FanHouse Kamerion Wimbley

The last three weeks have been a blur for Minnesota Viking fans. They've gone from a quarterback competition to a completely different kind of quarterback controversy.

When Brett Favre walked into Viking headquarters in Eden Prairie, Minn., on Aug. 18, he brought with him the promise of a Super Bowl run. Either that, or the promise of another glorious Vikings flop. The only certainty with Favre's arrival is that nothing is a given. All the meaningless predictions are cast aside starting Sunday, as Minnesota launches their 2009 regular season at Cleveland.

Training camps have wrapped up, the NFL season is right around the corner, and it's still hot as sin outside. But instead of cooling you off with a warm island song, FanHouse break out ye old heat check for our 2009 NFL Season Previews. " We'll rate each club in 5 categories on a scale of 1 to 10, high score wins.

The Cleveland Browns may have canned Romeo Crennel after a disastrous season (well, more than just one), but they aren't opposed to hiring clones of former Browns and current Patriots coach Bill Belichick. The team went from Crennel, a former defensive coordinator, to former defensive coordinator and -- most recently -- deposed Jets head coach Eric Mangini.

Who moved to the head of the NFL class during the draft? Find out with FanHouse's team-by-team 2009 Draft Grades.

One year removed from a 10-win season, and on the heels of a four-win effort, owner Randy Lerner decided change was in order. He fired head coach Romeo Crennel and general manager Phil Savage and brought in Eric Mangini and George Kokonis.

If the first draft under the new leadership is any indication, the Browns will use the last weekend in April to restock the roster, and eschew high-priced, quick-fix free agents. The previous regime had a healthy mix of the two: Gary Baxter, Eric Steinbach, LeCharles Bentley and Donte' Stallworth were signed as free agents; Kamerion Wimbley, Joe Thomas and Brady Quinn were all high-round draft picks.

Patriots vice president Scott Pioli is taking his sweet time getting back to the Browns about that GM job. Despite reports that Pioli had to make a decision last Thursday or the deal was off, the Browns are still interested in the guy who played a very big role in assembling those New England rosters that won three Super Bowls earlier this decade.

So now Cleveland waits. Pioli still has to meet with the Chiefs, and depending on how it plays out, Browns owner Randy Lerner could opt to hire a head coach and worry about finding a general manager later. According to the Cleveland Plain Dealer's Mary Kay Cabot, Eric Mangini is the early favorite, although other names are also in the mix.

Two other head coaching candidates -- fired Broncos coach Mike Shanahan and Titans defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz -- are on the backburner for now. Shanahan was contacted by the Browns, but told them he will be on vacation with his family for the next two weeks and will not interview during that time, a source said.

If the Browns haven't hired a coach by then, they might still reach out to him.

If the Browns haven't hired a coach by then, their fans will have already burned down the city.

Training camps are underway, the NFL season is right around the corner, and to get you ready for 2008, FanHouse previews all 32 teams, "heat index" style. We'll rate each club in 10 categories on a scale of 1 to 10, high score wins.

Quarterback: A year ago at this time,Charlie Frye was the man. That lasted about 10 minutes into the Week 1 Steelers game before Derek Anderson came on in relief, and, well, you saw how things turned out. Anderson led Cleveland to 10 wins, and made the Pro Bowl, but faces pressure to exceed last year's surprising performance. I think he'll be fine, but if he falters, Brady Quinn will be eagerly awaiting his shot. Heat Index: 7

Running backs: Jamal Lewis was left for dead, at least in the professional sense, when the Ravens decided to "move in another direction" last offseason. Lewis signed a short-term deal with the Browns and proceeded to rush for more than 1,300 yards. He now has a new contract and will run behind one of the most underrated o-lines in the AFC. Heat Index: 7

Receivers: Prior to Donte' Stallworth putting out a hit on No. 1 wide receiver Braylon Edwards, these were some of the best pass-catchers in the conference. Actually, Edwards should be fine, and even with Joe Jurevicius on the mend, it's a talented group of big-play threats. And although he listed as a tight end on the depth chart, Kellen Winslow in No. 1A after Edwards. Heat Index: 9

Hey, some good news for the Browns' secondary: Daven Holly, who was lost for the year during OTAs, says he'll be a better player when he returns in 2009. The problem, of course, is that Cleveland has to play an entire season of games without a legit starting cornerback (although, that could change, and, if we're being honest, nobody considered Holly "a legit starting cornerback" in the NFL when Leigh Bodden was still on the team.)

"I know fans have been wondering how serious this is and whether or not I'll be back," said Holly in a phone interview. "But I expect to make a full recovery with no loss of speed or strength. A delay is not a denial. I'll come back better, stronger, faster and more mature than before." ...

"I know I'll be a better person be cause of this injury," he said. "Not only will I be working my butt off to come back as soon as possible, I'll be around to help the younger guys filling my role."

That's encouraging. And while this is the story of the Browns' summer, I'm convinced losing Holly wouldn't be much of a story had it happened during the regular season. Not because Holly isn't a good player, just that he's not so good that he can't be replaced.

Generally, I disagree with FoxSports.com's Adam Schein on principle, but I think he's right to suggest the Cleveland Browns might want to go after Ty Law. Even if he currently weighs 275 pounds.

The Browns dealt playmaking cornerback Leigh Bodden to Detroit in the Shaun Rodgers deal. Then, the club learned that Devin Holly is done for the year and was placed on injured reserve. It makes Cleveland paper thin at cornerback.

While young Eric Wright is talented, he needs some help. Law, while past his prime, is still crafty enough to make plays and provide leadership Cleveland desperately needs.

The reason the Patriots are able to get by with an average secondary is because the seven guys in front of them do a good job of getting to the quarterback. The Browns have had a mediocre secondary and a suspect front seven for awhile now, and that explains why they routinely rank in the bottom half of the league in team defense. But with Shaun Rogers and Corey Williams beefing up the offensive line, third-year linebacker Kamerion Wimbley should be freed up to wreak havoc on quarterbacks like it's 2006.

For the longest time -- basically 1999 to 2003 -- the Cleveland Browns made some dreadful decisions with their first-round draft picks. Obviously, it all starts with Tim Couch (1999). And then there was Courtney Brown (2000), and Gerard Warren (2001). Who could forget William Green over Clinton Portis (2002), and Jeff Faine (2003).

But with the dark days of Chris Palmer and Butch Davis behind the franchise, things have picked up in recent years. Kellen Winslow, Braylon Edwards, Kamerion Wimbley, and now, Joe Thomas and Brady Quinn. While it's easy to point to Quinn as the team's most important pick -- possibly in this version of the Browns' short history -- it may be the other 2007 first-rounder that ends up having the better career.

Cleveland's offensive line is quietly having a solid season. The unit is on pace to give up 28 sacks, the fewest in 13 years. This group is excelling with a rookie left tackle, and missing two of its best players: tackle Ryan Tucker and center LeCharles Bentley. But that's changing:

Part of the deal with having a bunch of young, athletic players on the field is that they inevitably go through NFL growing pains before (hopefully) fully realizing their potential. That's the case in Cleveland right now, with just about every position.

Other than linebacker Kamerion Wimbley, who has apparently been NFL-ready since the 8th grade, the Browns have a roster full of guys long on talent but short on experience. Two of those players -- starting safeties Sean Jones and Brodney Pool -- had a few breakdowns during last week's Steelers debacle.

Brodney Pool took over as the starting free safety when Brian Russell was let go in free agency, and the coaches' film review gave him no tackles in Sunday's opener. Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger threw a career-high four touchdown passes, and strong safety Sean Jones looked extremely agitated after Santonio Holmes' 40-yard scoring catch.

Cornerback Leigh Bodden admits to missing Russell's on-field leadership, but recognizes that athletically, Pool is very capable, it's just the above-the-head stuff that the third-year safety needs to work on.

Defensive coordinator Todd Grantham threw a little support Pool's way:

'I think the further you move away from the ball, the more visible it is for everybody to evaluate you ... When you have 60 plays in the game, and you play 57 of them good, and there's three you'd like to play better, well, those three plays get magnified.''

Fair enough, but the Browns face the Bengals today, so things won't get any easier against "FUTURE H.O.F. 20??"

A regular look at 30 people who will affect the 2007 NFL season.

In their short history, the Cleveland Browns have a long, dreadful record when it comes to first-round picks. It starts with franchise quarterback Tim Couch -- the first overall selection in 1999 -- and it doesn't get any better with names like Courtney Brown, Gerard Warren and William Green.

Center Jeff Faine, the team's top pick in '03, never meshed with Butch Davis, Kellen Winslow ('04) was sidelined by on- and off-field injuries during his first two seasons, and Braylon Edwards ('05) has been inconsistent at best.

And then there was 2006. The Browns selected DE/OLB Kamerion Wimbley 13th overall, and -- no offense to DeMeco Ryans -- the former Florida State star had a good argument for Defensive Rookie of the Year. He made the seamless transition from collegiate defensive end to NFL outside linebacker and ended the year with 11 sacks. And Wimbley was, undoubtedly, the Browns' best defender.

Bottom line: Playing in Cleveland is akin to playing in Siberia when it comes to league-wide recognition, so Wimbley could still be flying under the radar to start the season. But if his 2007 comes anything close to his 2006, he'll be a Pro Bowler. And Cleveland could use a few of those.

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