With the signing of a six year extension to the NFL’s collective bargaining agreement, the Browns entered free agency this morning with around 24.5 million in cap room.

The Browns’ GM Phil Savage wasted no time, signing center LeCharles Bentley and left tackle Kevin Shaffer before they broke for lunch on day one. Shaffer was an obvious choice after talks with L.J. Shelton didn’t progress. Shaffer is about 40 pounds lighter than Shelton, but is also 3 years younger and has considerably more upside.

The signing of Bentley is a good move for the Browns. Not only was he the best center on the market, but being an alumni of St. Ignatius and Ohio State will make him a sure fan favorite. The obvious question now is, what will become of Jeff Faine?

Faine has been our starting center for the past 3 seasons, and many considered him to be the best OL on our roster. He’s still under contract until 2008, and could be used as trade bait or as a backup to Bentley. It’s also possible (however unlikely) that the Browns could keep Faine at center and move Bentley over to guard.

Faine isn’t the only Brown in danger of losing his starting gig. With talent gaps all over the roster, the depth chart could have a very different look next year.

Defensive Tackle: We needed to get Maake Kemoeatu. However, the Panthers signed Maake while I was writing this. The reason he was a key acquisition is, there’s not much else available. Most of the top ranked FA’s aren’t big enough to play the 3-4. Ron Edwards would only be a slight upgrade, and we just got rid of Gerard Warren last year.

If we’re confident that we’ll pick up our DT of the future via the draft, then we could pick up an older, bulkier player like Sam Adams, Grady Jackson or Ted Washington. Their average weight is 348 pounds and they have a combined 35 years NFL experience. They all might be good for one more season while we groom a rookie.

Many fans hope that Oregon DT Haloti Ngata will be available at the #12 spot, which is about as realistic as hoping Reggie Bush will be there. Ngata probably won’t be on the board after the Bills pick at 8.

Orien Harris from Miami (FL) will probably be available in round two and could also play DE. Also keep an eye out for Michigan’s Gabe Watson, were he to drop to round two, the Browns might be well advised to pick him up.

Defensive End: It appears Orpheus Roye has the left end position covered. I’m not so sure about Alvin McKinley. The obvious choices in the FA market are John Abraham, Darren Howard and Robert Mathis. However, all will be overpriced and none are what we’re looking for.

It’s probable that Savage will either draft a DE like Tamba Hali in the first round or pick up Anthony Weaver in free agency to work in rotation with McKinley. Savage may gamble and hope that Manny Lawson or Mathias Kiwanuka is available in the second round, but the odds would not be in his favor. I’d love for them to take a chance on Highland High School Alumni Mike Kudla late in day one or early in two.

Linebacker: A.J. Hawk will be gone at the 12th pick. I’m not opposed to a trade that would move us into position to get him, but that would cost us a lot of talent in the short term to yield long term gains. His former Ohio State teammate, Bobby Carpenter is my ideal, though extremely optimistic second round pick.

Ernie Sims from FSU will probably be on the board at 12, but the Browns are not the ideal system for him, and he’s a bit of a reach considering his history of concussions and other injuries.

Considering the fact that stopping the run and rushing the passer were the Browns’ biggest shortcomings, I’m guessing that Phil will make moves at many of the FA linebackers in this year’s pool. LaVar Arrington has to be the favorite at this point, but Will Witherspoon, Akin Ayodele and Julian Peterson should also be under consideration.

Wide Receiver: With Antonio Bryant testing his market value, and Braylon Edwards possibly out until week four, the Browns have gone from one of the richest receiver pools to one of the thinnest in a very short time.

Terrell Owens is clearly one of the most talented players in the league, but will demand too high a dollar, not to mention the fact that he’s poison to a locker room. This guy desperately needs someone to smack him upside the head and say “straighten up, dummy.”

David Givens was supposed to be on a plane to Cleveland today, but his agent tipped his hat at the amount he was looking for and Phil told him not to bother making the trip.

Antwaan Randle El is a talented vet, and would save us a roster spot as a backup QB, but if we wanted to spend that kind of money, then Antonio Bryant would have a new contract with us. Besides, we hate Randle El.

That leaves us with Cleveland’s own Joe Jurevicius. An eight year veteran who is coming off a career season. While he lacks the turbo button that many scouts are looking for, he’s an absolute hulk of a man at 6’ 5” 230. He’s a great route runner whose size gives us the red zone threat that the Browns lacked last year. Joe’s biggest downside is the fact that he fears no hit. While that may seem an admirable trait, it’s caused him some injury problems in the past. (Joe was picked up by the Browns while this article was being written. Good pickup, Phil.)

I really don’t see us drafting a WR in the first three rounds. Santonio Holmes and Chad Jackson will be gone by our second pick, and Sinorice Moss isn’t worth it. It’s a big if, but if Derek Hagan (who’s been compared to Braylon Edwards) or Jason Avant (who played with Braylon Edwards) are available, then we might pick one of them in the third round.

Running Back: “We don’t need a running back, we’ve got Reuben Droughns!” Listen, I love Reuben Droughns, I wore #34 every Sunday, but we need another running back. In 2005, Droughns broke the club record previously held by Jim Brown for carries in a season, and it showed. He averaged 85 yards per game for the first 13 games, he averaged 43 in the last three.

Despite the fact that he had over 1500 all-purpose yards, he only had two scores all year. This seems a curious figure, as Droughns should be the guy who pounds it into the end zone. But considering that they didn’t have a solid guy to spell Droughns throughout the course of a drive, he was usually out of gas by the time the Browns broke the 20. An upgraded o-line should help this stat as well.

I have no idea what to do with Lee Suggs, he could be such an explosive player if it weren’t for the injury bug and a severe case of fumblitis. I think everyone in the organization has a sick feeling that as soon as they get rid of him, he’ll be a star somewhere else.

The free agent RB market seems rich at first, but it thins out considerably when you look at the price and recent performance categories. Edgerrin James is the only halfback who I would be excited about, and he’s going to buy an island with the contract that he gets.

Jamal Lewis is a pounding runner with breakaway speed, but he had a difficult 2005 to say the least. His recent lackluster performance as well as his extracurricular problems could make him a solid pickup at a low price, but the chance that his best days are behind him looms. Having said that, the Steelers are looking to replace Jerome Bettis, and Lewis is just about the last person I want to see in black and gold.

I could get behind the idea of Chester Taylor (who Phil apparently loves) more than Mike Anderson, but neither of them really sparks an interest. They’d both be solid backups, but if Droughns were to be injured, I wouldn’t want either to carry the load.

Which brings us to the running backs of the 2006 draft class. As solid a group as you can get, there will be talented guys going in rounds two and three.

First off, there’s Reggie Bush. I'm sure he's the top pick, but the young Heisman winner has bust written all over him if he gets picked by the wrong club. The Texans don’t need a running back, a slot receiver, or a return man, but they’ll probably take him because D’Brickashaw won’t sell as many jerseys. Doesn't matter, we're not getting him.

Then we have DeAngelo Williams. Already dubbed as the next Barry Sanders, I can’t see him getting past the Cardinals in the first round. If he’s available at 12, he’d be really tough to pass on.

Williams or not, Cleveland may have to take a 14 minute look at the other guy from USC, the 235 pound bruiser LenDale White. White’s running style is that of a bulldozer and would be perfect for AFC North football. 3100 yards rushing and 52 touchdowns in three seasons alongside Reggie Bush. Did I mention that he can catch too? Whether or not Cleveland should draft a running back first, he may be the best player available, and we really don’t want him going to the Ravens at 13.

If Savage and Co. think they have more pressing needs than a running back in the first two rounds, there will be viable options further down.

Punter: Finally, we need a punter. Kyle Richardson rarely had an average punt. He had plenty of amazing punts and had his share of key shanks as well. That’s why he’s one of six free agent punters available. Among the other five, Dave Zastudil is the only one you’d hang your hopes on. It may work in our favor that Zastudil is from Bay Village, Ohio.

We will probably draft a punter at some point during day two, but trusting your field position to a rookie can be a risky proposition.

The more I think about it, between the amount of money we have, and the talent that’s out there, we could actually have a winning season next year. 9-7 has such a nice ring to it. I’m sure it wouldn’t be enough to win the AFC North or even a wild card, but it would another step in the right direction.