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. 

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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.

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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.