BEREA — Yellow is not one of the Browns’ official colors, but it was all over the field earlier this season in the form of penalty flags.
Cleveland was whistled for an NFL-high 47 infractions in its first five games — ringing up either nine or 10 penalties in each contest — before straightening out its act of late.
The Browns were only ticketed four times on Oct. 19 in Washington, then picked up a single flag Sunday in a 23-17 win in Jacksonville.
“We’ve improved on the penalties, which is a huge thing that we weren’t doing earlier,” coach Romeo Crennel said Wednesday. “There was only one accepted in the last game and early on this season, there were about 10 each time.
“We’re focusing on what we have to do, not making mistakes and taking care of ourselves.”
The sudden decrease in penalties has dropped Cleveland from first to sixth in the league in the category, but its 52 total flags are still eight above the NFL average and seven more than their opponents have been called for.
The Baltimore Ravens, who come to town Sunday for a 1 p.m. game, rank eighth with 51 penalties.
“We are a lot better team collectively now because we’re not turning the ball over and we’re not committing too many penalties like we were before,” tight end Kellen Winslow Jr. said. “That’s going to be huge this week because the Ravens just feed off your mistakes. They’re like sharks.”
As if on cue, the Pro Bowler proceeded to false start on the first play of practice, prompting offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski to yell, “That ain’t no way to start, Winslow.”
The Browns have also turned their early-season turnover woes into a success story, playing their last three contests without a giveaway. They had committed seven TOs in a three-game span from Sept. 14-28, six of which were Derek Anderson interceptions.
“A lot of times, the ball was out of my hands before (defenders) made a break,” Anderson said. “But we know if you don’t turn the ball over in this league, you win ballgames or at least give yourself a chance. I’ve done a better job of that the last few games.”
Injury update
Safety Sean Jones (swollen right knee), guard Ryan Tucker (knee), fullback Lawrence Vickers (ankle) and defensive tackle Corey Williams (left shoulder) all sat out practice to receive treatment. The swelling in Jones’ surgically repaired knee was of some concern earlier in the week, but Crennel downplayed such talk.
“Even though Sean has been back for a while, he’s still ahead of schedule (from his Sept. 11 operation),” the coach said. “By resting him, that gives him a chance to catch up.”
Safety Mike Adams (hamstring), defensive lineman Shaun Smith (left hand surgery), wide receiver Donte Stallworth (strained quadriceps) and linebacker Shantee Orr (foot) were all limited. Smith said he planned on playing, but must receive final medical clearance to do so.
“We’ll welcome him back if he can go,” nose tackle Shaun Rogers said.
* For the Ravens, safety Dewan Landry (neck) is out, while cornerback Chris McAlister (knee), running back Willis McGahee (ankle) and tight end Daniel Wilcox (thigh) did not practice.
Limited participants were tight end Todd Heap (neck), linebacker Brendon Ayanbadejo (ankle), wide receiver Yamon Figurs (knee), tackles Jared Gaither (neck) and Adam Terry (knee), and cornerback Samari Rolle (neck) and Frank Walker (thigh).
Bad news
Wide receiver Joe Jurevicius has not participated in any on-field activities after undergoing multiple knee surgeries and contracting a staph infection in the offseason. With the three-week window to activate him off the physically-unable-to-perform list closing after the Ravens game, the Browns are expected to place him on season-ending injured reserve.
“We will be coming out with a statement about Joe toward the end of the week or the beginning of next week, but generally, it doesn’t look very good,” Crennel said of his chances of playing in 2008. Jurevicius, a Lake County native, played in all 16 games last year for Cleveland and made 50 receptions. The
33-year-old is signed through 2009, but planned on retiring at the end of this season. 
Memory lane
When Crennel was New England’s defensive coordinator, the Patriots moved wide receiver Troy Brown to cornerback after a rash of injuries. The calculated gamble paid off and laid the foundation for similar shifts in the league today, including Baltimore using defensive tackle Haloti Ngata sporadically at tight end. Crennel credited current Jets coach Eric Mangini for the off-the-wall idea.
“It was a need because of an injury situation and Mangini said, ‘What about Troy?’” Crennel said of his then-defensive backs coach. “He had some quickness, so we used him in practice and he looked pretty good, so we used him in the game.”
Coming, going
The Browns exchanged offensive linemen on their practice squad, signing Kurt Quarterman and releasing Christian Gaddis.
The 6-foot-5, 348-pound Quarterman has been in the NFL since 2007 as a member of the Falcons and Giants practice squads, but has not appeared in a regular-season game.
Extra points
Browns rookie trading cards of Lee Suggs, Luke McCown, Travis Wilson, Darrell Hackney and Kevin Johnson are being sold for $14.99 apiece on nfl.com.
* ESPN humorist Kenny Mayne chatted up a number of players in the locker room for an upcoming piece.
* Current Ravens minority owner Art Modell, who moved the Browns to Baltimore following the 1995 season, is among 133 preliminary nominees for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Quote of the day
“It’s exciting to go play in Cleveland. There’s a lot of history there. The Cleveland fans are going to be juiced up for the Ravens to be in town, and we’re going to be excited to be there. We won’t let them down. We’re showing up.” — Baltimore coach John Harbaugh, who grew up rooting for the Browns.
Contact Brian Dulik at (330) 721-4059 or brisports@hotmail.com.

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