BEREA, Ohio � Josh Cribbs� neck is still a little sore, but he doesn�t mind sticking it out for Baltimore�s Dwan Edwards.

Cribbs said Friday he expects to play in the Cleveland Browns� game at Detroit on Sunday, which will be six days after he was strapped to a backboard and wheeled into an ambulance following a loss to the Ravens on Monday night.
Edwards was fined $5,000 by the league this week for smashing a forearm under Cribbs� chin on the game�s final play. Cribbs had pitched the ball away on a lateral and admitted he had relaxed a bit when Edwards hit him. As a result, he defended Edwards on Friday.
�I don�t feel he should�ve been fined for it,� Cribbs said. �It�s football. Just as he hit me, I could�ve hit him blocking for my guy. It happened during the play between the whistles. They have rules in place to protect players, but I don�t think it was intentional at all.�
After a series of tests, Cribbs was diagnosed with a sprained neck.
His fearlessness has turned the undrafted free agent into a Pro Bowler and one of the NFL�s most dangerous return specialists. He insists that won�t change now.
�It�s going to take a lot to keep me out of the game. I love it too much,� Cribbs said. �They�d have to take my gear away for me not to play.
�You expect situations like that, and I just pray and hope I won�t end up on the wrong side of it. Things worked out for me this time. I�m going to try to be more aware.�
Cribbs has played this season despite wanting a new contract. His agent, J.R. Rickert, blasted the Browns this week for leaving in Cribbs � arguably the team�s best offensive threat � for the final play of a game they had no chance to win. Cribbs has done everything the Browns have asked this season while hoping the two sides can work out a new deal soon.
Monday�s hit has left him especially irritated that there has been little movement in negotiations.
�This is the exact thing I worry about,� Cribbs said. �We�re going to make sure we get that handled because it really is a touchy subject for me now. It put a lot of things into perspective getting hurt like that and (knowing) it possibly could have been worse.�
Cribbs expects to handle all his regular duties Sunday in the game between two 1-8 teams. Losing Cribbs on offense would have been another devastating blow to a team that has scored just five touchdowns in its last 15 games � the fewest in a 15-game span since 1950. Cleveland�s drought is magnified by the fact no Browns receiver has scored since Nov. 2, 2008, and no running back has scored since Nov. 17 of last year.
�It�s not to the point where you�re going to be hiding under the table. You can�t do that. You have to wake up the next day and fight,� first-year offensive coordinator Brian Daboll said. �I live this. It�s not good enough. I�m the leader of these guys. It�s got to be better on my part. They understand what they need to do, too. We�re collectively working toward getting that better.�