Jamie Meder "impressive" vs. Buccaneers

Cleveland Browns defensive tackle Jamie Meder sacks Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Mike Glennon in the fourth quarter. John Kuntz, Northeast Ohio Media Group

Terry Pluto's scribbles

August 31, 2015

Scribbles in my notebook the day after the Browns' impressive 31-7 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Florida:

■ Quarterback Josh McCown talked about how the Browns should ''bottle and save'' parts of the game. He especially meant the first quarter, during which Travis Benjamin ran a punt back 53 yards for a touchdown. And Charles Gaines picked off a pass from a frenzied Jameis Winston to set up a field goal. And the Browns had an 80-yard touchdown drive chewing up 16 plays and9:37.

■ Watching what the Browns did to Winston gives you a taste of what McCown dealt with last season in Tampa Bay. The Bucs' offensive line was rated one of the worst in the NFL by websites such as profootballfocus.com and Football Outsiders. The No. 1 pick in the draft, Winston was sacked three times. He was hit three other times. The rookie from Florida State played only 2½ quarters and threw the ball reasonably well when he had time — but that was not very often.

■ The Browns recorded six sacks in this game. Desmond Bryant was seemingly unstoppable early on. He was credited with 1½ sacks. On another play, he hit Winston's arm as the quarterback threw a pass. Paul Kruger, Danny Shelton, Chris Kirksey, Karlos Dansby and so many others had very good days. I love how Dansby stopped running back Doug Martin on a third-and-1 play in the second quarter. The veteran linebacker delivered a jarring tackle for a 1-yard loss to force a punt.

■ The preseason is so hard to judge, though. Last Monday, Tampa Bay soundly defeated Cincinnati, 25-11. The Bucs looked great in that game and terrible this week. For Browns fans, the good thing to remember is that both coaches treated the first half and part of the third quarter as a tune-up, with most of the starters remaining on the field.

■ The Browns' strong pass rush helped the secondary. Veterans Joe Haden and Tashaun Gipson played their first preseason games of the season. They were on the field for only 10 snaps, as the coaches wanted to limit their exposure. Pierre Desir got hurt (concussion). Justin Gilbert (hip flexor) didn't play. Charles Gaines had a big game until he left with a hamstring injury. But the secondary played well despite all the missing players.

■ Valley Forge product Jamie Meder had another sack and five tackles. The 310-pound defensive lineman has had an extremely strong camp. If he doesn't make the Browns, he should find a spot on another roster. The former Ashland University star is impressive.

■ Coach Mike Pettine talked about the defense being ''turned loose'' to ''go out and go hunting'' in terms of putting pressure on the quarterback. The Browns did just that for the first time in this preseason.

■ McCown's final numbers for the preseason: 29 of 38 passing (76 percent), with three TDs, two interceptions and a 92.8 rating. He will not play in the fourth game.

■ I don't want to hear McCown talk about being ''a competitive guy'' and wanting to ''lower my shoulder'' when running for a first down. The Browns' quarterback situation is scary in terms of depth. Johnny Manziel (sore elbow) is out at least for the rest of the preseason. Connor Shaw (thumb surgery) is out for several months. The last thing the Browns need is their 36-year-old quarterback trying to prove some type of point against his old team by taking needless chances running the ball. And remember, this is the preseason.

■ McCown took three very hard hits when running the ball in Tampa. He was hit two other times after throwing a pass. That happens. Quarterbacks will be smacked when trying to make throws from the pocket. And Pettine was correct in saying the pass protection had some problems. It did in Tampa as well as last week when the Browns faced Buffalo.

■ Pettine half-joked that McCown is ''foolish'' for some of the runs. But I don't think the coach liked it. McCown did miss five games last season with a thumb injury.

■ Thad Lewis was very solid in relief, completing 4 of 5 passes for 66 yards. He ran for a 7-yard touchdown. He had the team organized. Lewis will play a lot in the final preseason game in Chicago on Thursday. He is the backup right now, and the Browns need to get him ready, as they aren't sure when Manziel's elbow will allow him to play.

■ The backs still didn't run very well. Isaiah Crowell and Terrance West were a combined 53 yards rushing in 15 carries. Duke Johnson carried the ball once for 4 yards. He suffered a concussion later in the game. So the rookie from Miami is out again. He had missed most of camp with a hamstring injury.

■ Taylor Gabriel caught four passes, and the second-year receiver drew raves from Pettine. The coach talked about how Gabriel knew all the plays from the different receiver spots. He praised Gabriel's excellent hands and route running. ''He's one of our most consistent players,'' Pettine said.

■ Travis Benjamin has had an outstanding camp as a receiver. He leads the team with seven catches in the preseason. It was a relief to see him return the punt for the touchdown, because he looked confident catching the ball, which was not the case last season.

Preseason Week 3 Bengals vs. Bears: "Unsung Hero of the Week" award

By Anthony Cosenza

August 31, 2015

We give the nod to a few Bengals players whose contributions may have been overlooked in the team's 21-10 win over the Bears on Saturday night. Cast your vote and sound off on your winner!

While the MVP and Unsung Hero pieces are usually ones that honor individuals, sometimes an entire position group is worthy of a tip of the cap. This week's "Unsung Hero" definitely provides the latter, as it was a true team effort in the Bengals' 21-10 win over the Bears.

Cast your vote and sound off on your winner for this week's "Unsung Hero of the Week" award!

The Offensive Line: One guy who stood out in this group was Russell Bodine for his immense improvement after a poor showing against the Buccaneers, but the entire group played well. The quarterbacks finished the half going 12-for-12 passing, which is a general statement of pass protection. The group ended up allowing two sacks on the night, but also paved the way for 145 net rushing yards. Penalties marred the night and kept them getting an MVP award, so the Unsung Hero designation seems fitting for them.

HB/FB Ryan Hewitt: Man Crush alert! This guy gets in there to knock heads, as evidenced by his standing up of Shea McClellin on Jeremy Hill's 26-yard run. As if the blocks weren't enough, Hewitt also added two catches for 11-yards. Hewitt seems to personify this award.

RB Rex Burkhead: His versatility will not only pay dividends for the Bengals' offense, but could help shape the overall roster. Burkhead had two catches on the great opening drive, including an awesome, back-shoulder 25-yard grab against a linebacker while lined up in the slot. A lot of folks are really looking to what Burkhead's contributions will be in 2015.

WR A.J. Green: After a bad night down south, Green bounced back nicely with two catches for 19 yards. His 15-yarder from AJ McCarron was a beauty, as he adjusted and made a one-armed catch that led to a touchdown drive.

TE Tyler Eifert: Like the return of Marvin Jones, many believe having Eifert back will cure most, if not all of the offense's issues. Eifert had two catches for 30 yards, including a 25-yard beauty that led to Jeremy Hill's touchdown run.

The Secondary: Adam Jones had some nice plays, as did Dre Kirkpatrick and Josh Shaw. The group frustrated Jay Cutler into the third quarter, and allowed just 127 passing yards, 10 first downs and 10 points, as well as an 18 percent third-down conversion rate. It was a nice effort from a group who was abused by the big wideouts of Tampa Bay.

DE/LB Chris Carter: Usually, the Bengals aren't very creative with the "'tweener" guys.Dontay Moch fizzled out and James Harrison was out of his element in Cincinnati. But Carter (not the guy who only catches touchdowns) has found a nice preseason niche. He has three sacks in three preseason games, along with multiple other pressures. One came on Saturday night against the Bears and he could be grinding his way onto the final roster.

Don't sleep on Detroit Lions OT Riley Reiff

Lions offensive tackle Riley Reiff has looked good in training camp, even holding his own -- and then some -- against star defensive lineman Ezekiel Ansah. (Mike Mulholland | MLive.com)

From Kyle Meinke's "Don't sleep on Detroit Lions OT Riley Reiff"
August 19, 2015

ALLEN PARK — There's this running joke among reporters that someone should start a segment called "Pulling teeth with Riley Reiff."

Because the man doesn't say much.

The Detroit Lions' left tackle has a strong aversion to the media — he has yet to speak to a reporter since the start of camp — and from all accounts isn't much of a talker behind closed doors either.

Even on the field, Rieff has a quiet way of going about his business.

Think about it. How many stories have you seen about Rieff since the start of camp? And this man plays left tackle, among the most important positions on the team.

That's due in part to his reticent nature — but also to his quiet efficiency on the line.

While Detroit figures out what it has at left guard, and center, and right tackle, it already knows what it has in Rieff, who is entering his third season as the full-time starter at left tackle. And it likes what it sees.

"He's performed well," coach Jim Caldwell said. "He's done a nice job in his pass protection, nice job of run blocking and he's playing like you would anticipate him to play. He doesn't make many mistakes."

Reiff has had a strong camp, despite his low-profile. That includes some titanic clashes with defensive end Ezekiel Ansah during one-on-ones.

Ansah is one of the best young pass-rushers in the game. He has more sacks (15.5) than anyone else in his draft class. This guy is an athletic freak who has gotten the best of a lot of offensive linemen the past two years.

Yet Reiff has stoned him again and again and again during one-on-ones. He's lost a handful of those battles, but won the majority.

"That's a clash of the titans," right tackle LaAdrian Waddle said. "Reiff is a brawler, and battles to the end, and every time, especially going against Ziggy, that's what you have to do. Because Ziggy is a freak athlete coming off the edge, and he's going to pack some power.

"And Reiff is still doing his thing."

Their battles have a way of getting heated, and sometimes seem almost personal. In fact, Ansah and Reiff appeared to nearly come to blows during one sequence in OTAs.

So they're definitely not taking it easy on each other.

Yet Reiff is winning most of the battles.

"The old saying in the Bible says, 'Iron sharpens iron,' and I think you get that from Ziggy and Riley," Caldwell said. "They look forward to working against one another, they challenge one another and I think obviously it makes them better."

Reiff doesn't seem to be doing a whole lot differently this season. He hasn't made a significant physical leap, like Caraun Reid, or a significant mental leap, like Darius Slay last year.

Larry Warford, and Reid, and Waddle, and even Caldwell, could not point to one major improvement since last season. They all echoed a similar refrain: He's just kind of improved everywhere.

The biggest improvement seems to be one of the smallest things, which is his handwork.

"With Reiff, I think one of the problems he brought up he wanted to work on was how he drops his hands at contact," Warford said. "And with this practice we've been having in training camp, he's carrying his hands a lot better. He's striking a lot cleaner, and that's just improved his game so much.

"His sets have always been great. It's just the way he carries his hands. It's sometimes the smallest things with offense line play that can screw up your game. And the way he carries his hands has improved his game a ton."

All he's done is put his head down and done his job — and from all accounts, done it very well through training camp.

To the point where some are wondering whether he could still mature into a top-tier left tackle.

"Hell ya he can do it," Warford said. "There are a few guys on our team who could do it, and he's definitely one of them. He has all the makings of a great tackle. He just needs to keep progressing.

"Like you said, he's out here battling Ziggy every day, and that's one of the better pass-rushers in the league. What better way would there be to get to that level?"