Browns’ Todd & Eric Are Better : Raiders: Philcox and Metcalf spark Cleveland to a 28-16 victory. Marinovich inconsistent as record falls to 0-3.

Now what?

Having lost their first two games, the Raiders yanked quarterback Jay Schroeder and gave the job to Todd Marinovich for Sunday’s home opener.

But the Cleveland Browns, led by their own Todd, quarterback Todd Philcox, and running back Eric Metcalf, showed there is far more wrong with the Raiders than their quarterback as they rolled to a 28-16 victory before an announced crowd of 48,102.

Metcalf, who hadn’t scored a touchdown in two years, scored four Sunday, catching scoring passes of 69, 63 and four yards and running six yards into the end zone to hand the Raiders their seventh consecutive loss over two seasons, dropping them to 0-3.

“The kid is not a savior,” Raider Coach said Art Shell of Marinovich. “Everybody has to pick their game up and play. This is embarrassing.”

Marinovich, with only two games of experience coming in, appeared shaky at the start, but he finished with 395 yards on 33 completions of a club-record 59 passes, though he was sacked five times.

Still, early poise might not have mattered.

Not even Joe Montana or Dan Marino could be much of a savior playing for a team on which:

--The punter couldn’t hold onto the snap from center.

--The defense couldn’t get a sack for the second game in row.

--The special teams malfunctioned.

--The offensive line was beset with injuries and dehydration.

--The secondary blew coverages on two long plays.

--The team’s top running back, Eric Dickerson, got only 22 yards in six carries.

--And turnover after turnover destroyed any hope of momentum. The Raiders lost the ball five times, two on fumbles and three on interceptions, giving them 13 turnovers in three games.

After thinking it all over, Marinovich might wish he was back on his surfboard.

He certainly didn’t help his own cause Sunday, throwing three interceptions.

And it could have been worse.

Marinovich threw three other passes that could have easily been intercepted.

“I made a lot of mistakes,” he said. “I made a lot of bad throws. And a lot of guys ran a lot of bad routes.”

It also didn’t help that the Browns came into Los Angeles depicted as football’s answer to the Harlem Globetrotters’ Washington Generals, there only to provide background for Marinovich.

Also 0-2 coming in, their quarterback, Bernie Kosar, out with a fractured ankle, the Browns were portrayed as a rare soft spot on the Raider schedule, an ideal time to throw Marinovich in there.

“We heard all week how this was going to be a transition game for the Raiders for Todd (Marinovich),” Cleveland defensive back Vince Newsome said. “We heard how their goal was to get his feet wet against us. Like we were just going to show up.

“That got on our nerves. But based on how we played in our first two games, I didn’t blame them.”

Any chance Marinovich had to settle into his new role ended quickly.

When the first Raider series of the game stalled, Jeff Gossett went in to punt. But a seemingly perfect snap from center bounced off his hands, Stevon Moore recovering for the Browns at the Raider 14.

Philcox hit Metcalf on his first touchdown pass from four yards out for a 7-0 Cleveland lead.

On the next Raider series, Marinovich was hit by David Brandon, fumbled and Rob Burnett recovered for Cleveland, taking the ball down to the Raider nine.

This time, Metcalf stayed on the ground, scoring from the six.

And just like that, before you could say, “who needs Jay Schroeder?” Marinovich found himself down, 14-0.

As if he didn’t have enough to worry about, Marinovich found the personnel around him shuttling in and out.

Tim Brown, who began the day as the Raiders’ leading receiver and has always been a favorite target of Marinovich, felt a cramp in the hamstring area of his left leg in the second quarter and missed the entire second half.

With veteran right guard Max Montoya already out because of a knee injury, the Raiders were depending on Todd Peat in that crucial spot. But both Peat and right tackle Steve Wright, dehydrated by the blistering heat on the Coliseum floor, had to leave the game at times, leaving the offensive line without the cohesion needed to protect Marinovich.

“It’s the first time I ever pulled myself out of a game,” said Wright, a 10-year veteran. “It’s the most exhausted I’ve ever felt. It’s my own fault. I don’t think I drank enough fluids beforehand.”

With all their problems, the only score the Raiders could manage in the first 30 minutes was a 27-yard field goal by Jeff Jaeger.

In third quarter, the Raiders temporarily made a game of it. Marinovich hit Willie Gault with a 25-yard touchdown pass and Jaeger made a 30-yard field goal.

That made it 14-13. But Metcalf was only warming up.

Late in the third quarter, Philcox, who connected on 10 of 20 passes for 200 yards, hit Metcalf over the middle. Metcalf beat Raider safety Ronnie Lott on the corner and found himself ahead of safety Eddie Anderson, with no linebacker in sight. That made it a foot race to the end zone, which Metcalf easily won, going 69 yards.

In the fourth quarter, facing man-to-man coverage, Metcalf caught a pass against Torin Dorn. Anderson came up to help, but he and Dorn collided, leaving Metcalf a clear path on a 63-yard play.

“It’s the first time I’ve scored four touchdowns in a game since high school,” Metcalf said. “It felt good to get back into the end zone again.

“It seemed like every time I touched the ball, I was headed into the end zone. It was like all I had to do was run it in.”

It was that kind of a day for the Browns, who found one Todd who could be a savior.