If the first two preseason games have proven anything it is the Browns need Shaun Rogers if they are going to be any threat to stop opponents from running the ball down their throats. And since the first running back the Browns will see in 2009 is Adrian Peterson, they have to get better quickly.

Rogers has not practiced in nearly two weeks because of an undisclosed injury. He did not practice with the team Tuesday, but he worked briefly on the sideline against a blocking sled, a major step in his recovery. All he had been doing up to that point is riding the exercise bike, which is standard for players rehabbing from nagging injuries.

Rogers looked frighteningly quick. At one point he stepped around the sled. At another he buried his shoulder into it and drove it backward.

Ahtyba Rubin started in Rogers' place in the preseason games against the Packers and Lions. He improved in the Detroit game, but he is no Rogers. The sooner the Browns get Rogers back the better.