Mid-week thoughts

Two items as the Browns prepare to hit the road for the next two weeks . . . 

There appears to be a chink or two in the Browns' armor along the offensive line. Most notably in defending against the pass rush.

It is entirely possible the five sacks they gave up against the Chicago Bears last Sunday was an aberration, considering how well they have protected Baker Mayfield since around midseason in 2020. The Bears' front seven was relentless and seemed to expose a weakness.

We'll get a much better idea of where that stands after the next three games, a veritable minefield of teams that frequently like to congregate at the quarterback.

The Minnesota Vikings, this Sunday's assignment as the Browns begin a two-game trip that concludes in Los Angeles against the Chargers, have recorded 10 sacks. So have the Arizona Cardinals, who drop in for a visit two weeks from Sunday. 

The Chargers have banked only five sacks, but any team with Joey Bosa locked in on the flank has got to be considered dangerous. The former Ohio State star has averaged 10 sacks a season in his five previous campaigns.

The Browns' offensive line was clearly the weakest unit against the Bears, whose defensive line seemed to overwhelm it every time Mayfield dropped back to pass. Not only was he sacked five times, he was hit another seven times and hurried on what seemed to be every snap.

Running the football did not seem to be a problem at all, though, with 196 yards generated by running backs Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt and four scrambles by Mayfield, who has rarely seen pressure like that in his last dozen or so starts.

If nothing else, expect members of the line to be challenged by head coach Kevin Stefanski and position coach Bill Callahan to prove what happened against the Bears won't soon happen again. Also look for Stefanski to dial up more screen plays to offset the pass rush.

Keep an eye on left tackle Jedrick Wills Jr., who is trying to work his way through a sprained ankle suffered in the season opener in Kansas City and has labored. The good news, if you can call it that, is veteran lineman Chris Hubbard is back after sitting two games with a triceps injury and can fill in if needed

(This just in: Hubbard was ruled out by the team on Friday. That means Blake Hance will take over if Wills takes himself out of the game.)

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Congratulations to those who had the under in the over/under pool -- it was four -- with regard to how many games Greg Newsome II would play before missing one with an injury. 

The Browns' top pick in the May college draft arrived with nothing but glowing terms accompanying him about how smart he was, how well he played the position and how well he fit in the organization. 

"I think he really fits our profile," said General Manager Andrew Berry at the time, "He fits the smart, tough, accountable profile we want out of our players we bring into the building. . . . There was not a major discernible hole within his skill set and he has a high level of competency across all areas we value at the cornerback position," High praise, indeed.

The GM seemed to either ignore, perhaps deliberately, one major hole. Newsome, as it turns out, had a very long history of injuries in college. It's a hole that prevents him from being able to suit up for every game, often called being reliable.

Granted it's difficult to play every game, especially in the professional ranks. But Newsome spent three years at Northwestern playing barely half the Wildcats' games. Eighteen of 35, to be exact. He missed eight games (ankle) as a freshman, four (unknown injury) as a sophomore and five (groin) as a junior.

He never played a full season at Northwestern and yet he somehow wound up as the Browns' No 1 pick in the most famous lottery in professional sports. He checked a lot of boxes, but injuries, at least as far as the Browns were concerned, didn't seem to be considered.

So when they announced Tuesday that Newsome would miss the Vikings game Sunday with a calf problem, apparently suffered early in the fourth quarter of the Bears game according to the snap counts, it did not come as a shock to those who have followed his career.

It foretold the notion it would be only a matter of time before Newsome would be unavailable. His consecutive games played screeches to a halt at three. For those who picked the over, good luck next time.

Something tells me we'll see Newsome missing more games as the season unwinds. The Browns for the time being are calling Newsome day-to-day. But if the calf issue lingers, they might have to place him on injured reserve until it heals.

Monday leftovers

To suggest having Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt on the same roster is a luxury states not only the obvious, but the envy of Kevin Stefanski by every head coach in the National Football League. Not only are they a luxury, they are a treasure. 

They are, not even arguably, the best pair of running backs this franchise has ever had. Better than the legendary Jim Brown and Bobby Mitchell, better than Brown and Ernie Green, better than Marion Motley and Dub Jones, better than Leroy Kelly and Green, better than Mike Pruitt and Greg Pruitt, better than Earnest Byner and Kevin Mack.

Granted, Hunt has played only 27 games since joining the club a couple of years ago, but his impact in that brief time has helped flesh out the superstar quality of Chubb, at the same time rekindling a career that was headed in the wrong direction.

There is no question former Browns  General Manager John Dorsey gambled when he plucked the Willoughby native off the waiver wire in 2018 after he was released by the Kansas City Chiefs following an ugly personal behavior incident off the field and lying to the Chiefs about it.

Dorsey, known for taking chances on talented players with problems off the field, knew the talent was there with the NFL's rookie of the year in 2017 and believed, correctly as it turned out, that the home environment would be beneficial for him.

Stefanski is the fortunate beneficiary of Dorsey's prescience with regard to the talented running back, whose versatility and sheer talent with a football has helped the Browns become one of the league's most dangerous teams on offense.

The combined talents of these two running backs has caused numbing headaches for defensive coordinators around the league. Very few teams have been able to totally shut down this tandem, both of whom are quite capable of tilting a game in the Browns' direction by themselves.

There are occasions where one can be stopped until Stefanski changes gears and summons the other off the bench. Sort of a pick your poison situation. Rarely do they appear in the same backfield, Stefanski's way from a strategic standpoint of keeping both men healthy for the gruelling 17-game schedule.

Off the field, they are good friends. On the field, they pick each other up. They have produced 45% of the offense with half of the club's 10 touchdowns this season. There are times when it seems they feed off each other's emotions in terms of achieving the main goal of winning.

In Sunday's 26-6 victory over the Chicago Bears, Hunt came off the bench with what some might call a tour de force performance, touching the ball 16 times, producing 155 yards and a touchdown.. He was the spark of a Cleveland offense that ran in fits and starts against a Chicago defense that kept the final score so low.

Chubb is the grinder, the one who gets the tough yards. The one who annually leads the NFL in broken tackles. It sometimes appears as though he looks for someone to run over. Hunt is the opposite. He, too, is tackle breaker, but he is also more of a slasher who would rather break opposing ankles with dazzling moves. Both men are difficult to bring to the ground. 

Together, they -- and, of course, the offensive line --  form the reason Baker Mayfield has flourished as a quarterback. With so much talent behind that line, it is difficult to key on just one aspect of the offense because the other is so dangerous.

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Odell Beckham Jr. defies not only the laws of gravity when making spectacular receptions of a thrown football, he defies medical norms. Take the recovery from his torn anterior cruciate ligament last Oct. 25 on the third play of the game in Cincinnati, making a tackle following a Mayfield interception.

Obviously a quick healer and dedicated rehab patient, Beckham beat the normal one-year recovery period for ACL patients by a full month Sunday against Chicago. Considering how well he played in the victory in his first game back, one would never know he had been away so long.

He played nearly two-thirds of the 78 snaps (not counting the last three kneeldowns), a testament to his strength and conditioning. Mayfield targeted him nine times, connecting on five for 77 yards, including four that helped convert third downs.

The best was a true candidate for a SportsCenter top 10 list.  First possession of the second half, third play, third and 7 from the Chicago 41. Mayfield straight drop, lofts a pass toward the right sideline, Beckham running just inside the chalk.

As he approaches the 15-yard line, he stops on a dime, whirls to his left with his back to the sideline, snatches the perfectly-timed  throw and taps both toes as he falls back and out of bounds. All Bears cornerback Jaylon Johnson, in coverage, could do is watch. 

Unbelievable to the human eye. Routine for Beckham. He was back.

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Demetric Felton logged only 11 snaps on offense, but his mere presence portends some exciting football the rest of the way. He was targeted three times by Mayfield, grabbing a pair for  just 13 yards. But it was a first-quarter incompletion on the opening drive that caused a bit of a stir.

The smooth rookie curled out of the backfield and ran toward the left sideline, beating linebacker Roquan Smith deep as Mayfield delivered. The pass sailed over his head by at least a couple of yards. A completion would have resulted in a touchdown. It's a play Stefanski should reprise.

The sixth-round draft pick also banked 20 snaps on special teams and gives every indication the Browns' woes on the return game might disappear with his arrival. That, of course, is if the return teams learn how to avoid penalty flags. Felton returned seven Chicago punts for 108 yards, each time making the first man miss. 

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Rookie linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah played 23 of the club's 45 snaps and began to look like the player the Browns took in the second round of the draft. He looked more comfortable, more assured and definitely quicker than in the first two games.

He was filling in for the injured Sione Takitaki and seemed to be playing without thinking. He moved instinctively, alternating between the box and pass coverage. That's what defensive coordinator Joe Woods wanted to see from him.

He was the club's second-leading tackler with four tackles (three solo), a half sack (with Myles Garrett) of Justin Fields, a tackle for loss and a quarterback hit. He appears to be shedding the growing pains that have slowed his progress.

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Chase McLaughlin is now officially out of practice squad hell. The young placekicker, who had never kicked in a regular-season game until this season with the Browns, is authoring a perfecto thus far -- perfect on five field goals and nine extra points.

McLaughlin, who was undrafted in 2019 out of Illinois, was on the practice squads of seven different teams before signing with Cleveland. And he was ticketed for the practice squad until incumbent Cody Parkey was hurt in training camp and ultimately waived by the team. 

His 57-yard field goal in the first half Sunday -- he also had a 52-yarder in the second half -- was a stunner. It shouldn't have been. He kicked five 50+ yarders at Illinois. It moved Stefanski to declare, "I have confidence in the kid." But in the world of placekickers, you're as good as your next kick.

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Finally . . . Garrett filled the stats sheet against the Bears with seven tackles (six solo), four-and-a-half sacks, four tackles for loss and six quarterback hits. Cracked Mike Greenberg on ESPN's Get Up Monday morning, "Myles Garrett had a great season yesterday." . . . It was kind of sad to watch Garrett abusing Bears left tackle Jason Peters, an 18-year veteran who some day will be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. . . . Bears head coach Matt Nagy's postmortem after the game: "You almost can't make it up, it was that bad. We've got to get to the bottom of it." . . . One more time: Why is Andy Janovich still on the roster? He banked a whole two snaps against the Bears.

Easy peasy

Maybe it was the throwback uniforms. Then again, maybe it was because the Browns were hands down the most dominant team on the field Sunday. Yep, that's it. And it wasn't close.

The dormant Cleveland defense finally awoke from a two-game early-season slumber with a vengeance and buried the Chicago Bears' offense in an avalanche of sacks in a ridiculously easy 26-6 victory that turned into a nightmare for quarterback Justin Fields, who was making his professional football debut.

The Browns pass rush dropped the former Ohio State star nine times -- it would have been 11 with sharper tackling -- as they tripled their season sacks total. Myles Garrett, who pleaded for help from his teammates a few days ago, got it as he led with a club-record four-and-a-half sacks.

The defensive line, aided by several well-timed  blitzes, completely overwhelmed the Chicago offensive line from the opening snap and made certain Fields' first start would be memorable for all the wrong reasons.

(It was also a day Browns placekicker Chase McLaughlin had a day to remember, but for all the right reasons. He booted field goals from 28, 41, 52 and a career-high 57 yards. More on that later.)

There was no way the Bears were going to reach the Cleveland end zone on this afternoon, not with the Browns shutting down every aspect of the Chicago offense. Half of the Bears' possessions ended in a three-and-out. Browns fans know exactly how Bears fans must be feeling.

Only one of their 10 possessions lasted longer than five plays -- a nine-play drive that ended with the second of Cairo Santos' two field goals. It was set up by an iffy 48-yard pass interference call on Cleveland free safety John Johnson III, who initially picked off the pass.

Johnson braced himself by placing his hands on the back to separate from Chicago receiver Allen Robinson, but did not shove. It was not flagrant and could have been called either way. Back judge Tony Josselyn saw it differently and pulled his flag. 

Statistically, Fields wound up on the wrong side of some embarrassing numbers. 

Let's start with a net passing yardage of just one yard. The Bears compiled 47 total yards on 42 plays. They owned the football for a shade over 20 minutes, were held to six first downs (two by penalty) and converted just once on third down in 11 attempts.  Stunning stats for a 2021 National Football League game.

Fields was either hit or dropped on 24 of his 31 dropbacks, Garrett and Jadeveon Clowney, who had two sacks,  accounting for 11 of the 15 quarterback hits. The defensive line disrupted the rhythm and timing of every pass play.

The Cleveland offense, which spent the better part of the fist two weeks of the season bailing out the defense, played well enough to win against a Bears defense that gave the offensive line fits all afternoon in the passing game, dropping Baker Mayfield five times.

The first half resembled an old-fashioned football game befitting the Browns' 75th anniversary throwback uniforms. Lots of defense, slobber-knocking offense and very few points on the scoreboard. The Browns held a 10-3 lead.

The Browns drove deep into Chicago territory on their first two possessions, only to fail twice on fourth down, Mayfield sacked on both occasions as head coach Kevin Stefanski unwisely disdained a field goal from a makeable distance (38 yards) on the second..

The third drive got as far as the Chicago 39 early in the second quarter and this time, Stefanski figured it was time to put points on the board. From 57 yards. What in the world was he thinking? He eschewed one from 38, but 57 was a gimme?

But McLaughlin, who most likely silenced the critics seriously wondering whether he is the next Phil Dawson, was perfect from long distance all afternoon, sneaking over the 57-yarder with a couple of feet to spare. Everything was right down the middle, which has to at least build a bridge of trust with his head coach.

Mayfield was sharp when he needed to be. His biggest throw was an 18-yard back-shoulder pass to Donovan Peoples-Jones on third down deep in Cleveland territory in the final minutes of the first half when it looked as though Stefanski would settle for a 3-3 tie at halftime.

It kick-started a drive that featured intelligent clock management, the catching and running of Kareem Hunt, who accounted for 41 yards of the 12-play, 89-yard possession, and a terrific 13-yard scoring strike to Austin Hooper on a skinny post, the tight end beating safety Eddie Jackson to the spot with 19 seconds left.

When it was established this game belonged to the Cleveland defense, Stefanski went conservative in the second half. That meant a lot of Nick Chubb and Hunt and bleeding of the clock as they scored on four of their five possessions, not counting the three kneeldowns at the end of the game. The ground game accounted for 128 of the 194 second-half yardage.

Hunt, who totaled 155 yards on 16 touches, capped his bountiful afternoon on the second play of the fourth quarter, capping a six-play, 75-yard drive with a pretty 29-yard scoring jaunt, slipping a tackle at the Chicago 20 after cutting inside a Joel Bitonio block at the point of attack. He accounted for 59 of those yards.

If nothing else, the defense's performance at least temporarily silences those on the verge of calling for defensive coordinator Joe Woods' head. It also conjures up a question after watching such an awful display of offense: Did the Browns win this game because they were so good or because the Bears were so bad?

Maybe it was the throwback uniforms.

Low scoring and close

It night be a tad early to suggest this, but after the first two games of the 2021 National Football League season, Browns fans aren't quite certain what kind of a team they support.

They looked like they were on their way to joining the elite of the league before stumbling late against Kansas City in the opener. The feeling was it was just a little bump on the way to the top.

In week two, though, the Browns stumbled early and often before finally beating the Houston Texans, a team they should have handled easily. The antithetical performance had to furrow more than a few eyebrows in Browns Nation.

That begs the question, then, as week three brings the Chicago Bears to town Sunday afternoon: Will the real Cleveland Browns please stand up?

A valid question to be sure because we have seen a few different versions of a team searching for its identity on both sides of the football and coming up relatively empty. The offense is still lethal to a large degree, but the defense has been disappointing.

The growing pains of the defense would not be worrisome if progress was achieved. It wasn't between games one and two even though the record was evened at 1-1. Had it been just about anyone other than the Texans, they might be looking at 0-2 against the Bears.

How the Browns play against the Bears will shine a much better spotlight on just where this team is headed, They need to put together a 60-minute game for the first time this season with each aspect complementing the other in order to start feeling good about themselves. It's missing.

The Bears might just be the perfect opponent in that regard. They won't scare you from a talent standpoint,. They beat you with sound, fundamental football. On offense, they just hang around while the defense, the heart of the team,  jumps on and capitalizes on just about every mistake.

The professional starting debut of quarterback Justin Fields sheds a slightly different light on the Chicago offense, which was relatively stodgy under Andy Dalton, sidelined for this one with a bone bruise of the knee. Fields presents different problems from an athletic viewpoint.

You always knew where Dalton was -- the pocket. Fields most likely will be much more unpredictable and try to make positive plays with his feet when other options are taken away. Making certain he doesn't make plays that put you in mind of Baltimore's Lamar Jackson should be one of the Browns' goals. 

Because he hasn't played enough to get a handle on what to expect from the rookie from Ohio State, it will be interesting to see what gems defensive coordinator Joe Woods hauls from his bag of tricks to confuse the rookie.

Three main problems here: Woods plays zone roughly 80% of the time; the pass rush has been AWOL all season against two average-at-best offensive lines; and dialing various blitz packages seems to have become unfashionable. It adds up to a secondary that is way too busy.

Fields is still getting his feet damp in the NFL. You can coach him up all you want to get ready for his first start, but there is no way he has quickly achieved the ability to instantly recognize opposing defenses and change plays at the line of scrimmage.

Good defensive coordinators generally have fun mixing it up against rookie quarterbacks. A little of this, a little of that. Keep him guessing. This will be a  good test for Woods, whose creativity quotient has fallen well short of expectations thus far.

The Chicago defense, meanwhile, presents a different challenge. It almost annually leads the NFL in points allowed and racks up takeaways in the high teens. The Bears employ arguably the best set of linebackers in the league with Khalil Mack and Robert Quinn on the outside and Roquan Smith and Alec Ogletree in the middle of the 3-4 .

It's a tough defense to run against and those backers are key to the success of the pass rush, which has produced six sacks. They added solid pass coverage to the package last Sunday, swiping three Joe Burrow passes, including a pick six by Smith, en route to a 20-17 victory over Cincinnati in their home opener.

Taking everything into consideration, this one has all the makings of a low-scoring game. The Bears play the game of ball possession very well (33 minutes a game) with a defense that has little trouble getting off the field. Even with the uncertainty of what kind of game Fields will play, the Bears are not scary on offense.

Look for the Browns' to improve their third-down defense against the weakest offense they've faced this season -- the Chiefs and Texans converted 63% of their third downs -- and the pass rush will flourish against the weak Chicago offensive line. 

But Baker Mayfield will struggle and the offense will play an uneven game, much like last week, mainly because the Bears will effectively shut down the Cleveland ground game and force Mayfield to throw. He'll find David Njoku and Harrison Bryant for second-half scores and the defense holds the Bears to less than 250 yards of total offense, Make it: Browns 20, Bears 13

Mid-week thoughts

Under ordinary circumstances, the Browns' home game Sunday against the Chicago Bears would be nothing more than game three on the schedule. Those circumstances changed the other day.

Justin Fields will make his National Football League starting debut as the Bears' quarterback. A huge majority of Browns fondly remember him as one of the most dangerous college quarterbacks in his two years at Ohio State, setting numerous records along the way.

The Bears thought enough of him to move up nine slots in the college draft last May to grab him and anoint him as their new franchise quarterback. A knee in jury to veteran Andy Dalton, who started the Bears' first two games, has forced Bears head coach Matt Nagy to move Fields' timeline to right now.

And that presents an interesting problem to the Browns, most notably the defensive unit, which has been more offensive in the first two games this season. The new group, comprised of as many as 10 new faces, has gotten off to what might be charitably termed an unexpected start.

With so many new faces, a slow start is not unusual. But progress with the renewed talent on that side of the ball is also expected. If anything, this defense regressed in game two after a decent start in the season-opening loss in Kansas City.

It appears as though the it lacks the physical and athletic talent to neutralize mobile quarterbacks, most notably 31-year-old Tyrod Taylor, who totally baffled the Browns for a half last Sunday. Either that or the scheme being used does not fit their particular talents. 

Fields, at least based on his terrific career with the Buckeyes, is just as much a threat with his legs as he is with his arm. That hasn't been the case yet in Chicago because Nagy has steadfastly said Dalton is his starter and only an injury knocked him off that stance.

Sort of reminds me of a similar situation in Cleveland in 2018 when Taylor, then the Browns' starter, went down in game three with a concussion and gave way to Baker Mayfield, who will make his 50th straight pro start (including playoffs) against the Bears.

Based on the results this season against quarterbacks who excel at extending plays, Fields presents the kind of athleticism that does not bode well for the Cleveland defense. Factor in how well Houston rookie Davis Mills played last Sunday after a rough start.

Mills took his offense on a 16-play, 75-yard journey that consumed more than eight minutes to pull the Texans to within 24-21, causing more than a few fans to wonder if the defense was in the midst of giving  another one away.

If that defense can't stop a raw rookie quarterback who was drafted in the third round and who took over unexpectedly after Taylor went down at the half last Sunday, imagine what lies ahead against a much more heralded rookie with more talent.

If the Browns can't stop a Davis Mills, what in the world is going to happen when a much more talented Fields lines up behind center? It might take a few games to find out whether he is the next Lamar Jackson. His first test is Sunday by the lakefront.

Now I might be getting a little ahead of myself with that suggestion because Fields is a blank slate right now. We don't know whether he can make a successful transition to the NFL. We don't know whether he can be schemed by a smart defensive coordinator.

Now there are more than a few critics out there who believe using Browns defensive coordinator Joe Woods and smart in the same sentence is oxymoronic. Based on what we have seen this season in two games. that would make easy to win that argument.

There is no question the talent is there. It is infinitely better than last season's sad group. The question is whether it is being used properly. It has not been. Yet. The Bears game provides a good litmus test.

Woods has been around long enough to know it is easy to fool and confuse rookie quarterbacks from a scheming standpoint. Give them one look presnap, then morph into something entirely different. Blitz from everywhere on the field. Disguise coverages.

The Cleveland pass rush -- you call that a pass rush with just three sacks? -- has the bite of a tabby cat. They sure do miss Sheldon Richardson and Olivier Vernon from last season. Of course it's only two games, but three sacks? Only one by a starter, Myles Garrett, who has strangely been MIA.

If that doesn't change Sunday, the start most fans expected by the Browns could turn very ugly very quickly in  Browns Nation.

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It sure looks as though Odell Beckham Jr. will make his 2021 debut against the Bears. And not a moment too soon due to Jarvis Landry's short stint on injured reserve with that banged-up left knee. His return from ACL surgery revives an old argument.

Beckham and quarterback Baker Mayfield have not meshed as anticipated since his arrival. Statistics prove the connection between the two is not as productive as expected when the Browns traded for the wide receiver.

In 22 games and one play, the play that led to the tear of his ACL early in game seven last season as he attempted a tackle following a pick, Mayfield has targeted Beckham 176 times with 97 successful connections, a 55.1% completion rate. During that span, Mayfield has completed 330 of 541 passes to other receivers, a 61% clip. 

In the 10 regular-season games during Beckham's absence last season, Mayfield connected on 66.2% of his passes, threw 16 touchdown passes and only two interceptions and won seven of 10 games in addition to a playoff game. In the first six games, only 10 touchdowns and six picks. He flourished with OBJ as a spectator. 

One more quick stat: The Browns are 11-12 with Beckham in the lineup, averaging 21.65 points a game. In the 13 games he has missed, the Browns are 8-5 and average 25.62 points a game.

Now with Landry gone for a while and nothing but young receivers surrounding him, it will be fascinating to see if Beckham can step up and be the All-Pro wide receiver he was with the New York Giants all those seasons before the trade.

Even though he might be somewhat limited because he hasn't played in nearly a year and will be chipping off the football rust he accumulated, he will still be the man. The always-threatening target capable of making the kinds of spectacular plays only he can make.

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The new taunting rule in the NFL might not be around much longer if strange application of the rule persists. It is being met with almost total disdain and ridicule as the league attempts, it seems, to take some fun out of how the game is played.,

For example, in the third quarter of Sunday's victory over Houston, Texans tight end Jordan Akins caught a 17-yard pass on third-and-7 from the Houston 41. He celebrated his tough catch against Cleveland strong safety Ronnie Harrison Jr. by spinning the football at Harrison's feet. It drew a flag.

Referee Brad Rogers switched on his microphone and announced the following: "Unsportsmanlike conduct, Houston, #88, spinning the football. First unsportsmanlike of the game." Unsportsmanlike conduct is a 15-yard penalty. It took a 17-gain and reduced it to two yards. The Texans went on to score a touchdown, anyway, but that's not the point.

Yep, spinning the football seems to fall under the purview of taunting along with who knows what else. The league now permits crazy, rehearsed displays of joy after, say, a turnover or touchdown or a play that engenders celebration. But not spinning the football near your opponent. 

It's taunting if Akers had gotten in Harrison's face and gloated. He didn't, but paid a price due to an official not understanding the essence of the rule. Is spinning a football like a top considered taunting? Of course not.  The countdown to its demise starts now.

Monday leftovers

Kevin Stefanski had an interesting observation in his postmortem following the Browns' 31-21 victory over the Houston Texans Sunday afternoon.

"I would say there is a ton to clean up," he said. "Offense, defense and special teams. There is a ton to clean up. We will look at those things and what we can do better. It's all something we will look at . . . and make sure we improve."

This after a victory. 

When you stop and think about it, what else could the Browns' head coach say after witnessing his team's strange and uneven performance? It was an honest appraisal to be sure, perhaps to make certain his men didn't get too heady over their first victory of the season.

It doesn't take much imagination to come to the conclusion that if the Browns had played against Kansas City in the season opener a week ago the way they played against the Texans, they would have been blown out by the Chiefs instead of coming thisclose to winning.

Stefanski later went on to ask and answer two important questions as he tried to put everything into perspective. "Did we play our best?" he asked. "No we didn't. Did I coach my best? No I did not, okay? I will be better. We have to do better. . . . Good teams, after a win, identify, correct and then move on."

That said, Stefanski and his coaching staff have a whole lot to clean up. From the questionable pass rush, even more questionable pass coverage, poor tackling and lack of overall aggressiveness on defense to  inconsistency on offense, where you never know what you're going to get when attacking, there's work to be done.

There are times when the offensive side of the football looks like a well-oiled machine, playing mistake-free football and making life miserable for opposing defenses. We saw that the first 52 minutes in the loss to the Chiefs. 

Strong defenses, on the other hand, do not just attack; they attack aggressively. They develop an intimidating, swaggering personality capable of taking over a game. The Browns see that when they play Baltimore and Pittsburgh twice a year.  

That's not to say the Browns can do that because it seems they don't have the kind of personalities on defense that can accomplish that. But developing any kind of aggression that seems do be missing in Joe Woods' defense might be a step in the right direction.

When I see Cleveland cornerbacks giving opposing wide receivers so much cushion you and I could complete slant patterns, like Tyrod Taylor did in the first half Sunday and rookie Davis Mills did in the second half, the frustration mounts.

The pass rush, which is where pass defense begins, seemed to be sleepwalking Sunday. Myles Garrett, who booked 49 snaps, applied one pressure on the Houston quarterbacks. That's it. One lousy pressure against an offensive line ranked somewhere in the bottom third in the National Football League. He didn't come close enough to sniff the quarterback's deodorant.

The Cleveland defense thus far has surrendered 700 yards of offense in two games. Time for Stefanski to have a little chat with Woods to see what the devil is going on? 

It will be interesting to see which Cleveland Browns team shows up for Sunday's home game against the Chicago Bears. They already showed they can play down to the talent level of the opposition against Houston. The Bears are looking to make it two straight AFC North victims after knocking off Cincinnati Sunday

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It was refreshing to see what Grant Delpit could do when healthy enough to make his NFL debut against the Texans. The strong safety had to wait a year and a few months after being selected in the second round of the 2020 college draft to get on the field.

A ruptured Achilles' heel robbed him of last season. Hamstring issues in training camp this year suggested the notion the kid is generally injury prone. Recent reports, though, indicated he was close to being ready to contribute to a defense that needs his unique talents.

And then boom! In 26 snaps, Delpit made his presence well known in the second half with five tackles (three solo), a strip sack, one tackle for loss and a quarterback hit, one of only three for Cleveland on the afternoon. It sure appears as if some of the cleaning up Stefanski mentioned has already begun by Delpit.

Now that he's apparently healthy enough to play more than on a part-time basis, look for Woods to employ a three-safety look in the secondary with Delpit the Swiss Army knife lining up anywhere from deep safety to in the box to covering running backs and tight ends. 

Now all that needs to be done to give the defense an even fresher look is increase the reps for rookie linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, who banked 25 snaps in the Chiefs loss, but only 18 against Houston.  No word from Stefanski as to why JOK is having so much trouble getting on the field.

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Another rookie exploding onto the scene Sunday was running back/wide receiver Demetric Felton, a who's-he sixth round draft pick last May. Didn't take a snap on offense until early in the second half against the Texans. And when he did, he woke up a stadium that was wondering what the heck was going on.

With the score tied at 14-14 and the Browns driving on the the first possession of the second half, Felton lined up in the slot to the left of quarterback Baker Mayfield on a second-and-19 at the Houston 33. At the snap, he took one step back, caught a short screen pass at the 35 and sort of followed the screen to the end zone.

Sort of because after taking advantage of terrific blocks by right end Austin Hooper and running back Kareem Hunt at the point of attack, Felton broke two tackles, pirouetted at the 20 to break a third tackle, picked up more clearing blocks from guard Joel Bitonio and wide receiver Rashard Higgins before breezing into the end in front of phalanx of blockers.

It was part Eric Metcalf, part Duke Johnson Jr. It was also a wakeup call to Stefanski and offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt that maybe this kid deserves more reps. Makes no difference where. That kind of talent needs to see the field more. 

*     *     *

Got to give a lot of credit to Jedrick Wills Jr., a surprise starter at left offensive tackle against Houston. All week long, speculation as to whom would replace Wills, who sprained his ankle and played only half the Kansas City game. dominated the news.

Was it going to be right tackle Jack Conklin moving over to the left side? Or was it going to be rookie James Hudson III making his NFL debut? Perhaps utility lineman Blake Hance would start. Then word leaked that Wills was going to go through his paces pre-game and then decide.

He played the first three quarters, 43 snaps, and played them very well before Hance took over and booked the last 18 snaps in the final quarter.

*     *     *

Finally . . . Why has Donovan Peoples-Jones, who has turned out to be a veery good blocker, become the forgotten man in the passing game? He has played 93 snaps this season and been targeted only twice,  catching both. The first gained a first down; the second produced a fumble. With Jarvis Landry (knee) out for a while, DPJ should see his target count rise. . . .  The Browns owned the football for 35 minutes against the Texans, utilizing the ground game to bleed the clock in the second half. . . . One of the reasons was to take pressure off Mayfield, who dislocated his left shoulder making a tackle after throwing an interception. Stefanski admitted he was protecting his quarterback by limiting his throwing. . . . Question of the week, maybe ongoing throughout the rest of the season:Why is Andy Janovich still on the roster?

Not ugly, not pretty

It was truly a weird afternoon of football on a sunny Sunday down by the lakefront as the Browns opened the home portion of their 17-game schedule against the Houston Texans with a 31-21 victory.

They lost their best receiver on the second play of the game. They played passive defense as a former teammate cunningly carved up their defense in the first half. 

Their quarterback had an odd day, attempting 21 passes and completing 19, one to the opposition. They also saw their quarterback stop the interceptor with a jarring open-field tackle late in the first half that appeared to leave him dazed. 

The lead never seemed safe until midway through the final quarter because the Texans kept coming back. The only difference this week was Houston didn't have the sustainability to keep up with better teams like Kansas City did last week against the Browns.

It sure looked in the first half as though the Texans came prepared to play a football game, while the Browns just seemed happy to be playing in front of humans again after the pandemic caused an empty-stadium 2020 season in the National Football League.

They received a few breaks along the way, like recovering a muffed punt after whiffing on the opening drive, scoring four plays later on an Andy Janovich short blast. But the expected easy game then took an unexpected turn.

Tyrod Taylor, who opened the 2018 season as the Browns' starting quarterback, was almost perfect as he guided the Texans to a 14-7 lead, hooking up with running back Phillip Lindsay on a beautifully designed 22-yard screen pass to tie the game and then romping 15 yards untouched six plays after the Baker Mayfield pick.

He completed all but one of his 11 throws. The Cleveland pass rush, or what passed for the pass rush (no pun intended), didn't touch him. They couldn't because he unloaded the football quickly. If he had played that way for the Browns in 2018, Mayfield, then a learning rookie, would never have seen the field.

Losing Jarvis Landry to a sprained knee that could sideline him for some time hurt in so many ways. He's Mayfield's best, most trusted and favorite receiver. He is always a threat to run or throw the ball. A huge loss, especially with the entire game left to play.

The setback seemed to alter the game plan after it became apparent the Texans would not go away. With Odell Beckham Jr. not quite ready to suit up, the Cleveland receiving corps was reduced to Donovan Peoples-Jones, Rashard Higgins and rookie Anthony Schwartz, and three tight ends. 

That's not nearly enough. There is not a playmaker among the group. It appeared as though Schwartz stopped his route early on the Mayfield pick, Justin Reid's interception making the Cleveland quarterback look bad.

Mayfield also had trouble finding open receivers, scrambling on eight of his dropbacks. One was a five-yard scoring jaunt, climaxing a 10-play 75-yard drive, tying the game at 14-14 at the half and probably causing more than a few fans to wonder what the heck was going on.

He eventually went on to complete every one of his next 10 passes following the pick as head coach. playcaller Kevin Stefanski chose more high-percentage throws, content with moving the football methodically rather than with stretching the field with a quick strike.

When it became apparent the Texans were determined to stop the Browns through the air, Stefanski as much as said, "All right. If that's what you want, how about a few doses of Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt." It was mostly Chubb, who wound up with 95 yards on 11 carries.

This wasn't supposed to happen against the Texans, who opened up the season by knocking off Jacksonville. But the Browns are not the Jaguars. They are miles better on offense than Houston and better, at least on paper, on the other side of the football.

And then came the biggest break of all. When the second half began, Taylor was nowhere to be found. The hamstring epidemic that has bedeviled the Browns, reached out and snagged him, too. In came rookie Davis Mills for his first NFL snaps. The first two series were disastrous as the Cleveland defense came alive.

A three-and-out, followed by a seven-play, 72-yard drive, highlighted by a spectacular and well-executed 33-yard catch and run by rookie running back Demetric Felton, broke the tie and for all practical purposes  put this one away. It was Mayfield's first touchdown pass of the season,

A Chase McLaughlin field goal on the next series, which featured a Malcolm Smith Jr. pick deep in Houston territory, provided some insurance. But Mills wasn't done. Neither were the Texans, who stormed back and pulled to within three points at 24-21 on an exhausting 16-play drive.

He kept the Cleveland defense on the field for a shade more than eight minutes. They were on the field because they couldn't get off. Mills, all of a sudden looking like a seasoned pro, converted four third downs along the way. The drive featured some of the same sloppy tackling that marred last season.

Even though the Browns' front office made sweeping changes and put as many as 10 new defensive faces on the field, it sure is beginning to look very much like last season. The only thing that seems to be changing are the faces.

Stefanski's nod to the ground game in the second half paid off after the lengthy Houston march, Mayfield smoothly guiding the 82-yard possession, Chubb running the final 26 yards on a stretch play, cutting  between solid blocks by right guard Wyatt Teller and Peoples-Jones.

It's still way too early in the season to draw any conclusions about the Browns, but after two games, inconsistency seems to be the largest impediment. You can't expect this new defense would come out and be terrific right way. Improvement is the key. But there was no improvement from last weekend.

Maybe it was the absence of middle linebacker Anthony Walker. This is not the kind of aggressive demeanor that changes games. There doesn't seem to be anyone who can step up and make plays on a consistent basis. The fault lies with everyone who line up on that side of the football.

Here's a lone hint that the front seven is not nearly as formidable, as least based on the first two games, than at first believed: The lone sack against the Texans was recorded by Grant Delpit, a safety making his professional debut after missing last season and last week due to injuries. It came with about two minutes left in the game.

Was this win ugly? Not really. But it sure wasn't nearly as pretty as most fans thought it would be.

Close game? Nah

All it took was one week, one game into the 2021 National Football League season for the Browns to slam it into scramble mode. Just like that, key pieces in the Browns' football structure are falling on what seems to be a daily basis.

Yes, football is a collision sport. Injuries are unavoidable. You never know when they occur because the way the game is played nowadays, they sometimes occur when least suspected.

How many times have we seen what appears to be a violent play ripe for an injurious outcome turn out to be nothing at all? And the most innocent of plays yields something as serious as a season-ending injury?

Entering Sunday's home opener against the Houston Texans, the Browns will be without their best blindside protector for quarterback Baker Mayfield and their best and smartest linebacker. Kevin Stefanski and his coaching staff have scrambled all week to plug those important positions with quality talent.

Barring a miracle recovery from an ankle injury to offensive left tackle Jedrick Wills Jr. in the season opener, insiders suggest rookie James Hudson III will provide Mayfield's protection over the more experienced Blake Hance.

On defense, middle linebacker (and signal-caller) Anthony Walker's surprise visit to the injury list for at least three weeks due to hamstring woes necessitates a group effort at the position with Malcolm Smith Jr. and Mack Wilson, who is much more comfortable and effective in the middle than outside, stepping up.

It also gives rise to the notion that rookie Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah will see more playing time as a hybrid linebacker/safety, giving defensive coordinator Joe Woods many more options to utilize the kid's unique talents.

As for the tackle problem on offense, wondering how and why the coaching staff favors Hudson over Hance. The former high school defensive lineman played only one full season at tackle in college before the Browns selected him in the fourth round of the draft.

Watching him casually during the exhibition season, I noticed how slow he was off the snap, He seemed to have difficulty adjusting to the speed of the game, It's important to note here that the speed and quickness of the game in the regular season is substantially more intense than the exhibitions.

It's disconcerting to think the coaches believe Hudson can keep his quarterback clean as a raw rookie playing his first game. 

Now I consider offensive line coach Bill Callahan the best in the business. Who am I to quarrel with his judgment? Good argument. The only way, I guess, we'll find out who is wrong is by watching how the game unfolds if Hudson does, indeed, start. Count on at least one false start and one holding penalty.

Here's my argument for Hance, who, you'll recall, stepped into the breach in the playoff game against Kansas City last January after coming on board just days before the game and played well. The Browns thought enough of him to place him on the final 53-man roster.

He was a four-year starter at left tackle at Northwestern, where he was Academic All Big 10 his last two years. He is most comfortable on the left side of the line. Four years starting at tackle vs. one year starting at tackle. Hmmmm.

The fortunate aspect of the situation is the opponent Sunday is Houston, so well thought of by oddsmakers that the Browns are favored by a dozen points. The Browns are clearly the better club, their injury situation notwithstanding.

They became a better home-field team last season (6-2) under Stefanski, who has never lost consecutive games in his brief head-coaching career. In fact, he is so excited, he publicly implored the fans to show up early and be ready to support.

Having played before empty houses last season due to the pandemic, this will be Stefanski's first opportunity to see up close just how boisterous and raucous Browns fans can be, especially now that they have morphed into legitimate contenders for the postseason. 

The Texans ride in on an emotional high following their season-opening 37-21 home romp over Jacksonville. Ex-Brown Tyrod Taylor threw for nearly 300 yards and a pair of touchdowns and the defense picked off rookie Trevor Lawrence thrice.

On offense, look for Houston to use the run game to set up the pass with Mark Ingram Jr., David Johnson and Phillip Lindsay, all former lead backs. Ball control is essential to the Taylor's success. And that's where the Browns have the edge.

The Chiefs last week ran for only 55 yards against the Cleveland front seven when you subtract Patrick Mahomes II's 18 scrambling yards. Crowding the line of scrimmage, forcing Taylor to throw, is a distinct possibility Sunday. The Cleveland secondary is not nearly as porous as Jacksonville's.

The Texans are most vulnerable to the pass on defense, which would lead one to believe Mayfield will spend a large part of the afternoon distributing the football to as many as nine different receivers. 

We don't know yet how good the Houston run defense is because the Jaguars ran the ball only 15 times last week, Lawrence filling the air with footballs after falling so far behind that was the only way they could play catchup.

That won't be the case Sunday. Not with Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt still fresh and eager to treat the home crowd to their talents in person. Add that to Mayfield and his receiving arsenal and you have the first rout of the season. It won't be close. Mayfield throws his first three scoring passes of the season. Make it: Browns 38, Texans 17

Mid-week thoughts

Three items today . . . 

No. 1. Game one in the books and attrition has already struck the strength (and heart and soul) of the offense -- the line. Either resting or on bikes are left tackle Jedrick Wills Jr, (ankle), his backup Chris Hubbard (triceps muscle), right tackle Jack Conklin (knee) and center JC Tretter (knee). Guards Joel Bitonio and Wyatt Teller have escaped the injury bug.

It's fairly safe to say Tretter and Conklin will be in the starting lineup Sunday against the Houston Texans in the home opener. Wills, who checked out after only 20 plays in the Kansas City loss is listed as day-day. Ditto Hubbard. 

If neither is ready by Sunday, that's a problem. A big problem. That's Baker Mayfield's blind side. And it needs to be manned by the most trusted man. 

Head coach Kevin Stefanski needs to make a critical decision if Wills and Hubbard are idled. He has at least a couple of options, one of which would solve a problem. The possibilities would require shifting positions,

He could move move Bitonio to left tackle -- he played the position in college -- and insert either Michael Dunn or Blake Hance at left guard. Or he could move Conklin to left tackle -- he was All-Big Ten and All-America at the position for two years at Michigan State before shifting to right tackle in the NFL -- and insert rookie James Hudson III at right tackle.

The problem with the latter move is Hudson, who is not nearly ready to compete at the pro level at such a critical position in an offense that loves to run to the right side of the formation. Putting him at LT is even worse. Judging from his performances in exhibition games, he projects better inside at guard. I'd rather see Hance or Dunn at RT or LT if not Conklin.

The Bitonio move, it says here, makes the most sense. Keeps him on the left side. Slot either Dunn or Hance at left guard, keep Conklin at his normal position and tether Hudson to the bench. He's a long way from being ready to start in the NFL.

It is assumed Stefanski will consult with offensive line coach Bill Callahan before announcing any change, should one be necessary. "We have some plans," he said Wednesday. "We'll make it work. That's certainly something we're up on the whiteboard figuring out who is going to be where."

Then there is always the possibility Wills and/or Hubbard will miraculously recover and be ready to suit up Sunday and make all this speculating turn out to be much ado about nothing. Still, impactful injuries are somewhat alarming so early in the regular season.

No. 2.  Stefanski hauled out his best imitation of Bill Belichick when talking about the Texans the other day. Called Houston quarterback Tyrod Taylor "outstanding." Yes he did. And called the Texans "a real good football team  , , ,  Their quarterback is playing at a very high level. I have been very impressed with him."

Ratcheting up the hyperbole machine is what Belichick does best when discussing the next opponent. Stefanski has caught on fast. What he doesn't say is Taylor is an NFL vagabond, a journeyman who has experienced only modest success (being kind here) when given the opportunity.

Stefanski correctly pointed out that Taylor has taken a team (Buffalo in 2017) to the postseason. Other than that, he has been mostly a backup on several teams in his 10 seasons. The only reason he is starting in Houston is because Deshaun Watson is in the midst of fighting 22 civil lawsuits and unavailable. Otherwise, he'd be in his most familiar position -- the bench.

Taylor, who opened the 2018 season with the Browns as the starter before going down with a concussion in game three, is coming off a 281-yard, two-touchdown performance in a 33-21 season-opening victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars and feeling pretty good about himself.  

No. 3. Have read elsewhere along the Internet highway that at least a couple of pundits have labeled Sunday's home opener a "trap game." In other words, the Browns are the better team, but could be lulled into thinking the Texans aren't that good (they aren't) and won't have to work as hard as they did in the season opener in Kansas City and fall to 0-2.

Clearly a reach. First of all, it's hard to believe anyone who thinks that's the case honestly believes it. There is no way, none whatsoever, that will happen. Stefanski has already put a stop to that by constantly reminding his men they will be 0-1 entering the game. Fairly certain he has other motivating tools in his game-prep arsenal to drag out just in case.

Monday leftovers

When they embraced in their little post-game ritual, Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield in a low tone said something to Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes II after the Chiefs' 33-29 victory Sunday.

Obviously, there is no way of knowing exactly what Mayfield said. It was brief, maybe six or seven seconds, and uttered with what appeared to be strong conviction. When he was done, he tapped Mahomes on the helmet with his left hand, turned and trotted away.

One can only imagine what he said, It wouldn't be too far off, though, to venture a guess that it might gave gone something like this: "Nice game. See you again in the playoffs."

And he would be correct because the way the Browns played the first 50 minutes of the game sent a strong signal to the rest of the National Football League. Barring something monumentally disastrous, this team is headed to the postseason for the second year in a row.

The losing pill was bitter to swallow, of course, especially after the Browns gave this one away. But the sheen of the future of this team is so bright, Mayfield had to know shrugging this one off would not be that emotionally painful.

He knew -- so did Mahomes -- that these two teams meeting for a third time in a year is as inevitable as each team winning its respective division championship. Mahomes repeatedly called the Browns "a real good football team" leading up to the confrontation.

He didn't back off that contention in his post-game interviews. He knew if it hadn't been for two gifts the Browns handed his team in the final eight minutes of the game, the result would have been completely different and he would have suffered his first-ever loss in September after 10 straight victories.

That's the difference right now between these two teams. The Chiefs have been to the Super Bowl the last two seasons, winning one ring. They know what it takes to get there, The Browns are just learning how and the process is approaching warp speed.

You could see it in the most recent loss. The Browns looked more like the Chiefs in the first half than the home team. They almost effortlessly took command on both sides of the football and, for all practical purposes, dominated.

These teams are evenly matched from a personnel standpoint, five points separating them in last season's playoff game and four points Sunday. And judging by the reaction around the NFL universe the last 24 hours, fans would definitely welcome a third Cleveland-Kansas City game.

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The biggest gripe I had with the Browns was the defensive game plan, Full disclosure: I am not a fan of zone defenses. They give the opposition way too many opportunities to make plays.

Classic example was the room the secondary gave Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce Sunday and it cost them. Too much respect for the All-Pros. For some reason, defensive coordinator Joe Woods chose to play two-deep safeties in zones way too often.

Maybe it was because strong safety Ronnie Harrison Jr. stupidly got himself disqualified after just five snaps for shoving the Chiefs' running backs coach, who initially shoved him in a sideline skirmish after making a tackle. 

With Grant Delpit still not ready to dress, M. J. Stewart Jr., normally a cornerback, was drafted to replace Harrison. Maybe that's why Woods went conservative. Playing Hill and Kelce soft to run routes is an invitation for disaster, particularly with a pass rush that had trouble getting started in the first half.

Hill, running free range all afternoon, caught 11 of his 15 targets for 197 yards and a ridiculously easy touchdown. Kelce caught all but one of his seven targets for 75 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Hill's score, a 75-yard strike, could have been avoided had free safety John Johnson III been paying attention.

He had Hill in single coverage deep, but made the mistake of peeking into the backfield and by the time Mahomes' long throw reached Hill, who made a nice adjustment of the underthrown pass at the Cleveland 30, he couldn't recover to make a play. Hill romped easily into the end zone.

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Question: Who was the Browns' best offensive player in training camp? 

Answer: Wide receiver Donovan Peoples-Jones. Caught just about everything thrown his way. Showed, too, he would be a willing blocker. Did nothing wrong that anyone could see.

Question: Why was DPJ ignored in the passing game against the Chiefs?  Answer: Beats me. He logged 47 snaps (80%) and was targeted just once. And he caught that one. It was a little four-yard reception on third down that gained an important first down and sustained the final drive. Two plays later, Mayfield threw his first pick of the season,

Jarvis Landry and rookie Anthony Schwartz were each targeted five times, combining for six catches and 140 of Mayfield's 321 yards. Peoples-Jones, it seemed, was relegated to blocking duty. He apparently was not in the game plan from a receiving standpoint. Very odd. 

Question: Why not? Answer: Beats me.

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Liked the way head coach Kevin Stefanski utilized Landry, who showed his versatility as a runner on a few occasions, including a five-yard touchdown run early in the second quarter off an inside handoff after motioning toward the left sideline.

On one of the plays, Landry took a pitch from Nick Chubb and attempted a throwback to Mayfield, who started the play and drifted out into the right flat. The Chiefs sniffed it out and Landry picked up nine yards after pulling the ball back.

And with seconds left in the first half and the ball at the Cleveland 43, Landry took a short pass on fourth down and dashed 32 yards against a dropped-deep Chiefs secondary. When they closed, he pitched the ball back to the trailing Mayfield, who lateraled to Kareem Hunt after gaining 11 more. Hunt was dropped two yards later at the KC 12. The entertaining play covered 45 yards.

*       *        *

Looks as though rookie Malik McDowell has supplanted Andrew Billings at defensive tackle next to Malik Jackson. Billings, thought to be one of the starters at the position, played only 11 snaps. McDowell logged 45. The Maliks combined for six tackles (four solo), one tackle for loss and a quarterback hit. Billings and fellow defensive tackle Jordan Elliott failed to hit the stats sheet.

*       *        *

Finally . . . Schwartz was the biggest revelation against the Chiefs. After missing just about all of training camp with a hamstring, he contributed handsomely in his 31 snaps with grabs of 44 and 16 yards among his three receptions. . . . Another question: Why was Rashard Higgins, a Mayfield favorite, limited to only four snaps and no targets? Answer: Beats me. . . . Chris Hubbard did a nice job filling in after left tackle Jedrick Wills Jr. went down with an ankle after 20 snaps. . . . Rookie linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah saw 25 snaps in his professional debut and 16 more on special teams. Wondering why he isn't in the starting lineup. . . . The Chiefs owned the ball for 18:23 in the second half. . . . Tight end Austin Hooper caught three early passes and then was forgotten. . . . After scorching the Chiefs' defense for 318 first-half yards, the Cleveland offense mustered just 129 more in the final 30 minutes.

Not quite

It is so easy from this perch to pin blame for the Browns' latest opening-game loss Sunday on punter Jamie Gillan. He had plenty of company.

In a game that should be titled "The One That Got Away" or, better yet, "The Great Gag Job in Kansas City," the Browns extended their opening-day winless streak to 17 games with a second-half display of ineptitude that has become predictably familiar in season-opening games.

Those used to the Browns finding unusual ways of turning victories into losses had to be thinking that after they raced out to a 22-10 halftime lead, playing near-flawless football on both sides of the ball, only to fall apart in the final 30 minutes en route to a 33-29 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.

Just about everything worked in the first 30 minutes. Quarterback Baker Mayfield was dialed in with his throws as he led three long touchdown drives, Nick Chubb scoring twice and Jarvis Landry reaching the end zone on an inside handoff from five yards.

Gadget plays worked for the most part. Mistakes were kept to a minumum on both sides of the football. Fourth-down gambles worked to near perfection. It was almost too good to be true at the halfway point as the offense compiled 318 yards and the defense limited the Chiefs to just 14 yards on the ground.

Sure Odell Beckham Jr. was in street clothes, the Browns being extra cautious with the wide receiver, who is recovering from a torn ACL. But rookie Anthony Schwartz filled in nicely, burning a couple of big plays.

Certainly a two-possession lead should hold up the way both units were playing even with the peerless Patrick Mahomes in charge of the Chiefs' attack. Sure he and Tyreek Hill played pitch an catch in the first half, but it resulted in little damage. Mahomes' 10-0 record in September was seriously threatened.

Even the doubters had to wonder that maybe, just maybe, this is a turning point for this franchise. The offense was bold, confident, even brazen. Everything seemed to work just as it was drawn up in the playbook. So what could go wrong?

Murphy's Law: "Anything that can do wrong will go wrong." And it did. Big time.

And this is where Gillan, free safety John Johnson III, third-down problems on both sides of the football  and, yes, even Chubb enter the picture.

It all started innocently with the Chiefs driving 75 yards in 14 plays to open the second half, Mahomes connecting with tight end Travis Kelce from 11 yards. Chubb, who fumbled only once last season, matched that total on the third play of the next possession, the Chiefs recovering only 53 yards from the Cleveland goal line.

Solid transition defense held them to a Harrison Bukter field goal and the doubters breathed a little easier when Mayfield, again flawlessly, directed a nine-play, 75-yard march, Kareem Hunt scoring from two yards out, to restore a nine-point lead (29-20).

And then it all fell apart on the next two possessions in a matter of three minutes. 

On the very first play, Mahomes dropped back and found Hill at the Cleveland 30 as Johnson, in coverage, stumbled just enough to make the 75-yard scoring bomb look easy. Just like that, it was back to a two-point Browns lead. 

It was clearly an emotional lift for the Chiefs' defense, which forced the first Cleveland three and out of the game on the next possession.

Enter Gillan for the first time in the game (not counting his holding duties on placekicks) . That's how good the offense was until then. Long snapper Charley Hughlett's snap was perfect, Gillan's hands were not. He dropped the ball, picked it up, started running and picked up just four yards. Turnover on downs at the Cleveland 15.

Three plays later, Kelce had his second touchdown and the Chiefs their first lead. The two teams traded punts -- yes, Gillan held on to this one -- and the Browns still had a chance with 2:49, one timeout and the two-minute warning remaining and the ball at their 17. 

They matriculated to their 48 with a little more than a minute left in regulation, converting just their second third down of the afternoon. (The Chiefs were nine of 13 on third down.) And that is where the last act of Murphy's Law unfolded.

Mayfield was pressured and hurried his first-down throw as he fell to the ground, intending to hit tight end Harrison Bryant along the left sideline. In retrospect, he should have taken a sack. The ball fluttered into the waiting hands of Chiefs cornerback Mike Hughes. He still had a timeout and ample time left.

If anything, this game should act as an object lesson for the Browns, whose biggest problem, it seems, is putting away games against strong opponents. In order to be considered elite, you have to consistently perform at that level, especially when trouble intervenes,

The Chiefs showed that Sunday. They were patient. They waited for the Browns to self destruct. It took the better part of three quarters, but their patience and, of course, some dumb plays by the Browns, eventually paid off.

It's clear the Browns aren't there yet. It's also quite clear they are knocking on the door.

The opener! Yikes!

Let's get this out of the way quickly. Ever since returning to the National Football League in 1999, the Browns flat out stink in season-opening games. There is no other way to put it.

From the inaugural 43-0 thrashing by Pittsburgh in '99 to the fabled Dwayne Rudd helmet-throwing, victory-surrendering loss in 2002 to Kansas City to the frustratingly countless times ineptitude stood in the way of winning, they have been abysmally clueless on opening day.

Officially, they are 1-20-1 in lid-lifters. It got so bad, the 21-21 tie with the Steelers in 2018 was treated like a victory. The lone real victory in 2004, a 20-3 triumph over Baltimore at home, was orchestrated by Jeff Garcia. Remember him? Didn't think so. The Browns finished 4-12 that season.

Makes no difference where the opener is played. The Browns are 1-15-1 at home; winless on the road in the other five. In those five road losses, they have scored just 67 points and yielded 146, which does not portend a favorable result Sunday in Kansas City against the Chiefs, who have played in the last two Super Bowls.

Many coaches believe winning the first game of a season sets the tone emotionally and psychologically for the rest of the season. Kevin Stefanski blew that one to smithereens after the Baltimore Ravens ravaged the Browns, 38-6, last season in his head coaching debut, finishing 11-4 the rest of the way to the postseason.

The 22-17 loss to the Chiefs in the division round proved to the Browns that they belonged. At the same time it was a bitter pill to swallow, it served as a springboard to the 2021 season. And when the NFL schedule makers wanted to see those two teams meet again in the season opener, it also provided a revenge factor.

Fans remember how close the playoff game was from a scoreboard standpoint. Just a five-point difference. So close and yet so far, they thought. If Browns receiver Rashard Higgins hadn't fumbled the ball out of the end zone at the end of the first half, the game might have turned out differently.

We'll never know, of course. But here's a reminder that seems to have gotten lost in the remembrance of that game. It was almost totally in control of the Chiefs  in the first 30 minutes from just about every statistical standpoint. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes seemingly toyed with the Cleveland defense.

Four possessions yielded 277 total yards, two touchdowns, two field goals, a 19-3 halftime lead and 17 minutes and 43 seconds of ball control. Mahomes was 19 of 26 for 233 yards with one touchdown through the air and another on the ground. He was in firm control.

It wasn't until midway through the third quarter, when a hard tackle by Mack Wilson knocked the Chiefs quarterback out of the game, that the momentum changed a little. The Browns crept as close as the final score, but mustered little offense after that.

Both teams have since made radical changes to their units -- the Browns to their defense, the Chiefs to the offensive line. How they play Sunday could be a determining factor in the outcome.

The Chiefs almost totally redid their offensive front after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat up Mahomes and Co. in the Super Bowl. This will be their first time playing as a unit. 

The Browns' overhaul on defense is more radical with eight new faces starting on that side of the football with several more playing key roles. The new additions provide this unit with important ingredients seriously lacking last season -- speed and quickness.

As with most large changes in personnel, it takes time to jell. It might be somewhat more difficult for the Browns, though, with so many newcomers. It will take at least a game or two. But for certain, Joe Woods' defense is better equipped, relatively speaking, to handle the passing game than last season's crew.

The Browns need to pressure Mahomes, but they'll need to do it with the peerless Myles Garrett the lone returnee. Newcomers Jadeveon Clowney and Takkarist McKinley are not known as quarterback disturbers. And if they don't step up against the new Kansas City offensive line, the new secondary will have a busy afternoon with the likes of Travis Kelce, Tyreek Hill and Mecole Hardman.

The Cleveland offense, meanwhile, will have an additional weapon this time against the Chiefs. Odell Beckham Jr., who tore an ACL midway through last season, is back and will start, but might be on a rep count by Stefanski to make certain he doesn't overuse one of his top receivers so soon after getting hurt. There's quality depth on the bench in Higgins, Donovan Peoples-Jones and rookie Anthony Schwartz.

Also look for Stefanski to use running backs Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt liberally to balance out the attack. The head coach made a mistake in the playoff game by virtually ignoring Hunt in the first half and giving the ex-Chief running back only seven touches in the second half. 

Since coming on board, General Manager Andrew Berry and Stefanski have purged the notion that the Browns are still the "same old Browns" of yesteryear. Gone is the losing attitude, replaced by a winning culture.

No longer are the Browns considered the laughingstock of the National Football League. They have turned just about everything around except this. Winning the season opener is one of the few items on the bucket list that hasn't been checked off.

A couple of aspects of this game point to a loss. Oh and five on the road to open a season. And the Browns seem to lose every time Jim Nantz and Tony Romo, CBS Television's top team, show up to do their games. 

For those reasons, and the fact the Chiefs are a better all-around team, I can't in all honesty pick them to win this game. The heart pleads yes; the head screams no. Against just about any other NFL team? Definitely. But the Chiefs are not any other team. Make it: Chiefs 31, Browns 20

How does 12-5 sound?

Predicting how a National Football League team will do throughout the course of a 17-game season is hazardous at best, disastrous at worst.

Take, for example, the Browns' 2017 season. Who in their right mind would have foreseen an 0-16 season as a followup to the 1-15 monumental disaster the year before? Not even -- and you'll excuse the expression -- Hue Jackson.

Your friendly and curmudgeonly prognosticator that season was bursting with optimism -- confidently and foolishly -- believing the Browns would improve from 1-15 to 3-13. Little did I know -- an expression Jackson absentmindedly probably used throughout the season -- how really awful that team was.

As it turned out, and while fewer and fewer fans were paying anything that resembled attention at the time, the nadir had been reached. The corner was slowly being turned. 

See ya Hue arrived midway through 2018. Howdy interim head coach Gregg Williams. Thanks for your eight games and don't let the door . . . And howdy do Freddie Kitchens, who was just smart enough to last the entire 2019 season before eventually meeting that same door.

From that point on, with one smart step at a time, this franchise began a journey that grew up with amazing alacrity. It was, for the most part, orchestrated by Paul DePodesta, a baseball man who had been given the nebulous title of chief strategy officer.

It began with the signing of Kevin Stefanski as head coach in mid-January in 2019. Exactly two weeks later, Andrew Berry returned to Cleveland as general manager. And just like that, the losing culture than had enveloped and smothered the team residing at 76 Lou Groza Blvd. in Berea disappeared.

So here we are, the club's first post-season appearance since 2002 and first post-season victory since 1995 in its back pocket, approaching the most anticipated regular season since the NFL permitted Cleveland back into the league in 1999.

Most fans in Browns Nation never saw last season's 11-5 coming. They always hoped for something like that. The pessimists kept waiting for the whole thing to collapse as it always had in the past. The defense did on a weekly basis, but the offense . . . well, the offense had other ideas. 

That brings us to 2021. It's time once again to haul out the crystal ball and see what lies in store.

Berry and Stefanski have combined their unique talents to craft one of the most talented and dangerous rosters in the entire league in a stunningly short period of time. The national media finally caught on that the Browns no longer are the league's stepchild.  

And the defense that imploded last season? Fixed. Berry took care of that with numerous wise free-agent signings and even wiser drafting this past offseason. He has put a team with high quality talent squarely in the crosshairs of opponents.

This season's defense is much more athletic, decidedly faster and quicker and features better tacklers. No longer will the offense be forced to outscore opponents to win games. 

It all portends a fun 17 games. There will be the normal highs and lows along the way. Not to worry. Just know this team employs a very intelligent coaching staff.

In the last two decades, most Browns teams hoped they would win. A few thought they would. And now, for the first time, it is a team that knows it will win.

The toughest part of the schedule is the 12 consecutive games before the bye week, including three of four on the road before the off week. Endurance and avoiding major injuries will be the key factors leading up to the final five games. Three of those games are at home. 

Four of the final six games will be against AFC North opponents, which should be interesting if there is anything resembling a multi-team battle for the playoffs.

The Browns lost five games last season. Would have been three with smarter coaching in one game (New York Jets) and just one stinking defensive stand in a shootout against Baltimore. This year, they will lose another five games and they'll all be on the road. .

It has  been reported that half the teams that make the playoffs one season don't qualify the next season. That won't happen with this team, It is well primed to win. The possibility of losing games does not enter its psyche.

That won't happen in Cleveland. Not this season. Not with this team. Make it: 12-5.

PS looking good

It's always fun at this time of the National Football League season to play a game of "I hope the Browns bring him back to the practice squad" after initially paring the roster to the very fluid final 53 men.

Because the starters barely played in the exhibition season, that gave us a chance to see a sizable number of players on the roster logging huge minutes in an effort to either convince the Browns they are ready to move up or attract the attention of the other 31 teams.

Of the 28 Browns who were jettisoned either via the waiver wire, contract termination (flat out released) or injured reserve, I circled 12 names of those who impressed during the meaningless games. The good news? Of the 11 who have been signed to the 16-man practice squad thus far, 10 are on that list. Five slots remain.

I did not circle wide receiver KhaDarel Hodge and safety Sheldrick Redwine. Hodge because even though the Browns wanted him back, too many other teams had taken notice and his loss was inevitable. Redwine, on the other hand, was not an Andrew Berry draft pick. The Browns preferred to bring back another safety.

The Detroit Lions not surprisingly claimed Hodge. Not surprising because John Dorsey, a senior personnel executive with the Lions, claimed Hodge off waivers for the Browns in 2019 while their general manager. Redwine immediately signed with the New York Jets.

Of the 12 I circled, only rookie defensive tackle Marvin Wilson bolted. Wilson, who signed a $192,000 with Cleveland as an undrafted free agent, chose instead to take an offer from Philadelphia and begin on the Eagles' practice squad.

Other than that, the return of defensive ends Curtis Weaver, Joe Jackson and Porter Gustin, tight end Jordan Franks, wide receiver J'Marcus Bradley, running back John Kelly, defensive tackle Sheldon Day, linebacker Elijah Lee, safety Javon Moffatt and H-back Johnny Stanton IV give the Browns a solid practice squad.

Not excited about the return of wide receiver JoJo Natson, who I believe is superfluous to the needs on offense. He is primarily a kick returner. So are rookie Demetric Felton, D'Ernest Johnson and Donovan Peoples-Jones. 

The 12th name I circled was defensive end Cameron Malveaux, who was on the practice squad last season and filled in nicely late in the season when Myles Garrett went down with COVID-19. He is still out there, but the feeling is Berry has already brought back three defensive ends and is looking elsewhere.

In his meanderings through the extremely crowded waiver wire, I keep waiting for Berry to bring in a kicker to challenge Chase McLaughlin. Giving him the job by default is not the wisest move with this high-powered offense.

The Browns will play a number of close games this season and a reliable leg is ultra important. Languishing out there on the street are veterans like Dan Bailey (33), Nick Folk (36), Randy Bullock (31) and Zane Gonzalez (26), who was drafted by the Browns in 2017.

After a decent rookie season, Gonzalez got off to a disastrous start in 2018 and was waived after only two games. He spent the next two seasons with Arizona.. After being waived last March, he signed as a free agent with Detroit, but the Lions cut him loose in the cutdown to 53.

The only non-Brown signed to the practice squad thus far is quarterback Nick Mullens, who originally signed with San Francisco as a free agent in 2017 and rostered three seasons. He signed with Philadelphia as a free agent last June and was also a victim of the cutdown to 53 by the Eagles.

Reasoning behind the signing is Mullens is very familiar with the Browns' offense, which is similar to the one choreographed by 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan.