Remember Hank Fraley?

Perhaps yes, perhaps no.

But do you remember LeCharles Bentley?

Yes, you certainly recall him, right?

Then Browns General Manager Phil Savage, in his second year on the job in 2006, signed the former Cleveland St. Ignatius High School and Ohio State star in a huge free-agency move. Bentley, who grew up a Browns fan and had been to the Pro Bowl in two of his four seasons with the New Orleans Saints, was delighted that he was coming home.

But on the second day of training camp, while pulling on a screen pass not 10 yards away from media members, he went down with what turned out to be a career-ending knee injury. The Browns coaches and executives, including Savage, looking on from the opposite sideline, were devastated.

That sent the Browns on a search to find another center and they came up with Hank Fraley, a workmanlike, tough-as-nails guy who had been squeezed out of a job in Philadelphia. The Eagles’ loss was the Browns’ gain, as Fraley did an outstanding job for four seasons. He played especially well in 2007 as the Browns finished 10-6 and, on tie-breakers, missed winning the AFC North and also failed to earn a wild-card berth.

This year’s Browns, who have lost two centers, including starter Nick Harris, in a veritable blink of an eye in training camp, can only hope that their plan B at the position goes as well as it did 16 years ago.

Steve King