Midweek thoughts

An essential part of any offense in football at all levels is the ground game. Without it, an attack has zero balance.

The National Football League in the last five or so seasons, maybe a little longer than that, has become a pass-happy, pass-first game. Fans love that aspect of the game.

Many NFL coaches like it, too, especially those with marginal talent in a run game that leaves a lot to be desired, and most especially when they have a quarterback whose talent can more than make up for it.

The Browns, though, are fortunate to have both with quarterback Baker Mayfield and running back Nick Chubb. Unfortunately, at least based on the season opener, coach Freddie Kitchens is not maximizing it.

Yes, Chubb carried the ball 17 times for 75 yards and caught three passes for another 10 yards in the Tennessee loss. But he touched the ball only twice in the fourth quarter, including the play before Mayfield threw the first of three interceptions.

There were still 12½ minutes left and Chubb all but disappeared. The club’s best breakaway runner had basically become a forgotten man.

The Browns ran 63 plays in the Titans loss. Only 20 were designed run plays, a pass/run percentage ratio of 68-32. That’s an imbalance that rarely leads to winning football. The ideal is more like 55-45.

Kitchens was asked if he abandoned the run too quickly in the early stages of the fourth quarter. “I do not, no,” he said. “In the fourth quarter, it was a 22-13 game with a chance to get close. I do not.”

Perhaps he was emboldened to throw the football because Mayfield at that point had completed 11 straight passes. The 12^th wound up in the arms of Tennessee free safety Kevin Byard, the first of the picks that resulted in Titans touchdowns, blowing the close game wide open.

Abandoning the run also showed Kitchens’ lack of confidence in his offensive line, which was operating at that point with a right tackle, who was playing poorly to begin with, switching to the left side because the normal left tackle was kicked out of the game, and a recently signed guard playing right tackle.

The quality of the offensive line is such this season that throwing the football does not cater to their talents. This is not a good pass-blocking line. And the run blocking, while better on a relative basis, isn’t that much better. Besides, it’s much easier to run block.

The answer, it would appear, is more Chubb lugging the ball, occasionally drifting out of the backfield for a swing pass or at least being available for a checkdown throw, allowing him to make a play.

If Kitchens insists on a philosophy of the pass setting up the run, then at least close the run/pass ratio and give Chubb a chance to do what they expect him to because that’s not happening right now.

Kitchens’ magic as a play caller, which thrilled Browns fans the second half of last season, is not off to the start he, his coaches and the fans expected. But like he said, “It’s only one game.”

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There is a lingering belief in sports that teams reflect the personality of their coach or manager. A classic example of that is the workmanlike, almost methodical, way in which the New England Patriots play the game. It’s a direct reflection of coach Bill Belichick,

It’s no accident they play winning football every season to the point it’s getting monotonous for fans of every team not nicknamed Patriots. A lot of people are waiting for them to crumble. It’s not going to happen as long as Belichick sticks around.

Players tend to emulate the head coach. Try to please him. He is counted on to set an example. Kitchens has begun his head coaching career setting the wrong example. He had better change or else that career is headed for a possible disaster.

He’s been at the helm for just one game, of course, but it appears as though his testosterone approach to football is producing the wrong results. It backfired in the season opener.

It’s time to dial it back, way back and make playing the game correctly more important than trying to bully an opponent physically. Kitchens’ approach seems to have trickled down to a bunch of athletes playing a collision sport where tempers flare easily.

A classic example was out-of-control tackle Greg Robinson getting ejected in the second quarter for kicking Tennessee safety Kenny Vaccaro in the head. (More on that below.)  That’s not the way you win games.

Kitchens needs to get a hold of the situation and make certain his men don’t beat themselves. He says he wants his teams to play hard, but play smart. Obviously that message needs to be revisited.

If the Browns play as undisciplined Monday night on the road against the New York Jets as they did against Tennessee, prospects of a promising season will soon begin to fade. If he doesn’t get this thing turned around, the whispers that began after the disappointing opener will become audible and the carping will commence.

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Robinson denied he intentionally struck Vaccaro in the head with his massive cleated right shoe. “I didn’t,” he insisted. “I didn’t even know he was falling toward me, but as I hit the ground, I saw him and my foot just made contact. It looked worse than it was.”

Incorrect. It looked bad in so many ways. The fact his foot was anywhere near Vaccaro’s head is problematic. That he thrust it forward to initiate contact made it worse. The replay showed Robinson’s right foot landed flush on the helmet.

So did his foot involuntarily make contact on its own, as though Robinson had no control over what took place? Don’t think so. He’s extremely fortunate he’s getting off with just a fine.

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More thoughts on the offensive line: The Browns came awfully close to losing their quarterback for a while Sunday. Mayfield took a frightful beating, mainly because that line failed miserably to protect him. He left the ballpark with his throwing wrist bandaged.

Furthermore, there was no sound reason to send Mayfield back out to the slaughter once the Titans took a 36-13 lead with nine minutes left following his second pick. I don’t care if Mayfield didn’t want to come out (if that’s why he returned and finished the game).

Head coaches must take charge at that point. Kitchens should have told Mayfield his day was over and go sit down. Time for Drew Stanton, The game was for all practical purposes over. He had nothing more to prove.

By allowing him to continue, Kitchens risked further physical damage because the Titans by then were teeing off on his practically defenseless quarterback. Bad judgment.

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One last little thought . . . If Kitchens insists on running his 11 personnel grouping (one running back, one tight end and three receivers) 90% of the time as he did against the Titans, the tight end better be Demetrious Harris, the best blocker at the position.

Mayfield will need all the blocking help he can get, especially with that line. David Njoku does not fit that description. If Kitchens wants Njoku on the field, he needs to switch to a 12 package and shelve one of his receivers.