Looking for reasons

There will be one certainty for the defense Sunday when the Browns host Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at home. The secondary will have plenty of chances to do something they haven't done much of this season: Intercept a forward pass.

Brady averages nearly 43 passes a game this season, ample opportunity for someone, anyone, in that secondary to make certain one of those passes relegates the future Hall of Famer to the bench, wondering what just happened.

It has reached that point in the 2022 season when relying on luck might be the only thing where something like that will eventuate. In 302 opportunities for a pick this season, the opportunity-challenged defense has swiped a measly three, or a smidge less than 1%. 

The picks arrived in game 1, a victory against Carolina; game 4 against Atlanta, a loss; and game 8 against Cincinnati, a victory. Three interceptions helped produce two of the club's three victories. Searching for a clue here. Got one. Games 1, 4, 8 and now game 11. The Browns, who have currently gone 11 quarters without one, are due.

Looking for any reason to pick the Browns to end a two-game skid and win for just the second time in the last eight games. Getting that pick has got to be it. And then I realize it's Tom Brady. And what does he specialize in? Throwing few interceptions.

He's thrown for only a dozen touchdowns this season in 10 games, but has been picked off only twice. In his 24-year career, he has thrown 11,744 passes and been pilfered just 205 times, or 1.7% of the time. Looks like four more quarters of frustration.

Gotta look elsewhere for a reason. How about this? Brady is slow-footed, 45 years old and can almost always be found in the pocket. The Cleveland pass rush is due for a bust-out game. Myles Garrett and Jadeveon Clowney are relatively healthy. 

Another check of the statistics, however, reveals Brady has been sacked just 14 times in 441 dropbacks, or 3%, behind a solid pass-protecting offensive line. And he distributes the ball evenly among receivers Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, Russell Gage and tight ends Cameron Brate and Cade Otton.

Still looking.

The Bucs don't run the ball much, which might be a break for the worn-out Browns run defense. They average about 80 yards a game on the ground and have posted only two games over 100 yards this season, the latest a 161-yard effort in a victory over Seattle two weeks ago before entering the bye week.

In that one, rookie running back Rachaad White busted out with a 105-yard game -- he had just 117 yards in his first nine games -- and is now pushing veteran Leonard Fournette for more reps. Fournette's team-leading six touchdowns are evenly split between running and receiving.

The Bucs don't score much, either, averaging only 18.3 points a game. Their high, in a losing effort, was 31 points against Kansas City. But the defense covers for them, limiting opponents to just 18 points per. Quite the antithesis of the situation in Cleveland, where the defense is clearly clueless.

Still looking.

So what are the chances the Bucs' coaching staff discovered how easily the Browns can be run on? Miami and Buffalo, the last two opponents, favor the pass over the run just like the Bucs. And what did they do?  Pounded the Cleveland run defense for 366 yards. 

The Tampa defense also loves harassing opposing quarterbacks, ringing up 32 sacks with an impressive stack of hits and hurries. And considering the Browns' difficulties at center with Ethan Pocic now on injured reserve and Hjalte Froholdt questionable, that sack total almost certainly will rise.

If Froholdt can't go, veteran Greg Mancz, signed as a free agent a few days ago as insurance, will man the pivot. The 6-4, 305-pounder out of Toledo University has played with the Houston Texans, Miami and Buffalo.

Done looking.

It all adds up to a game that probably will draw yawns from the home folks with neither team blowing out the scoreboard with points in Jacoby Brissett's final game before giving way for the last six games to Deshaun Watson.

Two more stats that tilt this one even more in favor of the Bucs. Brady is 7-1 in his career against the Browns, losing the only game in 2010 (34-14 in Cleveland) while with the New England Patriots. He is also 15-5 coming out of the bye. Give him two weeks to prepare and you'd better not be the next game. This is the next game. Make  it:

Buccaneers 24, Browns 13

(More family matters to attend to this weekend and will not be able to watch the game live. Am taping it, though, and will resume writing by the middle of the week with observations. Thanks.)

Mid-week thoughts

Today's focus is on focusing. As in what to do, what to say when what you're working hard to do isn't working.

Today's subject: Browns head coach and playcaller/wannabe coordinator for the offense Kevin Stefanski and focusing. 

Maybe it's a coaching rut Stefanski has fallen into with his 3-7 record this season and 11-16 mark the last 27 games. Then again, it very well could be a verbal crutch he leans on during his dealings with the media throughout the season.

In his most recent session with the media, the beleaguered coach uttered the word "focus" 11 times in answering why the club has been so extremely disappointing this season, one that began with playoffs a prominent topic. In some areas, that might be labeled deflecting or dodging.

He addressed, among other topics, the struggle with mistakes continuing despite working on eliminating them in practice; finding a way to stem the flow of massive amounts of yards given up on the ground; dealing with players who go public with their criticisms; why the defense is still struggling in year three under his watch; players not understanding all their assignments with the gameplans; and how much support he's receiving from ownership in dealing with all this.

Regarding the ownership, Stefanski said, "Again, focus on this week. We meet every week with ownership. They are here every day so great conversations throughout the day. We are all frustrated. I get that part of it. But again, the focus is on this week and what we can do this week to go 1-0 (against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Sunday)."

It has reached the stage where Stefanski now says, "Our focus is on anything that needs fixed." That is not what you want to hear from a head coach 10 games into a season. That covers a heck of a lot of territory with just seven games remaining.

"My focus is on winning," he said. I should hope so. Guessing here, I'd say there might be 31 other National Football League coaches who have the same focus.

It's almost as though he's saying,"Don't worry, I've got this." The record says no he doesn't. Verbally assuring that's the case seems to fly in the face of the results.

His "blame this one on me" lines after losing games has worn so thin, he seems to have abandoned it. Absolving the players of any blame, Stefanski instead has chosen to concentrate on getting the message across that the coaching staff, as well as the players, is constantly efforting hard to get the job done.

And yet, the Browns continue to commit egregious mistakes that lead to losses. If it's not a dropped pass in the end zone, it's a blocked field goal or extra point at a critical time. If it's not a blown coverages in the secondary, it's a stupid penalty.

It has reached the point where fans have come to expect a meltdown from this talented but underachieving group. They  don't when and how it will happen. They just know it will. 

The Browns have replied with six losses in the last seven games. Their only victory, a 32-13 mauling of the Cincinnati Bengals back on Halloween eve, halted a four-game losing streak and was probably enjoyed as much by the goblins as the fans, who no doubt were stunned by the result. Then it all fell apart again in successive poundings by Miami and Buffalo.

It seems that whatever Stefanski focuses on, most of it fails. He is in the frustrating position of throwing just about everything he can against a wall and hoping some of it sticks. That's got to be a very uncomfortable position.

Don't get me wrong, There is nothing wrong with focusing. I think he should be focusing more on his coaching staff and what their immediate future holds and the poor job his general manager has done to strengthen one particular side of the football. 

Hoping here the focusing will not get out of focus.

Monday's leftovers

Kevin Stefanski is beginning to sound an awful lot like Bill Belichick. What other conclusion can be reached after what he said to the medias via video conference Monday, 24 hours after the Browns' record dropped to 3-7 after Sunday's 31-23 loss to the Buffalo Bills.

The dour Belichick is renown after losses for tossing them quickly into the memory wastebasket by immediately focusing on the next game on the schedule. Rather than talking about the loss, it's "on to Cincinnati" or wherever. The loss reaches ancient history that suddenly.

Here's how the Browns' head coach, who's got problems of his own stemming from an 11-16 record since his 11-5 rookie season, responded when asked about the status of oft-criticized defensive coordinator Joe Woods:

"My focus is on us getting better. My focus is on us getting a win vs. Tampa (Sunday at home), playing good offense, playing good defense, playing good special teams. That's where my focus is." It's not "on to Cincinnati," but it's close enough to wonder whether he likes how Belichick deflects.

As for the possibility of shaking up his coaching staff for no other reason than to show the players, a few of whom who have been grousing publicly, that what's happening now -- only one victory in the last seven games -- is not acceptable.

"My focus is really on this week and what we can do this week to find a win," he repeated and then added something the laconic Belichick would never say. "I understand the frustration. I get it. I own it. I own all of it, so we've got to share it as players, coaches, staff. All of that."

Right now, the Browns are a talented football team playing bad football. They lead the National Football League in underachieving. It could be bad coaching, inability to translate practice to games, or perhaps a combination of the two. Whatever it is, it's not working, especially on defense.

Strong safety Grant Delpit believes trust, or lack of it, is a factor. "In order to have trust," he said, "you have to know what you're doing. If you don't know what you're doing, then it never works." Reading between the lines, sounds as though not enough players are consistently on the same page. 

Defensive end Myles Garrett carps about the lack of takeaways. The Browns are scraping the bottom of the NFL in that category with only eight, including a measly three interceptions. Takeaways usually are the end result of aggressive football, something the Browns do not practice under Woods' philosophy.

Stefanski indicated he would speak privately with those who went public with their criticisms. The one thing he needs to avoid is the notion he is beginning to lose the locker room because when thats starts, it can destroy a season.

Despite being  3-7 and once again bringing up the rear in the AFC North, Stefanski thinks his team is always well prepared to play. "Yeah, I really do," he said. "Mental errors and those types of things happen in football. I'm not naive enough to say we're going to play the perfect game."

Now stop and think. That's a yes or no question a head coach always answers with a yes regardless of what he thinks. Saying something like, "Honestly, no." will get him cashiered. He continued. "These guys work really, really hard during the week to make sure they have a very firm grasp of what we're doing." 

And then they go out and win just three of the first 10 games, which shows the grasp really isn't firm enough.

***

The Browns had a terrific chance to go up 14-3 on the Bills in the first quarter, but Stefanski got a little too cute eight yards from the end zone on the third possession of the game. After bullying the Buffalo defense to reach the eight-yard line, the playcaller hiccuped on first and goal.

On the first play of the second quarter, he dialed up a direct snap to Nick Chubb, who had already touched the ball nine times for 63 yards up to that point. It was designed to attack the right edge of the Buffalo defensive line. The Bills were ready for it and dropped Chubb for a six-yard loss on a play that was designed to be run horizontally.

Not necessarily a second guess here because I shook my head in disbelief at the call. But when your best running back is most effective running north, don't call for a play that goes laterally. It takes too much time to develop. Chubb is much better going vertically on a football field.

Consecutive dropped passes in the end szone by Harrison Bryant and Pharaoh Brown on the next two plays brought Cade York into the game for a 32-yard field goal that boosted the score to 10-3. Another opportunity wasted. That's on the coaching, most notably the playcaller. Think he wanted that one back? 

***

Perhaps it's time for the Browns to shelve the quarterback sneak. It took several weeks to get around the league that fill-in Browns quarterback Jacoby Brissett is pretty good at one of the oldest plays in football history. He takes nice advantage of his 6-4, 240-pound frame to extended drives.

But the Bills, up 16-10, were waiting for him at the Buffalo 27 on third down and about a foot and a half on the Browns' first possession of the second half. Stefanski rarely calls for the sneak on third and short, relying instead on either Chubb or Kareem Hunt. He reserves it for fourth down.

The Browns went no huddle, hoping to catch the Bills napping. Didn't work, the middle of the Buffalo defense stoned the Cleveland offensive line. Brissett gained maybe the length of a thumbnail. By then everyone, including all the ushers in Ford Field, knew what was coming next. A virtual replay of third down. 

Time to tear this one out of the playbook. 

***

I'm not sure Stefanski knows how to handle Chubb, which probably sounds like a strange thing to say because he's one of the premiere running backs in the NFL. But check out how Stefanski used him in the Bills loss.

Chubb touched the football 12 times in the first half, nine times in the first 15 minutes. He touched it just three times in the second quarter. He saw it only five more times in the game for nine yards. That's 17 touches for 67 yards on the day, 48 through three pass receptions.

The lack of consistency with Stefanski's use of his best running back is puzzling at best. Even if it means using Hunt less -- another puzzler is why he doesn't use them together on the field in games more often -- he loses sight of the fact he harms his offense with Chubb playing a seemingly lesser role too often.

***

Finally . . . Hjalte Froholdt, who took over at center after starter Ethan Pocic took himself out of the game after two plays with a knee injury, is being blamed on the exchange on which Brissett fumbled and for not providing his quarterback with enough room to pick up a first down on the two sneaks. A bit unfair since he worked with Brissett so little this season. By the way, you pronounce his first name phonetically Yell-duh. . . .  York has missed two extra points and had three kicks blocked. . . . The offense has turned the ball over 14 times this season and taken it away only eight times. Opportunism is not one of the Browns' strengths. Neither are smartness, toughness and accountability.

The party's over

The Browns have scored a touchdown on their first possession of the game four times this season and lost them all entering week 11 of the 2022 National Football League season. Make that five after they did it again Sunday in Detroit against the Buffalo Bills, who overcame a sluggish first half and hammered them, 31-23.

(Quick timeout to inform you, as if you didn't already know, this is the Browns' seventh straight loss on a Sunday, their second loss in a row overall and sixth setback in the last seven games. What's that about the playoffs? How about wait'll next year? Okay, as you were.)

Don't let the final fool you. This one was won when the Bills took the lead (13-10) with 15 seconds left in the first half and never gave it up en route to scoring 22 straight points, including their first second-half touchdown since week six.

The now 3-7 Browns, who flawlessly moved 75 yards in nine plays on the game's opening drive, made the final look somewhat respectable during garbage time with a 13-point fourth quarter, quarterback Jacoby Brissett throwing two of his three scoring passes to Amari Cooper, his second of the afternoon, and Donovan Peoples-Jones.

It became clear from the start the Bills, whose run defense had collapsed in the last three games (nearly 600 yards), were going to sell out to make sure Browns running back Nick Chubb was not going to make it four games, holding him to what must be a career-low 19 of the club's 80 yards in 14 attempts.

That put the game, relocated to Detroit instead of snow-bound Buffalo, in the hands of Brissett, which is generally not a good idea. But the veteran, who has one game left next Sunday against Tampa Bay at home before Deshaun Watson takes over, had his best day of the season with 324 yards and the three scores.

He also fumbled a snap that short-circuited a second-quarter drive and failed to pick up a first down on back-to-back quarterback sneaks on the first possession of the second half at the Buffalo 27-yard line. He gained maybe 10 inches on both attempts.

The botched exchange by Brissett, lined up under center, might have occurred because he has not worked with Hjalte Froholdt, who replaced Ethan Pocic when the starting center departed after the first two plays of the game with a bad right knee.

The Browns also threatened to score on the possession following the Brissett fumble, but Cody York's 34-yard field-goal attempt was blocked by Buffalo special teamer Siran Neal.

York had connected on a 32-yarder to give the Browns a 10-3 lead in the opening minute of the second quarter, but only after tight ends Harrison Bryant and Pharaoh Brown dropped very catchable passes in the end zone.

Interestingly, the Cleveland defense, heavily maligned after being embarrassed in Miami last Sunday, played a strong first half, holding a snoozing Buffalo offense to just 134 total yards, only 56 on the ground, and yet trailed, 13-10, making quarterback Josh Allen look rather normal in the process.

The Bills didn't pick up their initial first down of the game until about eight minutes remained in the second quarter, the Cleveland defense forcing two punts and the first two of Tyler Bass' six field goals, including a 56-yarder.

The pass coverage was tight, the tackling was crisp, the line dominated the trenches, the aggression players lobbied for was clearly in evidence. It kind of made me wonder where was this defense last week against the Miami Dolphins? 

Signs the game was beginning to unravel showed up in the final minute of the half when Allen found All-Pro Stefon Diggs, his favorite receiver, wide open on a five-yard shallow cross from five yards when no one picked him up. Yep, yet another blown coverage. It was Diggs' first target of the game and completed an 11-play, 78-yard march in the final two minutes of the half.

And then they played the second half. 

The Cleveland defense that played the first half did not show up for the final 30 minutes. The aggression was gone, So, too, were the tight coverage and solid tackling. Just about everything worked on offense for the Bills, soothing the burn of two straight tough losses.They scored points on all five possessions, piling up 223 more yards and four more Bass field goals. 

Remember those 56 yards on the ground for the Bills in the first half? They doubled that figure in the second half  with 115 more for 171, the damage done mostly -- and shared equally -- by Devin Singletary and rookie James Cook.

Allen's six interceptions in the last three games is history. He wasn't his usual spectacular, MVP-candidate self in this one. He was as good as he needed to be, hanging in there while the Browns slowly self -destructed.

Now it's back to the laboratory for the umpteenth time for head coach Kevin Stefanski as he vainly attempts to stem the flow of losing games week after week after week. 

Sad Sundays

The Browns have played nine games this season, checking in to the next game on the schedule with a 3-6 record. 

One of those games was played on a Thursday night at home against the Pittsburgh Steelers on national television, Ditto for a Monday night game, again at home, against the Cincinnati Bengals, and again on national TV. The Browns won both games. 

Playing on national television at home to a national audience on a non-Sunday seems to agree them.  Playing on Sunday definitely does not. After winning the season opener on a Sunday against Carolina on the road thanks to a miracle field goal, the Browns are winless on Sundays, including the last six in a row.

Eight games remain on the regular-season schedule, including a weather- and venue-changing date in Detroit against the Buffalo Bills, who lost a home game to a blizzard in the midst of a surprising two-game slump. 

On a Sunday. This Sunday.

One would think the neutral site under a dome would benefit the Browns, who make the Bills' woes look mild by comparison as they try to figure out how to break out of a rut that has seen them lose five of the last six games.

What the Browns do best on offense is run the football. A snow-covered field would negate any edge they would have on the Buffalo defense. Running on artificial turf at Ford Field evens the field somewhat, especially if head coach Kevin Stefanski ever decides to turn Nick Chubb, Kareem Hunt and the solid offensive line loose on a sustained basis.

There is a glimmer, though. A close look at how the Bills have fared against run this season shows they have been awful the last three games, which produced only one victory. After allowing just 76 yards a game in the first six weeks, when they were 5-1, they have been gouged for 176 yards per in the last three.

You'd think that, too, would favor the Browns, but again you have to take into consideration Stefanski is still trying to turn Jacoby Brissett into Deshaun Watson and that spells impending disaster. Only two weeks left until Stefanski deals with the genuine article.

All you need to know about the Bills is it makes no difference what the playing conditions are. They are among the National Football League's elite teams, verging royalty with a superb offense and choking defense, their recent problems against the run notwithstanding.

Only the 30-points-a-game Kansas City Chiefs score more than Buffalo. Josh Allen, arguably the best quarterback from the 2018 college football draft (Baltimore's Lamar Jackson has the best argument there), pretty much is the entire offense. His stats are gaudy.

The Bills have scored 28 touchdowns on offense this season; Allen is responsible for all but four with 20 scoring passes and half of their eight touchdowns on the ground. His 476 yards leads the team in that category.

The Bills overall have recorded 3,817 yards of offense in the nine games. That's 424 a game. Allen's 3,209 yards represents an astounding 84% of those yards. He's getting most of his help from wide receivers Stefon Diggs (72 receptions, 985 yards, 7 TD), Gabe Davis (24, 544, 5) and Isaiah McKenzie ((24, 219, 3).

That's what the maddeningly inconsistent Cleveland defense must face. But they'll also face a quarterback who is damaged and uncharacteristically careless with the football the last few weeks. Allen has thrown six of his 10 interceptions and been sacked nine times in the last three games.

To make matters worse, he suffered an injury to the ulnar collateral ligament in his throwing arm in a loss to the New York Jets a couple of weeks ago. That's Tommy John surgery territory. It didn't stop him last week, however. He was 29-of-43 for 330 yards in an overtime loss to the Minnesota Vikings. 

The Browns, meanwhile, got healthier this week. Wyatt Teller, who tried to play through a calf injury last week and lasted just 11 snaps, is back again at right guard, and Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, who has missed the last two games with a knee, returns at outside linebacker. Tight end David Njoku is listed as questionable.

It will be interesting to see if Stefanski will try to take advantage of the Bills' recent impotence against the ground game. He prefers sustained drives to keep quick-strike offenses like the Bills' on the bench as much as possible. Or will he foolishly rely on Jacoby Brissett to end this losing madness?

Look for Allen's recent habit of throwing passes to the opposition to end at least for this game. No team is, or should be, afraid of the Cleveland secondary. In addition to their own problems against the run, the Browns' pass rush is playing hide and seek this season.

They have dropped opposing quarterbacks just 19 times. Nine of those sacks were accrued in victories over Carolina and Cincinnati. Myles Garrett, who missed one game due to injuries sustained in a car crash, has 7.5 of the team total. The other 11.5 are divided among 12 players. 

Even though neither team has home-field advantage, this one is shaping up as the final nail of a clean sweep of the Browns by the AFC East. The Bills, even with their recent difficulties, are clearly the better team. Besides, it's being played on a Sunday. That means the Browns go down to their seventh straight Sunday loss and sixth loss in the last seven games overall, pretty much ending the playoff quest. Make it:

Bills 34, Browns 20

Mid-week thoughts

The Deshaun Watson era in Cleveland commences in just 18 days and Browns fans, those who have not bolted the bandwagon despite a 3-6 record with a distinct downward trend, will welcome him as the next best thing to a savior.

He arrives with just one detriment. He doesn't play defense.

What he does in six games at quarterback for the Browns for the rest of the season will have little impact on where and how they finish. He can throw three or four touchdowns a game and they'll mean nothing other than adding to his impressive National Football League résumé.

Right now, the Browns harbor the notion they can still reach the postseason with games against the Buffalo Bills and Tampa Bay Buccaneers dead ahead, The likelihood of that possibility still there when Watson returns is remote at best.

The best he can do -- and there is no guarantee he can come right back after nearly two seasons of inactivity and be an elite quarterback -- is something Jacoby Brissett hasn't done and that's fire up an offense that can flat outscore an opponent in a shootout.

Brissett, warming the starter seat while Watson serves his 11-game suspension, has thrown just eight touchdown passes, five devastating interceptions and has not recorded a 300-yard game. And yet,  the offense averages 24 points a game which, under ordinary circumstances, should be good enough to win more than three games. 

But these are not ordinary circumstances with a defense that belches an AFC Central worst 26.5 points a game. So many games this season that were eminently winnable were frustratingly lost by a defense incapable of making a play when a big play would have made a difference.

The Browns this season have played five games that have been decided by three points or fewer and won just one, the season opener where they got an improbable 58-yard field by a rookie in the waning seconds of regulation to win by two points.

They lost the other four, three of them at home, by a total of nine points where all the offense needed from their buds on defense was just one play. Forcing a fumble in the red zone. Intercepting a pass to stop momentum. Anything.

Instead, they got nothing in the losses to the NewYork Jets, Atlanta Falcons, Baltimore Ravens and Los Angeles Chargers. Split those four losses and the Browns are 5-4 today. Pipe dreams don't make it so, though. It all falls under the category of woulda, shoulda, coulda, didn't.

The club's turnover ratio stands at a dismal minus-5, mostly because the defense has only eight takeaways, including an embarrassing three interceptions for an even more embarrassing minus-4 yards. Denzel Ward and A. J. Green gained nothing following their picks and Grant Delpit lost four yards.

Watson is not going to help that. Maybe next season and beyond, But for the here and now, he is just another really good football player who did a lot of really bad things in his personal life just anxious to get back to work with a defense that will let him down, too. Count on it.

Now the reason for the disappointing defense. Split that award between General Manager Andrew Berry and defensive coordinator Joe Woods, Berry for refusing to address the massive problem at defensive tackle and linebacker in either the college draft and/or free agency and Woods in general for game-planning passively. Defense is all about aggression. Not the Browns'.

A breakdown shows the Cleveland run defense this season has been like the little girl with a curl right in the middle of her forehead. When she was good, she was very, very good. And when she was bad, she was horrid. 

The aspect of the defense, correctly maligned on the whole, was very, very good in victories over Carolina, Pittsburgh and Cincinnati, limiting them to just 194 yards, or 65 yards a game. The six losses tell a very different story, a very horrid story.

In those losses, the opposition ran for 986 yards, or 141 per game. In the losses to the Falcons, Chargers and Ravens, though, they were savaged for 795 yards, or 199 a game. Even though the final scores of those games were close, the offense never had a chance because the alarmingly weak run defense kept them on the bench.

Berry is responsible for crafting the roster and handing it over to the coaching staff. For the most part, he has succeeded with the offense. He has failed abysmally with the other side of the ball. He was dealt a bad break when veteran middle linebacker Anthony Walker Jr. went down with a torn quad in week three but has not successfully replaced him. The Browns have won only once since then, losing five of the last six.

He seriously needs to address the defensive tackle deficiencies. Perrion Winfrey is all talk and no bark, a bust in his rookie season. Young veterans Jordan Elliott and Tommy Togiai are barely adequate. When Taven Bryan is your best at the position, you're in trouble.

Monday leftovers

Yes, the Miami Dolphins took the Browns to the shed  Sunday and wailed the daylights out of them. It wasn't so much the loss that bothered me. I kind of expected it.

What concerned me more was the way they lost. It was as though the Browns, most notably the defense, played almost submissively. There was absolutely no pushback with regard to the shellacking they were absorbing.

There was little or no push from the edge of the defensive line. Dolphins tackles took Cleveland's Myles Garrett and Jadeveon Clowney wide when Tua Tagovailoa dropped back to throw and rendered them useless. Only two quarterback hits; neither by Garrett or Clowney. The result was a clean pocket most of the afternoon.

The interior of the Miami offensive line made the interior of the Browns' defensive line look almost as though they were never there. The ease with which they were moved allowed running backs Jeff Wilson Jr. and Raheem Mostert to run through cavernous holes for chunk yardage.

To say the Dolphins toyed with the Browns all afternoon on both sides of the football would be a gross understatement. Dominated might not even be strong enough. This was game nine, for goodness sakes, during a season the Cleveland run defense had reached maligned status and yet regurgitated a game like this.

Head coach/playcaller/wannabe offensive coordinator Kevin Stefanski pronounced himself "really, really disappointed" with the outcome. He could have added at least a couple of more reallys and not be incorrect.

There was no excuse whatsoever for the kind of performance his men delivered Sunday. For the kind of effort they gave, they might as well have spent every day of the bye-week break doing anything other than preparing for the game.

That all falls on Stefanski's shoulders. I didn't hear one "this one's on me" either after the game or in his news conference Monday. At 3-6, he's smart enough to know better than that. He might have to retire that until next season.

He spoke Sunday about what his club didn't accomplish. "We didn't slow down their offense . . . We didn't play complementary football .. . . We lost the turnover margin." Okay. So? Back to the drawing board? Got the answers, I think, Monday

"We just didn't stop the run," he repeated at his news conference. "There's never one simple answer to stopping the run. It takes 11 guys, it takes gap integrity, it takes getting off blocks, those types of things."

All of which the front seven failed at.

"We've got to look at the game plan we gave the guys in order to stop the run and ask ourselves (presumably the coaching staff) if there are things we can do better." At the risk of being repetitious, the Browns are 3-6, Why is this still happening?

"Every coach, myself included, we all need to come up with a better game plan," Stefanski said. "We all need to be better." Ya think?

"I know that locker room," he declared. "I know the leadership we have." Names please. "I know they're disappointed, but we've got to control what we control right now, which is own this one (the latest loss), learn from it, move on and then find a way next week." That word salad is nothing more than coachspeak.

Next week, by the way, is a date in Buffalo with the spitting-mad Bills, who have dropped two in a row after starting the season 6-1. Can you say 3-7?

***

The Cleveland offensive line might have played its worst game of the season. They had all kinds of problems handling the Miami pass rush, Quarterback Jacoby Brissett dropped back 40 times, but had to scramble on five occasions and became the second-leading runner for the day with 40 yards.

They were never able to establish a rhythm that would enable them to open holes for Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt. Tackles Jedrick Wills II and Jack Conklin had trouble with speed rushers like Bradley Chubb and Jaelen Phillips, while guards Joel Bitonio and Hjalte Froholdt have had better days.

Froholdt took over at right guard for Wyatt Teller, who started but lasted just 11 plays before his injured calf muscle, which sidelined him for several weeks, began acting up again. This could be one of those lingering ailments that takes more time to heal completely.

Center Ethan Pocic, who took over when starter Nick Harris was placed on season-ending injured reserve in training camp, was the lone lineman to escape any egregious errors. He has clearly been the biggest surprise on either side of the ball this season.

***

Last time I looked, Amari Cooper was the Browns'  No. 1 receiver. Why then, is he not being treated like one? Sure, he leads the team this season in targets with 69 and yards with 585. That's barely more than seven a game.  Translated: Not nearly enough for one of the NFL's top wide receivers.

The man has three 100-yard games this season. Why is he being starved out of producing more? He has been targeted only 14 times in the last three games, catching 11. He was perfect on three targets for only 32 yards against Miami. He is one of the best route runners in the league and his quarterback has trouble finding him. 

Nevertheless, Cooper is optimistic about what the immediate future holds for the club. "I believe we've got guys in this locker room to turn things around," he said. "Everybody has greatness in them, but greatness is put on display. Some people don't put it on display even though it's in them. This team has to find a way to put it on display. It's in us. We've just got to find a way."

***

Finally . . . It's probably a little early to suggest this, but Jerome Ford might provide the solution to the Browns' kick return problems based on his performance against the Dolphins, The rookie running back brought three kicks back for 95 yards, including a 48-yarder on the game's opening kick that created 

a short field for the offense to score the game's first touchdown, , , , The Browns have scored a touchdown on their first possession of the game four times this season. And lost all four games. . . . If you're keeping score on Stefanski's record as a head coach, he is 22-20 overall after an 11-5 start in 2020. He is 11-15 since then and 4-9 in his last 13.

Painless precision

It was thorough, almost surgical, what the Miami Dolphins did to the Browns Sunday in Miami, showing them how to play a dominating, near-perfect football game.

The 39-17 final in no way indicates how one-sided this one was as the Dolphins excelled -- that's putting it mildly -- on both sides of the ball. The precision with which they operated, particularly when they owned the ball, was marvelous to watch and admire even if you are a Browns fan.

The Browns were outclassed, outhustled, outplayed and outcoached in a game for which they had two weeks to prepare during the bye. So what went wrong? Everything that could . . . did. It was unquestionably the season's worst pounding.

This is how championship football is supposed to be played and the Browns now realize they are nowhere near the stratosphere the Dolphins occupy with a four-game winning streak The big surprise was how well the Miami defense played.  

To further advance the notion games are won and lost in the trenches, the Miami offensive and defensive lines owned the line of scrimmage, beating the Browns off the ball with monotonous  regularity all day long. 

This was supposed to be a classic battle between a team that throws the ball extremely well (Miami) against one that runs the ball extremely well and bleeds the game clock. The Dolphins kept their end of the bargain with Tua Tagovailoa acting as the cunning ringmaster. The other team did not.

It was classic example of one team flat out beating the daylights out of its lesser opponent in every department. The vastly overrated Cleveland defense surrendered nearly 500 yards of offense, including a stunning 195 on the ground. Stunning because the Dolphins averaged 86 yards a game entering this one.

Cue the hue and cry for the head of Cleveland defensive coordinator Joe Woods, whose unit played fairly well the last couple of games. The Dolphins took care of that in a hurry. 

Tagovailoa threw for 285 yards and touchdown throws to fullback Alex Ingold and wide receivers Trent Sherfield and Tyreek Hill. He had a lot of help from an offensive line that kept him clean and provided massive holes for  running backs Raheem Mostert and new arrival Jeff Wilson Jr., who combined to shred the Cleveland defense for 195 yards,

No matter what the Dolphins ran, it worked. Butter, meet hot knife. Tua & Co. scored  points on seven of their first eight possessions. The only time they failed was when they turned the ball over on downs at the Cleveland 14 when a fourth-down gamble failed in the second quarter.

I counted only three negative plays on offense out of 67 snaps from scrimmage for Miami, which mercifully took a knee with two minutes left in regulation or else it night gave been worse. The offense was so good, Dolphins punter Thomas Morstead enjoyed the entire game from the sideline.

You know it's pretty good when the only thing that went wrong for the Dolphins was two extra points missed by kicker Jason Sanders or else the final would have been 41-17, which would have made it look worse in some quarters.

The Dolphins' defense, which recovered nicely after the Browns took a 7-0 lead on the game's first possession, throttled running Nick Chubb before he finally broke loose for a 33-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter. He fumbled for only the sixth time in his career in the opening quarter which the offense converted into the first of two Sanders field goals.

It wasn't as though nothing went right for the Browns in the loss as much it was the Dolphins operating with exquisite precision against a team barely hanging on to the notion there is still hope for the postseason. Not anymore.

The loss was the Browns fifth in the last six games, dropping them into a tie with Pittsburgh at the bottom of the AFC North and all but eliminating them from even thinking about playing football beyond the scheduled 17 regular-season games.

Technically, they still have a chance. Realistically, though, this season is lost with eight games to go and Deshaun Watson waiting in the wings. It's beginning to look as though by the time he gets back in a few weeks, the Browns will be playing just to pad their stats.

What this game showed the Browns, who should be forced to watch this nightmare on tape before it's archived, was just how far they need to improve to join the National Football League elite. After Sunday's embarrassing thumping, it's merely a pipe dream.

Another scorefest

If there's one thing the Browns don't need heading into Sunday's game down in Miami against the Dolphins, it's a red-hot team with a red-hot quarterback. And that's exactly what awaits them.

The Dolphins currently ride the crest of a three-game winning streak with a quarterback putting up stunning numbers with a cadre of receivers quite capable of making any secondary look amateurish, if not downright buffoonish.

And with the problems the Browns' secondary has encountered this season, Sunday's meeting does not bode well for a team that can ill afford to lose in a season that has come down to winning at all costs from here on out.

Wait a minute. This sounds awfully familiar.

If memory serves, the Browns' last game before entering the bye week was another of those win-or-kiss-the-season-goodbye affairs against a red-hot team with a red-hot quarterback and we all know how that turned out. So, too, do the Cincinnati Bengals.

The only difference this time is the Dolphins' best receivers are disgustingly healthy as opposed to the Bengals missing Ja'Marr Chase. Miami quarterback Tua Tagovailoa has the luxury of throwing to Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle, not even arguably the best receiver tandem in the National Football League.

Tagovailoa is having a spectacular season while fighting through concussion issues that sidelined him for two games. He has thrown for nearly 2,000 yards in seven games, winning six of them, and has passed for 945 yards and seven touchdowns in the last three with no picks (he has only three this season).

He has unerring accuracy and absolutely no fear throwing into extremely tight windows because of his deceptively strong arm. The lefty is also crafty and slippery in the pocket, absorbing only eight sacks for a team that throws the ball two-thirds of the time.

The Cleveland run defense, which has been spotty all season, needn't worry in this one. Running backs Raheem Mostert, the since-departed Chase Edmonds, along with newly acquired Jeff Wilson Jr. have  have combined for only 649 yards. This is a throw-first team.

Hill, who joined the Dolphins after six seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs and Patrick Mahomes II, has proved he makes quarterbacks look better than the other way around. The sure-handed speedster already has 76 receptions for 1,104 yards and three touchdowns mostly with Tagovailoa after nine games, stats many players would be thrilled with for an entire season.

Waddle is taking great advantage of playing second fiddle to his new teammate, scoring six times, each celebrated with his now-famous waddle, with 47 grabs for 814 yards. Both specialize in getting open, Hill frequently coming free after motioning away from the football.

In order to at least slow these two down, the Browns must play man defense and make it difficult for them to become available for Tagovailoa.  Zoning them will make life difficult. That would enable Tagovailoa time to locate his receivers and deliver the ball with amazing quickness.

Singling up those receivers slows him down and gives whatever kind of pass rush defensive coordinator Joe Woods calls a chance to be successful. The whole idea is to either flush him out of the pocket or make him throw the ball before wants to. It's all about timing. The more the rush messes with that timing, the less effective he will be.

The good news is the Browns will be stronger on defense for this one. Cornerback Denzel Ward is back after several weeks in concussion protocol, defensive end Myles Garrett is recovering nicely from his automobile accident a month ago and fellow quarterback disturber Jadeveon Clowney's ankle is better.

Rookie Martin Emerson Jr., who filled in nicely during Ward's absence, most likely will move over to slot corner, giving the Cleveland secondary its strongest coverage of the season on the outside.

However, Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah's bad knee will sideline him for a second straight game, once again giving linebacker Sione Takitaki a shot at leading the team in tackles for a third straight week. He had 13 in the Bengals victory and eight in the loss to Baltimore.

On the other side of the ball, Wyatt Teller returns to right guard after missing two games, but David Njoku will miss his second game in a row with a high ankle sprain. That probably means tight ends Harrison Bryant and Pharaoh Brown will be used primarily as blockers.

Head coach Kevin Stefanski lately has heavily featured the ground game with Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt, enhancing their talents with jumbo run packages featuring the tight ends and extra offensive linemen, usually Michael Dunn and James Hudson III.

The whole idea is to keep Tagovailoa tethered to the bench as much as possible, minimizing his time in the huddle. Use the game clock as a weapon on offense so to speak. Worked beautifully against the Bengals and Joe Burrow.

Bottom line: Both teams have few problems scoring, although they do it in different ways, and numerous problems preventing the opposition from scoring, All of which portends a high-scoring game. 

A couple of stats here first: These two teams have met only 20 times over the years, the Dolphins holding an 11-9 edge. Since 1999, however, the Browns are 5-3 against the Dolphins, but only 1-2 in Miami. And they are less than mediocre coming out of the bye week, losing 12 of 21 since '99, 4-8 on the road.

The main differences between these two teams Sunday is one (the Dolphins) is playing consistent football and on a roll, and the other isn't. More importantly, one of is trying to stay alive and the other is very much alive and thriving. Home field and a hot quarterback says the Dolphins will outlast the Browns and just about short-circuit their quest for a miracle comeback. Make it:

Dolphins 34, Browns 28

Time to step up

Kevin Stefanski has been a National Football League head coach for just 43 games with decidedly mixed results. There have been a few more downs than ups midway through his five-year contract.

His ups include an 11-5 record as a rookie head coach, coach-of-the-year honors in 2020 and the first playoff victory since the return in 1999. The pinnacle did not last long and the Browns have trended in the opposite direction. They have won just 11 of the last 25 games, falling back into familiar territory.

Suggestions that a hot seat has been placed under Stefanski are premature, especially after General Manager Andrew Berry basically declaring his head coach is going nowhere, pronouncing himself quite pleased with what he has seen.

Not certain I'm watching the same games as Berry. By my count, there are at least three games this season the Browns could have, should have but did not win. If the head coach gets most of the credit for winning games, he should get equal blame for losing them.

How many times this season have we heard Stefanski after losses throw himself under the nearest  Greyhound? There  is only one correct answer here. If this is considered an unselfish move because it absolves his players of any blame, so be it. 

Once is okay. Twice is not. Falling on swords after games needs to stop. The frustration of losing games that are eminently winnable exploded a few weeks ago in a loss to the Baltimore Ravens when shouts of anger in the locker room were heard following the game.

Stefanski dismissed it as normal behavior. If he truly believed that, he is fooling himself. I think it was just another case of protecting his men. That kind of leadership, however, goes only so far if the losses mount.

The big victory over the Cincinnati Bengals leading into the bye week helped restore some sort of self confidence heading into the second half of the season beginning Sunday in Miami against arguably the best offense in the NFL.

That one will be similar in one important way to the situation prior to the Bengals game. The Browns are barely hanging on to hopes for the postseason even at 3-5. All it takes is one loss to all but torpedo any chance to accomplishing one of their goals. Anything less than a victory against the Dolphins is unacceptable.

Beating the Bengals decisively breathed new life into those hopes. But it will take more than one victory to sustain some sort of momentum to give birth to the notion that the best is yet to come. As with the Bengals game, this is another must-win situation.

That's where Stefanski comes in. He must be near perfect not only as a playcaller for the offense, but as a head coach. He needs to identify and then shut down those moments where he doesn't have to step forth after games and absolve his team of any blame in yet another a loss.

Furthermore, there are times I wonder whether he relies so much on analytics while calling games, he harms his team's chances of winning. I come from the old school that it's better to coach with gut instinct rather than what a bunch of statistical analyses say.

Suffice it to say, the Browns need to be no worse than 5-6 by the time Deshaun Watson returns from suspension to finish out the season. Factor in the huge amount of rust he has accumulated in the nearly two years since he has taken a snap and nothing can be assumed.

As stated earlier here, every game from now on will be like a playoff game where achieving zero defects will be the main goal in determining the Browns' fate in 2022. Time to see what Stefanski is made of with the season squarely on the line every week.

More aggression required

It sure seems as though the Browns' defense, which Rip Van Winkled through the first six games of the 2022 National Football League season, has awakened and seems poised to become the necessary ingredient they need to have a reasonable shot at qualifying for the postseason.

Nothing wrong with the offense, which is humming along at a 25-points-a-game pace, certainly good enough to be better than 3-5 at this point of the season. It's the defense, which regurgitates as many points as the offense scores, that needs to come through and play as well as their offensive brethren.

If not for a baffling inability to play even semi-quality defense in the first six games, the Browns wouldn't be in their current position of having to play catchup the rest of the season to remain relevant. It's a challenge that seems to be in the early stages of a rebirth based on the last two games.

Bottom line: This defense stunned just about everyone last season and played top-five football statistically in the second half to keep post-season hopes alive despite a terrible offense only to futilely fail. It needs to replicate that in the next nine games to rekindle hopes that ebbed substantially after the first six.  

From this point on, every game will have the pressure of a playoff game where one bonehead play can mean the difference between planning for next year and inching one step closer to football in lateJanuary. It will be a slippery slope that requires near-perfect football. You know, the kind they displayed in the Halloween eve victory over Cincinnati and, to a lesser extent, against Baltimore a week earlier.

The key to the defense's performance in both of those games was their approach and attitude. The belligerent nature was welcoming to the point where I wondered what took so long to unleash it. The heretofore soft, passive manner in which they slogged to 2-4 and three-game losing streak was frustrating.

Frustrating not only to the fans, but the players, who reportedly spoke up and wondered when defensive coordinator Joe Woods was going to dial up more man coverage instead of zone, which might have been too complicated to execute and possibly the causal factor for so many embarrassing blown coverages.

It's virtually impossible for a defensive back to blow a coverage singling up a potential receiver unless he slips. Reaction time is so much quicker to make a play in man coverage, as opposed to the time and distance required for a defensive back in zone to make a play.

The Browns have the personnel to play more bump-and-run football with Denzel Ward, who will be back Sunday in Miami after missing the last two games with a concussion, Greg Newsome II and rookie Martin Emerson Jr., who has played well in Ward's absence.

Utilizing man coverage also gives the defensive line a better chance to sack opposing quarterbacks, who generally love throwing against a zone look because it gives their targets more time with less company to find a zone's soft spots.

It was in their 23-20 loss to the Ravens, which easily could have been won by the Browns with way better playcalling by the, ahem, head coach, playcaller and wannabe offensive coordinator Kevin Stefanski, that encouraging signs of improvement surfaced.

The defense allowed just 17 first downs, 254 total yards and only two touchdowns to a Ravens offense that has had its way with the Browns since Lamar Jackson became their quarterback. They sacked him three times and limited him to 94 yards passing.

They were even better against the Bengals. Only 15 first downs, 36 yards rushing, created two turnovers, won time of possession by nearly 14 minutes, just 228 total yards on offense and sacked Joe Burrow five times. They played pissed off on both sides of the football. 

In football, defense is all about aggression. On offense, it's mostly about timing with a little attitude and swagger sprinkled in. The next two games against two of the NFL's best offenses in Miami and Buffalo, both on the road, will provide litmus tests the defense must pass for any conversation about playoff football to continue. 

The talent is there. It needs help. Aggression must be a constant companion from now on.

Bye-week thoughts

Andrew Berry said something the other day during his mid-season state of the team news conference that resonated with me. The Browns' general manager dropped several other little nuggets, but this one stood out because of its importance regarding the remainder of the 2022 season.

"Independent of (suspended quarterback Deshaun Watson's return in week 13), the second half of the year every season is important," he said. "You want to be playing your best football in November, December and January."

It has been said, and proven many times, that teams that catch fire in the final two months of the regular season generally have the best chance of qualifying for the postseason. And with the Browns still technically in the hunt and playing their best football of the season, that little truism enters the picture.

"I think that oftentimes the best teams . . . find out who they are and lean into those strengths," Berry said. "That is really our goal as we enter the second half of the year and hopefully try to play our best football leading into late in the season."

The Browns were one loss to Cincinnati away last Monday night from entering the oblivion stage of the season with a 2-6 record. But the 32-13 drubbing of the Bengals immediately breathed life back into what was close to becoming yet another dismal season.

He said the club's various support staffs will handle the "heavy lifting" during the bye week in order, if needed, to "make more significant or even just minor modifications (so) we can play the best version of the team we have."

The extremely disappointing October -- four straight losses before the Cincinnati victory -- landed the Browns in this need-to-be-almost-perfect-from-here-on-out predicament. It can be argued it could just as easily have been a 3-2 October and 5-4 record with stronger efforts.

Momentum is such a big part of football. And even though the Browns only split their last two games with division rivals Baltimore and Cincinnati, the fact remains they played well on both sides of the football for the first time this season in both games.

That seems to be what Berry and head coach Kevin Stefanski by extension will be looking for when the season resumes a week from Sunday down in Miami against the Dolphins, the first game of a stretch that has them playing four of the next five games on the road.

Taking what has worked in those two games and improving on them. The biggest improvement has been on defense, whose erratic performance in the first six games of the season severely damaged their chances for the playoffs. 

"Fortunately, as we look at Monday night and going into this bye, it provided a picture of the team we can be," said Berry. "We were by no means perfect, but we played our most complete game of the season, We are hopeful that will be a nice springboard going into the second half of the year."

The earlier problems that created this little mess have ostensibly been discovered and corrected. Now all that remains is translating what they've learned the last two games to the playing field and be, in Berry's words, "the team we can be."

We'll know two weeks from Sunday after the Browns -- the new and improved Browns? -- face AFC East toughies Miami and Buffalo on the road. It won't be easy. The Bills and Dolphins are a combined 6-1 at home. 

***

Berry also silenced in no uncertain terms that Stefanski is in any danger of losing his job. "Our belief in Kevin Stefanski is just as strong as the day we hired him," he declared. Interestingly, Berry was hired as GM two weeks after Stefanski was hired as head coach.

It quelled the notion the recent four-game losing streak ignited a hot seat under the third-year coach. "He's smart," the GM said. "He's a servant leader. (Not certain what that means.) He's creative, We know he has the ability to lead our team to wins. . . . We feel the locker room is in good hands. . . . We're looking forward to playing good football in the second half."

That should put to rest, at least for the time being, Stefanski is gonzo if the Browns wind up with a losing record for the second year in a row. The front office wants to see what he can do with a full season of Watson and whatever changes, coaching and otherwise, are made for next season.

***

Second-year wide receiver Anthony Schwartz has played 71 snaps on offense for the Browns this season. That's 12.66% of the team's snaps from scrimmage, down from 26.65% last season. He has touched the football just three times, all in the season-opening victory in Carolina. He gained 20 yards on a couple of end arounds and caught one pass (two targets) for 19 yards. He's played another 18.92% on special teams. That's it.

Schwartz was a third-round draft choice in 2021. The Browns deemed him the 91st best collegiate football player at that level.They drafted him because he was fast. World-class speed. He is a world-class sprinter and has competed internationally. They wanted to stretch the field for quarterback Baker Mayfield.

Third-round choices as a general rule do not struggle. Schwartz is proving more and more he is an exception. His snaps have dwindled since the opener. He was targeted futilely four times since then. He was a healthy scratch in game seven against Baltimore.

Browns receivers coach Chad O'Shea envisions Schwartz a little differently. "I'm still really excited about the future of Anthony," he gushed a couple of days before the Bengals game. "He's somebody we've worked extremely hard to get out there on the field and be consistent."

He also sees a different Schwartz at practice. "I certainly haven't seen anything on the practice field that leads me to believe he has a lack of confidence because he's had a great week of practice," he said. "He's caught the ball well, he's played fast, he knows what to do."

Something goes very wrong for Schwartz in the translation to the playing field. That's where the opposition actually tries to keep receivers from catching the football, something that's foreign to him even when he's open. The numerous drops in his brief NFL career have become commonplace. The guess here is they don't trust him

One more time: Anthony Schwartz is a track star masquerading as a professional football player.

Monday leftovers (Tuesday edition)

It's the day after the night the Browns shocked the world of professional football by systematically dismantling the Cincinnati Bengals, reviving a fading fan base that had all but given up on the 2022 National Football League season.

If nothing else, this wonderfully talented football team that has seriously underachieved finally convinced themselves there is still life in what was slowly turning into a corpse-like state. Losing game after game after game, some by the slimmest of margins, wore them down emotionally.

It finally exploded about 10 days ago in Baltimore after they dropped a very winnable game against the Ravens by committing mistake after mistake, basically beating themselves for the umpteenth time this season. 

Ranting, raving and shouting, engendered by the frustration and abject anger of losing their fourth straight game, was loud enough to be heard by the media and appears to have awakened them from their season-long slumber.

It wasn't so much they defeated a division rival. That's always a plus. Rather it was the way in which they accomplished it. By displaying an aggressiveness on both sides of the football, they took the game to the Bengals instead of sitting back.

Football is a sport that rewards aggression, attacking, establishing authority at the line of scrimmage. Until Monday night, the Browns played relatively passive football, especially the defense. It translated into a 2-5 record, landing them on the brink of planning for the 2023 season.

Something happened between the Ravens loss and the Monday night beatdown that triggered what we all witnessed. Maybe it was the explosive post-game release of pent-up frustrations in Baltimore that eventually reached its boiling point.

After all, the Browns were considered by many on the NFL landscape to be legitimate contenders for the postseason, Deshaun Watson's 11-game suspension notwithstanding. And here they were struggling to win a game. Any game.

It was almost as though a switch was flipped because this game featured the antithesis of the Browns we witnessed the first seven weeks. At least for this one they no longer were their own worst enemy. With few exceptions, everything was crisp. They looked, well, damn good.

No longer -- with one gigantic exception that will be critiqued later -- was playcaller Kevin Stefanski getting in the way of his talented offense. And no longer was the defense, playing its second solid game in a row, a hindrance. 

This team played like it wanted to win. Like nothing was going to deter them. This nonsense needed to end. Unfortunately, the Bengals were in the way. With a mind-set like that, there is no telling what this abundantly talented team can do.

The hard part from here on out for the Browns is sustaining whatever drove them to this unexpected victory. I categorized it in the game story as a didn't-see-that-coming triumph. I could just as easily have labeled it a where-did-that-come-from victory.

They truly hold their fate in their talents. The good news? There's now a pulse where there was virtually none before Monday night.

***

Time to acknowledge the continued  brilliance of the Browns' offensive line, which closes in on elite status as the season unfolds. That includes the quality depth that has helped produce when playcaller Kevin Stefanski trusts it.

There have been occasions -- too many, in fact -- where Stefanski abandons the ground game too quickly when it encounters trouble and places his faith in a journeyman quarterback whose inconsistency gets him, and the offense by extension, in trouble.

Jacoby Brissett was terrific against the Bengals. That is not arguable. It was easily his best game of the season. Therein lies the consistency. He's been hit and miss throughout the first eight games, coming up well short when called upon to makes plays. He is not a playmaker. Never was. He's a bridge to Watson.

Stefanski must learn his offensive line and outstanding running backs have to be trusted and not abandon them when falling behind early. They are the heart and soul of the offense. His recent usage of this unit indicates the light may have gone on.

Right tackle Jack Conklin remains his All-Pro self; left guard Joel Bitonio might be the best at his position in the NFL; center Ethan Pocic has been a pleasant surprise in the middle; left tackle Jedrick Wills Jr. has improved greatly from his disappointing first two seasons; right guard Wyatt Teller, who has missed the last two games with a calf injury, has been his usual steady self; and Hjalte Froholdt, who replaced Teller, has not embarrassed himself. 

But it's Stefanski's use of other offensive linemen in several jumbo packages when short yardage is needed to move the chains that has caught my attention. Michael Dunn,, a guard by trade, has been piling up the snaps in those situations. He logged a season-high 23 snaps (33%) against the Bengals. 

Tackle James Hudson III joined the huddle for nine snaps and guard Drew Forbes checked in for one.The Cleveland offense ran 24 plays with six offensive linemen on the field, nine with seven on the field and one with all the above on the field. When Teller is healthy, Froholdt gets in on the fun, lining up a few times as the upback in the I near the goal line. 

They keep referees busy when they enter the game and declare themselves as eligible receivers, as they must when entering the game with a uniform number of anyone other than a so-called skill player. Smart strategy.

***

It went unnoticed, but Stefanski did not dial up a pass to any of the three tight ends who dressed for the game. Harrison Bryant played a majority of the game as TE1 with starter David Njoku sitting out with a high ankle sprain. Pharaoh Brown played about half the snaps with Miller Forristall logging just one.

Interesting strategy by Stefanski, whose use of multiple tight-end sets is well known in league circles. That he didn't target even one is news. Bryant and Brown were used exclusively for blocking as Stefanski sought to play bully ball, calling twice as many plays on the ground as through the air.

It served Brissett well, making him much more effective with play-action passes that enabled wide receivers Amari Cooper and Donovan Peoples-Jones to sneak behind the Cincinnati secondary and grab numerous chunk-yardage passes.

***

From the department of rip that page out of the playbook and burn it: The normally strait-laced Stefanski tried to get cute on the Browns' second possession of the game. It backfired spectacularly. Here's how it went down:

First and 10 at the Cleveland 44, second play of the drive. Brissett hands off to Nick Chubb skirting left end. Chubb pitches the ball back to Cooper coming the other way. Cooper then pulls up and attempts to throw a pass in the direction of wide receiver Michael Woods II about 25 yards downfield near the right sideline.

Before continuing, you need to know Cooper has never thrown a forward pass at any of the levels he has played. Not with the Oakland Raiders or Dallas Cowboys of the NFL. Not at Alabama, where he was strictly a wideout. And not at Miami (Fla.) Northwestern Senior High School, where his quarterback was Teddy Bridgewater, now with the Miami Dolphins.

And yet here he was stopping, pulling back his right arm and attempting his first ever forward pass. Bengals linebacker Logan Wilson sniffed it out and jostled Cooper as he released the ball, which came fluttering down at the Cincinnati 38 into the waiting arms of safety Vonn Bell, who returned it 10 yards. What the hell was Stefanski thinking?

Fortunately, the defense came to Cooper's rescue and forced a three-and-out. Suffice it to say this play is no longer in the playbook.  

***

Finally . . . After logging two games on a row where the opponent won time of possession, the Browns rebounded  nicely against the Bengals, owning the football for all but 7:25 of the second half. It resulted in three straight time-consuming touchdowns.. . . . Rookie wide receiver David Bell is slowly working his way toward more playing time. He has caught at least one pass in every games since the season opener with nine receptions in 11 targets. Shouldn't be long before he sees more balls thrown his way. . . Myles Garrett was very active with two sacks, sharing one with Taven Bryan, two tackles (one for a loss), a pass defensed, four quarterback hits and three hurries. . . . Rookie kicker Cade York needs to work on his consistency. Had a 53-yard field goal blocked easily in the first half, but connected easily on a 55-yarder on the final play of the half.