Off to a good start

This is all you need to know about the Browns' exhibition season opener Saturday night in Jacksonville. They . . . 

Committed only three penalties (two late in the game) . . . recorded four sacks . . . did not turn the football over . . . created one turnover (an interception) . . . punted only twice (once with mere minutes left in regulation) . . . allowed only one sack . . dropped only two passes . . . and owned the football for 33+ minutes.

It all added up to a ridiculously-easy and most impressive 23-13 victory by a team that, with a few exceptions, was comprised of second, third- and a few fourth-teamers trying to make the final 53-man roster. 

There was not one moment when the Browns were not in charge of this one as they rudely welcomed Jaguars head coach Urban Meyer to the National Football League, albeit in a meaningless game.  

And they just as rudely said hello to quarterback Trevor Lawrence, the Jags' choice with the league's No. 1 college draft pick, sacking him twice and limiting him to six completions on nine throws for just 71 yards in two series.

The backups on defense kept the Jaguars offense on their side of the field for the most part through the better part of three quarters before scoring all their points in the final quarter. By then, the Cleveland defense, with the game firmly under control, had softened their coverage in the secondary.

This outstanding performance is almost certain to make General Manager Andrew Berry's job of molding the final roster that much tougher. Just about everyone who suited up and were healthy enough to play (with the exception of the starters, who rested) contributed.

If there were any negatives, one would be the offense's failure to score touchdowns on three first-half trips into the red zone with Case Keenum, who played the first three series, directing the attack on the first two. Head coach Kevin Stefanski gambled on the third with Kyle Lauletta at the helm the second quarter and failed on fourth down.

The other would be the absence of a ground game, which picked up just 41 yards on 26 carries, the offensive line failing to create any holes for running backs D'Ernest Johnson, John Kelly and Corey Taylor II and fullback Johnny Stanton.

Suffice it to say, that will not be a problem in the regular season with one of the NFL's best offensive lines and a running game that frightens a majority of defensive coordinators around the league. 

Most of the Cleveland yardage was gleaned through the air with Keenum and Lauletta targeting 15 different receivers 44 times, completing 31 for 319 yards, including Lauletta scoring passes to Davion Davis in the second quarter and Ryan Switzer in the final quarter.

The seven-yard toss to Switzer climaxed a dreamlike -- and almost unbelievable -- 20-play drive that consumed 89 yards and took a remarkable 10:28 off the game clock. Along the way, Lauletta converted five third downs and a fourth down.

With the run game controlled by the Jaguars, whoever called the plays on offense -- presumably offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt --  was not shy about using his backs in the passing game. They were targeted 18 times with 14 completions for 152 of the 319 passing yards.

The defense, meanwhile, looked much quicker than last season's sad bunch with rookie Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah (JOK) in the starring role. The Browns' second-round draft choice seemed to be everywhere the ball was. 

He was like a heat missile, collecting eight tackles (all but one solo), a sack, a quarterback hit and three tackles for loss. Once he got his hands on the opposition, the play ended. It was as though he was omnipresent.

Other stickouts on defense included linebacker Elijah Lee, who had six tackles (four solo) and was a general fecal disturber; rookie safety Richard LeCounte III, who had the lone interception and a sack; safety Javonte Moffatt with four tackles and cornerback Kiondre Thomas, who played enough to register five tackles despite being buried on the team's depth chart.

If Saturday night's performance by this defense is any indication, it is going to be fun this season to watch coordinator Joe Woods, once the regulars return, ultimately incorporate JOK's seemingly extraordinary powers of winding up in the vicinity of the football become a staple on that side of the ball. 

Resting the starters

It didn't take much to upset the normal routine National Football League coaches routinely employed during the exhibition season. All it took was subtracting one game and adding it to the regular season.

With the regular four-game exhibition format, the initial game saw starters play a series or two and then sit. Game two saw the starters pushed to maybe three or four series. Game three, the so-called dress rehearsal for the regular season, called for the starters to play at least a series or two into the third quarter.

Game four, they sat while the coaching staff and front office shaped the bottom of the roster based mostly on what they witnessed in that game.

All that rhythm to set the 53-man roster is now gone. Unless they have a roster that needs a lot of massaging, teams are sitting their starters in game one with an obvious nod toward determining how the bottom of the roster will look. Time is of the essence.

So when the Browns open the National Football League exhibition season Saturday night down in Jacksonville, a vast majority of those who will play a prominent role in the club's fortunes this season will be spectators.

Head coach Kevin Stefanski has already said most of the starters on both sides of the football will sit this one out. In other words, shaping the back end of the roster is being moved up to game one. And don't be surprised if the starters sit out just about all of game two with game three acting as the dress rehearsal.

All the rookies -- there are 13 on the official roster -- will see action if healthy, as will 10 first-year players who saw little or no action last season. Coaches need to see rookies and first-year players who didn't get much of chance to display their wares in 2020 when the exhibition season was cancelled due to the pandemic. 

The Cleveland offense lost no one in the offseason and figures to be every bit as explosive as it was last season. That means backup quarterback Case Keenum, who has looked good in training camp, will open against the Jaguars before giving way to Kyle Lauletta, who will probably wind up on the practice squad.

Fans will see backup running backs (D'Ernest Johnson, Demetric Felton, John Kelly and Corey Taylor), a new offensive line (tackles James Hudson III, Alex Taylor, Greg Senat and Chris Hubbard, guards Michael Dunn, Drew Forbes and Blake Hance and center Nick Harris), and a new set of receivers (J'Marcus Bradley, Ryan Switzer, Alexander Hollins, Davion Davis and JoJo Natson).

Same with the defense even though there will be as many as nine new starters when the season commences. Fans undoubtedly will zero in on rookies Greg Newsome II at cornerback and Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah at linebacker, as well as second-year corner Greedy Williams, who missed all of last season.

Porter Gustin, Cameron Malveaux, Curtis Weaver and Joe Jackson will try to to imitate Myles Garrett and Jadeveon Clowney in the pass rush, while rookie Tommy Togiai and pro sophomore Jordan Elliott get help from Sheldon Day and Damion Square at tackle.

Stefanski and his staff will probably be mixing and matching all evening. Barring any misfortune along the way, he'll come away knowing the 2021 Browns will be much stronger -- and deeper -- than last season.

Quality depth exists in a number of phases of the game, particularly in the secondary and at linebacker on defense. On offense, the wide receivers room is as deep and talented as it has been in years. Ditto the running backs room. But the starting offensive line better bank all 17 games.

One thing is certain: It's good to have the NFL back on the sports docket even though the next three weeks are relatively meaningless.

Rewarding Mayfield

The hot topic surrounding the immediate future of the Browns has centered lately on when owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam will give a nod of approval to making Baker Mayfield an extremely filthy-rich quarterback.

They have already approved exercising Mayfield's fifth-year option. All that remains is negotiating the length of an extension and the money involved. They seem to be slow-playing the situation, though, centering on other members on the roster first.

Unless negotiations are being held in secret, this one figures to play out for a while, perhaps lingering  well after the regular season commences on Sept. 12.

Mayfield is playing his part nicely in this little scenario, declaring he is "not doing the negotiating, so quite frankly, I don't give a damn," he Rhett Butlered. Didn't know he was a Gone With the Wind fan. "I'm worried about winning. The rest will take care of itself."

He uttered those words the other day after the Buffalo Bills announced Josh Allen, their quarterback, was rewarded with six-year contract extension worth $258 million, of which $150 million is guaranteed. That's almost $10 million more guaranteed money Kansas City's Patrick Mahomes received in his 10-year, $450 (some say $503) million deal. 

The "rest" Mayfield spoke of was clearly a signal to the Haslams that opening the vault would be a wise move, whether now or in the future. If Allen, who was taken six picks after the Browns snagged Mayfield with the overall No. 1 pick in 2018, is so richly rewarded, no reason to think Mayfield will get short shrift.

Insane? Of course. The dough being thrown around is crazy.

Wouldn't be surprised if the Haslams sent Bills owners Terry and Kim Pegula a thank-you note, dripping with sarcasm, for putting a huge dent in their budget for the next half decade. The Pegulas have set the standard and probably angered numerous owners in doing so.

Allen is a nice quarterback with a strong arm and some success in the National Football League. The Pegulas are clearly gambling he can do in Buffalo what Jim Kelley did more than a generation ago when he led the Bills to four straight Super Bowls (and lost them all).

But he is no Mahomes, who has led the Chefs to the playoffs three straight seasons with a Super Bowl victory and loss on his resumé. One can understand why the Hunt family dipped into their vast resources with him. 

Allen's signing and the pending signing of Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson, who has turned  that franchise into one of the most dangerous in the NFL, has turned this into a race to see who is No, 2 after Mahomes.

Is Allen better than Mayfield? Jackson? Answer Left deliberately unanswered. That remains to be seen. All three are different. Allen is the gunslinger. Jackson is a running back playing quarterback. And Mayfield might be the best game manager of the trio. One is not that much better or worse than the other.

The ultimate winner, Mahomes notwithstanding, should be Mayfield if the Haslams play their cards right. All they need to do is wait until Jackson signs and then ink Mayfield for something like $100,000-$250,000 more than Allen or Jackson to make him No. 2 in this testosterone contest. 

It's hard to imagine someone eclipsing Mahomes' mega-deal because none of the candidates here are better than him or even as good as him. In fact, they are not worth the money with which they are being lavished. Unfortunately, that's life in the NFL these days. 

The Haslams have annually not come even close to exceeding salary caps because their rosters were never good enough to warrant paying excessively. For years, they almost always led the NFL in salary-cap space. Not anymore.

Now that the Browns have become good -- no, make that great -- and forced their owners to face a multitude of thorny contract negotiations with quality talent, the Haslams appear to be on the verge of moving into the NFL's elite neighborhood after all those years of misery.

They have come too far to mess this up. They will pay their franchise quarterback handsomely.

TC thoughts

In no particular order . . . 

I love training camp. All thoughts are positive. Nothing wrong with that. That's not why I love it. I view it differently.

Fans and some members of the media become delusional as they watch (or cover) what amounts to an intramural exercise as the 2021 National Football League season approaches. 

Jadeveon Clowney for example, is reportedly happy. The defensive end is also relatively healthy. Perhaps that's why he's happy. Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski labeled him "a fun teammate."

He is also beating up offensive right tackle Jack Conklin, an All-Pro with nothing to prove, during drills. Bulletin: It's early folks. It 's being treated as a precursor to what we'll see during the regular season. Uh. no.

Before camp is over, Conklin will be winning a majority of their skirmishes as he gets ready to battle defensive ends far superior to Clowney. A wee bit too early to get excited. 

If he stays healthy for the 17-game grind, though, the dynamic changes. Then factor in he has missed 11 games and recorded just three sacks last two seasons due  to injuries and you begin to wonder whether 17 games is being too optimistic. . . . 

On the other hand, Donovan Peoples-Jones has become the offensive rage so far. The big wide receiver has caught just about everything thrown his way. A quick peak at what he did in his rookie season indicates that's no surprise. 

The sixth-round draft choice bloomed unexpectedly after Odell Beckham Jr. went down for the season in game seven last season. Baker Mayfield targeted him only 20 times, but connected on 14 for 304 yards, two touchdowns and a 21.7-yard average. 

And get this. Ten of his receptions went for first downs. He dropped only one pass. It sure looks as though he has a tight grip on the No. 3 receiver role.  Two more things: He's a pretty good blocker and he's also working fulltime with return teams. . . . 

Speaking of wide receivers, rookie Anthony Schwartz has yet to display his wares. Considering he has hamstring problems, it's difficult to determine just when he'll be able to participate in drills. Hamstrings often take a long time to heal. And you don't want to come back too early.

Schwartz, arguably the fastest player in the NFL, is also a world-class track star. Balky hammies have bedeviled him since his high school days in Florida. It's going to be hard to determine just when he'll be able to practice. There is no guarantee he won't reinjure himself when he returns. . . . 

So when evaluating players based on their performances in training camp, bear in mind they are playing against each other. It's nice to get excited about a great pay or disappointed in a dumb-as-dirt play. Never expect too much based on training camp or exhibition games..

That will become much more apparent when the curtain on the 2021 regular season lifts in Kansas City on Sept. 12. That's when the speed and quickness of the game ramp up exponentially. It will be an entirely different game.

A good sign

Training camp is the scariest part of the season for professional football teams. The glow that emerges with all 32 teams on day one of camp can be extinguished just like that.

All it takes is one major injury to a key player and poof, Plan B suddenly comes into focus. Monday in Berea arose such a situation that has what appears to be on the surface, a good ending, eliciting a huge sign of relief among the denizens of Browns Nation.

Middle linebacker Anthony Walker walked -- reportedly limped -- off the field after sustaining a knee injury. Day three of camp and here we go again. Hasn't this franchise had enough devilishly bad news early in camp over the last two decades? 

The club declined to talk about it other than to say Walker, who is counted on to be one of the major pieces -- the defensive signal-caller -- of a total revamp on that side of the football, will undergo an MRI to determine the extent of the injury. 

My most immediate thought, of course, given the history of such an occurrence with this club, Walker is gone for the season. That's my pessimistic gene out of control. And why not? Wouldn't be the first time it was correct.

So when word filtered down Tuesday that the MRI revealed no damage and that Walker would miss anywhere from one to two weeks, my initial reaction was that the good fortune this team experienced last season was a precursor to more of the same this season.

It is a sign that it's going to be different in 2021. The bad news that annually clobbered this franchise early in the season since its rebirth in 1999 has seemingly taken a turn for the better. How refreshing.

After resting the dinged knee, Walker is expected to be as good as new, or as good as any player should feel after playing a game where collisions are not only inevitable, but the norm. He is expected to be ready for the regular-season opener on Sept. 12 in Kansas City.

The argument can be made that the middle linebacker, especially someone as savvy as Walker, is the most important player on that unit. He is the connector between the plug uglies in front him and the secondary behind him. Losing him for the season would have been a significant blow. 

Look for defensive coordinator Joe Woods to lean heavily on his young veteran to make certain the execution of the defense runs smoothly and correctly. No blown assignments, which last season occurred way too often, forcing the offense to simply outscore the opposition.

That won't be the case this season. And Walker will be one of the major reasons why.

Crystal ball time

Now that training camp 2021 is underway for the Browns, time to haul out the time machine and see what the 53-man roster will look like when the final trim arrives on the final day of next month.

This will not be the roster, however, when the club opens the regular season 12 days later in Kansas City against the Chiefs. It will still be somewhat malleable, mostly at the bottom of the roster, until then and some of the names that appear here will disappear.

It will not be difficult this season to be correct on a majority of the choices, especially with an offense that returns most of last season's major contributors. The defense will be harder, primarily because General Manager Andrew Berry basically overhauled it.

Let's start with an easy one.

                    OFFENSE

Quarterbacks (3) -- Baker Mayfield, Case Keenum, Kyle Lauletta

Starter: Mayfield. Off the bench: Keenum. Practice squad: Lauletta

Thoughts -- Obviously a no-brainer. Barring an injury, which has never shelved Mayfield in his National Football League career, big things are expected of him.

Running backs (6) -- Nick Chubb, Kareem Hunt, D'Ernest Johnson, Demetric Felton, John Kelly, Tre Harbison

Starters: Chubb, Hunt. Off the bench: Johnson, Felton. See ya: Kelly, Harbison

Thoughts -- If Chubb and Hunt play every game (Chubb missed four last season), these two are more than capable of putting up 3,000 total yards from scrimmage and at least 25 touchdowns. They give defensive coordinators nightmares. Johnson can start for a few other teams. Felton is versatile as a returner and combo running back/wide receiver.. 

Fullbacks (2) -- Andy Janovich, Johnny Stanton

Starter: Janovich. Practice squad: Stanton 

Thoughts -- Janovich won't see many snaps, but is highly efficient when given the opportunity. Top notch blocker.

Wide receivers (10) -- Jarvis Landry, Odell Beckham Jr., Rashard Higgins, KhaDarel Hodge, Donovan Peoples-Jones, Anthony Schwartz, J'Marcus Bradley, JoJo Natson, Ryan Switzer, Alexander Hollins

Starters: Landry, Beckham. Off the bench: Higgins, Hodge, Peoples-Jones, Schwartz. Practice squad: Switzer, Bradley. See ya: Natson, Hollins

Thoughts -- It will be interesting to see if head coach/playcaller Kevin Stefanski tries again to force the ball to Beckham, who has caught just 55% of the passes directed at him by Mayfield in a season and a half. Landry is Captain Reliable; Higgins, Peoples-Jones and Hodge provide strong quality depth; and Schwartz, the track star, will be kept because he was a high draft choice.

Tight ends (6)  -- Austin Hooper, Harrison Bryant, David Njoku, Stephen Carlson, Jordan Franks, Connor Davis

Starters: Hooper, Bryant. Off the bench: Njoku. Practice squad: Carlson. See ya: Franks, Davis

Thoughts -- Same as last season with Bryant possibly catching more passes than Hooper after a poor second half last season. This will be Njoku's final season with Cleveland.

Centers (3) -- JC Tretter, Nick Harris, Blake Hance

Starter: Tretter. Off the bench: Harris, Hance

Thoughts -- Tretter needs to stay healthy to keep the smallish Harris tethered to the bench. Hance, who stepped into the breach due to injuries late last season and was impressive, is versatile enough to play anywhere on the offensive line.

Guards (7) -- Joel Bitonio, Wyatt Teller, Drew Forbes, Michael Dunn, Colby Gossett, Cordel Iwuagwu, Javon Patterson

Starters: Bitonio, Teller. Off the bench: Dunn. Practice squad: Forbes. See ya: Gossett, Iwuagwu, Patterson

Thoughts -- Arguably the best guard tandem in the NFL. Dunn provides adequate depth. Forbes, who opted out of last season during the pandemic, is there in case of injury.

Tackles 6) -- Jack Conklin, Jedrick Wills Jr., Chris Hubbard, Alex Taylor, Greg Senat, James Hudson III

Starters: Conklin, Wills. Off the bench: Hubbard, Hudson. Practice squad: Taylor, Senat

Thoughts -- Looking for a strong second season from Wills, especially in the run game. Conklin is one of the best offensive tackles in the game. Average depth

                    DEFENSE

Ends (7) -- Myles Garrett, Jadeveon Clowney, Takkarist McKinley, Joe Jackson, Cameron Malveaux, Porter Gustin, Romeo McKnight

Starters: Garrett, Clowney. Off the bench: McKinley, Jackson. Practice squad: Gustin, Malveaux.. See ya: McKnight

Thoughts -- Count me a huge skeptic with regard to the pass rush. It will be the peerless Garrett and more than a few cross your fingers. Not counting on Clowney and McKinley to be major contributors. The Browns will miss Olivier Vernon.

Tackles (8) -- Andrew Billings, Malik Jackson, Jordan Elliott, Sheldon Day, Marvin Wilson, Tommy Togiai, Malik McDowell, Damion Square

Starters: Billings, Jackson. Off the bench: Elliott, Togiai. Practice squad: Wilson, See ya: McDowell, Square, Day

Thoughts -- Oh boy. There is trouble at this position. Only one of the candidates (Elliott) played for the Browns last season and it was sparingly. Expecting Togiai to surprise. Losing Sheldon Richardson in free agency was an unwise move.

Linebackers (9) -- Anthony Walker, Mack Wilson, Jacob Phillips, Sione Takitaki, Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, Malcolm Smith, Curtis Weaver, Tony Fields II, Elijah Lee

Starters: Walker, Owusu-Koramoah. Off the bench: Phillips, Takitaki, Wilson. Practice squad: Fields, Weaver, Lee. See ya: Smith

Thoughts -- Walker stabilizes the middle, while JOK plays all over the field as the Swiss Army watch in coordinator Joe Woods' multi-look defense. Phillips, Takitaki and Wilson will see plenty of snaps. They're going to try and sneak Weaver, a terrific standup rusher, onto the practice squad.

Cornerbacks (10) -- Denzel Ward, Greedy Williams, Greg Newsome II, Troy Hill, M. J. Stewart Jr., Robert Jackson, Brian Allen, A. J. Green, Emmanuel Rugamba, Thomas Kiondre

Starters: Ward, Newsome, Hill. Off the bench: Williams, Stewart, Jackson. Practice squad: Green, Allen. See ya: Rugamba, Kiondre

Thoughts -- It would be nice if Ward and Newsome play an entire season without missing games due to injury. Ditto for Williams, who missed several games as a rookie and the entire 2020 season. Hill is one of the best nickel corners in the NFL. Jackson barely beats Green and Allen for the last spot.

Safeties (8) -- John Johnson III, Ronnie Harrison Jr., Grant Delpit, Sheldrick Redwine, Richard LeCounte III, Montrel Meander, Elijah Benton, Javonte Moffatt

Starters: Johnson, Harrison, Delpit. Off the bench: LeCounte, Redwine. See ya: Benton, Moffatt, Meander

Thoughts -- Woods most likely will use Johnson, Harrison and Delpit in a three-safety look in his 4-2-5 base. Each brings his own unique set of talents to the position. Delpit, who missed all of 2020, is the most versatile of this trio and very well be used like JOK.

                    SPECIALISTS

Placekicker (2) -- Cody Parkey, Chase McLaughlin. Starter: McLaughlin. See ya: Parkey

Punter -- Jamie Gillan. 

Long snapper -- Charley Hughlett

Thoughts -- McLaughlin wins the job because he has a stronger leg, But don't get too excited about him. The Browns will continue to scour the waiver wire in an attempt to strengthen the position. Gillan, coming off an average second season, had no competition in camp. And Hughlett is one of the best long snappers in the league.

Here's to health

We're mere days away from the beginning of Browns training camp for the most eagerly awaited season in more than a generation.

A starving fan base with tentacles that reach far and wide around the planet is more than ready to deal with all the bumps along the way to an anticipated second straight post-season appearance in an era that promises to be just as exciting as when Bernie Kosar Jr. commanded the huddle 35 years ago.

A few questions still linger, though, as the 90-man squad begins with closed practices Wednesday and Thursday before opening it up to the public. Most fall into the "what if" category and deal with injuries.

Like, for example, what if Baker Mayfield for the first time in his National Football League career suffers an injury? He has come close on occasion and it's only a matter of time before he misses a game for the first time in his pro career.

Questions like this have to be taken into consideration. They cannot be ignored or taken for granted. Football is not a contact game. It's a collision game. Quarterbacks, unless they are blessed, eventually pay a price to throw the prolate spheroid. Mayfield is due.

Then there's cornerback Denzel Ward, who has missed 11 games in his three-year career. Will he -- can he -- play a full season for the first time? Same with defensive end Jadeveon Clowney, who has proved somewhat brittle and was absent for a lot of games the last couple of seasons with two different teams.

Guard Wyatt Teller missed five games last season. And running back Nick Chubb needed five weeks to heel a knee injury. To be determined: Will cornerback Greedy Williams and rookie safety Grant Delpit, who both missed the entire 2020 season, be heathy enough to become major contributors to the secondary?

Luck is a key factor in the sustenance of a football team, especially one like the very talented Browns. Avoid injured reserve or the dreaded game-to-game designation, where the length of an injury seems to drag out seemingly forever, and you're golden.

Everything being equal, the team that stays healthy generally has a better shot at playing football in February than others less fortunate. The Kansas City Chiefs were one of the few outliers last season in this regard. They were beaten up, especially on offense, by the time they got to the Super Bowl and suffered the consequences.

The most important question with the Browns is whether they have the quality depth to overcome a rash of injuries, certain to be even higher this season after the league added a 17th regular-season game to the schedule.

That, as much as anything, should be an important consideration, particularly along the offensive and defensive lines. as General Manager Andrew Berry and head coach Kevin Stefanski whittle the roster to the final 53.

It's a situation that bears watching since the culture of the club changed so dramatically and completely last season and winning it all, for the first time in a generation, is legitimately the primary goal. Training camp competition will be quite a bit different and much more interesting this season.

A shot of realism

With all the feel-good talk surrounding the Browns this season, it is reasonable to assume there's got to be some pushback somewhere along the way. At the same time, there's also got to be a few doses of realism.

With the beginning of training camp about a week away, Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield gently slammed the brakes on what to look forward to this season with a dose or two of that realism the other day at his youth football clinic in an eastern Cleveland suburb.

"We have a lot of great players (on offense)," he said, "and this isn't taking anything away from them because I love these guys. But it doesn't matter who we have. If we don't have chemistry and we don't do our jobs, none of it matters.

"I'd say not taking anything for granted when it comes to chemistry. . . . The most important part is leaving nothing left unsaid. To me, that's where we are right now." In other words, emphasize communication.

Spot on. All that talent means nothing if even just one member of that unit strays and and plays differently. That's all it would take for an offense, whose success depends heavily on rhythm, timing and cohesion, to malfunction.

How often have we heard coaches after a loss moan that one little mistake here and another little mistake there contributed to the loss? Missed assignments are commonplace in football. 

Keeping them at a minimum separates the average teams from the good teams, the good teams from the great teams and the great teams from the championship teams.

Many, many years ago, Joan Ryan, the wife of Browns quarterback Frank Ryan, wrote a weekly in-season column for my old employer, The Plain Dealer. That was back when the Browns were one of the strongest franchises in the National Football League.

On occasion, she wrote about "zero defects," labeling them the great difference between winning and losing. The team that committed the fewest errors generally emerged victorious. Back then, fans did not view games as analytically as they do now.

Mayfield gets it. And by it, I mean he has a firm grasp on all levels as to what it will take to make certain another gigantic letdown, such as what happened during the awful 2019 campaign, is not repeated. 

He knows what it takes to make the coming season at least as successful as 2020's breakout season, if not more-so. He has declared publicly and confidently how he intends to run the huddle this season. Count on his mates on that side of the football paying rapt attention at all times 

Otherwise, as he said, "If . . . we don't have chemistry and don't do our jobs, none of it matters." 

Music to Kevin Stefanski's ears.

Random questions

Many questions still on the table with regard to the 2021 Browns will have to go unanswered until the money games commence Sept. 12 in Kansas City. Gonna take a stab here, anyway.

In no particular order . . . 

Like how improved will the almost totally revamped defense be? And can Baker Mayfield sustain his outstanding second-half performance last season? 

How much of a difference will Jadeveon Clowney and Takkarist McKinley make in the pass rush? And can Denzel Ward stay healthy enough to play a full season? Ditto for Wyatt Teller and No. 1 draft pick Greg Newsome II.

Who will be the No. 3 wide receiver? And how long will it take rookie Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah to fit in and become the key to the defense?

How healthy, really, are Greedy Williams and Grant Delpit? How important is it that JC Tretter plays in every game?

Who will be the club's placekicker? And why is no one concerned with Jamie Gillan's dropoff last season?

At what point do the rumors Odell Beckham Jr. will be traded die down? And will Jedrick Wills Jr. finally learn how to run block?

How much will the defense miss Sheldon Richardson and Olivier Vernon? And what are the odds Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt compile more than 2,700 total yards from scrimmage and score 30 touchdowns? 

Okay, that's enough for now. Now the not-asked-for answers.

There is no question the defense will be better this season, if for no other reason it can't be any worse than last season's abomination. Not with solid newcomers like John Johnson III, Troy Hill, Anthony Walker, Andrew Billings, Malik Jackson and rookies Newsome and JOK.

There is no reason Mayfield can't play as well as he did in the second half last season, if not better. For the first time since joining the Browns,  he'll play for the same head coach and coordinator for the second straight season.

As for Clowney and McKinley, cross your fingers and hope the somewhat brittle and very inconsistent Clowney can play all 17 games and McKinley finally wakes up and figures out how to be a quarterback disturber. By the way, add Clowney to that small group who have problems avoiding injuries. Ward and Teller are extremely valuable assets, but not when in street clothes on game day.

As for the No. 3 wide receiver -- look for head coach Kevin Stefanski to employ three wides more often this season -- it should be Rashard Higgins over KhaDarel Hodge and Donovan Peoples-Jones, who was terrific filling in when Beckham went down in game seven. Look for Mayfield to lobby for him if it's close.

Not to be concerned about JOK. He'll fit in just fine. His athleticism and feel for the game will more than nullify, or at least neutralize, any rookie mistakes along the way.

Hard to say just how ready Williams and Delpit are after sitting out the entire 2020 season with major injuries. We'll find out soon enough in about 10 days. 

Meanwhile, it is imperative for Tretter to take real good care of himself. He has started every game (65) since joining the club in 2017. He is the linchpin of that unit. They cannot afford to lose him. If he goes down, smallish Nick Harris will replace him and that's a huge problem. The barely 6-0 Harris was plugged in for two games last season as a rookie when Teller went down and looked awful.

Cody Parkey was all right last season in his second stint with the Browns, but he doesn't  have the big leg this club needs. He never attempted a 50-yard field goal. He'll compete in camp with Chase McLaughlin, who has become an NFL nomad at the tender age of 25. He is not the answer. 

Gillan, on the other hand, will compete with himself because the club obviously was satisfied with his performance last season despite significant drops in a few areas. He needs to help the defense with field position this season by dropping more punts inside the 20.

With the glut of wide receivers on the roster, it is only natural Beckham will be the subject of trade rumors. They won't die down despite denials by the front office. I'm not an oddsmaker, but I'll take a stab at 50-50 he'll still be with the club for the season opener. 

As for Wills, if he works as hard this season at improving in the run game as he did last season with pass protection, sure, he'll be fine with that aspect of the offense and become the well-rounded tackle the club had expected.

Damn right the Browns will miss Richardson and Vernon. Their absence causes last season's strongest unit on that side of the football to become the weakest this season. Be prepared for terrible run defense.

Odds-making again here with Chubb and Hunt. Providing they stay healthy, 2,700 yards might be a bit conservative, which would make them odds-on favorites to reach that figure. Easily. Last season, they combined for 2,362 yards from scrimmage and 23 touchdowns. And Chubb missed four games with an MCL injury. 

Getting closer

So why does it seem as though time is passing, at least for Browns fans, ever so slowly? It's as if it's slogging along at the pace of a tortoise.

It's been only six months since the Browns were knocked out of the National Football League playoffs by the Kansa City Chiefs. Why does it feel longer?

The correct answer is fans are so enthralled with and excited about their team and the approaching season, it can't get started soon enough. That's the effect this franchise now has on its fan base after finally shedding its role as the league's stepchild.

Two decades of embarrassingly miserable football are now a distant memory. Only eleven days remain until the anxiously-anticipated 2021 season begins in earnest with the opening of training camp in Berea. For those who can't wait, it'll probably seem like 11 weeks.

The anticipation is such now that Web sites all over the NFL landscape have to tap their creative juices with the Browns on vacation, coming up with ridiculous storylines more than a few readers don't care about. They're scrambling to maintain the club's relevance as the calendar seemingly creeps along.

They figure there's no such thing as too much Browns, especially after opening eyes with their performance last season. Manufacture a Browns-related story and it will generate hits. 

In years past, that was not the case at this time of the year. The Indians and Cavaliers provided the sports escape. The hope for the Browns was always there early, but faded quickly after reality set in. For 20 excruciatingly long years.

Well, the reality now is the Browns have quickly and startlingly approached NFL elite status to the point where even the most severe critics of the club have glommed on to the fact this is a pretty good football team.

Training camp is no longer a ho-hum-nothing-to-get-excited-about-here situation. Not with this team. Browns Nation has waited a generation for this and can't wait to reap the rewards. They enjoyed the sneak preview last season and long for more. 

The Browns -- and their fans -- realize getting where they are now was difficult and well-earned. But not as difficult as it will be maintaining that status. No longer will they be the soft spot on the schedule. And that provides head coach Kevin Stefanski with his greatest challenge.

Tick . . . tock . . . tick . . . tock . . .