Linebacker Jamie Collins sidelined

If the Browns are going to beat the Colts, they will have to do it without one of their best players.

If the Browns are going to beat the Colts to win for the first time this season, they will have to do it without one of their best players.

Linebacker Jamie Collins has been ruled out for the game on Sept. 24 in Indianapolis because he is still in the concussion protocol after being injured on Sept. 17 in Baltimore. James Burgess, who bounced around the practice squads of the Dolphins, Chargers, Jaguars and Browns last year, is taking Collins’ spot.

“(Winning) would be outstanding,” coach Hue Jackson said after practice on Sept. 22. “We need to win. Our guys have worked extremely hard, and that’s something I’ve talked to them about.

“We played two of the better teams in our division, one and two in Pittsburgh and Baltimore. We didn’t compete well enough to win. We have an opportunity to go out and play better this week and try to get a victory. It would boost everybody’s morale — the organization, our players, everybody.”

The Browns are 0-2 and so are the Colts. They are as desperate as the Browns to win.

“The veterans do a good job of making an emphasis

on every week is a week that could change the outcome of our season,” Colts rookie safety Malik Hooker said on a conference call. “Obviously, starting the season out 0-2 isn’t what we wanted, but that’s in the past. The only thing we can do now is fix our mistakes and try to get better each week.”

Collins’ numbers from the first two games were not outstanding. He had four tackles in the opener against the Steelers and seven against the Ravens last week.

Defensive coordinator Gregg Williams said Collins “is one of the best players I’ve ever had a chance to coach,” and defended his linebacker by saying Collins disrupts things in a way that doesn’t show up on the stat sheet. He also said he is confident Burgess will fill in fine until Collins returns.

Burgess and the Browns

defense are catching a break. The Rams offense ranks 27th in scoring (11 points a game) and 29th in offense (245.5 yards a game), largely because star quarterback Andrew Luck is still out with a shoulder injury. Jacoby Brissett will start at quarterback for the Colts.

“I’ve made a career out of players identical to Mr. Burgess,” Williams said. “Everybody else says he can’t play. I love coaching those guys. Have you seen since we walked in the door the change in him?

“He has instincts, and he’s tough. When I say instincts, he understands where the ball’s going before the ball goes there so he just gets off and goes and trainwrecks it. I’ll live with that.”

Collins signed a fouryear, $50 million contract in the offseason. He is making $15.875 million this year in salary and bonuses.

Burgess is making

$465,000, and he’s happy to be getting it after being cut by three teams last year.

“It was a long journey my rookie year,” Burgess said. “I was living out of a suitcase traveling from team to team, state to state, hotel to hotel. I couldn’t ever really get settled and get an apartment since I was bouncing around so much. It was a struggle, but it just makes me so much more thankful for this day.

“The emotion is going to be up there. It is going to be pretty high, but I have to keep it at a steady level so that I can stay focused, focus on the game plan and the challenges that we have ahead of us.”

Burgess played only nine snaps against the Steelers in the opener without a tackle. He played 12 snaps in Baltimore and sacked Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco once for nine yards. He totaled two tackles.