When the NFL schedule was released, it appeared the first four games of the slate were the soft part of the season for the Cleveland Browns. Well, they now sit at 1-3 on the year after a 20-16 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders, and it is getting late pretty quickly.
Now you never know for sure what is going to happen. We doubt many thought that out of the balance of the games before the bye week (Washington, Philadelphia, Cincinnati, Baltimore, LA Chargers), that the Commanders would have the best record (3-1) at this point.
The Browns look like a team that hasn’t had a first-round pick for the last three years. They lack depth, particularly on the offensive line and at running back. As for the latter, don’t you think after Nick Chubb went down last season, the organization would have searched for a similar type of back?
We say that knowing Chubb is incredible, but we are talking about someone who can run effectively inside the tackles.
We continue to repeat the old football adage that remains true even though today’s NFL is a passing league: If you can’t run the ball and can’t stop the run, you are a bad football team.
Cleveland has run for 100 yards in a game this season just once, and true to form, it was the game they won, running for 125 against the Jaguars. Defensively, they have allowed 100 yards in every game, and it has deteriorated week by week, allowing a season low 102 in week one, and 152 last Sunday.
The pass rush still seems to be based solely on Myles Garrett, who is battling multiple injuries and still was the Browns’ best defender. He had the team’s only two sacks and half of the tackles for loss against the Raiders.
All that being said, the defense hasn’t allowed a lot of points after the season opener, and ranks 11th in yards allowed, a respectable ranking.
Which leads us back to the offense, which hasn’t scored 20 points in a game through four weeks, scoring a high of a paltry 17 points against the Jags. They have yet to gain 300 yards in a game, something they did 13 times last year, including five times with Watson at the helm before his shoulder injury.
Yes, the offensive line is banged up, but that doesn’t explain the total lack of production on this side of the ball. They still have Joel Bitonio and Ethan Pocic (although he was injured on Sunday) and Nick Harris has played before without issues.
And besides, they play well on the first drive of the game, so what happens after that?
The problem still comes back to the Deshaun Watson trade. The Browns could have drafted an offensive lineman, another pass rusher, and perhaps another running back with the pick moved to Houston to get Watson.
And it would have been worth it if they were getting a top five quarterback, but Watson has yet to show that, and at this point, he probably never will.
But how many other moves were made to protect the investment in that deal? They replaced a viable offensive coordinator. They let go a solid veteran backup quarterback.
The front office also keeps chasing stars in terms of playmaking hoping the coaching staff can keep producing quality offensive linemen.
Is the season over and should fans start looking to the 2025 NFL Draft? Not yet, but there has to be serious soul searching in Berea this week. And that should reach all the way to the top of the organization.
Cleveland Sports Perspective 