Wow, did that suck!

The Browns' starters got absolutely demolished by the Super Bowl champion Giants last night. It was pathetic. I was in bed by 10, so I didn't see our third-stringers nearly pull it out against the Giants' third-stringers, but I did see the debacle that was the first quarter. Eli Manning only threw seven passes, but two of them went for touchdowns. Derek Anderson threw 10 passes, completing just four for just 20 yards, or an average of two yards per pass. Jamal Lewis did better than that -- six rushes for 13 yards, or 2.2 yards per attempt. But consider that he got 12 yards on his first two rushes, and that's an average of 0.25 yards per run in his last four.

And the mistakes! One after another. Penalties, blown coverages, missed blocks, a punt returned for a touchdown, and so on. On one series late in the first quarter, the Browns started at their own 8. The series of plays:

* Anderson passes to Charles Ali for six yards, but it's called back on an offensive pass interference penalty on Kellen Winslow Jr. First and 14 at the 4.
* Lewis runs over left tackle, but never gets close to the line, losing two yards. Second and 16 at the 2.
* Anderson's pass attempt to Travis Wilson is incomplete. Third and 16 at the 2.
* Anderson's pass attempt to Steve Heiden is incomplete. Fourth and 16 at the 2.
* In punt formation, Kris Griffin is called for a false start. Fourth and 17 at the 1.
* Dave Zastudil, who cannot drop back the usual 15 yards to punt because the back of the end zone is only 11 yards behind the line of scrimmage, gets his punt blocked because his own blocker is pushed back into the ball's path. The ball bounces out of bounds in the end zone. Safety, New York leads, 16-3.
* Zastudil's free kick is fielded at the 18 by the Giants' Dominik Hixon, who returns it 82 yards for a touchdown. Following the extra point, New York leads, 23-3.

About the only good thing that happened for the Browns in that quarter was Phil Dawson's 56-yard field goal, made necessary by the offense's collective anemia. And just three plays after the above-described sequence, after Syndric Steptoe's kickoff return to the 9 and a seven-yard pass from Anderson to Ali put the Browns at the 2, James Butler returned Anderson's fumble 98 yards for a touchdown, and the Giants were up 30-3. Pathetic.

But it was just a preseason game, so let's not all burn our Browns gear. They're a much better team than this.