Lerner's "Core Players"

This past weekend, Browns' owner Randy Lerner gave interviews to various local media outlets. It was a bad idea. He seems like a nice guy who made clear he is not one to "meddle" in the decisions made by the professionals he hires. That's the up side. The down side is he listed the current Browns "core players" and included numerous individuals, some of which wouldn't be drafted on day one of the upcoming 2007 draft if they were in it. He also had the words "Braylon Edwards" and "Hall of Fame" in the same sentence - something about Edwards being a "freak of nature" with HOF ability. Stop it Randy - you sound like a fan!

In my mind, a core player is an All-Pro caliber talent a team builds around. The Browns have two such players - Kellen Winslow and Cameron Wimbley. In the open market, as we speak, these two players would be highly sought after by other teams. Yes, it is true, the team has some other intriguing players - including cornerback Leigh Bodden, linebacker Andra Davis, safety Sean Jones, and Edwards, just to name a few. But the list isn't very long. That's the problem. Whoever gave Randy Lerner his list to work off of is selling him a bill of goods I'm not buying.