TRAINING CAMP In second season, Green's star ready to shine bright for Browns
He ran for 726 yards and five touchdowns in the last seven games of last year.
By JOE SCALZO
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
BEREA -- A year ago, the Browns' quarterback situation was set, and the running back situation was a big question mark.
Now it's the opposite.
After a strong second half of his rookie season, everyone has anointed second-year running back William Green as a future star.
Everyone, that is, but him.
"I'm just trying to learn more and get better," Green said. "I've put in a lot of hard work and I'm looking forward to that hard work paying off."
Green held out the first week of training camp last year and didn't really hit stride until midseason.
He finally broke out of his slump in Week 10 at Cincinnati, when he rushed for 96 yards to lead the Browns to a 27-20 victory.
Over his last seven regular season games, he ran for 726 yards and five touchdowns.
"The biggest difference is that last year I didn't know what to expect," said Green, who totaled 887 yards and six touchdowns last season. "All kinds of different thoughts were going through my head. Now I'm settled and I know what to expect."
The Browns haven't had a 1,000 yard rusher in a season since Kevin Mack and Earnest Byner both did it in 1985.
Green could finally break that streak this season, but he hasn't made any specific goals.
"Ever since last year I've had the same goals -- just to be the best at what I do," Green said. "We've got a lot of talent on offense and we're trying to improve as a unit."
High expectations
Cleveland drafted Green as a junior out of Boston College with the 16th overall pick of the first round of the 2001 draft. He was the first running back picked and was expected to make an immediate impact.
But the holdout put him behind, and he learned an important lesson about the difference between pro football and college.
"The biggest difference is the business end," Green said. "You have to get the business handled first."
Green paired with fellow rookie Andre' Davis -- a second round pick out of Virginia Tech -- to turn a struggling offense into one that's expected to be the strength of the team.
"It's a great opportunity for whoever plays quarterback because we have so many weapons," said Tim Couch, who is battling Kelly Holcomb for the starting quarterback job.
"William Green had a big year and he's put a lot of work in during the offseason."
Green's backup
So has backup running back Jamel White, who lost the starting job to Green last year and has bulked up considerably. White is considered a good third round back, while Green is more of a pure runner.
White, who is 5-foot, 9-inch, 222-pounds, now outweighs Green (6-0, 215).
"Yeah, it's strange now that I'm bigger than he is," White said. "We're just going to do whatever it takes to help the team."
Green agreed.
"We've got a lot of potential," he said. "I'm looking forward to the season."
scalzo@vindy.com