue."

With Savage picking the players and former Patriots defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel providing a steady hand of leadership, the Browns are in position to rise up in an AFC North that includes the rebuilding Ravens, the seemingly-in-turmoil Bengals, and the defending division champion Steelers.

Those rising expectations, of course, will create a new set of challenges for a team that went 10-6 last season and narrowly missed the playoffs.

They come in the wake of an unconventional offseason in which Savage traded a second-round draft pick for Packers defensive lineman Corey Williams, and a third-round pick and starting cornerback Leigh Bodden for Lions nose tackle Shaun Rogers. The Browns then handed Williams and Rogers lucrative contract extensions, feeling they were better options than draft choices to address what may have been the team's biggest weakness: strength at the line of scrimmage in its 3-4 alignment.

The Browns' first-round pick was shipped away during last year's draft so they could trade back into the first round and select Notre Dame quarterback Brady Quinn (22d overall). Although Quinn remains second on the depth chart behind the surprising Derek Anderson, it's a deal that Savage would do all over again.

"I think Brady would be at or near the top of this draft board," he said.

Although the Browns won't be on the clock until the 122d pick of the draft - they have essentially ruled out any trade into the first two rounds - Savage has emphasized to his coaches and scouts the importance of following through as if the team had its full allotment. He reminded them about some solid late-round and free agent finds, such as Pro Bowl returner Josh Cribbs (free agent, 2005), and of other situations in which they've signed a less-heralded player cut by another team, like cornerback Daven Holly, a seventh-round pick of the 49ers in 2005 who will compete for a starting job next season.

Savage knows he still needs to add to the cornerback ranks, and he said other spots of focus could be linebacker, defensive line, and offensive tackle. But for the most part, the Browns' heaviest lifting has been done, which will make them mostly spectators for much of the draft.

Yet no one seems to be complaining in Cleveland, where optimism may be at a high since the franchise's re-entry into the NFL. The league obviously feels the same way, hence the five prime-time games.

"I think it will generate a buzz in the city that hasn't been here in quite a while," Savage said.

It helps if you can keep things together

When the NFL unveiled the 2008 schedule last Tuesday, conspiracy theorists wondered whether the Patriots, perhaps as a result of their videotaping issues, were intentionally given a harder row to hoe with two sets of back-to-back trips to the West Coast: games at San Francisco and San Diego (Oct. 5, 12) and at Seattle and Oakland (Dec. 7, 14).

But it wouldn't be a surprise to learn that the Patriots actually requested such an arrangement.

The Dolphins did just that in 2004, when they faced road games at Seattle and San Francisco. They ended up staying out West for a week - a strategy Patriots coach Bill Belichick said is under consideration - and were pleased with how things turned out (they lost at Seattle, 24-17, before beating the 49ers by that same score).

The Dolphins boarded a flight immediately after the game at Seattle, but instead of flying home to Miami, they went to San Francisco and set up headquarters there for a week. The team stayed at a downtown hotel and practiced at a local college, duplicating, in part, what the Giants had done a few years earlier.

"The primary reason for doing that is to be able to get guys acclimated once you're on the West Coast, instead of making multiple trips out there," said Dolphins president Bryan Weidmeier. "You're able to get a lot more work done in terms of efficiency with time - players wake up the next day and they are hastened into their recovery and rehab."

The Dolphins' trip came during Thanksgiving, so owner Wayne Huizenga made arrangements for players' families to join them. When the Dolphins made the initial travel plans, Dave Wannstedt was the head coach, although he resigned prior to the trip and Jim Bates was made interim coach.

Perhaps Belichick might consider contacting Bates, one of his former assistants in Cleveland, for details on how the Dolphins made it work. Then again, Weidmeier doesn't think the Patriots will need much advice.

"It's probably similar to what they do during the Super Bowl, so they'd be well-versed and it would probably be easier for them," he said.

The Patriots, it turns out, aren't alone in their thinking this year. The Arizona Cardinals are considering staying East between back-to-back road games against the Redskins (Sept. 21) and Jets (Sept. 28).

Shockey talks generate some electricity around Giants

The Giants have captured their share of headlines since stunning the Patriots in the Super Bowl, and don't be surprised - despite picking at the bottom of each round - if they are front and center at next weekend's draft.

Trading tight end Jeremy Shockey would certainly accomplish that, and general manager Jerry Reese acknowledged that there have been discussions along those lines.

Reese made it clear that he did not initiate talks with other clubs, yet that hasn't stopped him from listening.

"Anything can happen in personnel, but right now, Jeremy Shockey is our starting tight end and we are looking forward to him being back on the field for us this fall," he said.

Shockey broke his leg in the 14th game of the 2007 season and the team went 5-1 without him. Some have suggested that Shockey's absence aided the Giants, allowing quarterback Eli Manning to exert more leadership in the huddle, while also opening the door for the emergence of 2007 fifth-round pick Kevin Boss.

On Friday, the New York Daily News reported that Shockey has told friends he'd welcome a trade to the Saints, which seems like a natural fit. New Orleans would like to add a tight end and is coached by Sean Payton, who was Giants offensive coordinator in 2002 when Shockey totaled 74 catches for 894 yards as a rookie.

Etc.

Thoroughly modern process
How thorough is the scouting process in the NFL? Jets director of player personnel Terry Bradway broke down the numbers from his club's work:

5,200 - Number of personnel reports written by scouts.

1,200 - Number of players evaluated.

1,000 - Approximate number of players considered worthy of signing, at the very least, a free agent contract.

450 - Interviews with prospects, at the Senior Bowl, East-West Game, Combine, and team facility.

397 - Number of players considered draftable.

172 - Number of players, as of early April, given serious consideration for selection between the first and fifth rounds.

Ribs weren't spared
Floyd Reese was general manager of the Houston Oilers (now Tennessee Titans) when he made the no-so-popular decision to select Steve McNair third overall in the 1995 draft out of Alcorn State. Many thought he'd gone off the deep end to pass on Penn State's Kerry Collins, but Reese turned out to be right, a decision he revisited last week when McNair retired after a solid 13-year career. Reese's favorite McNair memory? A 32-29 overtime win over the Giants in 2002, made possible by a 2-point conversion run by McNair that forced OT. "I said it on TV the other day; it had to be the game we played against the Giants at the Meadowlands when he had the rib problem," said Reese. "He hadn't been out of the training room all week, hadn't practiced. It was windy, just awful conditions. It was a game we had to win, and at the end of the game we called a quarterback draw and he scooted in. I went into the locker room to congratulate him and he was convulsing on the table. That's how much it was hurting him to breathe. He's a winner, a great competitor."

A defensive lapse?
The content of pre-draft press conferences is generally bland and lacking in specifics (why would a team come out and announce its intentions?), but first-year Dolphins general manager Jeff Ireland might have provided a hint as to the team's plans. Asked what the Dolphins hoped to land with the No. 1 overall pick, he said, "You hope that he's a pillar of your defense for a long time." That led to laughter among the reporters, as Ireland, his face turning red, corrected his remarks to include offense as well. Yes, it could have been a smokescreen. And yes, the Dolphins are engaged in negotiations with offensive tackle Jake Long. But the feeling here remains that they will wind up selecting Virginia defensive end Chris Long, who will, as Ireland says, become a pillar of Miami's defense.

Chief concerns
It's difficult to figure out what the Chiefs are thinking in dangling defensive end Jared Allen in trade talks. They have one of the league's most talent-barren rosters and the 26-year-old Allen may be their best player, coming off a 15 1/2-sack season. The Chiefs might privately be concerned that Allen will run into more problems with alcohol, as he had multiple drunk-driving arrests two years ago. While Allen would yield at least one first-round draft choice in return, it's hard to see how that will make the Chiefs better.

Backup backfield plan
The Cowboys own the 22d and 28th selections in the first round, and some have speculated they might be willing to part with both if Arkansas running back Darren McFadden slips down the draft board (perhaps to the Jets at 6, or the Patriots at 7). After exchanging contract proposals with starting running back Marion Barber last week, the Cowboys might be more inclined to make such a move. According to published reports in Dallas, the Cowboys are offering a five-year deal with a total value of $30 million, while Barber is seeking a deal worth $40 million. Barber becomes a free agent after the season.

Extra points
In one of the more head-scratching decisions this offseason, Arizona defensive lineman Darnell Dockett is staying away from the team facility in a silent protest over his contract. Despite signing a five-year, $22 million deal in 2006, Dockett apparently wants another new deal. He'll have to wait in line, because the Cardinals have higher priorities, such as trying to extend deals for Pro Bowl safety Adrian Wilson and receiver Anquan Boldin . . . When considering whom the Saints will select with the 10th overall choice, one nugget to consider is that first-year New Orleans defensive line coach Ed Orgeron recruited both linebacker Keith Rivers and defensive lineman Sedrick Ellis to Southern Cal . . . The Bengals (ninth overall) are hoping to land a defensive tackle in the first round and appear to be candidates to trade up for Ellis . . . Leftover schedule thought: The Colts might have the toughest four-game stretch of any team in the league: Oct. 19 at Green Bay, Oct. 27 at Tennessee, Nov. 2 vs. New England, and Nov. 9 at Pittsburgh . . . Running back Deuce McAllister, coming back from surgeries on both knees, restructured his contract last week - converting some of his $3.6 million salary into incentives - to remain with the Saints.

Did you know?
The Chargers have a large hole in their draft board this year, with no selections in the second, third, and fourth rounds. The second-round pick was traded to Miami for receiver Chris Chambers, the third-rounder went to Chicago in a draft-day deal last year to move up to select defensive back Eric Weddle, and the fourth-round selection was exercised in the 2007 supplemental draft on cornerback Paul Oliver.

Mike Reiss can be reached at mreiss@globe.com