Cleveland's inept offense again failed to produce a touchdown.

Cleveland's inept offense again failed to produce a touchdown.
By JOE SCALZO
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
CLEVELAND -- Here's a quick, three-step guide to following the Browns' offense this season.
Step one, close your eyes.
Step two, plug your nose.
Step three, run for cover.
"We're playing like [crap]," said tight end Steve Heiden. "And it's our [darn] problem."
OK, step four. Cover your ears.
Coach Romeo Crennel said the Browns took a "step back" in a 16-3 loss to the Ravens last week. On Sunday, the offense kept backpedaling, tripped over its feet and threw up on itself as the Browns stumbled to a 13-10 loss to the struggling Lions.
"We weren't very good overall," said Crennel.
Correction, the offense wasn't good.
Dropsies
Quarterback Trent Dilfer completed just 10 of 19 passes for 73 yards and three interceptions. Wide receiver Antonio Bryant -- who had just one reception all day -- dropped a crucial pass that would have given the Browns the ball in field goal range late in the fourth quarter.
And with the game on the line, the Browns (2-4) went backward and the team's record went south.
"We've all got to look in the mirror," Heiden said. "It's not the coaches' fault. We as players need to make changes.
"This is our job. This is our team. We're the Cleveland Browns. It's our [bleeping] job to make things happen."
No offense
Two weeks ago, the Browns offense went through similar struggles at home but found a way to win in the end against the Bears. That didn't happen last week against the Ravens and it didn't happen Sunday.
Trailing 13-10 with 1:54 remaining in the fourth quarter, the Browns had the ball on their own 40 with a chance to win or tie. The next sequence of plays looked like this: incomplete pass, penalty (illegal hands to the face), penalty (false start), sack (with the Lions declining a holding penalty), another incomplete pass (that was inches away from being Dilfer's fourth interception) and a punt.
The Lions got the ball back, picked up one first down and ran out the clock, giving Lions quarterback Jeff Garcia a victory in his first game since leaving Cleveland in the off-season.
"It would be an understatement to say that it was disappointing," Dilfer said. "Especially when your defense is doing such a good job of keeping you in the game."
Not Frye's time
After the game, Crennel was asked if he considered inserting backup quarterback Charlie Frye -- the team's third round draft pick.
"No, I didn't," he said. "We decided to go ahead and stay with [Dilfer]."
Running back Reuben Droughns was the Browns' lone bright spot offensively, carrying 19 times for 100 yards for his first 100-yard game since he was acquired from Denver in the off-season.
"It doesn't mean anything with a loss," Droughns said. "It's just extra numbers."
Cleveland's only other highlight came late in the second quarter when rookie wideout Josh Cribbs scored his first career touchdown on a 90-yard kickoff return.
"I just wanted to enjoy that moment even though there was no big celebration," Cribbs, who played at Kent State, said. "It was great while it lasted."
Harrington benched
Garcia, meanwhile, filled in adequately for much-maligned starter Joey Harrington, who was benched after posting the lowest passer rating in the NFL through the first five games. By the end of last season, Garcia was about as popular in Cleveland as Harrington is in Detroit, making Sunday's victory that much sweeter.
"To be able to start in Cleveland was kind of a nice situation," said Garcia, who was activated for the first time since injuring his leg in the preseason. "I was just excited to have the opportunity to get back out there and compete. It's been a difficult seven weeks having to watch from the sidelines."
Garcia's numbers weren't spectacular -- he completed 22 of 34 passes for 210 yards and no interceptions -- but he made as many plays with his feet as with his arm. His biggest play came on a fourth-and-1 in the second quarter when he scrambled out of the pocket, couldn't find an open receiver and ran it in himself.
Garcia was also playing with his top three receivers on the sidelines (Roy Williams was inactive, Charles Rogers is suspended and Kevin Johnson injured his Achilles during the game), relying on rookie Mike Williams and journeymen such as tight end Casey FitzSimmons, wide receiver Scottie Vines and running back Artose Pinner.
"[Garcia] gave their offense a little life," Crennel said.
Dilfer didn't. And if something doesn't change soon, there's going to be a lot of games like Sunday's the rest of this season.
scalzo@vindy.com