Month: September 2022

Steelers Vs. Browns, The Good, The Bad & The Ugly.

It’s victory Friday and I’m here for it. No one should’ve doubted it because head coach Kevin Stefanski is 12-3 after a loss and the three loses were last year. I enjoyed the broadcast, but which Browns fan pissed in Al Michael’s cereal when he was a kid? Nothing positive to say about the Browns and when something was said, he just laughed under his breath. Let’s get to it.

The Good. Can we stop with the firing of Stefanski. He outcoached the god of coaching Mike Tomlin. The last touchdown drive was a thing of beauty. An eleven-play drive, ten of those plays were running plays. Punched the Steelers defense in the mouth. The last series was even better. Worked time off the clock, giving Pittsburg no time to create a miracle, despite the help from the referees. QB Jacoby Brissett was 21 of 31 (68%) for 220 yards and two touchdowns. After three games he’s 61 of 92 (66.3%) for 596 yards, four touchdowns and one interception. WR Amari Cooper caught seven passes for 101 yards and a touchdown. He’s had back-to-back 100 yards games, the first Browns wide receiver to do that since Josh Gordon in 2013. Tight end David Njoku caught nine passes for 89 yards and a touchdown. Running back Nick Chubb rushed the ball 22 times for 113 yards and a touchdown. After three games he has 341 yards, the second most in Browns history after three games since Jim Brown in 1963. As for the defense. they allowed three points in the second half, despite losing key starters to injury. Nice adjustments by the coaching staff. LB Jacob Phillips stepped up big time and CB Martin Emerson is getting better with every game.

The Bad. Two twelve men on the field penalties? Two. All Browns fans know, versus Pittsburg the referees aren’t going to give the Browns a break, but let’s not help. There are still communication issues with the secondary, but after a short week, things were better. The run defense in the first half was bad and you can really tell Myles Garrett misses Jadeveon Clowney. The Browns need to reevaluate their inside pass rush. The injuries were brutal last night, but players did step up.

The Ugly. The not-so-special teams. Never bring the ball out of the end zone on kickoffs. Nothing good happens. A semi-blocked punt. For once a missed extra point didn’t come back to haunt the Browns. Right now, if I’m a future Browns opponent, I’m trying onside kicks all game long. Thank God, WR Anthony Schwartz had the good sense to knock the ball out of bounds. What the hell was WR Donovan Peoples-Jones doing on that play? At least I’m not worried about the punt returner anymore.

I was thinking about that game all day long yesterday. Trying to reason a Browns victory. You know what I mean, if you’re a Browns fan you did it as well. It wasn’t necessary last night because for once against the Steelers, the Browns had the better head coach and the better quarterback. I hope everyone stays safe and Go Browns.

Jets Vs. Browns, the Good, The Bad & The Ugly.

The word for Monday is frustrating. All the experts told me the Browns have a top five secondary. Not so much. Is it coaching, communication or the lack of playing time in the preseason. All of the above. Let’s get to it.

The Good. After two weeks the Browns are ranked seventh in the NFL in passing efficiency. If you had that stat on your bingo card, can you suggest some lottery numbers. QB Jacoby Brissett was 22 of 27 for 229 yards one touchdown and one interception. He also rushed six times for 43 yards (7.2 average). Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt combined for 145 yards and Chubb scored three touchdowns. The Browns are currently averaging 200 yards rushing a game, second only to the Philadelphia Eagles. Brissett and WR Amari Cooper hooked up nine times for 101 yards and one touchdown. The offense isn’t the problem.

The Bad. After two weeks the Browns are ranked 27th in defensive passing efficiency. They have allowed 34 points in the fourth quarter to Baker Mayfeild and Joe Flacco. So far, the defense has given up the seventh most passing yards and the second most passing touchdowns. I can’t wait for the Browns to face Tom Brady, Lamar Jackson and Josh Rosen. If it was the fault of one player, I would hope the coaches would bench him for the next game. But, against Carolina it was miscommunication between Greg Newsome and John Johnson. Yesterday it was miscommunication between Denzel Ward and Grant Delpit. These issues should have been worked out in training camp and in preseason games. Oh, wait, the starters didn’t play in the preseason games.

The Ugly. After two weeks the Browns are ranked 20th in special teams’ efficiency. The fake punt by the Jets gave them life. At that point it was looking like a blowout. Still no reliable punt returner. On kickoffs, let’s kick the ball into the endzone, not to a pro bowl kick returner on the ten-yard line. The kicking team has about a 14% chance of recovering an onside kick. Fourteen percent. Then to add insult to injury, kicker Cade York misses an extra point. How come missed extra points always come back to bite the Browns in the butt?

Thank God it’s a short week. Because it’s a short week, no one will be fired, and no one should be fired. If it happens against the Steelers, then all bets are off. Everyone stay safe and Go Browns, it’s Steeler week.

Browns Vs. Panthers, The Good, The Bad & The Ugly.

Victory Monday. 2-21-1 may not sound good to your average NFL fan, but it sure sounds good to me, as does 1-0. The Browns finally did something they haven’t done since 2004, win their opening game. Browns fans can now exhale and focus on the rest of the season starting with game two versus the Jets. Here we go.

The Good. The running game for about 95% of the game. Late in the game, the Browns started to get a little pass happy. Hey coach, run it till they stop it. QB Jacoby Brissett was average (18 of 34 for 147 yards and a TD) but put the team in the position to win. Everyone was worried about the wide receivers, but they got open, it’s just that Brissett was slow to see them. WR Donovan Peoples-Jones made some great catches and WR Anthony Schwartz made a big third down catch. As for the defense, they played well for about 95% of the game. Two blown coverages are two too many. The defense seemed to get sack happy late in the game. Speaking of sacks Myles Garrett had two and John Johnson, Ronnie Harrison, Jadeveon Clowney and Tommy Togiai had a half sack each. The defense also batted down five passes, Clowney with two, Garrett with one, Perrion Winfrey with one and Alex Wright with one. According to PFF, the highest graded offensive players were Wyatt Teller 85.9, Nick Chubb 79.3, James Hudson 76.0, Peoples-Jones 68.0 and Schwartz 67.6. On defense Garrett 94.4, Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah 78.3, Clowney 76.3, Anthony Walker 73.4 and Togiai 71.7. Kicker Cade York, four field goals, 26, 34, 36 and of course the game winner from 58 yards. Most importantly, no injuries.

The Bad. The other 5% of both the offense and the defense. Now that this team has learned to win week one, they need to learn to put bad teams away. The punt return situation is scary. Rest of the special teams were very good, but why don’t we try someone else to return punts, like maybe rookie RB Jerome Ford. Hopefully, the coaching staff will work with Brissett to speed up the offense. They were late getting out of the huddle and seemed to be a little chaotic. Smooth the rough edges on the offense and fix the blown coverages on defense.

The Ugly. Nine penalties for 71 yards, the carryover from the preseason continues. Before I die, I hope the Browns will learn to cover an opposing team’s tight end. This team makes average players look like pro bowlers.

Game one is in the books, it wasn’t pretty, but a win is a win. The Browns will host the New York Jets in their home opener this Sunday. One final note, my wife and I had a great time watching the game very our fellow members of the Middle Tennessee Browns Backers. It’s the official club in Nashville TN and there was a great crowd on hand, over 240. Everyone stay safe and Go Browns.

Game Week.

It’s my favorite time of year, game week one for the Cleveland Browns. The feeling of hope and dread at the same time. On the one hand, the Browns, despite what the talking heads say, have a very talented roster. On the other hand, I can’t get 1-21-1 out of my head. Last year the Browns won eight games with average quarterback play. This year they play eleven games with a career backup quarterback. After the longest preseason in the history of Browns fandom, I’m ready for game day.

For some reason, and I don’t know why, I’m feeling a little optimistic. First, I’m glad the Browns are playing Baker Mayfield and the Carolina Panthers on the road. What a zoo Cleveland would be if this was a home game. Some fans are rooting for Mayfield the first game and the Browns the last sixteen games. Nope. Denounce your Browns fandom on twitter and get it over with. I’m a Browns fan through thick and thin. As for the two quarterbacks, Mayfield and Jacoby Brissett, I’m good with Brissett. Yes, Josh Dobbs looked great in the preseason. But that’s the preseason. When you have a roster this talented, preseason is for the bottom part of that roster. Last year, hardly any of the starters played in the preseason and if not for a terrible decision by the Browns former punter and a Nick Chubb fumble, the Browns would have beaten the Chiefs.

Besides the game, I’m looking forward to watching with my fellow members of the Middle Tennessee Browns Backers. Because of Covid the last two years, I’ve been unable to attend the first game. I’ve missed the atmosphere. Walking into the bar, (Nashville Palace) for the first game. Seeing all the Browns gear, flags and signs. Waiting impatiently as the clock slowly moves to kickoff. Listening to the pregame show as they try and explain how great Mayfield will play against his former team. They’ll forget the Browns have Nick Chubb, Kareem Hunt, A pretty good offensive line and a pretty damn good defense. But, hey, at least Baker is “Off The Leash.”

Will this be an easy game for the Browns? No, Carolina is not a bad team. Do I think the Browns will win? Yes. Defensive coordinator Joe Woods knows Mayfeild and I expect a few wrinkles to be thrown in just for the Browns former quarterback. Or maybe the Browns defense will just watch tape of the Steeler defense vs. Mayfield. Everybody stay safe, Go Browns and enjoy the game, no matter where you watch.