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.