It was an up and down year for the Cleveland Browns, who used a mid-season surge to get into playoff contention in-depthbefore sliding to 7-9 in 2014.

But for a team on its third head coach in three seasons – one that made two first-round picks, neither of whom produced in their first year – and missing its biggest weapon in Josh Gordon for most of the season, to still produce the team’s best record since a 2007 10-6 mark shows signs of growth.

Can they sustain the indications of momentum? Or will the failure to solidify a long-term QB solution keep this team in the doldrums for more than the foreseeable future? Pete Smith, a contributing writer for Football Savages and former editor of Dawg Pound Daily, rejoined Zoneblitz to share his thoughts.

Zoneblitz: The Browns looked for a while like a postseason challenger before falling apart a bit at the end. How would you assess the season?

Smith: The biggest issue that hurt the Browns was when Alex Mack suffered the broken leg. The team was able to run the ball virtually at will, dictate the pace of the game and create opportunities for play action and put Brian Hoyer in position to succeed as much as possible with the defense able to keep the games close enough where they could win.

After Mack went down, the running game struggled and Hoyer had to carry more of the offense. He promptly turned back into a pumpkin and the offense stagnated, unable to score points.

Overall, the season was still a relative success considering that Mike Pettine came in, established a culture in the locker room and despite getting nothing from either of the team’s two first round picks and the team improved by three wins, albeit against an easier schedule than most teams faced.

Zoneblitz: What’s up with the QB position? Will Johnny Football emerge? Does Josh McCown improve on Brian Hoyer?

Smith: While the Browns cannot give up on Johnny Manziel out of hand, they cannot count on him either and have to have an eye on the quarterback position for the future. Josh McCown comes in as a veteran signal caller that embraces the role of being a mentor for Manziel and offers a bridge to a younger passer, whether they are on the roster or not. Ultimately, the mentor issue is why Hoyer is not in Cleveland anymore. Hoyer views himself as a starter and someone to build around whereas the Browns and basically the rest of the NFL did not.

It remains to be seen if McCown can play better than Hoyer. They will have different offensive coordinators. The Browns overall focus remains the same for the time being; take the focus away from the quarterback position and strive to run the ball effectively and create good opportunities for quarterback to make relatively easy reads and throws.

Zoneblitz: Jordan Cameron is gone and Josh Gordon likely will miss the season – whoever the QB is, who will he throw to and how will the Browns solve this situation heading into the season?

Smith: The Browns wide receiver position is not good but not really as bad as people made it out to be either. For all of the talent they supposedly do not have, the unit was better without Josh Gordon in terms of record than they were with him. Andrew Hawkins proved to be a valuable signing, Taylor Gabriel was a pretty productive undrafted free agent and the team got more out of Travis Benjamin and Miles Austin than many expected.

Jordan Cameron is not a small loss either but Jim Dray and Gary Barnidge were pretty reliable as far as catching the football and making the plays they should. Neither is particularly dynamic and they are not going to give the team what Cameron did but they are effective at blocking in a way Cameron never was.

Nevertheless, the Browns have signed Dwayne Bowe and Brian Hartline in free agency. It remains to be seen if they will try to get another wide receiver in the draft or how early, but while Bowe and Hartline are more suited to be a #2 and #3 option respectively, a three receiver set of Bowe, Hartline and Hawkins is not awful. They need more talent there but it should be somewhat respectable.

Zoneblitz: Speaking of Gordon, has he played his final down in Cleveland?

Smith: It is impossible to see how Josh Gordon plays another down in Cleveland as it currently stands. The locker room has made their feelings clear about the situation. They admire his talent and like him as a person, but they want guys that are focused on winning football games and will be reliable in that pursuit.

Meanwhile, Gordon seems unwilling to accept much blame or hold himself accountable, saying that he is not an addict; simply young. While Gordon is still just 23 years old, he has not avoided a positive drug test since he was in high school so the pattern of behavior is more than disturbing. The bigger question with Gordon has less to do with his future in Cleveland and whether or not he will play another down in the NFL at all. To this point, he cannot get out of his own way.

Zoneblitz: How does the RB position shake out in 2015? Is there a full-time starter? Is it a committee? Does the team need more help there?

Smith: At this point, the Browns do not really need a running back to be the guy. Terrance West has more talent and more promise as he heads into his sophomore season as he can simply do more than Isaiah Crowell. However, West had some immaturity issues in his rookie season and Pettine went to some lengths to try to hammer that point home with West.

Crowell, on the other hand, has incredible physical gifts but he struggles to see the hole. As a result, most all of Crowell’s carries were on sweeps and pitches that asked him to basically sprint out rather than read a hole and make a play. If he cannot improve that, it becomes impossible for him to be anything but a nice complement.

West may be the most capable back on the roster to be the true star back, the reality is the two really work well in tandem. West is more reliable running up the middle and getting the yards he should while Crowell had more flash to his game. Both were capable of making big plays, offer a lot of size and strength and have fumbles that need to be eliminated as they go forward.

The Browns brought back Shaun Draughn, whom they had at the end of last year and like, but it is always a good move to bring in more competition at the running back position. There is a lot of talent in this class, so it’s an opportunity to bring in another talented option there and only improve the overall position, whether they want to simply bring in a third threat or hit the position really hard and bring in someone they think can be their stud back.

Zoneblitz: The Browns signed Tramon Williams to a big deal at CB. What does that say for the future of Justin Gilbert?

Smith: I have not seen the structure of the Tramon Williams contract save the general 3 years/$21 million figure. I’m assuming that it is more like a two year contract with an option to cut bait in the third year. He works as insurance to the corner spot across from Haden, but it cannot make anyone feel confident in Gilbert right now.

I expected Gilbert to be a project because he basically had no clue what he was doing when he was drafted as a corner, but his athleticism and physical tools were outstanding. Now, the young corner has a personal issue he is dealing with that the team has not elaborated upon at this point. As a result, the front runner to push Williams for that spot might actually be Pierre Desir. The Browns drafted him in the 4th round last year out of Lindenwood as another lengthy corner option. They intended to redshirt him the entire year but were forced to play him late and he actually acclimated himself well. Gilbert has a world of potential the Browns hope they can get to mature but he could end up finding himself behind Williams and Desir coming into the season if he cannot get his ship righted.

Zoneblitz: How does the rest of the defense look? Can the battered D-Line recover? Is there enough here to provide a consistent pass rush?

Smith: The Browns have talent on defense. They were happy with what they got from Karlos Dansby and Donte Whitner both in terms of talent as well as leadership. Opinions are mixed on Barkevious Mingo, but he was playing with one arm all season after suffering a shoulder injury week 1 that impacted him the entire season. He was good against the run but has not been able to be the impact pass rusher they hope he can be.

The team drafted Chris Kirksey last year who showed promise and got better as the year went on and they like Craig Robertson as well in the linebacking group. This year is put up or shut up for Phil Taylor who had his option picked up but between injuries and inconsistent play has had trouble being that impactful. Desmond Bryant is an excellent player and the team likes what they have in John Hughes as they should.

The Browns have to find a true, run stopping force at nose tackle and they can use more help getting interior pressure on the quarterback, which was a problem that killed them all season. It is unclear if they like Hughes to play nose as he has versatility to play all over, but if not, they will have to find help in the draft there. They could use another impact player up front as well that can help on every down, whether that be another end or with a three technique defensive tackle. Consistent pressure up the middle should help the pressure from the outside but they can use more help in terms of a pure pass rusher as well to rotate with Paul Kruger and Mingo.

Zoneblitz: What Browns have a chance to break out in 2015?

Smith: Unless Josh McCown finds the form he showed during the 2013 season with the Bears, it is difficult to imagine the Browns can break out, but they can continue to build their team and improve even if it is not obvious to everyone. Getting consistent play from the front seven would make a world of difference with this team and allow them to stay close in games and if they can get help in the draft and their young players can improve, they can get much better even if it may not show up in the standings.

Zoneblitz: How far are the Browns from making another run in the postseason?

Smith: It all depends on when they can find a consistent quarterback. They do not need a perennial Pro Bowl player that is Canton bound, though that would be nice, but they do need to know they have a passer they can count on to be there for more than one season. The team is going to great lengths to minimize how much a quarterback has to do, but they still need to get one that can make plays when asked. Until that happens, they basically would have to sneak into the playoffs.

Zoneblitz: What is your reaction to free agency at this point and what would you like to see the team do through the rest of free agency and in the draft?

Smith: Coming into free agency, I was hoping the Browns could get Jerry Hughes out of Buffalo and someone like Dan Williams from Arizona. Failing those two, Trent Cole and Kenrick Ellis. None of those things happened. They did get McCown, Hartline, Bowe, Williams and Randy Starks. They are all on short, pretty disposable contracts that help with areas of weakness but still acknowledge that they are not long term answers, which is fine.

In the draft, I hope the Browns go in and really attack the defensive line early. Defense is what Pettine does best and this is an area that has to be frustrating for him that he is not getting more from to this point. Especially on the interior of the defensive line, but they could use help at end as well across from Desmond Bryant.

Beyond that, it would be nice to get another talented receiving threat to bring in and develop. This class is deep there, so there will plenty of opportunities again. A versatile, developmental offensive tackle that can be depth for now and perhaps eventually take over at right tackle or even left tackle down the road would be nice. They could use another inside linebacker, pass rusher, safety depth and another running back as well.

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