Must win? You bet

It is not too early to suggest Sunday's Browns-Tennessee Titans game represents a fork in the road for the Browns. Yes, it's just game three, but it has become a must-win game. Going down the wrong road makes it so.

The Browns have already lost a game they should have won. They should be 2-0 entering this one. Another loss drops them to 1-2 with the unbeaten Baltimore Ravens arriving a week from Sunday. They do not want to be 1-2 at that point, which makes this . . . yep, a must-win situation.

Of course that's thinking negatively, but there are too many warning signs with this offense, which has become extremely offensive in the first two games. Having the terrific defense rescue their brethren on the other side of the ball on a weekly basis is not the way to play winning football.

Besides, this is a trap game. By that I mean a lot of fans probably think last Monday's loss in Pittsburgh was an aberration, totally unexpected after the huge season-opening victory over the Cincinnati Bengals. And the Titans have slipped a little, joining the Browns last season at 7-10.

The Browns are the definitely the better team on paper. The Titans peaked a couple of years ago and are treading water. All the more reason to casually put this one in the win column. One important factor screams "whoa."

Deshaun Watson is playing like a $230 million mistake. Wait. Isn't that a little harsh? Not the way he's quarterbacking this so-called exciting offense. Where's the innovation? Where's the creativity, the imagination? Even more important, where's the execution?

And to think there are still three years and 15 more games remaining on Watson's fully-guaranteed contract. Yikes! Besides, who can the Browns pawn this guy off on if this expensive gamble totally falls apart?

No, I'm not writing him off. Still too early. Right now with Nick Chubb gone for the season, how Watson performs the rest of the way will determine how close the Browns come to playing football in January. It's all on him. Not certain he has the stones to handle all that pressure.

The jury is still out on whether he is capable of elevating his game to the point where he makes plays when making plays is required. The question is why he hasn't thus far. Why isn't he more like the Pro Bowl quarterback a few years ago in Houston? The answer is wafting out there somewhere.

Maybe it's me, but there seems to be a disconnect between Watson and head coach Kevin Stefanski on game days. We have been led to believe the two put their heads together during the offseason with Stefanski bending more than usual toward designing plays that catered favorably to Watson's talents. Still waiting.

When the (sarcasm alert) esteemed (end sarcasm alert) playcaller for the Browns chose to open the Steelers game with a little flare pass to a second-string tight end (!) in tight coverage, you have to wonder what he was thinking. That it was mishandled by that second-string tight end (!) and wound up in the Cleveland end zone is moot. Puzzling call.

Now factor in Watson and his receivers by and large having trouble establishing a symbiotic relationship with, of course, the exception of Amari Cooper. Rhythm and timing with all the others are way off. They shouldn't be at this stage.

That brings us to Sunday's game. The best way to attack the Titans, who have split their first two games, is through the air. Their secondary has surrendered 563 yards (282 yards per) against Derek Carr of New Orleans and Justin Herbert of the Los Angeles Chargers.

Two petty good quarterbacks. Watson several years ago lived in the same talent neighborhood as Carr and Herbert. This a perfect opportunity for Stefanski to attack the Tennessee secondary to show total confidence his shaky quarterback can do the job.  

Time to find out whether Watson is still capable of having a big game through the air against the vulnerable Titans secondary. Time to bring Elijah Moore, Donovan Peoples-Jones, David Njoku and rookie Cedric Tillman into the game plan 

Now flip that coin and you notice the Titans are just as stingy on the ground as the Browns with a defensive front that also enjoys harassing opposing quarterbacks. Ball security, at which Watson is abysmally failing this season, needs massive correcting. Six turnovers in two games is unforgivable.

The Browns need Watson to turn in a performance that inspires confidence in the huddle, at the same time easing fans' concerns this could turn into yet another frustratingly-long season. Right now, there is no evidence to firmly believe that is possible.

This one could very well wind up in a dull low-scoring field-goal battle between veteran journeymen Nick Folk of the Titans and Dustin Hopkins with neither team reaching the red zone.

The Cleveland defense continues to pile up impressive stats, mainly because the Titans no longer are a threat on offense. Neither, for that matter, is the Cleveland offense.

So until Watson stops hurting his team more than helping it, picking the Browns to win remains an  exercise is futility. It will be another slog between the 20s with the Browns, heading down the wrong road, continuing to underachieve on offense and fans screaming for Stefanski to relinquish playcalling duties to offensive-coordinator-in name-only Alex Van Pelt. Make it:

Folk 15, Hopkins 12