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BEREA ? Colt McCoy's first game as the undisputed starting quarterback of the Browns didn't go as he had planned. A stirring comeback? Nope. But his first pass did get batted back into his face and he caught it for a 5-yard loss. A strong finish? ...
A strong finish? Not exactly. He went 4-for-12 for 22 yards in the final three drives, including a fourth-down pass thrown to center Alex Mack in desperation and an interception that slipped out of his hand.
A complete mastery of the new West Coast Offense? Try again. He completed less than 50 percent of his passes and posted a pedestrian 70.1 rating.
A win to start 2011 in style? Forget about it. The offensive started slowly and bogged down late and Cleveland lost the home opener 27-17 to the Bengals.
That?s what bugs McCoy the most. The winningest quarterback in college football history fell to 2-7 as an NFL starter and has dropped six straight ? the first five as a rookie fill-in last year.
?I just felt like we had an opportunity to win and we didn?t do it there in the second half,? he said Wednesday. ?As a team we?ve got to figure out, hey, when you?ve got the momentum and you?re at home, whaddya got to do to put this thing away.?
The quick answer is be more consistent on offense. The defense got ripped ? and deservedly so ? for being slow to react on the winning touchdown pass, but one more touchdown from the Cleveland offense would?ve buried the Bengals before they had the chance.
?Me specifically, yeah, I can be a lot more efficient,? McCoy said. ?I think collectively as a group we can be more efficient. The thing we?ve harped on in meetings is you can?t play behind the chains on first and second down and expect to convert third-and-long. Not even good teams do that. I think efficiency starts on first and second down.
?If you can play second-and-5, third-and-5 or less, then I think you give yourself an opportunity to stay on the field and score some points. To me, that?s what efficiency means.?
Coach Pat Shurmur saw good and bad in McCoy?s performance, but since it was a loss and the numbers weren?t good ? 19-for-40 for 213 yards, two touchdowns and two sacks ? the focus has been on the bad.
?There were some of those when you look at it and say, ?My goodness that was a ??? Shurmur said. ?I think what we?re trying to build here is guys that are willing to say, ?I have to play better,? and I think that?s what he?ll tell you.
?There?s some easy ones we didn?t take that he?ll look back on. Quarterback play always boils down to decision-making, timing and accuracy.?
?Each play is a little bit different,? he said. ?I think just as a whole, the passing game, you need to get the running back involved a little more. We?ve got to understand and see the coverages better. As a passing game, as a passing team, we?ve got a lot of work to do.?
The brain trust of president Mike Holmgren, general manager Tom Heckert and Shurmur believes the West Coast will improve the productivity of the wideouts. The impact wasn?t seen in Week 1, as five receivers combined for six catches for 108 yards. Mohamed Massaquoi led the way with three for 77.
?As a passing team, we?ve got to be able to do better, get the ball outside a little more,? McCoy said. ?I?ve got to make better throws, obviously. I can play better. I think if you asked the receivers, each one of them will tell you they can play a lot better.?
Throwing the ball wide and deep requires sufficient arm strength. McCoy?s critics often point to that as a weakness, but quarterbacks coach Mark Whipple disagrees.
?He can make all the throws,? Whipple said. ?Honestly and I told him this, when I looked at him at Texas, I thought maybe (it was an issue). But they didn?t ask him to make those throws on the outside and he can make all those throws. I think he?s thrown the deep ball really well.?
McCoy?s opener wasn?t all bad. He rolled right and found tight end Benjamin Watson down the left seam for a 34-yard touchdown and zipped a 2-yard slant to tight end Evan Moore for a touchdown. The best throw was a career-long 56-yarder to Massaquoi as McCoy threw on the run, and as he was about to get hit.
?He has all the physical ability to be a tremendous success in this league,? Whipple said. ?There?s no question I think you have to have a God-given ability to be an elite quarterback in this league, and what I?ve seen, he has that.?
Whipple has also been impressed by McCoy?s field vision. When they reconvene on the sideline after a series, McCoy is able to describe what he saw and explain his decisions accordingly.
?Can they process the information from the time the ball is snapped to the time the foot hits the ground and it?s let go? Here?s where the ball should go,? Whipple said. ?He can see and has that ability to process whatever it is. It?s why we?re having fun. It?s why the kid will be able to perform.?
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