Cleveland Browns

Now obviously every game matters and the most important game to win is the one coming up. I was taking a look at the schedule though and was thinking which games are most important to win. Once I got looking at it and tried to rank them from one to sixteen many factors came into play. You want to win your division games. You want to take care of the easier opponents. It's easier to win at home then on the road. So taking in these factors I tried to put together an order of must win/highest percentage of winning the game in order to make the playoffs. 1. Jaguars 2. @ Jets 3. Bills 4. Lions 5. Steelers 6. Dolphins 7.@ Chiefs 8. Ravens 9.@ Steelers 10. Bears 11. Bengals 12.@ Ravens 13@ Vikings 14.@ Bengals 15.@ Packers 16.@ Patriots So basically I view the Patriots as the hardest game to win because they are a really good team and were playing there in New England in December. I view the Jaguars as the easiest/most win game because they are the weakest team weakest team we play. By my rankings it also shows that I think the Bengals are the best in division opponent and the steelers are the weakest. Tell me what you think and if you disagree. If so, how would you rank our schedule? Now obviously every game matters and the most important game to win is the one coming up. I was taking a look at the schedule though and was thinking which games are most important to win. Once I got looking at it and tried to rank them from one to sixteen many factors came into play. You want to win your division games. You want to take care of the easier opponents. It's easier to win at home then on the road. So taking in these factors I tried to put together an order of must win/highest percentage of winning the game in order to make the playoffs. 1. Jaguars 2. @ Jets 3. Bills 4. Lions 5. Steelers 6. Dolphins 7.@ Chiefs 8. Ravens 9.@ Steelers 10. Bears 11. Bengals 12.@ Ravens 13@ Vikings 14.@ Bengals 15.@ Packers 16.@ Patriots So basically I view the Patriots as the hardest game to win because they are a really good team and were playing there in New England in December. I view the Jaguars as the easiest/most win game because they are the weakest team weakest team we play. By my rankings it also shows that I think the Bengals are the best in division opponent and the steelers are the weakest. Tell me what you think and if you disagree. If so, how would you rank our schedule?

This news is not necessarily Cleveland Browns-related, but it closes the book on the career of another one of the league's best inside linebackers. Ray Lewis and Brian Urlacher were the best players at their positions in their respective conferences for a very long time, and earlier today, Urlacher officially announced his retirement from the NFL. Our Bears affiliate, Windy City Gridiron, posted some of the reactions people and teams have had on Twitter. Here is a nice one from the Arizona Cardinals organization, giving Urlacher a shout out for the havoc he has caused them in the past: You were who we thought you were.Congrats.RT @burlacher54: It was an honor to play my entire career for the @chicagobears. — Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) May 22, 2013 More reaction on Urlacher's retirement can be found here. In recent memory, the only player on the Browns who stacks up to Urlacher in terms of a legacy is kicker Phil Dawson. After 14 seasons with the team, though Dawson signed with the San Francisco 49ers this offseason. In a couple of years, Joe Thomas will fall into the category of being a legendary Brown.

With the Browns' quarterback situation still questionable, circumstances could develop where Hoyer -- who's never shown he can't succeed -- would step in. Paul Brown mentored numerous coaches and was innovative. More Browns story links.

So much for Thaddeus Lewis having a chance to compete to be the Cleveland Browns' No. 3 quarterback in 2013: Browns waive QB Thaddeus Lewis, per league source. — ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) May 22, 2013 It is not like the Browns had some long-running ties or investment in Lewis, but it still seemed like he was a viable option to bring in as a fourth quarterback. There is no word yet on who he is being waived for; we'll see if there is an undrafted free agent quarterback who caught Cleveland's eye. Lewis originally joined the Browns at the start of the 2011 season, when he was claimed off waivers from Pat Shurmur's former team, the St. Louis Rams. At the time, Rams fans were disappointed to see him waived, believing he should be Sam Bradford's backup quarterback. When Joe Haden returned from his suspension part-way through 2012, the Browns waived Lewis and put him on the practice squad. He was called up to the 53-man roster in Week 17 to start against the Pittsburgh Steelers, the No. 1 ranked defense in the NFL. Given the circumstances, Lewis did quite a good job, completing 22-of-32 passes for 204 yards, 1 touchdown, and 1 interception in a losing effort. This offseason, the Browns have already gotten rid of two of their quarterbacks from last year -- Colt McCoy via a trade to the 49ers, and now Lewis. The only one who remains is starter Brandon Weeden, now in his second year. Jason Campbell was added earlier in free agency, and Brian Hoyer was signed last week. Campbell and Hoyer should compete for the No. 2 and No. 3 roles in training camp. Are you disappointed in Lewis departing?

Teams are starting up their offseason activities again, and while that is supposed to be a time for joy, it is also a time for concern: In one week, WR Michael Crabtree tore his Achilles and LB Melvin Ingram tore his ACL. Who's next, because someone will be. — Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) May 22, 2013 With the 49ers' situation, I would not be as concerned as Niners Nation appears to be. Yes, losing Michael Crabtree hurts, considering his blocking skills, and the fact that he was a nice security blanket for Colin Kaepernick at the end of last season. But, this is a 49ers team that got by with an older Randy Moss as their No. 2 receiver in 2012. They acquired Anquan Boldin in the offseason, and have Kyle Williams and Mario Manningham returning from injury. They also drafted a guy named A.J. Jenkins in the first round last year. Do you think he's looking for a shot at playing time? When it comes to the Cleveland Browns, which player (excluding Joe Thomas) would you be most concerned about suffering an injury at this time of the year? In terms of magnitude, let's call it an torn Achilles', ACL, or pectoral. We saw it last year with Cleveland Browns defensive tackle Phil Taylor. He did come back part-way through the season, but not having a full second year of development for him hurt. With the Browns trying to grow this year under new offensive and defensive systems, which one player suffering an injury would really set things back for the entire 2013 season?

A few days ago, a report by FOX 8 news led us to believe that the "Cleveland Browns Stadium" signage was completely removed already. As it turns out, that is not the case. One of our readers, M. Anthony, took a trip down to the stadium in hopes of photographing the bare facade, or to see if any part of the "FirstEnergy Stadium" signage had been put up. Instead, we're still stuck with appearing as "Cleveland Browns Sta," which I guess you could spin off of "gangsta" or something. You can see a couple of other photos of the signage here. In other news related to the stadium, the Official Team Site posted a video earlier today (2:30 in length) showing how the grounds crew has been busy re-sodding parts of the field this week, in preparation for the international friendly soccer match between the USA and Belgium next Wednesday, May 29th.

Cleveland Browns offensive lineman Mitchell Schwartz is a student of the game and tries to learn as much as he can from left tackle Joe Thomas.

San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Michael Crabtree has suffered a torn Achilles tendon during organized team activities (OTAs), per Mike Garafolo of USA Today. Crabtree, the team's first-round pick in 2009, had a breakout season last year as he finished with career highs across the board: 85 receptions, 1,105 yards and nine touchdowns. Once Colin Kaepernick replaced Alex Smith, who suffered a concussion in Week 9, Crabtree really thrived. In the second half of the season with Kaepernick under center, Crabtree had 46 receptions for 665 yards and six touchdowns in the final eight regular-season games. Only six players had more receiving yards during that span. In three playoff games, he had another 20 receptions for 285 yards and three touchdowns. The loss of Crabtree (most likely) for the season is obviously a huge blow for the 49ers. While the 49ers are the preseason favorites to win the Super Bowl, the Seahawks are the team with the second-lowest odds within the NFC. From a fantasy impact, Kaepernick's fantasy value takes a bit of a hit. On the other hand, Vernon Davis (and Anquan Boldin, to a lesser extent) should see a larger share of targets. Perhaps the injury opens the door for A.J. Jenkins, but I'm a bit skeptical after his irrelevance last year. In fact, I would prefer Quinton Patton, their fourth-round pick this year, over Jenkins as a potential sleeper.

The field at FirstEnergy Stadium was recently re-sodded to prepare it for the U.S.-Belgium soccer match on May 29. Here is a look at how it happened.

Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam wasn't scheduled to speak to owners at the NFL Spring Meeting. But Haslam wanted a chance to explain the legal issues surrounding his company.