With Browns’ training camp only a few hours away - at least the rookie variety – the news is beginning to heat up around Berea.  Oh wait – did I say “news?”  I meant fluff-laden and baseless innuendo.  I get those confused all the time.

From the Doom and Gloom Desk, comes this….

Sporting News – Five QB’s Who Should Be Benched

Jake Delhomme, Browns  

Coach Eric Mangini recently said the starting job in Cleveland is Delhomme’s to lose. The sooner he does lose it, the better off the team will be.

Delhomme lost his fastball at some point during the 13 days between Week 17 of the 2008 regular season and the divisional round of the playoffs. Though the Browns regard it as an aberration, it’s unlikely that a guy would simply fall off the horse at an advanced stage of his career then find the stirrups again.

Of course, the Browns can’t simply bench Delhomme after signing him in the offseason and paying him $7 million. Maybe they just shouldn’t have signed him.

Now I’m really confused. 

So the Browns “should” bench Delhomme – after naming him as the starting QB?  Or, name him as the “starter to be benched?” 

Florio – you magnificent bastard – you’ve done it again.

After seemingly agreeing to an offseason cease-fire with longtime nemesis Eric Mangini – in a most convenient manner, since Mangini was the only coach to be interviewed for Florio’s PFT season preview magazine – it appears that the loveable muckraker has turned his sights on Jake Delhomme. 

Because of course, another season of Brady Quinn and Derek Anderson’s delivering historically inept performances would have been far better than one season of Delhomme.

But then again – everyone loves an easy target.

Speaking of which, here’s another who has “lost his fastball” in recent months…

NFL.com – Lombardi’s Blue Chip Players

Blue-chip players: OT Joe Thomas, WR/RB Josh Cribbs, NT Shaun Rogers.

Red-chip players: CB Eric Wright.

The Browns still have a very long way to go, but what worries me most about them is they did not add any blue or red players in the offseason. A bad team with money should be able to add at least one red player.

I’m not sure what has happened to Lombardi as of late.  Although he always took his shots at Eric Mangini, his columns still remained largely informative.  However, in recent months, his tone has become much bitter – almost bordering on a 2009 Florio level of snark. 

From calling for Mangini’s head late last season to pimping every Bob LaMonte client in the league to bowing at the heels of Mike Tannebaum, Lombardi is quickly losing some of his previously well-earned credibility.

As for his “chip” analysis of the Browns, Lombardi again proves to be lost in a sea of green – as in envy for his beloved and hopeful future NY employer.  For a person with his front office connections and experience, Lombardi is ignoring the basic landscape of NFL free agency by suggesting that a “bad team with money” needs to spend in the offseason.

Although a “good team” with “no money” like the Jets followed this blueprint over the past few months, it’s obvious that the only way to add players of a certain “chip” is through the draft. 

In this case, it’s possible that the Browns may have found themselves 3-4 eventual starters in this past April’s draft, while refusing to commit to huge free agent deals in a future that may not include football in 2011.

Speaking of which, how about those rookies?

Plain Dealer – Browns Sign McCoy and Lauvao

McCoy, who was drafted with the pick acquired from Oakland in the Kamerion Wimbley trade, earned 45 victories in 53 starts at Texas to become the winningest quarterback in NCAA history. Throwing 112 touchdowns against 45 interceptions, he became the only quarterback in college history to win at least 10 or more games in each of his four seasons.

Lauvao’s four-year deal is worth up to $3.22 million with a $697,000 signing bonus. He was drafted out of Arizona State with the 92nd overall pick, which was acquired from the Jets as part of the Braylon Edwards trade.

Of course, getting top pick Joe Haden signed will prove the biggest challenge for the Browns – considering the way Oakland skewed the salary slotting process last season…and again pointing to that eventual labor impasse that is looming. 

However, in terms of overall progress, the Browns are off to a decent start by locking up Lauvao.  Based on early offseason reviews, Lauvao is being considered as a possible starting candidate at right guard – which is clearly an area of need for the Browns going forward.  Getting Lauvao in rookie camp on time will go a long way towards establishing this as more than just a projection.

As for the trades that eventually delivered Lauvao and McCoy to Cleveland – let’s just call those a “chip” of another variety.  I’m not sure what color Braylon Edwards or Kamerion Wimbley are at this moment, but at least right now it looks like the Browns are getting a decent return.  Of course, if Lauvao turns into a starter and McCoy can actually transition into the NFL, the moves will be colored in a most positive shade.

Speaking of more “chips”, as in the “all-in” variety….

Holmgren says the “rush” for him was calling plays as a head coach — “the chess game, being there, making quick decisions,” a lure that leaves him vulnerable to another foray into coaching.

“I think there is that possibility,” he says. “But really not until I think I have accomplished what I need to do here. So the odds become less and less the longer I am here, if it takes awhile to fix this.

“Watching Mangini interacting with players, you could tell Mike wanted to interject. He tried to restrain himself. That’s just his attitude: He is a teacher. He knows the game; he loves the game. And he knows how to get a team to the Super Bowl.”

Obviously, I sliced apart the excerpts of this interview, but for every Holmgren fluff piece that is published, contained within are some not so veiled references to the eventual day when our Team President will take total command of the Browns. 

It will be fascinating to watch how many more of these pieces are delivered throughout the season.  Sports journalism being what it is, a seemingly innocuous piece regarding Holmgren’s idle hands could coincide with a three-game losing streak – one in which Mangini’s Browns struggle to score an offensive touchdown.

For now, these pieces are pretty harmless – however, in a few months, this may not be the case. 

As for the Favre quote, let’s hope that the NFL’s top drama queen is merely doing what he does best – which is endlessly speculate on the future.  Otherwise, it would appear that Holmgren is merely moving station to station in an attempt to yet again return to the sidelines. 

And if such a thing happens, then we are truly “all in” as a franchise.