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.

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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.

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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.