Ethan Kelley was sack-sational against Rams

Romeo Crennel brought
Kelley to Cleveland in 2005. His confidence seems to be on the rise.

GATEHOUSE NEWS SERVICE

BEREA — The eyewear on Ethan Kelley’s meaty face is big, boxy and black.

It gives him a singular look you’d notice at the opposite end of an airport runway. He’s the 338-pound guy in the funky glasses.

A visitor to Kelley’s locker stall confessed to having 20-70 vision.

“Mine’s a lot worse than that,” the 27-year-old Browns nose tackle said a bit before a practice. “If I took these off ...”

Kelley pointed to 330-pound Orpheus Roye, 10 feet away.

“I wouldn’t be able to tell you who he is.”

Contact lenses are as much a part of Kelley’s gameday gear as shoulder pads. He hasn’t had one pop out since he played at Baylor.

Drafted in 2003 by the Patriots, Kelley is in his third year with the Browns. He is starting to pop out in game films. He’s the reason 39-year-old Ted Washington wasn’t starting any more and won’t be missed that much now that he is on injured reserve.

In the fourth quarter at St. Louis, with the Rams driving toward a tie, Kelley overpowered two inside blockers to sack Gus Frerotte.

The Rams settled for a field goal.

Other times down the stretch, Kelley held his ground against double teams, helping stuff inside runs.

He’s a large piece of the hope the Browns have for improving their No. 32-ranked defense.

“Kelley’s probably gonna be the strongest guy on just about any field,” said ninth-year pro Lennie Friedman, who pretends to be the opposing team’s center in practice. “I block him every day. When his hands are on you, you feel ’em real quick.

“He’s very, very powerful. Strong hands and legs. His sack at St. Louis was basically just a bull rush on the center.

“He’s smart. He goes to the right place. He does a heckuva job preventing the center from getting to the linebacker.”

This likely will be the year that determines whether Kelley makes serious money in the NFL. So-so veterans tend to lose jobs to cheaper first- and second-year players.

Kelley got a late start in his craft, switching from offensive line to defense in his junior year at Baylor. He appeared in only one game in two years with New England, when his coordinator was Romeo Crennel.

Crennel brought Kelley to Cleveland in 2005. He made three starts in 22 games, battling knee issues in both ’05 and ’06.

This year, he’s playing more and has been fairly healthy.

“He’s a load,” said Roye, who lines up next to Kelley at end. “He’s getting a feel for the game, a feel for blocking schemes. Once you do that, you can go in there and just be an athlete.”

Kelley’s confidence seems on the rise.

“I’m getting better at recognizing formations, picking up on teams’ tendencies, being able to react quicker to what’s going on,” Kelley said. “I’m my own toughest critic. I need to get better.”

And, yes, he really needs those contact lenses.