Receiver Josh Cribbs predicts the Browns will spring a little more of his "Flash" package on the Titans on Sunday.

"I've been taking a lot of snaps and going over a lot of plays," he said. "Yeah, to spice things up and keep things going there will be more opportunities for me. The coaches are going to call it at their discretion, so it's not like a definite thing, but I will have a significant role in this game."

With Ken Dorsey as the starting quarterback and newcomer Bruce Gradkowski as the backup, the Browns are prepared to use Cribbs at QB if they need to. Or even if they just want to.

"I know coach [Romeo] Crennel is comfortable with seeing me back there and the quarterback coach [Rip Scherer] is, too," he said. "It's definitely a possibility if it had to come to that. We have a little more plays designed for me to throw the ball if the situation calls for it."

Cribbs, the former Kent State quarterback, has completed only one NFL pass, a two-point conversion to tight end Kellen Winslow last season against Arizona. So what about Derek Anderson's comment - shortly after the fans cheered when Anderson was hurt - that reporters must be smoking crack if they thought Cribbs could play quarterback?

"He let me know that he didn't mean anything personal by it," Cribbs said. "I think the timing was kind of bad, him being hurt and he was kind of frustrated. He didn't really know that I was a quarterback, a serious quarterback."

So Cribbs, who threw for 55 touchdowns and ran for 38 more at Kent, filled Anderson in.

"Derek is from Oregon," Cribbs said. "I'm not saying that's a bad thing, but he's way out on the West Coast, so he never got a chance to see me at quarterback. I had to tell him, 'You know that guy [Ben] Roethlisberger [at Miami, Ohio]? I beat him. You know that guy [Charlie] Frye [at Akron]? I beat him. You know that guy [Byron] Leftwich [at Marshall]? I beat him, too. So I just had to remind him.

"I don't expect guys to know what I did in college. They're coming from all different walks of life and a lot of guys never knew I played quarterback or that the coaches were serious about putting me there, until now."

Cribbs said he never went against Gradkowski, who played at Toledo.

"We knew of each other, but I'm sure they didn't want no part of us," Cribbs joked.

Improved tackling: The Browns' tackling has improved considerably over the past three weeks. Defensive coordinator Mel Tucker said missed tackles went from 20 against Buffalo to six against the Texans to three last week against the Colts.

"When you can do those things, you have a pretty good chance to play decent," Tucker said.

Points, too: The defense has given up 17 or fewer points in seven of 12 games this season - compared with allowing 17 or fewer only four times last season. The Browns are ninth in the league with an average of 20.6 points allowed - they finished 21st last year with 23.8 points allowed.

The Browns are tied for third in the NFL with 17 interceptions and tied for third with 23 takeaways.

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter: mcabot@plaind.com, 216-9990-4670