Aug 16th, 2010 @ 1:02 pm by Steve Doerschuk

Rookie quarterback Colt McCoy is not seriously hurt and has a chance to play in the Browns’ preseason home opener against St. Louis, Head Coach Eric Mangini said today.“He’s fine,” Mangini said.

McCoy banged his throwing hand on a teammate’s helmet and had to exit Saturday’s game at Lambeau Field. Colt McCoy passed for 9,344 yards in high school and 13,253 yards in college. His arrival in a big career in the NFL, however, seems way off in the distance after his Browns preseason debut Saturday night. McCoy threw 10 passes, completing five for short gains but throwing two interceptions. One infuriated Mangini because it came in the end zone on a fade McCoy underthrew badly. McCoy had occasional trouble with interceptions in his final year at Texas, throwing 12 of them.

Meanwhile, Mangini was still upbeat about winning in Green Bay two mornings later.“A lot of things we felt on Saturday were reconfimed,” he said in today’s pre-practice press briefing. “I really liked the way we played offensively.” Mangini had strong praise for quarterbacks Jake Delhomme and Seneca Wallace.He noted that neither QB had a penalty or a turnover.

The defense, on the other hand, was carved up by Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers. Mangini said the team toyed with assorted blitzes whose timing and deployment are works in progress.

Mangini on …

• Rookie safety T.J. Ward’s debut. “I had seen him hit in college. Usually that translates. He was one of those guys who had a lot of big hits. He was a good tackler. You can see the agressiveness here.”

• Ward and rookie Joe Haden playing three quarters” “They need the work. They don’t have any game experience. To get that experience, you’ve got to play ‘em.”

• Josh Cribbs’ progress as a wide receiver: “His route running improved dramatically. He’s doing more than running routes. he’s doing it with precision and nuance. On one play, he got mauled.” If the DB wouldn’t have gotten away with assault, Mangini said Cribbs would have gone for a touchdown.”

• OLB Matt Roth. “He’s really good against the run. We want ‘em to run to that side.”

• WR Brian Robiskie. “I thought he played well. I was really happy for him because he’s worked hard. He’s taken a lot of heat, but he’s been a consistent person and a consistent player.”

• OLB Marcus Benard. “Where Marcus is now vs. where he was a year ago is night and day. He was about as raw as you can get. His development as a person and a player has been tremendous. Tremendous.” Mangini put a little extra mustard on the second tremendous. He said Benard’s approach put him in mind of Mr. Cribbs.