Could returner Cribbs rock Ravens’ cradle?

Cleveland (5-4) will try to bounce back from a tough loss this week at Baltimore.

BEREA, Ohio (AP) — Dreadlocks bobbing out of his orange helmet, Joshua Cribbs nonchalantly retreated inside Cleveland’s end zone on Sunday in Pittsburgh to retrieve a kickoff that had squirted by.

From his own 1-inch line, Cribbs bent over, reached for the ball and evaluated the situation. Bleak, would describe it best.

Cribbs could see black jerseys flying toward him at warp speed as the Steelers’ towel-waving fans inside Heinz Field roared while sensing the kill. This was no time for indecision or panic. Cribbs had two choices: Stay. Or go.

So off he went, and he didn’t stop for another 100 breathtaking yards.

“An amazing play,” teammate Darnell Dinkins said Wednesday.

Like so many others Cribbs is making for the Browns.

A quarterback at Kent State who wasn’t drafted in 2005, Cribbs racked up 204 yards in kickoff returns last week in a 31-28 loss to the Steelers. He brought back a kick 90 yards in the first quarter to set up a TD, and his electrifying 100-yard return in the fourth gave the Browns a temporary lead.

Chicago’s Devin Hester may be the game’s premier return specialist, but Cribbs is gaining on him.

“Everybody in the NFL is looking for a guy like Josh Cribbs,” Browns center Hank Fraley said. “Fortunately, we got him. We just know that when he gets it in his hands, anything can happen.”

Cribbs has become an invaluable weapon for the Browns (5-4), who will try to bounce back from a tough loss this week at Baltimore.

With Cribbs averaging 32.4 yards per return — second in the league to Leon Washington of the New York Jets — Cleveland’s average starting position following kickoffs is the 33.9-yard line, a league-high.

Cribbs, who is also handling punt-return duties, can turn over a field in the blink of an eye.

“It’s nice when you get the ball at the 5-yard line and only have to go five yards to score,” quarterback Derek Anderson said. “But even when he gets it back to the 30 or 35-yard line, that’s better than where most teams start. He brings an energy to our offense.”

Browns coach Romeo Crennel coached special teams for the New York Giants in the 1980s. Crennel singled out Deion Sanders as the best returner he ever faced. Sanders was a speedburner. Cribbs is also fast, but while Sanders ran from contact, the 6-foot-1, 215-pound Cribbs isn’t afraid to lower his shoulders.

“Josh doesn’t have Deion’s speed, but Josh has the vision to find the seam,” Crennel said. “He has the strength to make guys miss and then once he does get to the next level, past that first coverage level, something kicks in about him that says, ‘I have a chance to go and I’m going to make the most of it.”’

Cribbs, who signed a six-year contract extension last season, is now paying a price for his success on returns as teams are more frequently kicking the ball away from him.

After giving up the 90-yarder last week, the Steeler s twice kicked it short to Dinkins, a backup tight end and one of the Browns’ deep coverage blockers who is playing with a soft cast on his arm.

But on the fourth kickoff, Pittsburgh’s squib kick went all the way through before Cribbs fetched it and broke free, tiptoeing his way down Pittsburgh’s sideline and then joining a brigade of Browns blockers.

“If I was a coach and saw an up back with a cast on his hand, I would kick it to me, too,” Dinkins said. “Me or Josh Cribbs? That’s pretty easy.”

Baltimore’s Brian Billick would prefer to keep the ball out of the hands of Cleveland’s No. 16.

“What I’ve seen, you prefer to kick away from him,” Billick said. “He’s a strong combination of strength and speed. He has the ability to run through a tackle and get to a hole with excellent acceleration.”

Cleveland offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski has used Cribbs sparingly this season. Cribbs, who also leads the Browns in special teams tackles, has one catch for seven yards and has carried the ball six times for 53.

He’s also been a decoy, but there’s a chance his role may soon grow.

“We can put more on his plate,” Crennel said.