Dawgpoundsouth

To the surprise of many a Browns fan, there’s been quite a bit of movement in the coaching staff so far this off-season. After the defense fell apart in the wildcard game, I didn’t expect almost wholesale changes on the offensive staff. Afterall, the Browns managed to win eleven games starting four quarterbacks, starting their fourth and fifth tackles and missing the best running back in the league. In the normal business world, raises and promotions would be in order. But this year, the Browns are expected to improve in 2024, possibly win the division and make a much deeper run in the post season. For those who haven’t kept track, here’s the scorecard.

Gone: OC Alex Van Pelt, RB coach Stump Mitchell, TE coach T.C. McCartney and OL coach Bill Callahan.

The surprise in this group is Mitchell. Everybody loved his beard, as did I, but the running game did falter after Chubb got hurt. While everyone knows head coach Kevin Stefanski calls the plays, Van Pelt did the game planning for the week and was a valuable resource on the sidelines during games. He did attempt to leave once (OC for University of Pittsburg). As for McCartney, after Njoku, did the other two tight ends really thrill anyone? The one that really hurts is Callahan. I can’t blame him for wanting to coach with his son. I worked with both my parents and at times it was trying, but most of the time it was rewarding. It will be interesting to see what title the Titans give Callahan. If it’s a lateral move, they may owe the Browns a late round draft pick. I bet they add assistant head coach to his official title.

In (so far): OC Ken Dorsey, RB coach Duce Staley, TE coach Jimmy Rees. DL coach Jacques Cesaire.

I love the Staley hire. I bet he was brought in to light a fire under Jerome Ford. He’ll teach him to be more aggressive and to stop dancing around behind the line of scrimmage. Rees comes from the college ranks, Notre Dame and Alabama. The last time I looked both schools have produced very good tight ends the last couple of years. Cesaire is a brilliant hire and if you don’t believe me watch the wildcard game again. He turned an unknown DE, Jonathan Greenard into a pro bowl player. By the way, Greenard is only 26 years old and a free agent. Food for thought. The big concern amongst Browns fans is Ken Dorsey. I’m going to give the Browns a little leeway on this one. The Bills were 5-5 when he was fired, but they were number two in total offense at the same time. Maybe if their quarterback quit throwing interceptions Dorsey would still be there. Will he call plays? If the Browns hire a QB coach, then he will. He did turn Cam Newton into an MVP quarterback. Let’s hope he can do the same with Watson.

As for a potential replacement for Callahan, the most logical choice is current assistant OL coach Scott Peters. He learned from Callahan and the players already respect him. Bobby Johnson has already worked with Dorsey in Buffalo, so there’s a link. The team did interview Andy Dickerson for OC. He was the running game coordinator/ OL coach for the Seahawks. Finally, some in the local media are suggesting Mike Munchak, but his name has yet to come up within the Browns organization.

The Browns will introduce Ken Dorsey on Monday morning at 11:00am EST. Tune in. Stay safe and Go Browns.

After watching the NFL games this past weekend, I’m reminded how important it is to find the right kicker. All I know is, I can’t take the Ravens winning another Super Bowl, so I’m rooting for Kansas City this weekend. I’m also rooting for San Fransico; I just can’t root for Detroit because that would mean another team besides the Browns made it to the big game. I know, I’m weird, but the next team to go to the Super Bowl for the first time should be Cleveland. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

Now that the off-season has started, I thought I would remind my readers of the upcoming important dates on the NFL schedule.

February 20: Teams can designate Franchise and Transition players.

February 27 through March 4: NFL combine or as I call it, illegal tampering period.

March 5: Deadline for teams to designate Franchise and Transition players.

March 11 through March 13: The legal tampering period.

March 13: League year begins, 4:00 pm EST.

April 15: Off-season workout program begins for the Browns.

Today Browns GM Andrew Berry addressed the local media. The noteworthy information was his efforts in this off-season will be for the Browns to host a playoff game and make a deep run. That would mean the Browns would have to win the AFC North. Is it possible? Sure, anything is possible. The Browns won eleven games starting four different quarterbacks. The focus now is to hire a new offensive coordinator, running backs coach and tight end coach. They’re looking to hire someone who will maximize the talents of Deshaun Watson. If they don’t hire an OC before the AFC and NFC championship games, then they’re waiting for someone on one of those coaching staffs. Personally, I think hiring Duce Staley as the running backs coach would be a homerun. Berry also said the rehabs of Watson and Nick Chubb are progressing well.

The next question about the Browns involves what players they will attempt to resign for 2024. Some I would like to see are Za’Darius Smith, Shelby Harris, Cory Bojorquez, Mike Ford, Rodney McLeod, Mathew Adams, Murice Hurst, Michael Dunn, James Proche and Nick Harris. The key decisions will be to restructure and bring back Amari Cooper and to restructure Chubb. Other key players who might be restructured are Joel Bitonio, Wyatt Teller and Myles Garrett. The Browns are currently about $16.9 million over estimated cap of $242 million. Finally, the most important position that needs an upgrade is backup quarterback. The Browns would love to have Joe Flacco as the backup QB and Flacco would love to come back. But if he’s offered a starting gig, you really can’t blame him for taking it. If he does come back to the Browns, it will be to backup Watson, nothing more. Stay Safe and Go Browns.

That was a dud of a game yesterday, but it was stress-free Browns football. The Browns have played in meaningless year end games before, only because they were terrible. Then we as fans had to wait till the next day to see if the GM and/or head coach would be fired on “black Monday.” Those days are gone. Yes, the backups looked terrible against the Cincinnati starters, but who cares. Their playoff seed was already locked up and all they had to do was play a game and get the hell out of Cincinnati unscathed. There were a couple of injuries, DT Shelby Harris and WR Cedric Tillman. Harris has a shin injury and Tillman is in concussion protocol. It was good to see WR Elijah Moore, DE Ogbo Okoronkwo and P Cory Bojorquez return and play. Hopefully the rest will help with the return of S Juan Thornhill, WR Amari Cooper and K Dustin Hopkins.

As for the game, like I said, I really didn’t care. The only question to be asked is did Jeff Driskel do enough to be the backup QB for the playoffs? P.J. Walker has won some games for the Browns this year, but I think the team has got all they could get out Walker already. The team will practice Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday this week. Still no news on if S Grant Delpit will be able to return for the playoffs. I did notice the team took S Ronnie Hickman out of the game yesterday pretty early, that might mean the team is getting ready to be without Delpit. Finally, congratulations to DE Isaiah McGure on recording his first NFL sack.

Because the Jaguars faltered down the stretch and exhibited terrible play calling in the final moments of the Titan game, Cleveland will travel to Houston for their wildcard game. While most Browns fans are concerned about facing Houston and C.J. Stroud, I’m not. I have faith in the Browns coaching staff and the key players performing well. The Texans do get defensive help with both their pass rushers and their best linebacker returning from injury, but the last time I looked, their starting cornerbacks are still playing and Cooper and Flacco lit them up last time.

If the Browns can take care of business in Houston, their probable next opponent would be in Baltimore. However, there is a scenario where the Browns could host the next game. The Browns need to beat Texans, the Steelers need to beat the Bills and the Dolphins need to be the Chiefs, then the Browns would host the Dolphins in a divisional game. Going to Baltimore seems to be more realistic, but you never know, it’s been a strange year in the NFL.

The Browns 2024 opponents have been announced. Cleveland will host the Bengals, Steelers, Ravens, Chargers, Chiefs, Cowboys, Giants and Dolphins. Cleveland will travel to the Bengals, Steelers, Ravens, Broncos, Raiders, Commanders, Eagles and Jaguars. It’s been a while since the Browns and the Eagles have played overseas, so this game might be the one. Because the NFC has the extra home game in 2024, the Eagles would be the home team.

Finally, because it’s “black Monday” some Browns fans are worried about losing defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz to another team if they hire him as their head coach. I’m not worried. He loves Cleveland and the trend now in the league is to hire young up and coming coordinators. Schwartz will turn 60 this year. Also, it would have to be the perfect situation, and right now I don’t see that situation. Besides he’s being paid extremely well by the Browns.

It’s playoff week Browns fans. enjoy the week, stay safe and Go Browns.

How sweet it is, the Browns are playoff bound. This one feels great because of everything this team has been through this year. I won’t go down the list of players injured, because I have other things to do this weekend. It’s unbelievable to me, that players who are tied to the success of the Browns, weren’t on the team when they traveled to West Virginia. Cleveland GM Andrew Berry started this process in the off-season by signing and drafting the right players. Then continued his NFL Executive of the Year path by finding players to replace the injured players. Raise your hand if prior to the season you had heard of Geron Christain, James Proche and Duron Harmon. Anybody…..I didn’t think so.

The Browns offense in the first half was surprisingly good considering WR Amari Cooper wasn’t playing. I hope everyone sees how valuable WR Elijah Moore really is, because after he left the game no one could get separation against a very good Jets secondary. He’s top five in the league in separation. I hope he can return for the playoffs. Alert the media, the Browns ran the ball and were surprising good considering the Jets are pretty good against the run. Again, forget about the second half, at that point the Browns had no capable wide receivers, and the Jets defense were determined to stop the run. How important is Joe Flacco to the Browns offense? Thanks for asking. Prior to Flacco, the Browns were 31st in offensive yards per play and 28th in passing offense. After Flacco, they’re eighth in offensive yards per play and first in passing offense. Head coach Kevin Stefanski has designed an offense for four different style quarterbacks this year. Give him an extension and Coach Of The Year.

After the first Jets drive, which was scripted, the defense again showed why they are the best. I know New York’s offense stinks and you saw why last night. Myles Garrett is odds on favorite for Defensive Player of the Year. Finally got a sack, plus nine more pressures and a quarterback hit. Jets left tackle Mehki Becton had no answer for Garrett, two false starts. Then they put Za’Darius Smith opposite him and again another false start. JOK again showed up, as did Sione Takitaki. You could tell he was getting tired of Jets players running out of tackles. This could be the best secondary I’ve seen in Browns uniforms. Just a reminder, Ronnie Hickman is an undrafted player. Since the Denver game, Greg Newsome has become a completely different player. Duron Harmon was a genius late season pick up and Shelby Harris was a genius pre-season pick up.

Pro Football Focus Grades. Offense, TE David Njoku, 85.3, RB Jerome Ford, 77.3, LG Joel Bitonio, 75.4, TE Harrison Bryant, 75.3 and RG Wyatt Teller, 72.3. Defense, S Ronnie Hickman, 92.5, Sione Takitaki, 88.5, Greg Newsome, 83.7, S Duron Harmon, 83.4 and DE Myles Garrett, 77.8.

Rooting Guide. It’s simple this weekend, Miami over Baltimore. Both these teams are trying to get the number one seed in the playoffs. But so are the Browns. The Dolphins beating Baltimore would help but isn’t the final answer. If the Browns beat Cincinnati, Baltimore loses to Miami and Pittsburg and Miami then loses to Buffalo, the Browns are the number one seed. Raise your hand if you had that scenario at the beginning of the season. Anybody……I didn’t think so.

Enjoy all the college and pro football this weekend. Have a great New Years, stay safe and Go Browns.

That was a loss that turned into a victory. Joe Flacco threw three interceptions, and one was a pick-six. I thought the Browns were headed to another loss. But no, they wouldn’t let that happen. Flacco threw for 212 yards in the fourth quarter. That’s never happened by any Browns quarterback in any quarter. His QBR in the fourth was 144.4. The Browns are 5-0 in games decided by three points of less. They’re the only team with multiple wins when trailing by ten points or more in the fourth quarter. This team just doesn’t give up.

On offense, the Browns were under constant pressure. The Bear’s defense is as good as advertised and Montez Sweat is an offensive game wrecker. Cleveland just couldn’t run the ball. Then, Joel Bitonio gets hurt (back, day-to-day), and the offensive line is down to one starter. Even Nick Harris left the game. Luckly, he came back, but rookie Luke Wypler had to come in and take a couple snaps. Tight end David Njoku has found a connection with Joe Flacco. The last two games have been great. It was great to see wide receiver Marguise Goodwin catch that long pass. That’s why the Browns signed him, to play ten to twelve snaps and get that one shot down the field. Cedric Tillman and Elijah Moore had key receptions. Amari Cooper is a beast.

On defense, several players stepped up. DE Alex Wright, CB Denzel Ward, CB Cameron Mitchell, DT Shelby Harris, S Ronnie Hickman, S D’Anthony Bell and LB Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah. JOK was fantastic yesterday. Six tackles, two TFL, one sack, one QB hit and an interception. DE Myles Garrett was held on just about every play and tackled twice. He still had eleven pressures. Wright and Mitchell had key stops on two fourth downs. This defense plays so much better when the secondary is playing well. Now do the same thing on the road. Maybe this week.

Rooting guide. Browns over Texans, Steelers over Bengals, Chargers over Bills, Falcons over Colts, Patriots over Broncos and 49ers over Ravens. The Browns have an 89% chance to make the playoffs and are the number five seed and number one wildcard team. They still have a chance to be the number one seed and division winner. Cleveland needs to win out and Baltimore needs to lose two.

Thank God the Hail Mary at the game bounced the Browns way. That seems to be happening quite a bit this year. Next up is Houston on the road, let’s hope the defense that played yesterday travels. Stay safe and Go Browns.

It’s been a few games, but this one was sweet. After a lost west coast road trip, the Browns responded with a great game against a quality opponent. Jacksonville was undefeated on the road (6-0) and featured a head coach who has a super bowl ring and a very good quarterback. Was it perfect? No, still too many turnovers. The good news was the Browns had more takeaways than giveaways. The running game is still not where it needs to be, but when the team needed to run and get first downs, it worked. It also helps having a quarterback who can throw short passes which are basically long handoffs.

The offense is starting to click and head coach Kevin Stefanski has already announced Joe Flacco will be the starting quarterback for the remainder of the season. Don’t worry about his demotion to the practice squad. Because he’s a vested veteran, no team can sign him away unless he wants to be signed and he doesn’t want to go anywhere. Did you notice how open the wide receivers were? That’s the result of fifteen-year veteran at quarterback. Flacco is making the right decisions at the right time. I’m still worried about offensive drives after the first one, the scripted one. The team seems to get bogged down in three and outs for the next few drives.

The defense worked through injuries and the secondary played great without their best cornerback. The return of CB Cameron Mitchell was the key. Then the Browns had to start D’Anthony Bell and Ronnie Hickman at safety with the injuries to Juan Thornhill and Grant Delpit. I guess being yelled at by defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz really helped the defensive line. They turned pressures into sacks. The Jaguar offense would start to get rolling and boom, a takeaway. Then when the Jags scored their last touchdown, DE Myles Garrett comes up big to keep the Browns lead at four points. Great job on the on-side kick as well. I almost had nightmares from 2021.

Pro Football Focus grades. Offense, RB Jerome Ford, 76.1, RB Kareem Hunt, 73.1, TE David Njoku, 71.5, RG Wyatt Teller, 69.8 and QB Joe Flacco, 68.6. Defense, DE Myles Garrett, 92.0, CB M.J. Emerson, 84.5, DE Za’Darius Smith, 82.2, DT Shelby Harris, 82.1 and LB Anthony Walker, 81.9.

Rooting guide for next week. Vikings over Bengals, Colts over Steelers, Lions over Broncos, Titans over Texans, Cowboys over Bills and Jaguars over Ravens.

The Browns are currently in the fifth playoff spot and the number one wildcard team if the playoffs started today. They still have a path to winning the division because Baltimore’s next three games are tough, at Jacksonville, at San Fransico and home against Miami.

Injury news. Right tackle Dawand Jones is out for the season and is having knee surgery. The Browns are now without their top three tackles. James Hudson will be the starter. He’ll need to stop committing stupid penalties moving forward. As for the other injuries, the two that bother me the most are Grant Delpit (groin) and Ethan Pocic (stinger). We’ll know better by Wednesday.

Next up is the Bears in Cleveland. They are playing better as of late and if this game was in Chicago, I’d be worried. But at home, this should be a win. Stay safe and Go Browns.

The west coast and the Pacific time zone continue to be a nightmare for my favorite professional football team. Haven’t won there since 2012 and are now winless in their last nine trips. The Browns have now fallen behind after the first quarter in 19 of 31 games under head coach Stefanski (61%) and the team is now 12-19 on the road under Stefanski (39%). Thanks to CLEology (@_CLEology) for those statistics. The good news is the Browns are headed back home and play three of their last five at home were they’re 5-1 this season. Win three of those five and the Browns will have ten wins and that just might get you into the playoffs. Playoff odds, ESPN FPI, 65%, DVOA, 62% and Sumersport 70%. The Browns still control their own destiny for a wildcard spot over the Colts and Steelers.

As for the game, quarterback Joe Flacco showed what a difference a 15-year veteran could make in the offense. His passes are poetry in motion. He also threw the ball out-of-bounds when he needed to. Kevin Stefanski declined to name a starter for next week’s game against Jacksonville, but I hope it’s Flacco. The offense was sharper yesterday. My biggest complaint, beside abandoning the run, was the fact that Stefanski kept calling passes to the running backs in the flat. The Rams figured it out early and he kept calling them. I thought the dropped passes would decline with Flacco as the QB. Nope. I was glad to see wide receiver Elijah Moore step up and I had totally forgotten wide receiver David Bell was on the roster. The interception Flacco threw was the nail in the coffin. Flacco even admitted after the game he shouldn’t have thrown the ball. Still, As I said, let’s juice up the offense and roll with Flacco next week.

Could someone tell me where the hell the Browns number one defense went? The Rams scored on every offensive drive they had in the first half. The Browns had no sacks, hardly any pressures and only two quarterback hits. Rams QB Matthew Stratford doesn’t play well when the other team applies pressure. No pressure by the defense. Now everyone knows how valuable cornerback Denzel Ward is to this defense. I’m done with CB Mike Ford, the team elevated A.J. Green from the practice squad, why not play him? When he’s played, he’s done well. DE Myles Garrett is still hurt and by playing, he’s hurting the team. This defense is limping to the finish line. Hopefully a home game this week will recharge their batteries.

The Browns might get some players back this week. Both LT Jedrick Wills and CB Cameron Mitchell are eligible to return from injured reserve. We won’t find out until Wednesday. It appears WR Amari Cooper will not play this week against the Jaguars, he’s in concussion protocol. Hopefully Ward can return, but I doubt it. The next game is Jacksonville in Cleveland. The Jags are undefeated on the road this year (5-0). However, Kevin Stefanski is 9-0 versus the AFC South. Something has to give. Pray for bad weather. Stay safe and Go Browns.

Denver has always been a house of horrors for Browns teams, and it was again yesterday. Today is blame head coach Kevin Stefanski for losing the game by calling one play. One. Just a small reminder, the Browns are 7-4 because of Kevin Stefanski. They’ve won games with three different quarterbacks and next week against the Rams it could be four, depending on the injuries to quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robertson. He’s in concussion protocol and has a shoulder injury. Memo to Mark Sanchez, yes that was roughing the passer and yes launching yourself helmet first into another player is a dirty hit. That’s the second Fox broadcast of the Browns I’ve had to watch, and the announcers were wearing the other team’s jerseys. The 49ers broadcast was the first. It seems the Broncos teach their players to lead with their helmets, because the hit on wide receiver Amari Cooper was also a dirty hit. A reminder, head coach Sean Payton was once suspended for a year by the NFL for a head-hunting plan to hurt opposing players. The Denver fans aren’t any better, heckling DTR as he headed to the locker room after getting injured. Very classy. I wish nothing but bad karma on the Denver Broncos.

Going into the fourth quarter, this was a winnable game for the Browns. From the time the Broncos made it 14-0 to the DTR injury, the Browns were the dominate team. At the beginning of the game, the Bronco defense loaded the box and dared the Browns to run. When they tried, they had little success. It was when the passing game started to click, the Denver defense had to back out of their stacked box and the running game started to shine. The problem prior to that was dropped passes. I know David Njoku apologized last week after the Steeler game for dropping so many passes, but he was at it again against the Broncos. I was very impressed with wide receiver Cedric Tillman. Strong hands and good route running. And his run blocking was much better. The team might need him next week if Cooper misses time, but according to Kevin Stefanski, the x-rays on his ribs were negative. Speaking of Cooper, you have to catch the two-point conversion try, have to. I hope DTR can play next week, he’s getting better with every game. Besides I see Joe Flacco as a break glass in case of emergency quarterback.

Another Browns road game and another 14-0 lead for the opposition. I don’t know why they can’t be ready to go from the start like they do at home. As always, after the second quarter starts, they step up their game. Hopefully this won’t happen this week in Los Angeles. Because Browns fans will absolutely take over that stadium, it might have the feel of a Browns home game. It’s very obvious the Browns missed cornerback Denzel Ward yesterday. Greg Newsome is a great slot defender, but he gave the Bronco wide receivers way too much space. I really thought defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz would play a little more zone to protect the secondary. But what the hell do I know, I’m just some fan. JOK had better be named an All-Pro, he played one hell of a game. As for defensive end Myles Garrett, he went into the game with a sore left wrist and left with a sore left shoulder. As I write this, we are all awaiting the news of an MRI he’s supposed to have today in L.A. Finally, would someone please show DE Alex Wright where to line up? Thank you.

No PFF grades today folks, I’m currently still out of town and need to start packing up the car to head back home. But I’ll leave you with a rooting guide for next week courteous of a great twitter follow, CLEology (@_CLEology). Week 13 #Browns Rooting Schedule: CLE over LAR AND TEN over IND, ARI over PIT, HOU over DEN*, JAX over CIN *Both outcomes are good but Denver would jump us with a win and a loss by us. Houston cannot jump us with a win due to a worse conference record (4-3 vs 5-3). As well as playoff position. AFC playoff picture heading to Week 13. The #Browns cannot slip out of a playoff spot heading to Week 14 (with a loss Week 13) due to tiebreakers. The Broncos could jump the Browns, but we’d hold the tie break over Indy and Houston. No one else is within a game. Stay safe, hope for the best on injury news and Go Browns.

Happy victory Monday Browns fans. The team is 7-3 and a half of a game behind the Baltimore Ravens. They are 3-2 in the AFC North with one game remaining against the Bengals. Is this a playoff team? Yes, but they need to stabilize the quarterback position. They’ve signed Joe Flacco to the practice squad and after he worked out on Friday, they gave him a playbook to start studying over the weekend. Head coach Kevin Stefanski has already announced DTR will start against Denver. It’s unbelievable the Browns have won games with three different quarterbacks. They are 4-0 in games decided by three points or less and this was their fifth victory with a game winning score coming in the final two minutes of regulation. Just as the Baltimore game was improbable, the final drive for the score was the same. DTR was four for four for forty yards. Amazing for a rookie quarterback going against the Steelers. Pittsburg has now lost to two rookie quarterbacks in the same season.

It was obvious the Browns decided to have the rookie stick to the short passing game. They wanted him to get the ball out of hand quickly, so he didn’t go through a lot of progressions. He threw to the first and sometimes the second receiver. The Browns didn’t run the ball very well, but Stefanski didn’t stop trying to run. If you look at DTR’s stat line, it doesn’t look that good, however he had seven dropped passes. The Browns even turned the ball over, but the defense stopped the Steelers from doing what they’ve done all season, score after an opponent turnover. Hidden underneath all the talk of this game is penalties. The Browns only had one penalty.

If the Browns can get the quarterback position figured out, they have one of the best defenses in the NFL to lean on. Sure, they’ll occasionally give up a big play, but opposing teams just can’t sustain drives. Through 11 weeks, the teams who have allowed the fewest first downs: 2023 Browns (10 games) 125, 1993 Steelers (9 games) 126 and 1999 Buccaneers (10 games) 128. Defensive end Myles Garrett not only has to be the front runner for defensive player of the year, but also needs to be mentioned in the MVP race. GM Andrew Berry fixed this defense in one off season. Amazing.

Pro Football Focus rankings. Offense, RG Wyatt Teller, 80.9, TE Harrison Bryant, 75.3, RT Dawand Jones, 68.9, C Ethan Pocic, 66.7 and WR Elijah Moore, 61.6. Defense, DE Myles Garrett, 90.2, CB Martin Emerson, Jr. 77.0, CB Denzel Ward, 76.8, DE Ogbo Okoronkwo, 70.8 and CB Greg Newsome, II, 68.7.

Finally, the team has lost safety Rodney McLeod for the season with a bicep’s injury. A very valuable piece of this defense. Hopefully Juan Thornhill will be able to play against Denver. If not, next man up. Stay safe and Go Browns.