Crowell could be in line for a big payday

Crowell made the team as an undrafted rookie the same year Bitonio was a secondround draft choice.

Feeding the Crow the football will be a major part of the Browns’ offense this season if all goes as planned. If that happens, then the Crow will be able to feed his bank account a pile of money.

No team in the NFL ran the ball fewer times than the Browns did last year. Their 350 rushing attempts, matched only by the Detroit Lions, were 66 carries below the NFL average. Despite that, Isaiah “The Crow” Crowell just missed rushing for 1,000 yards – 952 yards on 198 carries.

Head coach Hue Jackson, who also calls plays on Sundays, offered a glimpse of what he wants this season during the “live” portion of practice on July 29 in Berea. Jackson called running plays 10 times in the 11-play session that included tackling.

The offensive line and Crowell dominated. It was just a pixel of the big picture Jackson is trying to create behind a revamped offensive line, but it is nonetheless encouraging.

“It was the first day of pads and the running backs were running hard,” left guard Joel Bitonio said on July 30. “But there were some good blocks going on. It was also the first day of tackling. The defense hadn’t tackled in eight months, so they were a little rusty.

“But we came out there and we were firing. We averaged seven yards a run in that period. We want to run the ball. That’s part of our I.Q. We have some big guys up front. We brought some new guys in (center J.C. Tretter and right guard Kevin Zeitler). We have to make that statement. We have to let Hue

trust us to run the ball. If we’re not getting four or five yards a carry, it’s going to be hard for him to keep calling runs.”

Bitonio and Crowell were among eight players given a scheduled day off on July 30.

The timing of committing to the run works out perfectly for Crowell.

Crowell made the team as an undrafted rookie in 2014 – the same year Bitonio was a second-round draft choice.

Crowell rushed for 607 yards as a rookie, 706 yards in 2015 and the 952 yards last season.

His 4.8-yard average in 2016 is the highest for a Browns running back with more than 100 carries since Kevin Mack averaged five yards a carry on 222 carries (1,104 yards) in 1985.

Crowell will be an unrestricted free agent next March without a new contract. He recently hired agent Drew Rosenhaus to represent him. He says he

wants to sign long-term with the Browns and is willing to sign after the season if it comes to that. But history shows that once players get a whiff of free agency, they like to follow the scent.

“I’m really not trying to focus on the contract right now,” Crowell said recently.” I’m just trying to help my teammates win games.

“I’d be very happy (to sign long-term with the Browns). This is Cleveland. This is where I want to be. I’m comfortable with my teammates, love my teammates, love my coaches and just love the city of Cleveland so this is where I want to be.”

The current regime has made a point to re-sign key players rather than let them walk in free agency. Bitonio, linebackers Chris Kirksey and Jamie Collins, punter Britton Colquitt and long snapper Charley Hughlett all signed extensions in the past offseason. But management is not batting 1.000. Wide receiver Terrelle

Pryor signed with the Redskins on the first day of free agency in 2017.

Bitonio was not doing Rosenhaus’ work, but he, more than anyone on the coaching staff or in the current front office, has watched Crowell’s progress since they first met in the 2014 rookie minicamp.

“He was a good player that year, but I think his vision and poise have all improved,” Bitonio said. “He’s always had that patience to make the cut, but he’s really getting better and better. He had a few cuts in that period yesterday where he really saw some of the defense and they were overpursuing a little bit and he cut backdoor and had a few big runs.

“He’s really transformed his body. He’s leaned up a little bit, but he’s running hard. He’s really committed to our team this year.”

Duke Johnson was second among Browns rushers last season with 358 yards on 73 carries.