Month: November 2024

That was sweet. Anytime the Browns beat the Steelers is a great day. It shouldn’t be surprising, Pittsburg’s head coach Mike Tomlin, forgets how to coach on Thursday night against divisional opponents. He’s now 0-8 on Thursday Night Football against divisional opponents. Conversely, Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski is 5-0 on Thursday Night Football. Hopefully the NFL will move all Browns games in 2025 to Thursday night. The Browns last night also broke the personal winning record of Steelers QB Russell Wilson, who came into last night’s game 3-0 against the Browns. Those games were played when Russell played for Seattle and Denver, and we all know how bad the Browns play when they head west.

I’m encouraged by how OC Ken Dorsey made adjustments to the offense during the first half of the game. First two drives were a disaster, and then he opened up the playbook for Jameis Winston and bam, an eighty-yard drive for a touchdown. I was very impressed with Winston, he turned the ball over twice, but still late in the game when the Browns needed a drive and a score, he was good Jameis. The difference in the offense between now and the beginning of the season was the offensive line. RT Jack Conklin is a Watt killer. Prior to this game, as a Brown, Conklin had only allowed Watt one sack and six pressures. LT Germain Ifedi did well enough to keep his starting position over Jed Wills. It would be a smart business decision. When the Steelers took away David Njoku, Winston found the backup tight ends. Yes, they dropped two passes but made three big catches when the Browns needed them. Nick Chubb is getting closer to being Nick Chubb. On the last touchdown, Chubb ran the last nine yards even when the Steeler defense knew he was going to get the ball. Finally, Jerry Jeudy is a number one WR.

The defense still gave up too many big plays. I’ve defended CB Greg Newsome in the past, not anymore. He left both Juan Thornhill and Grant Delpit on islands against fast wide receivers. He left two safeties covering wide receivers. The Browns drafted Cameron Mitchell to replace him, so hopefully he will in 2025. The run defense really stepped-up last night. After a few big plays by Najee Harris, Jaylen Warren and Justin Fields, the defense started to overwhelm the Steeler offensive line. I said in my preview article, the way to slow down Russell Wilson was to bring pressure up the middle, and they did. Glad to see Russell Wilson getting hit after the threw the ball, it was very effective. Myles Garrett is back in the DPOY discussion.

Finally as I write this, the week sixteen game against the Bengals on Thursday has been flexed to Sunday. After playing Kansas City week fifteen, going on the road to play on a short week was not ideal. I’m glad it happened. In the coming weeks due to the holidays, my opportunities to write my blog may become a little erratic, so hang with me. Stay safe and Go Browns.

Well Browns fans, the slow match to the end of the 2024 NFL season has begun. The Cleveland media is demanding their pound of flesh, and someone has to be fired. I would start with special teams coach Bubba Ventrone. I liked the hire when it happened, however the not so special teams have gotten worse every week. All of a sudden, the Browns Pro Bowl kicker can’t kick a field goal, and this situation will be interesting to watch. Not only did the not so special teams give up a long kickoff return, but they also gave up a long punt return. The only saving grace is punter Corey Bojorquez. Right know he’s the Browns most dangerous weapon.

Your quarterback throws for over 300 yards, and they only score fourteen points. Why? Because the stopped running the ball. I know the passing game was working, but you have to keep the Saints offense on the sideline, specifically Tysom Hill. As I wrote in my preview article, the Browns defense would have to account for Alvin Kamara AND Tysom Hill. They kept Karama in check, but Hill took over the game. He threw the ball; he ran the ball, and he even had a long kick return. I think he also sold beer in the stands. This was the perfect defense to run the ball. Nick Chubb started to look like his old self.

When the season started everyone wondered about the Brown’s wide receivers. Have someone play quarterback that can get the ball down the field, and they look pretty damn good. Jameis Winston reminded me of Joe Flacco last year without the game killing interceptions. On defense, this team needs to get better at safety. Rodney McLeod and Juan Thornhill won’t be back next year, so sign a good one in free agency and draft another. The Browns also needs to get younger on the defense line and younger on the offensive line. The Dawand Jones injury couldn’t have happened at the worst time. In his third start at left tackle, Jones was playing very well. Hopefully, he can be ready to go at the start of training camp, because he’s the best business decision to replace Wills.

Finally, I’m not ready to fire Kevin Stefanski or Andrew Berry. Like I said earlier, the Cleveland media is searching for their pound of flesh. It changes from week to week. One week it’s Stefanski, one week it’s Berry, one week it’s Paul DePodesta and one week everyone wants Jimmy to sell the team. Of course, some members of the media want Stefanski fired, and Mike Vrabel named as the interim coach. No thanks. As always, stay safe and Go Browns.

After the joy of beating the Ravens and an offensive explosion (for this team), all three phases of the Browns fell flat on their faces. The not-so-special teams gave up another big return, the defense gave up two long passes because of no communication and the offense was, well offensive. Now the Browns are 2-7 and its roster evaluation time to get ready for the new league year in 2025 and the NFL draft. It’s no surprise the Browns will again start Winston their next game against New Orleans. If you’re going to need a “bridge” quarterback, you might as well find out now. I do expect to see DTR starting later in the season because you have to find out what you have in DTR. For what it’s worth, New Orleans fired their head coach today after losing seven games in a row.

According to Over The Cap, The Browns are currently $3.7 million over the 2025 cap that Over The Cap estimates to be $272.5 million. For 2024, Cleveland is $45.5 million under the 2024 cap. Whatever they don’t use this year they’ll be able to carryover to 2025. Plus, they’ll get back any incentives or bonuses not awarded to players. If someone tells you they’re going to be in cap hell next year, nope. The only thing stupid that could happen is firing Kevin Stefanski and/or Andrew Berry. If you want that, you want disfunction. Will an assistant coach be fired at the end of the season? Sure, it’s possible.

As for the draft, the Browns have eight picks. One in round one, one in round two, two in round three, one in round four, and three in round six. This is a very good draft for offensive linemen, especially tackles, for edge rushers and wide receivers. I’m not thrilled with the quarterbacks. There’s no C.J. Stroud or Jayden Daniels, so if they’re going to pick a QB, they better be right. The Browns front office has to focus on the offensive line and the defensive line, have to. They had several scouts at the Oregon/Michigan game Saturday and there were three DT’s who could go in the first round who played. I’ll dig deeper into the draft in future blogs. Stay safe and Go Browns.