Browns Impressive In Win #10.

The Cleveland Browns are now 10-5 on the season after Sunday’s 36-22 win over Houston in a game that wasn’t as close as the score would indicate.

The Browns’ defense played like it was a home game shutting out the Texans for the first three quarters, as the only Houston TD was the result of a kickoff return. The home team was held to just 250 yards, most of which came in the fourth quarter, when Cleveland took several starters out on both sides of the football.

Cleveland came out firing on offense, with Joe Flacco hitting Amari Cooper for a 53-yard strike on the first play of the game, a portent of things to come.

Cooper wound up setting a team record for receiving yards with 265 and grabbed two of Flacco’s touchdown throws. The veteran QB’s other favorite target, TE David Njoku, caught the other.

As for Flacco, it was another eye-popping performance, completing 27 of 42 throws for 368 yards, his third straight 300+ yard game. He did throw two interceptions, one on the last play of the first half, when on a different day, Kevin Stefanski would have opted for a field goal, but more on that later.

We continue to be amazed that with all of the injuries to quarterbacks around the league that no one thought to get Joe Flacco. True, he hasn’t been a starter since 2019 with Denver, but he knows how to play. He’s seen pretty much everything in his career.

It is probably the move to multi-dimensional quarterbacks that kept him at home this season, but it looks like Flacco and the Browns are a match made in heaven. And Stefanski is maximizing the talent that the veteran has.

As for the defense, it was the 7th time this year Cleveland has held an opponent to 250 yards or less, and as we said before, 157 of those came in the 4th quarter, which started with the Browns in the lead, 36-7.

Za’Darius Smith was the star with two sacks, but Myles Garrett had two tackles for loss as well, and the unit got interceptions from Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah and a newcomer, veteran Duron Harmon.

While there is plenty of hoopla surrounding Flacco, never forget this defense is the motor behind the success of the 2023 Cleveland Browns. We’ve been a fan since 1965 and it’s the best defense the Browns have ever had in that time.

Now, it wouldn’t be a Browns game without injuries, and this time it was the kicking game as both Dustin Hopkins and Corey Bojorquez suffered leg injuries, the former on the kickoff return for a touchdown.

Hopefully, neither will miss any time, but we are sure this week will involve trying out both kickers and punters. And with the years both of them have had, there will likely be a drop off in performance.

The Browns have a short week with a game against the Jets Thursday night, but the anticipation going into the contest because a win put Stefanski’s squad into the playoffs for the second time in four seasons.

They don’t need any other scenarios to happen. Win and in. We are sure it will be a wild night on the lakefront.

The coach also moved into a tie for 5th on the franchise wins list for coaches, tying Bill Belichick, who needed 80 games whereas Stefanski needed 65.

Next up is Marty Schottenheimer with 44.

Through all the injuries, this football team has remained unflappable and resilient. Hopefully, there is more to come.

Guardians Still Need Offense

The Cleveland Guardians had an issue scoring runs last season. They ranked 12th in the American League in runs scored in 2023 and were last in the league in home runs.

The Toronto Blue Jays scored the least runs of the teams that made the post-season, and they scored 84 more times than Cleveland did. Although pitching is the name of the game in Major League Baseball, you have to score runs to win in the regular season.

The off-season player movement cycle has moved slower than normal this year in the sport because everyone is waiting for Shohei Ohtani to sign, which he did about a week ago.

To date, the Guardians’ front office has done nothing to improve the hitting and frankly, seems to be depending on the young starting pitching getting better through experience.

The Guards were 10th in on base percentage and 14th in slugging percentage. So they need help, and a lot of it in both areas.

We have said this before, but we feel you need seven solid bats in a lineup to have an contending team’s offense. Right now, we would say Cleveland has five: Jose Ramirez, Josh Naylor, Steven Kwan, Andres Gimenez, and Bo Naylor, although remember, the younger Naylor has less than a full season’s experience.

Right now, the lineup would look something like this:

Kwan LF
Gimenez 2B
Ramirez 3B
J. Naylor DH
Laureano RF
B. Naylor C
Manzardo 1B
Arias SS
Straw CF

Of course, that what the Guardians will likely do, not what we would do. We understand folks are high on Kyle Manzardo, who came from Tampa Bay in the Aaron Civale deal, but the reality is he doesn’t have a single big league at bat.

As for Arias, we don’t think any hitter with a 32% strikeout rate will ever wind up being a solid bat, no matter how hard he hits the ball when he does make contact. And we have seen Straw the past two seasons, with his OPS under 600 in each of those years.

Laureano will likely platoon with Will Brennan in right field, and both are similar, neither has a lot of pop, and neither walk a lot. Those two attributes make up to be a mediocre offensive player.

Given the financial restraints (although they are not as severe as the ownership says they are) of the Guardians, what free agents would make sense for Cleveland?

We would be intrigued by Brandon Belt, but he plays the same position as Josh Naylor, and we believe the Guardians have to give Manzardo a shot unless he is terrible in spring training.

A one-year deal for a veteran like J.D. Martinez (33 HR and 893 OPS with the Dodgers) would make sense, if he is willing to take one year. Martinez could DH and play some LF (with Kwan sliding over to CF) and provide some right-handed power the Guardians sorely need.

Mitch Garver, formerly of the Twins and Rangers is also intriguing, although he is more of a catcher/DH which would make it tougher for Manzardo to get at-bats. Garver hit 19 dingers in 344 plate appearances for Texas last year.

Even though he’s a left-handed hitter, what about taking a chance on Austin Meadows, who has battled injuries the last two seasons, playing just 42 games for Detroit. In his last full season in 2021, he did hit 27 homers and knock in 106 for Tampa Bay. He’s likely looking for an incentive laden “prove it” deal.

There have been reports that Tyler Freeman has started working out in the outfield in Goodyear, and no doubt we would love to see the front office give him a full shot at an everyday spot based on his minor league numbers. Our guess is they are looking at him in LF with again Kwan moving to the middle of the outfield.

In any case, Cleveland’s offensive needs are exactly what they were when the regular season ended. And spring training will start six weeks after the holiday season ends.

The Guardians’ fans are waiting.

Questions And More Questions About Cavs’ Future

As soon as the Cleveland Cavaliers announced Darius Garland and Evan Mobley would miss extended time due to injury, and rumors started popping up about a possible trade for Donovan Mitchell.

Our guess is these people feel the Cavs would not be a playoff team without two of their starters, so they would be better off cashing in on Mitchell, who can decline a player option for the 2025-26 season and become a free agent.

This of course means the wine and gold only have Mitchell for the remainder of this season and next, because he certainly won’t take the option and remain in “Cleveland” any longer than he has to.

To his credit, Mitchell has said all the right things and at least publicly hasn’t talked about wanting out of Cleveland, but no doubt, the front office has to be monitoring the situation. They certainly will not let Mitchell walk away without compensation, so if the all-star guard doesn’t give them assurances he would like to stay, Koby Altman has to listen to offers.

However, things have changed from a year ago. After 28 games last season, Cleveland was 17-11 and sitting in the #3 spot in the Eastern Conference standings. They were the up-and-coming team, adding an all-NBA talent in Mitchell, allowing the least points in the league, and a challenger for the best record in the conference.

They’ve only one a game less this year.

This season, the hot young squad is Orlando, sitting with a 16-9 record and in the 4th spot in the East. The Cavs have been up and down all season, beset with injuries to pretty much everyone on their roster, and due to that, generally has sat between 6th and 9th in the conference.

And Indiana’s run to the In Season Tournament title game have basketball talking about them as well.

So, if the Cavs can’t keep winning without their pair of injured starters, and they’ve received no commitment from Mitchell that he is willing to sign an extension, then you have to think it is time to sell high on the four-time All Star.

On the other hand, if Cleveland continues to win without Garland and Mobley, that has to open some eyes, no?

We have long found flaws with the smallish backcourt of Mitchell and Garland, who in terms of style of game are very similar. Max Strus has moved to the #2 guard spot right now, giving coach J.B. Bickerstaff a little more size on the perimeter, which should help defensively.

If the team can remain afloat or even flourish without Garland and Mobley, doesn’t reflect well on the coaching staff? Also, would it be a referendum on the Garland/Mitchell combination?

Our guess is that it will be tough to string together victories with a roster missing two of their top six players, but it could also be a Browns’ moment for the team as well. An opportunity to show the “grit” that Bickerstaff talks about.

If they can’t keep their heads above water with the injuries, it could mean a roster overhaul at the trade deadline, probably involving Mitchell, the organization’s most valuable trade chip.

The next six weeks could be hugely important for the future of the Cleveland Cavaliers. The high hopes this season brought for the franchise could be dashed pretty quickly.

Resilient Browns Stack Another Win.

When the Cleveland Browns won their opening game against Cincinnati this season with a dominant defensive performance, we had an inkling this year’s squad was different than the “same ‘ol Browns”.

Yes, the defense has had a few hiccups, but for the most part, they have maintained that standard of play all season, and that alone has kept the Browns in every game they have played this year.

Sunday was no exception as Cleveland overcame three turnovers to beat Chicago 20-17 and move their record to 9-5 on the season.

We will discuss the fourth quarter heroics of Joe Flacco and crew later, but the Bears’ two touchdowns were either set up or the result of turnovers. The swarming defense really allowed just three points on the day.

They held Chicago to 236 total yards, the sixth time this season an opponent has been held under 250 yards. The average NFL team in 2023 gains 331 yards in a game. Jim Schwartz’ unit had 11 tackles for losses, and three sacks as well as holding Justin Fields to under a 50% completion percentage.

And while Myles Garrett is unquestionably the defense’s best player, we have to send some kudos to Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, who has played at an unbelievable level over the last few weeks. He had two tackles for loss, two passes defended, and a sack this week. He has been the player that was advertised when drafted in the 2nd round out of Notre Dame.

The one criticism of the defense has been its play on the road. The top four games in yardage allowed against Cleveland have been on the road (Indianapolis, Los Angeles, Seattle, Baltimore) and five of the top six have been away from the lakefront.

We will bet that is a point of emphasis for Schwartz all week heading into Houston on Christmas Eve.

As usual, it was hilarious following social media during the game and reading that the game was over when Chicago led 17-7 heading into the fourth quarter.

When the Browns are trailing in a game, we get to a point where we think Cleveland has to get the next score to stay in a game, and we were at that point when it was 17-7. Of course, the Bears never scored again.

Flacco had turnover issues, throwing three interceptions, because, well, that’s what the Browns do. They lead the NFL in turning it over. No sense, making it easy, right?

The veteran hit Marquise Goodwin for a 57-yard pass to set up a field goal and awaken the offense. Then, he threw a perfect pass to Amari Cooper who took it in for a touchdown to tie the game.

Then David Njoku took over. After Nick Chubb was injured in week two, we felt Njoku was the next best weapon the offense had after Cooper, and we are happy to say this has been born out. The tight end caught 10 balls for 104 yards and the first Cleveland touchdown.

He now has a career high of 69 catches for 704 yards, also a career best. And his best skill is running after a catch. The man is tough to bring down.

As we said, next week’s opponent, Houston is now tied atop the AFC South standings and the game is in Houston. The Browns’ defense hasn’t been a dominant on the road this season, so this is a big test.

On the other hand, it’s hard to bet against this football team that has already overcome so much this season. All we can say is it’s December football. It’s not supposed to be easy.

Cavs Now At A Crossroad

After a four-game trip that started well in Miami, the Cleveland Cavaliers dropped the final three games and now seem to be at a crossroads. Their record has dropped to just two games over .500 at 14-12, and Friday, they received bad news.

Two of their starters, Darius Garland and Evan Mobley, will be out for extended periods due to injury, Garland with a broken jaw, and Mobley is having arthroscopic surgery on his knee. Garland will miss approximately three to four weeks, and Mobley six to eight weeks.

As we said last week, the Cavs’ season has been weird, filled with several injuries, and with extended absences of two starters, the depth will really be tested.

We have complained about the make-up of the Cleveland roster for a while now, so coach J.B. Bickerstaff will have his hands full trying to keep his team in playoff contention, because injuries or not, missing the post-season after last season’s 51-win campaign, would be a disappointment.

We would assume that the loss of Garland means the ball will be put in Donovan Mitchell’s hands, and he is averaging 5.1 assists per night, and frankly, has been better with the ball than Garland in terms of turnovers this season, averaging one less per game.

That would move Max Strus to the two guard, giving the wine and gold a more traditional sized backcourt. However, moving Strus creates an opening at the small forward spot, and therein lies the roster construction problem.

Bickerstaff likes to bring Caris LeVert off the bench, so the candidates to start at small forward would seem to be Isaac Okoro or Georges Niang. Dean Wade might have been a choice as well, but he’s probably the starter in Mobley’s spot.

You would think a player who was the fifth overall pick should be the starter, but Okoro still is not a viable option offensively, so it is difficult to give him extended minutes because opponents don’t feel the need to guard him.

So, we would probably go with Niang, because it would seem to spread the floor for Mitchell. Having Strus, Niang, and Wade on the court together could give Cleveland the ultimate floor spacing.

There is a flaw to this though, and that is Wade is nowhere near the rebounder that Mobley is. On a per 36 minute basis, Wade gets 7.5 rebounds, compared to Mobley’s 11.2.

Wade needs to show up once and for all. The organization has a much higher opinion of him than we do, and now would be a good time to see why.

We have talked about the lack of big man depth for the Cavaliers for some time now, and here we are again. For some reason, Bickerstaff seems reticent to use Tristan Thompson on a regular basis, even though the veteran is just 32-years-old.

We know Thompson is offensively challenged, but he can still defend on rebound (he gets 11.3 boards per 36 minutes). He going to have to be out there every night now, we would think.

Garland’s injury would seem to force rookie Craig Porter Jr. on the court. He’s been impressive in limited appearances, and this should give him an opportunity to see if he can adjust since defenses will see him more often.

And as for the big men, maybe we will see Damian Jones and/or Isaiah Mobley get an opportunity to see some minutes.

The Cavaliers have a top heavy roster, with five very good players (Mitchell, Garland, Jarrett Allen, Mobley, and LeVert). Now, two of those guys will be missing for a while, and they will need more from the everyone. That doesn’t mean hoisting up more shots either.

They just need everyone to do a little more. For example, Mitchell to be more of a distributor, Allen, a couple more buckets per game, etc.

If players don’t step up, the Cavs might have too deep of a hole to dig out of when Garland and Mobley get back.

Guardians’ Off-Season Moves Are Puzzling

It seems the entire “Hot Stove” portion on the Major League Baseball calendar was delayed by the whole Shohei Ohtani situation, but with the holiday season here, the norm for most teams is to have their major moves made before the calendar changes.

It has been particularly slow in Cleveland, where the offices on the corner of Ontario and Carnegie have been quiet, and when a move has been made, confusing.

The latter part of that statement is more concerning. We sometimes wish the organization would put as much effort in improving the team on the field as they do come up with reasons they can’t spend money.

For example, one of the first moves the Guards made this off-season was claiming Alfonso Rivas off waivers. Rivas has played in 167 big league games, hitting .243 with a 673 OPS. Last season, he played for San Diego and Pittsburgh, and had a 725 OPS. He did hit .332 at AAA El Paso with a 1043 OPS.

He’s a left-handed hitter (not an area of need) and plays 1B (also not an area of need) and the OF. And he’s 27 years old, and not a home run hitter. He’s also survived a bunch of roster moves where players had to be moved off the 40-man roster. That’s strange to us.

They let a serviceable starting pitcher, Cal Quantrill go rather than offer him arbitration, where he likely would have been awarded $6 million. Keep in mind this week, Kansas City signed Seth Lugo, a pitcher who pitched a career high 146 innings last year, to a contract worth $15 million per year.

A couple of days ago, they said they added depth to the rotation (depth they had with Quantrill) by signing 32-year-old Ben Lively, who had a 5.38 ERA for the Reds last year. We know Cincinnati has a hitter friendly park, but Lively was worse away from Great American Ballpark.

They claimed Christian Bethancourt, a catcher with some pop (11 homers in each of the last two seasons) from Tampa, only to deal him to Miami when they brought back Austin Hedges, a good defensive catcher who cannot hit. And they are paying Hedges more than they would have had to pay Bethancourt!

We will say the Guardians are probably the only team in baseball who can say Hedges is a better offensive option that the backup catcher they had a year ago.

The only move that makes sense was getting Scott Barlow from San Diego for Enyel De Los Santos. Barlow is a higher leverage reliever, with closer experience whereas De Los Santos kind of struggled when used in the late innings.

We wonder if a more substantial move is yet to come. There are still rumors surrounding Shane Bieber, but we think his return could be better in July if the Guardians aren’t in the race.

Right now, we can’t see the Guardians as being improved. They also seem reticent to move a couple of veterans to more key positions, such as Andres Gimenez to shortstop and Steven Kwan to centerfield, to open up spots for some hitting.

There’s still time, but the inactivity is certainly frustrating to a fan base that keeps remembering this number: 1948.

Browns Closing In On Extra Football.

For the people who complain about the play calling of Browns’ head coach Kevin Stefanski, last Sunday’s win over Jacksonville should dampen the criticism in this area.

On the opening drive, the Browns went with the big package on a 3rd and 1 from the Jaguars’ 34, and the latest Cleveland QB, veteran Joe Flacco, went play action and hit a wide-open David Njoku for a touchdown.

Then, in the fourth quarter on a 4th and 3, Stefanski went for it and called a short pass to David Bell on an all out blitz. Bell was wide open and basically trotted the 41 yards to the end zone to give the Browns a 28-14 lead.

So, when fans complain about a bad play call by the head coach, please remember he called those plays too.

Seriously though, this was a big win for the Browns, who go to 8-5 on the season. First, they ended a two-game losing streak. Second, this weekend also saw the other teams that came into the week at 7-5 lose, as Indianapolis, Houston, and Pittsburgh all dropped to 7-6, so Cleveland is now the fifth seed in the AFC.

The Browns’ defense got back to stopping the run, allowing just 58 yards rushing, the first time they held their opponent under 100 yards since the Arizona game (41). They also forced a season high four turnovers (tied with the Colts’ game), winning the turnover battle for just the third time this year, all resulting in victories.

While it is weird that the Cleveland defense seems dominant at home, and kind of pedestrian on the road, it is that unit that is the driving force of the team, particularly with all of the injuries at quarterback this season. And it was great to see them swarming to the ball on Sunday, even with injuries of their own.

The Browns also had four sacks, and surprisingly none by Myles Garrett, and they put pressure on Trevor Lawrence all game long.

Don’t minimize the special teams either. Corey Bojorquez had some booming punts, including a 72-yard effort from his own end zone which flipped the field for the defense. And we were a little anxious about trying a 55-yard field goal in the fourth quarter, but Dustin Hopkins, who has made a league leading 31 kicks, banged it through to give the Browns a 10-point advantage.

The Cleveland running game hasn’t been as productive recently, with only one effort of more than 100 yards in the last four contests. On the other hand, the Browns did gain their most yards offensively since the win over Baltimore in week 10.

It was also their second-best effort in terms of yardage this year, with only the 408 yards gained in the week two loss to Pittsburgh having more. Really, although people want the Browns to run it, we really don’t care about the method of moving the football as long as it gets moved.

It would be nice to cut down on the turnovers though. Cleveland leads the league in losing the football with 27 and have had only one game without giving it up. They have had five games with at least three turnovers, and not surprisingly, they are 1-4 in those games.

So, when they turn it over two times or fewer, they are a robust 7-1. We know the coaching staff isn’t emphasizing giving the ball away, and for the most part, they aren’t coming on risky plays.

However, this has to change in making a run to the playoffs.

The next opponent, Chicago, is coming in after a big home win against the Lions. The Browns have to continue to take care of business at home. If they do, their season will not end in Cincinnati on the first Sunday of the new year.

Cavs’ Start To Season? Weird.

As we hit the quarter pole in the NBA season, and the much awaited in-season tournament championship game (sarcasm intended), we find the Cleveland Cavaliers a bit of a weird team.

Part of it is the injuries that have plagued J.B. Bickerstaff’s squad all season. Cleveland has just two players, newcomers Max Strus and Georges Niang, who have played all 22 games thus far and only Strus has started all of them.

The Cavs currently sit at 13-9 on the year, good enough to be 6th in the Eastern Conference standings, but they have also won 9 of their last 12 games, so they are trending in a positive direction.

The have already lost six home games in 2023-24, more than any other team in the East that is above .500, and their 7-3 road record is tied with Minnesota and Oklahoma City for the best in the NBA.

Among those seven wins are quality victories at New York (6-3 at home), Philadelphia (8-3), and Miami, always a tough place to win for Cleveland.

That mark will be put to the test starting Monday when the Cavaliers travel to Orlando and then Boston for a pair of contests Tuesday and Thursday. Those teams currently have the best records in the East.

Cleveland started the season trying to push the pace, as most teams say they want to do, but have slowed things down a bit, and this has allowed them to play better on the defensive end of the floor, which has been their calling card.

They are playing faster than last season, when they ranked last in pace, as they are currently 18th. Defensively, they have dropped from first last year, to 8th right now, probably due to the faster pace, but really, anything in the top ten is very respectable.

Koby Altman tried to improve the wine and gold’s long distance shooting from a year ago by bringing in Strus and Niang, but Cleveland has actually dropped in three-point shooting percentage from 36.7% to 34.8%. They have taken about the same number per game, right around 32 per contest.

Niang, in particular, was off to a dreadful start from long distance, but over his last 10 games has knocked down 21 of 48 from beyond the arc, a 43.8% clip more in line with his career mark of 40%.

Darius Garland’s numbers in this area are way below his norm, making just 32.5% from three, and his lifetime mark is over 38%.

Donovan Mitchell is also down from a year ago at 35.7% compared to a 38.6% mark in his first year in Cleveland. We would like to see Mitchell attack more, particularly late in games.

You have to figure both of them will get it going from outside and then we can see the offensive potential of this group.

We would still like to see Altman find another solid big man at or before the trading deadline. Tristan Thompson has been better than expected when he’s played, but we don’t know if he can perform that well on a nightly basis.

He has provided solid to very good defense and rebounding when he has played but has played more than 10 minutes in just nine games so far.

We would also like to see Bickerstaff find more minutes for Craig Porter Jr. The rookie usually does well when called upon, but at times, he seems to be forgotten by the coaching staff. If he can be a solid backup at guard, that will help the depth greatly.

There is an adage that the NBA season doesn’t start until Christmas, which is only two weeks away. Quite frankly, we felt this current stretch would be tough for the Cavs, but they won the first two.

The Eastern Conference is tougher this year with the emergence of Orlando and Indiana, so the season will be a challenge for the Cavaliers. Let’s hope their best basketball is ahead of them.

Guardians With Their Annual “We Can’t Spend” Talk

There are rites of spring concerning baseball and in Cleveland, there are the rites of winter, the time right around the sports’ winter meetings when the owners of the Guardians come out and give us the reasons they cannot spend money.

It used to be attendance. Ownership would tell fans they would like to spend more money on players, but the number of paying customers prohibited that. But last season, attendance jumped from 1.3 million in 2022 to 1.8 million. So, they had to invent a new reason.

Let’s keep in mind if Cleveland sold out every game, they could draw at most 2.8 million fans.

And the current financial issues with Bally Sports was chosen. Cleveland doesn’t know if it will be their local television money, an estimated $60 million, but if the contract is dissolved, Major League Baseball will step in and give the Guardians a percentage (reportedly between 70-80%) on what they would have been paid.

The Guardians’ ownership wants you to believe those are their only sources of income when they also receive money from baseball’s national broadcast package, and they are also a recipient of a share of the luxury tax payments from those teams that spend above the salary threshold.

So safe to say, the franchise has a lot of money coming in. At this time, we would also point out that the Guardians will save money on their new manager, Steven Vogt, who replaces the highest paid skipper in the big leagues in Terry Francona. And we would also bet with only three holdovers on the coaching staff, they will save money there.

Look, the organization may feel they are better off not paying a free agent(s) big money because they think they can get production from their prospects. That would be a strategy, and although it is probably a poor one, because most prospects do not become stars, at least the fan base would know they probably aren’t looking at contending in 2024.

Our problem is the way the organization handles this, it’s all they talk about. And as a longtime fan of the team, we are tired of hearing about it. No matter how they finish a season, when it comes to hot stove season, they make sure they tell the people who cover the team about their bleak financial situation.

No one is going to force the Dolan family to sell the team. They had David Blitzer buy into the franchise but frankly we haven’t seen any difference in the way the Guardians operate.

However, we will not buy (no pun intended) that the franchise isn’t a money maker for the Dolans. No one running a business loses money year after year without making changes or selling it.

What fans care about is the ownership giving the front office and manager the resources to win, and hopefully, it results in a world title. If the current owners don’t want to do that, it’s fine, but please, stop telling us what a challenge it is for you. No one is buying it.

And stop announcing that you are not going to increase payroll for any myriad of reasons. It’s like telling your partner you are going to cheat on them before you do it. Why? To prepare them for it?

Just stop talking about your finances. It’s done just to hear yourself justify why you aren’t trying to win. Yes, you will be happy if you do win, it’s just that unnecessary means will not be done to insure it.

We are sure next year will hold a different excuse.

One Big Turnover Spoils Browns LA Trip

The Joe Flacco experience looked good for the Browns for about three and a half quarters. He directed a touchdown drive on the first possession, and overall played well, completing 23 of 44 throws for 254 yards and two touchdowns.

Unfortunately, in the fourth quarter, he threw a critical interception on the first play of a drive where Cleveland could have taken the lead.

The Browns lost to the Los Angeles Rams 36-19 in a game that was very much in doubt midway through the fourth quarter and dropped to 7-5 on the season.

It might have been the most disappointing defensive effort of the season by Cleveland, allowing the second most total yards of the season as the Rams put up 399 yards (Indianapolis had 456), but unlike the Colts games, the defense had no sacks and no turnovers.

The defense simply had no answer for Puka Nacua and his speed. He accounted for 105 of the Rams’ 279 passing yards, 70 coming on a first quarter strike to put LA on top 10-7, and he also ran two jet sweeps to make up 34 of the Rams’ 120 yards on the ground.

He was the problem the defense had no answer for. Having the Browns’ fastest defensive back, Denzel Ward, on the field would have made a difference we think.

If Myles Garrett is the defensive unit’s best player, then Ward is a close second and having him out, and Garrett obviously limited due to his shoulder issue, it shouldn’t have been a surprise the defensive had perhaps its worst game of the year.

Cleveland also had trouble running the ball for the second straight week, although it wasn’t as notable as last week because Flacco was moving the football through the air. Kareem Hunt and Pierre Strong started to get it going in the second half, but overall, they had just 87 yards rushing.

Now, we need to point out they only tried 23 running plays. We feel Kevin Stefanski has done a great job navigating yardage with four different quarterbacks, but perhaps the Browns need to lean on their ground attack more often.

Because Sunday’s contest will be one of the last games Cleveland will play in nice weather (Houston is on the road), perhaps the offensive staff will go back to establishing the running attack.

Back to Flacco. We have advocated playing Dorian Thompson-Robinson over P.J. Walker in recent weeks, but we would stay with the veteran going forward. Why? Because he gives you professional play at the position. We understand he’s not mobile, but he can still deliver the ball on time and with accuracy.

If Stefanski and the coaching staff want to have a functional offense for the rest of the year, and you can’t continue to depend on the defense, then he needs to play Joe Flacco.

And hopefully, Garrett will be healthier next week, and Ward can return to the field. That would help the defense greatly. We were bothered that no one else stepped up to make a big play though. We thought there was more depth added.

We still aren’t concerned about the season. Cleveland simply needs to win the game they should win (Bears, Jets, Bengals) and they should return to the playoffs.

However, they need the defense to get healthy. And it would help if it were cold and windy for Jacksonville this coming Sunday.