Marla Ridenour: Loss to Raiders showed all the failures on Browns GM Farmer’s resume

I can’t get the Oakland Raiders out of my head.tmpplchld I’m still as disturbed by what I saw on the field Sunday in the Browns’ 27-20 defeat as I was then.tmpplchld The divergence of two struggling franchises may have never been more evident.tmpplchld The Raiders game wasn’t just a loss _ it was a live resume of Ray Farmer’s failure as Browns general manager.tmpplchld Farmer wasn’t at FirstEnergy Stadium, he was serving the third of his four-game suspension for texting sideline personnel last season. That ban ends immediately after Sunday’s road game against the San Diego Chargers.tmpplchld One can only wonder if Browns owner Jimmy Haslam saw what I saw. The once dysfunctional Raiders (2-1) appear to be on the rise with players who could have been Browns, while the Browns (1-2) get no impact from Farmer’s draft choices or free agents.tmpplchld The Raiders are building around quarterback Derek Carr, selected one spot after Farmer picked left guard Joel Bitonio in the second round in 2014, while the Browns’ quarterback situation remains a circus as long as they keep Johnny Manziel on the roster.tmpplchld The Raiders found Carr the two pass-catchers he needed in Michael Crabtree and Amari Cooper, while Farmer remains receiver-averse, except when it comes to an old acquaintance from the Kansas City Chiefs.tmpplchld Crossing paths with Raiders defensive end Khalil Mack after the game made me question again why the Browns didn’t use their multitude of picks to move up in 2014 to draft him. Mack was a game-changer the Browns’ supposedly outstanding offensive line couldn’t handle; the Browns have no such player.tmpplchld Then there was the performance of Raiders running back Latavius Murray, a sixth-round pick in 2013 from Central Florida. Murray, 6-foot-3 and 230 pounds, wasn’t selected on Farmer’s watch, but he looked like the perfect style of back for the power running game the Browns wanted to implement this season.tmpplchld From the 2014 and ’15 drafts, the Raiders had six players starting on Sunday, the Browns four. I’d take the Raiders’ six _ Carr, Mack, Cooper, nose tackle Justin Ellis, cornerback T.J. Carrie and left guard Gabe Jackson _ over the Browns’ four _ Bitonio, linebacker Christian Kirksey, nose tackle Danny Shelton and fullback Malcolm Johnson. The first three Raiders mentioned should be their cornerstones for years.tmpplchld The Browns have nine players taken in the first three rounds of those two drafts and only three were in the lineup. The Raiders have six, four starting, including their quarterback of the future.tmpplchld Passing on Carr and selecting Manziel 22nd overall looks inexcusable now, even as Manziel works to straighten up his life off the field. I refuse to give Farmer a pass on the Manziel pick even if Haslam wanted him. It was Farmer’s job to stand up to Haslam just as Dallas Cowboys Executive Vice President Stephen Jones did with his father, owner Jerry Jones, over Johnny Football.tmpplchld Perhaps cornerback Justin Gilbert, taken eighth overall, three slots after Mack, was the choice of Browns coach Mike Pettine and his defensive staff. (Somehow the Barkevious Mingo cupcakes in Buffalo seem relevant once again.) It was Farmer’s job to steer Pettine in the right direction, along with rooting out the personal issues in Gilbert’s background that have made him a bust of “mad dog in a meat market” proportions. Gilbert got in for only two special teams snaps against the Raiders.tmpplchld The Raiders’ addition of Crabtree showed more disparity. Crabtree, 27, suffered a torn Achilles in 2013, but returned in Game 12 and had a 125-yard day in the playoffs. He caught 68 passes for 698 yards and four touchdowns in 2014, his last of six seasons with the San Francisco 49ers. On April 13, the Raiders signed him to a one-year, $3.2 million contract that includes another $1.8 million in incentives.tmpplchld The Browns, meanwhile, gave $9 million guaranteed to Dwayne Bowe, who Farmer knew from the Chiefs, even though Bowe didn’t catch a touchdown pass in 2014. Plagued by a hamstring injury, Bowe, 31, has played in only one game, was targeted once and has no receptions.tmpplchld Those are the kind of bad moves the Raiders used to make under their late owner Al Davis. Mark Davis, who took over as principal owner when his father Al died in 2011, has concentrated more on the business side, leaving football to General Manager Reggie McKenzie.tmpplchld The Raiders went 11-37 in the first three seasons under McKenzie. But McKenzie felt good about his roster going into 2015 with the addition of the reliable Cooper, the fourth overall pick, and others.tmpplchld That cannot be said now of the Browns, with more weaknesses being exposed every Sunday. Much of that falls at the feet of Farmer, whose promotion I touted to rid the franchise of GM Mike Lombardi.tmpplchld Entering the season, the Browns were 11-21 under Farmer. The texting suspension, which came down on March 30, was enough cause to fire him. Since then, Haslam has said he seeks continuity and vowed not to blow things up in January.tmpplchld A talent-starved roster might force Haslam to change his mind. If I can’t get the Raiders out of my head, Haslam might not be able to, either.tmpplchld ___tmpplchld (c)2015 Akron Beacon Journal (Akron, Ohio)tmpplchld Visit the Akron Beacon Journal (Akron, Ohio) at www.ohio.comtmpplchld Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.tmpplchld