The Next Step Is The Hardest

The next day Savage traded a seventh-round pick to the Dolphins for nickelback Travis Daniels, which was like sandbagging a flood. Imagine what Romo and Terrell Owens were thinking about the season opener as they watched Eli Manning strafe the Browns' secondary.

AUGUST 21
BEREA

WITH LINEBACKER Willie McGinest nursing a strained groin, the Browns promoted Hall to the first team for the time being. Later, as they do three or four times a week, Crennel and Mel Tucker met to dissect the defense position by position. "The guy who keeps showing up is Hall," Crennel said. "He can rush, and he keeps showing an ability to cover that I didn't expect from a kid who didn't have to do that in college."

"He's a football player," Tucker said. "The game's not too big for him."

"Give him more chances," Crennel said.

Both men wished they had such a solution for the secondary. "We need them to grow up," Crennel said of the defensive backs, with a hint of resignation in his voice. "I hope Monday's a wake-up call for Eric, because in this league they're going to keep coming at you."

AUGUST 24
BEREA

BACK AT CAMP the day after another embarrassing loss, this one in Detroit, Savage told Crennel that what happened in the preseason games shouldn't shake the solid foundation the coaches and staff had built. Eight starters (including Anderson, Edwards and Lewis) were among the 15 players who missed the Lions game because of injuries. And though Brady Quinn produced only six points in six sputtering possessions against the Lions, he most likely wouldn't be needed when the real games began; Anderson had assured the staff that the mild concussion he'd suffered against the Giants wouldn't prevent him from playing on Sept. 7.

"The Giants lose [Osi] Umenyiora for the year. [Tom] Brady and [Peyton] Manning haven't even played yet," Savage told Crennel, adding that the Patriots had looked awful in losing their first three preseason games. "Nobody knows anything right now. Let's just get through this week and get to the Dallas week healthy. The preseason's a mirage. We'll be fine."

Said Edwards, as he prepared to return to action after cutting his foot in a fluke practice accident two weeks earlier, "When I come back, I'll provide energy, swagger, playmaking. The preseason sucks. We all know that. We're preparing for Dallas, not these games."