It’s playoff Victory Monday and those weren’t the same old Browns. No head coach, no OL coach, no assistant OL coach, no TE coach, no WR coach, no All-Pro LG, no number one CB and no number three CB. Then they lost their All-Pro RT and their starting LG. It did not matter. The Browns practiced once last week, once. The first playoff win since 1994. The Browns beat the Steelers twice in seven days. Twice. To make it sweeter, the Browns made Big Ben cry. The Browns wanted this game more than the Steelers. The Steelers had a sack in 73 consecutive games going into Sunday. They did not sack QB Baker Mayfield. I don’t remember the broadcasters saying T.J. Watt’s name once. Mayfield had a Pro Football Focus rating of 90.5. That’s the fourth highest rating by a QB making his first playoff start. He was 21 of 34, 263 yards and three touchdowns. Again no interceptions. The 28 points the Browns scored in the first quarter were the most points scored in the first quarter by a playoff team in NFL history.
All three phases of the game showed up and played. It really helped that the Browns were up 7-0 before the offense got on the field. Michael Dunn, Kendall Lamm and Blake Hance (who?) combined for 68 pass blocking snaps against the league’s best pass rush. They allowed only two pressures. Damn. Here’s a tweet I still can’t believe, “Brent Sobleski@brentsobleskiยท6mThe Browns will pay Blake Hance $39,706 for driving from New Jersey, not practice with the team, replace injured third-string guard Michael Dunn, survive 14 snaps against Cam Heyward and become a legend.” Because Kevin Stefanski tested positive last week, he and Hance haven’t even met each other yet. Hell, Mayfield introduced himself to Hance before the game. Both OC Alex Van Pelt and DC Joe Woods called great games. The Browns offense kept the Steeler’s defense on their heals and the Browns defense, while not getting a sack, kept the pressure on Big Ben.
Injuries and Covid. RT Jack Conklin (hamstring), LG Michael Dunn (calf) and Robert Jackson (hamstring) are all day to day. As for the Covid list, the Browns reported no new positives this morning. Baring any negative tests, all coaches and players should be back by Thursday. It would great to have everyone back to practice this week for the Kansas City game on Sunday. Speaking of the Chiefs, do the Browns have a chance to beat Kansas City? Yes they do. The Browns need to control the line of scrimmage and run the ball. Pat Mahomes can’t beat you if he’s sitting on the bench. Enjoy this one Browns fans. Everyone stay safe and Go Browns.