2018 Season | The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly

Browns domination remains!!!

Pepsi Rookie of the Week
Week 1 Denzel Ward CLEVELAND BROWNS
Week 2 Darius Leonard Indianapolis Colts
Week 3 Baker Mayfield CLEVELAND BROWNS
Week 4 Nick Chubb CLEVELAND BROWNS
Week 5 Denzel Ward CLEVELAND BROWNS
Week 6 ???Baker Mayfield??? - prediction

 

Why not? He's due...I'll stand by that prediction.

 

Well, I may have jinxed Mayfield...sorry fellas



The Good.....

Spoiler: well.....

Our kicker didn't miss a kick...I guess that counts

Gotta give a shout out to David Njoku, the man finally stepped up. He was the lone bright spot in a black hole of a day!

The Bad

The defense couldn't tackle, the special teams couldn't/didn't tackle and penalties are becoming the norm, not the exception. It is beyond ridiculous that we can't field a punt without getting a holding or blocking in the back penalty. Is this the ST coordinator or the players? Are they subbing in different groups every week? I really don't know.

Baker Mayfield - The first week I have put him here, simply because he genuinely looked like a rookie yesterday. He held the ball too long, taking unnecessary sacks and threw a few balls that shouldn't have been thrown.

The receivers, what happened to the guys that were wide open? I didn't see many plays where anyone was open. Almost every throw was into a window with defenders around, was it scheme or were the receivers just taking a day off?

The ugly....

Everyone blaming the injury report full of Wide Receivers for the reason behind the cliff dive of a passing game. We are talking about receiver 3-5 that have been injured. Our #1 and #2 are still there, or well, they were at least playing, not to the level that is expected. The #3 receiver in the offense should be interchangeable, it should not effect the offense, really, at all. Do we need to sign some new talent? Hell, I'm starting to think we need to TRADE for some real talent to unseat the #1/#2 guys(s). Whether you put Callaway or Landry at #1, neither produced at any level yesterday. Both had critical drops, both ran lackluster routes. No passing game is going to function well when your top two guys heads aren't in the game. Lack of depth due to injuries is a problem if you need a 3rd/4th stringer to step in when one of these guys get hurt, but they aren't the ones with an injury, they need to play like they are the top receivers on the team, period!

Getting thrown back to reality that this is a young team and we will have some headache games. I had hoped, due to the previous games of 2018, that we were past ugly games and would be competitive every given Sunday...yesterday was not competitive in any way, shape or form. It was disheartening to watch for 60 minutes, and frankly I couldn't wait for it to end by the time the 4th Qtr started. This team didn't come ready to play and probably the WORST thing of all, it was at home where they should have the most energy for 8 games out of the year...No home field advantage when you let the opposition march down the field with ease and score (2) TDs on their opening two drives, a team mind you that hadn't scored a TD on their opening drive since 2016...pitiful


(EDIT) Damn, I almost forgot....Does anyone think the defense better work on the end around this week???? What a fuck show! It looked like peewee football, I don't think any of those plays went for less than 5 yards.

 

Should have seen the lanes opening up from where I was sitting. It was a joke. I just discussed it on the Browns /Chargers thread. I was telling my son,"the Chargers don't even need to bother throwing the ball"...

 

I have to put some of this on Dorsey. When you have just as many running backs with helmets as you do wide receivers, the passing game will suffer. Those guys run 30 yard (or more) gassers on every single offensive snap. It doesn't surprise me on iota that neither Landry or Callaway couldn't get any separation. Add in the frequent use of the hurry up offense . . . they were gassed.

And, yes, Hue deserves some of this as well. Even if he WAS pounding the table for more warm bodies in the WR room, he should have been pounding that table louder and sooner.

 

Week 6 Los Angeles Chargers

Good

• Backup running backs. Duke Johnson Jr. and Nick Chubb continue to outpace lead back, Carlos Hyde. Johnson averaged 18.2 yards-per-touch and Chubb averaged 8.3. Carlos Hyde averaged 2.4 YPC and taking out his long run (9 yards), you're looking at 1.9 YPC. Chubb is a feature back for this team and Johnson is the Tyreek Hill of the Cleveland Browns. If only we had coaches who recognized it.
  
  
• Backup receivers. Damion Ratley, your leading receiver, caught six of eight targets for 82 yards. That is striking in comparison to Callaway and Landry who combined for 20 yards on 19 targets (combined catch-rate of 21.1%). Callaway had two touchdown drops, Landry another. The Browns traded 21 points for six and this is a continuation of a theme with back up guys (running backs, Higgins, Ratley, Willies, etc.) who excel and starters who struggle. If only we had coaches who recognized it.
  
  
• Denzel Ward. He didn't show up much in the stat column, but the Defensive Rookie of the Year-in waiting had another stellar game against some very good receivers (and a very good quarterback). Really, the lone bright spot on defense in my eyes. Ward looks every bit the shutdown cornerback they've been looking for and the future seems really bright for him.

Bad

• Being throttled at home. Fans deserve better than that. To a man, the players all said they came out "flat" and "without energy" (more on that later)... but why? You've got a home game with the best fans in the world packing the house and going for back-to-back wins for the first time in four years... how aren't you jacked up for that? The Chargers could have hung 50 on the Browns yesterday.
  
  
• Referees. The blatantly missed false start that led to a touchdown wasn't the difference in the game on the scoreboard, but from what I saw, it was in the team. The Browns quit after that call, and if you had to rank the worst-officiated game of each week, the Browns proudly (right word choice) own four of those accolades (Week 1, 4, 5, and 6). Keep in mind... these are full-time referees. The Browns are getting it worse than any other team, probably payback for Bottlegate I guess, but the product on the field is suffering and something needs to be done.
  
  
• Baker Mayfield. Rookie growing pains, perhaps, but 6 did not have a good game. I could make excuses that his receivers dropped a ton of balls (they did), that he got hurt (he did), that the offensive line was garbage again (it was)... but we drafted Mayfield to overcome that stuff. Yes, we're asking too much of a rookie quarterback making only his third NFL start, but that's the point of No. 1 overall picks. Assuming the ankle is okay, it will be interesting to see how he responds in Tampa. Hopefully, he puts this one behind him because he had a bad game.

Ugly

• Todd Haley. Who are we? Are we a pass-first team that likes to go vertical? Are we a run-first team that like the control the clock? Who are our primary playmakers? Are they the overpaid slot receiver masquerading as a No. 1 guy who's currently catching only 47.0% of his balls and leading the NFL in drops? Is it the free agent running back who's averaging a measly 3.4 YPC, despite being the #3 rusher in the NFL in attempts? I didn't see adjustments - the Chargers did a good job blocking the throwing lanes. A natural response would be to do what Brees does and call deeper drops, or move the pocket - neither of those things happened.
  
  
• Gregg Williams. Jamie Collins deserves his own "Ugly", but we'll single him out for just a second here... put him on the bench and look to move him. I can see that the OZ run is there all day, so the Chargers didn't really have to watch much film. Awful. Reverse sweeps that worked for 20+ yard a clip? Why? Because the players play undisciplined football and don't keep to assignments. Missed tackles, missed assignments, etc. Browns' defense is being gashed on the ground like the Browns teams of old and it's sad. A fringe HOF QB only passed for 201 yards on us because the game plan didn't call for any... they could have hung 50 points on us just rushing the football.
  
  
• Hue Jackson. Victory Monday. That's what we got for narrowly beating Baltimore in overtime. As a result, the team came out flat and played without energy. How that happens to a 3-33-1 football team is beyond me. More questionable calls - fourth and two with the score 14-3 and you go for it? Kick the short FG and make it a one-score game. Instead, they got stone-walled, Los Angeles dropped two massive pass plays (back-to-back 40+ yards) and score a TD making it 21-3. That drive came with the screw-job from the refs and effectively ended the game. Hue's the head coach of this team so the buck ultimately has to stop with him. This team quit yesterday and that speaks volumes.

Overall, a ugly loss but perhaps coming at just the right time. Clearly, the Browns were smelling their own stuff and got thoroughly owned by a better team. The Chargers' roster isn't night-and-day better than the Browns (just wait to Kansas City game to see that), so this should have been close and it wasn't. However, that doesn't mean the season's over, the sky's falling, or the battle's lost.

Browns just need to regroup and make some fairly straight-forward changes. We won't re-hash the why, but this team came into 2018 looking to play close football with a strong running game and bend-don't-break defense.

1. Baker Mayfield is now in the lineup and they have to decide if that's the offensive identity they want (spoiler ahead: it shouldn't be).
2. Nick Chubb should be our starting running back.
3. Jarvis Landry should be back in the slot.
4. John Dorsey needs to be on the horn with the Raiders to get Amari Cooper (Browns give 2019 second rounder, get Cooper, 2019 third rounder).
5. John Dorsey needs to be on the horn with the Giants to get Odell Beckham Jr. (Browns give 2019 first rounder, get Beckham, 2019 second rounder).
6. Antonio Callaway isn't Tyreek Hill. Duke Johnson is. Antonio Callaway isn't a reliable starter (yet). Cooper/Beckham (above) are.
7. Seth DeValve (if healthy) should get as many reps as David Njoku, especially with the receiving corp banged up.
8. Genard Avery should be your starting SAM linebacker - need to see if he can man that position for the next 10 seasons or if we need to put that high on the list of offseason needs.
9. Trade Jamie Collins and a future pick to Oakland (who's team is on fire sale) for Gareon Conley.
10. Get back to some fundamentals - blocking ,tackling, and pass catching. Defensively, focus more on assignment football. On offense, grow some big boy pants on the offensive line and block or move somebody.

Something like that. Because Tampa Bay just became a "must win" game.

 

I agree. And Breshard Perriman isn't the answer... he's Corey Coleman 2.0. Dorsey needs to be very active calling teams around the NFL who have receivers available.


This isn't an indictment of Antonio Callaway... but it's a response to reality. We're asking a rookie receiver who missed an entire year of college football to be a No. 1 or No. 2 receiver when he's not ready.

This isn't an indictment of Jarvis Landry, either... but rather of his usage. You've got the best slot receiver in the NFL and you're demanding he be the No. 1 guy.

Imagine what this team looks like with Higgins (who is WR1) and Beckham/Cooper on the outside with Landry in the slot and Callaway as WR4 or the guy who's taking the top off on certain play-calls?

 

Thanks for that thorough review @SAS. Didn't get to watch the game this weekend and only caught bits and pieces on the radio.

 

Lucky!

 

Oof.

 

Yep! Let's just shitcan every coach and coordinator in the organization. That's the ticket!!!

 

I don't think we need to go that far, but we do need to have a gut check on some things.

Defensively, we're #1 in fumble recoveries and #2 in total takeaways. But we're #20 in points allowed and #28 in yard allowed. That's not a sustainable thing. The number of snaps some key players are taking could be taking a toll (hence the defensive effort post). Garrett leads all ends, Ogunjobi leads all interior linemen, and Schobert was leading all linebackers in snaps. He just injured a hamstring, likely some of that caused by fatigue.

Offensively, we're #3 in rushing attack scoring, #4 in rushing attack yardage, and #7 in yards-per attempt... but our best two running backs are getting an average of 5.8 carries per game. Over his time as a starter, Mayfield has thrown 41, 43, and 46 times. Obviously, the major point discrepancy yesterday required throwing the football, but we need to figure out an offensive identity. Counting on Baker to save the day isn't always going to work.

Special teams... well, if you don't have anything nice to say, right?

 

I genuinely don't think he was touched...

#51 with the quit, again.

 

Patrick Peterson is supposedly on the trade block as well... Who has the lower price tag?

 

I have a few “#fireHaley” tags left over... if anyone is interested.

 

I certainly hope the busiest man in Berea right now is John Dorsey.

And the 2nd busiest man better be Breshad Perriman.

 

I think they are hitting on about 30% when throwing Callaway's way. That's scary bad. It does not appear he's ready for this kind of workload...How many drops were there on Sunday? Seemed like more than a few...

I still don't like Dez. He tried to use the Browns on Hard Knocks to get himself noticed elsewhere....We are getting pretty desperate at the position though, so if they wanted to up the anti there, I won't complain. Amari Cooper could be an interesting combination with Baker Mayfield. For whatever reason, he can't get it going with Derek Carr. So I've heard rumors on that one, but I have no idea where the Browns would value Cooper on the trade market. Or if Dorsey would even consider it....

I'm not a big fan of Odell Beckham because of all the antics, but that dude is a dynamic playmaker. I would be all for that pursuit, mostly because he's locked up on multi year deal. But also because I think Baker Mayfield would keep him much happier than Eli is capable of at this point in his career.

 

Let's face it. The first thing ANY available veteran WR will see when they walk in the door at Berea to interview is John Dorsey with his pants down wrapped face down over a barrel. Not a good position to be in to help this team long term.

That's NOT a dig against Dorsey . . . That's just where he finds himself at the moment.

 

Eyerolled so hard they fell out when I read this...

I. Did. Not. Know. That.

 

The Good: Denzel Ward is now (mostly) shadowing the 1 on opposing teams. This past week he shadowed Allen over 60% of the time allowing 1 catch on 3 targets for 17 yds.

The Bad: The defensive effort was completely offensive.

The Ugly: we need WR, NOW.

The Really ugly: See Sam's post above. Baseball had Shoeless Joe, football has Clueless Hue..or as we say "Hueless".