Lerner 'privileged' to be Browns owner

He said he has a vague interest in buying an English soccer team.
BEREA (AP) -- Randy Lerner's interest in purchasing an English soccer team will never match his passion for owning the Cleveland Browns.
"It will fundamentally and will always be a privilege," he said. "You know, it's the Browns."
Before watching wide receiver Braylon Edwards' surprising return to practice, Lerner spent about 10 minutes discussing the state of his NFL team on Saturday.
Lerner, who prefers to stay out of the spotlight, addressed several topics, including his reported pursuit of Aston Villa, a team in the English Premier League.
Lerner was vague on his interest in buying the football club.
"There are opportunities, but they are nothing more than opportunities right now," Lerner said. "My concern is if I put myself in a position to try and speak clearly on it I'm going to be misleading."
Busy training camp
The Browns have had a busy beginning to training camp, which got off to a horrific start when center LeCharles Bentley suffered a season-ending knee injury on Day 2 -- another blow to Browns fans who have seen their share of major injuries in recent years.
Lerner, though, feels the Browns will be able to endure the setback.
"Unlike previous seasons, we have a wealth of players around here that hold our interest and are difference-makers," Lerner said. "I think it mitigates the impact of losing LeCharles.
"It hurts, it's very frustrating, but there's been a lot of poise on the part of the GM, definitely on the part of the head coach."
Lerner also dispelled the notion the Browns are jinxed.
"My guess is that if you look at the [Chicago] Bears in '85, things happened in their camp that they weren't very happy about," he said. "I think that any success story has adversity buried and baked into it that doesn't become the subject of conversation if in fact you achieve what you want to achieve."
Lerner has stayed away from predictions in the past, but with the Browns expected to improve on last season's 6-10 record, he was asked if 8-8 would be acceptable.
"You know," he said after a long pause. "It's better than 6-10."
Dispute with WOIO-TV
Lerner also addressed the club's attempt to sever ties with WOIO-TV following a dispute over a 911 call. He's upset the station aired the call placed by his sister, Nancy Fisher, after she found her 6-year-old daughter drowned in a creek on family property July 9.
The team sent a letter on July 13 informing the station it was terminating its three-year contract to air preseason games and other Browns programs. WOIO, in turn, has filed a lawsuit. Lerner is confident the sides will work something out.
"I think Channel 19 and our organization have started very productive conversations about how to make sense of this and have both parties come out feeling good about themselves," he said.
Tucker out
Ryan Tucker's aching and aging left knee kept him out of practice on Saturday and could keep him sidelined for a few more days.
The 31-year-old Tucker only practiced for about 45 minutes on Friday before complaining of "something" in his knee. The Browns had their starting right tackle undergo an MRI, which showed some cartilage damage that coach Romeo Crennel attributed to wear and tear.
The Browns plan to rest Tucker for a few days and see how his knee responds.
"It's an old knee," Crennel said. "You could probably do an MRI on my knee and find some of the same stuff. There is some ware and tear on it and sometimes you just have to rest it. We are going to let Ryan's knee settle down and then we'll put him back out there."
Crennel said there are no immediate plans for Tucker to have surgery, but an operation is always a possibility.
Crennel said he'll use Nat Dorsey, Kirk Chambers and Jonathan Dunn at right tackle while Tucker rests.