BEREA - The best move made by Browns receiver Greg Little this season was to stop using his Twitter account.
It might not have improved his ability to get open, but it may have eased his mind. Maybe now he can concentrate more on his job and less on dueling with fans on social media.
"It's so negative," Little said. "The people that are on it are negative. I don't want to read it. I don't want to see it. I'm not done by any means, but I don't like the fans that are on Twitter. I don't care for them at all."
Little has been a favorite target of fans looking for someone to blame for the woes of another losing season. He led the team in dropped passes last season, and he started this season with several more drops.
When Little had some success earlier this season, he irritated fans by staging a celebration. That's when he decided to respond to their angry tweets.
"The people on Twitter are with you while they want to be," Little said. "If you do something wrong, then they're not with you. If you do something great, they're with you.
"Good or bad, if you read that stuff; I just don't like it. It's a good way to communicate with fans, but not during the season."
Little is making progress in the area of drops. He hasn't dropped a pass in two straight games. Last Sunday against the Indianapolis Colts he was targeted seven times, catching six for 52 yards.
Included among the receptions was a 14-yard touchdown pass from Brandon Weeden in which Little initially lost possession while in the air. He managed to pull in the ball and keep both feet inbounds.
"The corner kind of sputtered his feet and let me get inside to run a post," Little said. "The safety had vacated with the corner route that Ben (Watson) ran. Brandon got it back to me. I was able to leap up a little too early and make the play."
It was the kind of play the offense has been expecting from Little this season. He has the physical tools to be a consistently-productive player. Now it's just a matter of putting everything together.
"It's just a business-thing now," Little said. "I want to do what I can to help my team. It's a man on a mission at this point."
He's not worried about winning over some of the doubters.
"It's not about proving anybody wrong," he said. "Once you devote your attention to proving somebody wrong, you tend to get outside of your game and start doing things you don't necessarily do just to make a point."
Little is second on the roster in receptions with 20 for 221 yards and two touchdowns. He's been praised by coach Pat Shurmur and offensive coordinator Brad Childress for his blocking.
"Those guys know that the pendulum swings towards them and away from them at different times," Childress said. "Everyone of those guys would like to have the ball in their hands every single time, which is the way you like it. I feel it when they're frustrated and when they're not getting an opportunity to play with the football."
The frustrating moments aren't happening as much for Little these days.
