What Browns Need To Do Tonight. Besides Win

Tonight is another big test for the Cleveland Browns, as they take on Pittsburgh in a nationally televised tilt.

When you start out 2-6, virtually every game is a big test, unless you want your flickering playoff hopes extinguished.

There is no question the Browns’ playoff hopes are slim, but in our opinion, the last team in the post-season in the AFC will likely have a 9-7 record, so if Freddie Kitchens’ squad can go 6-1 here on out, and the schedule is favorable, although it is minimal, Cleveland still has life.

How do they do it?

The simple answer is to continue to play turnover free football, and that depends a lot on Baker Mayfield, who over the past three games has hit on 73 of 111 passes (65.8%) with four TD throws and just one interception.

By the quarterback rating system, two of Mayfield’s three best games have come in the last two weeks. That’s why the growing criticism of the second year pro is puzzling to us.

The Steelers live on turnovers. They rank second in the NFL to New England is causing them, and if you remember when the Browns played the Patriots, the Cleveland turnovers early (three in the first quarter) dug a trench the brown and orange could not get out of.

Pittsburgh ranks 11th in total defense, 10th against the pass and 14th vs. the run. The Browns rank 15th in rushing offense, but second in average yards per attempt, so starting the game showing you can run the ball would be beneficial to Cleveland.

However, what that statistic means is Kitchens and offensive coordinator Todd Monken have been reticent to running the ball, which is another problem altogether, particularly now with both Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt available.

Offensively, the Steelers are challenged without their two time Super Bowl winning quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. They are 6th from the bottom of the NFL in passing yards and 14th in running the ball.

They rank right around the middle in the league in turning the ball over, but the Browns have been woeful in that category ranking fifth worst in the NFL with just nine in the first nine games.

They intercepted just four passes for the season.

Pittsburgh is an opportunistic football team, so not to be redundant, the Browns must limit their opportunities, and that means being careful with the football, which could be difficult on a frigid night.

Unfortunately, these Browns haven’t been the most patient of teams in terms of taking what defenses give them, although they have improved over the past two games.

Mayfield is aggressive by nature, and Kitchens seems to like using exotic motions and plays at seemingly the wrong time. Both tendencies need to be stifled this week, as the conservative approach is needed.

The Steelers are 3rd in the NFL in sacking the QB, and we know the Browns offensive line isn’t the most solid unit on the team. So, a good strategy might be the throw on early downs and set up shorter yardage situations on second and third down.

The good news for the Browns is although the Steelmen have a very good defense, Cleveland has already faced five defense statistically better in New England (1st in total yardage), San Francisco (2nd), Buffalo (3rd), Denver (4th), and the Rams (10th).

That’s right. The Browns have faced the top four defenses in the NFL through the first nine games.

There can be no patting themselves on the back after last Sunday’s win over the Bills. This will be another tough affair for Freddie Kitchens and his football team.

Holding onto the ball and not allowing big plays could be the determining factor tonight.

Browns Need To Eliminate Distractions

At 2-6, the Cleveland Browns need to pull in the reins a bit on the free speech that goes on in Berea.

Freddie Kitchens needs to send a message to his team. It doesn’t have to be given harshly and it doesn’t have to be given through the media, but he needs to make sure every single player on the roster has one thing in mind: Winning!

Let’s stop discussions about getting the ball to Odell Beckham Jr., and what shoes he is wearing and getting fined by the wardrobe police.

No more talk about Baker Mayfield’s facial hair and how many times per day he shaves.

Can the discussions about who is calling the plays and who will call the plays going forward.

Kitchens likes to say if you don’t wear orange and brown, you don’t matter. Well, you know what else doesn’t matter? Any of this crap.

Someone needs to step up and tell everyone not to feed into the media’s obsession with some of this stuff.

When Beckham speaks during the week and is asked about his targets? He should reply with touches don’t matter unless a victory comes with it. The same for Jarvis Landry.

Mayfield needs to have the same mantra. Tell the reporters that he doesn’t care if he throws five passes in the game as long as they win.

And any questions about anything else should be met with the response of “I’m here to talk about football”.

We have a new appreciation for Bill Belichick and his “we’re on the Cincinnati” speak. There is too much talking about the previous week and other topics that have nothing to do with winning.

Notice the media doesn’t talk to Nick Chubb a lot, and the running back is probably the best player on the offensive side of the ball.

Why don’t they talk to him? Because he doesn’t say anything.

We think about the movie Bull Durham when Crash Davis (Kevin Costner) talks to Nuke LaLoosh (Tim Robbins) about his fungused shower shoes. Davis tells him when you have shoes like that and win 20 games in the major leagues you are colorful. In the minors, it’s just gross.

If the Browns were 6-2 right now, Mayfield’s facial hair would be fun, Beckham’s uniform violations would be rebellious, and no one would be questioning who should be calling the plays.

But they are 2-6, so maybe, just maybe it’s time for everyone to just shut up, play football, and win some games.

When John Dorsey took over as GM, one thing he wanted to do was keep things in house, meaning no more leaks to the national media. Kitchens should do the same with the locker room.

With the record they have, the Browns need to get back to basics. Think about how many exotic fakes and motion packages they used last week in Denver.

Defensively, they seemed unwilling to blitz at QB playing in his first NFL game.

We have said in the past that sometimes the obvious thing to do is also the right thing to do.

For the Cleveland Browns, everybody should be on the same page and they clearly are not. Winning cures a lot of evils. That’s what every single person in the Browns’ organization should be focusing on from here on out.

Assigning Blame? Don’t Forget Dorsey And Others.

We said Sunday’s game at Denver was a “must win” for the Cleveland Browns, and they lost.

Now, with the playoffs being a extremely vague possibility, we are sure that week by week, people will be picking over the coaching of Freddie Kitchens, and pointing out things that should get him fired.

However, no one focuses on two other people who should share the blame with the head coach, and they would be GM John Dorsey and defensive coordinator Steve Wilks.

When the Browns started winning last season, there were some who were quick to get close to Dorsey and be his friend. Perhaps that has clouded their view of the GM.

When Dorsey traded for Odell Beckham Jr. last spring, he signaled that the franchise was all in going for a playoff spot this season. However, he was doing so with a rookie head coach.

Unlike the situation in Los Angeles with Sean McVay, who has former head coach and long time NFL assistant Wade Phillips as a mentor, the only former head guy on Kitchens’ staff is Wilks, who guided Arizona last season.

There are coaches with a lot of experience on the staff in James Campen (15 seasons), Stump Mitchell (16), and Wilks (14), but wouldn’t it have been better for Kitchens if a guy who has had some multiple years as a head man in the NFL that he can talk to every day?

There is something to say about continuity too. The Browns finished last year winning five of their last seven, and part of that was the play of QB Baker Mayfield, who thrived under the offense called by Kitchens.

Yes, Kitchens still calls the plays, but bringing in an offensive coordinator in Todd Monken, who runs an entirely different scheme, seems to have halted the momentum built a year ago.

This is clearly not the same attack as last season, and we do wonder if there has been any considerations within the offense to play to the personnel’s strengths.

We seem to remember a lot of slants run for Beckham in New York, trying to use his ability to run after the catch to advantage. We’ve seen almost none of that with the Browns.

And by the way, the trade for Beckham seems to have the quarterback trying to keep him happy as well. Mayfield didn’t seem to force a lot of balls into coverage last year.

More than a few analysts have said perhaps the second year quarterback wasn’t ready to play with a big time wide out like Beckham.

Another question is the choice of Wilks as defensive coordinator. Wilks seems to want to play a lot of zone coverage, but Dorsey seemed to go out of his way to draft cover cornerbacks in Denzel Ward and Greedy Williams, and then invested a lot in the defensive line to pressure opposing quarterbacks.

If that was the intent, then Wilks isn’t making the best use of the tools he has either.

Kitchens is getting a lot of blame for being in charge of the island of misfit toys that has been assembled by Dorsey. It seems like the GM just decided to bring in a bunch of talent and expected a rookie head coach to make them fit.

That might be okay in other sports, but in football, the players have to play as a cohesive unit, and if one person is in the wrong spot, or freelancing, it screws everything up.

Perhaps that’s the story of the 2019 Cleveland Browns.

Browns Need To Return To ’18 Formula

Penalties and turnovers. That’s the mantra of Browns’ coach Freddie Kitchens in terms of what needs to improve if Cleveland wants to start winning football games again.

We certainly feel the number of pre-snap penalties has to be eliminated, you simply cannot have two players in motion, jumping offsides, and we will add the inordinate amount of illegal linemen downfield and expect to win in the NFL.

We spoke a couple of weeks ago about “zero defects”, and that’s what the Browns should be striving for.

The turnovers are quite a contrast to 2018, though. Last year, Cleveland won the turnover battle on the season at +7, causing 31 turnovers, almost two per game.

This year, it’s just the opposite, with the Browns being a minus nine. That’s a 16 turnover swing, and a good reason the team is struggling at 2-5.

Moreover, the offense just looks different, and we would have to question the hiring of Todd Monken as offensive coordinator because in our opinion, his “system” doesn’t fit the skill set of the personnel, particular Baker Mayfield.

When he was the OC at Tampa Bay, the Buccaneers had the most interceptions in the NFL a year ago, and ranked 20th and 27th in his other two seasons.

Perhaps his offense is high risk, high reward?

We found something else interesting about the passing game between 2018 and 2019, and that is the number of receivers being involved.

Last season, the Browns had five receivers that averaged 2.5 catches per game: Jarvis Landry, David Njoku, Rashard Higgins, Duke Johnson, and Antonio Callaway.

This season, that number has dropped to three: Odell Beckham Jr., Landry, and Nick Chubb. Part of what made Mayfield special in his rookie season was his ability to spread the ball around.

That doesn’t seem to be the case in 2019. Perhaps he feels obligated to get the ball to the All Pro Beckham as some have suggested. Or maybe the coaching staff is telling Mayfield to make a concerted effort to get the ball to the playmakers.

Either way, we would just like to see a return to a year ago.

The closest performance to the offense run last season with Kitchens as the coordinator was the Baltimore game, and surprise, surprise, the Browns put up 40 points, 30% of their season total.

That day, Mayfield hit seven different receivers, and completed 20 of 30 passes for 342 yards with a touchdown and an interception.

Five different receivers caught two or more throws, led by Landry’s eight for 167 yards.

It is by far Mayfield’s best game of the year, finishing with a 102.4 passer rating (a stat we hate, by the way). His next best game was vs. the Jets (83.6 rating).

Another thing we have noticed in the former Heisman Trophy winner’s game this year is his reluctance to pull the ball down and run. While he’s never going to be Lamar Jackson, last year Mayfield had 39 carries in his 14 games.

This year? Just 9 runs in the 7 games. Sometimes, it’s better to step up in the pocket and gain 2-3 yards than to take a sack or throw the ball away.

Last season, Mayfield looked very decisive, this year, he looks confused. Perhaps it’s a new system, maybe not.

Whatever the reason, it’s time to get back to basics and it starts this Sunday in Denver.

The Browns should treat this as a new beginning.

Not The Time To Fire Kitchens

It is interesting to see both Browns’ fans and some of those covering the team have gone to the default mode with the team off to a 2-5 start.

Fire the coach.

This is not to say Freddie Kitchens is blameless in the early season struggles, but he isn’t the only person who should be shouldering the blame either.

First, the schedule has turned out to be more brutal than originally thought. Really, outside of the opener vs. Tennessee, have the Browns had a bad loss this season?

Their other four losses are to two teams who are undefeated (New England and San Francisco) and another to the defending NFC Champs, the Rams. The fourth is to a 5-2 Seattle squad.

Turnovers killed the team in all of the losses, but outside of the 49ers contest, the Browns didn’t get blown out in any of them.

And we realize “not getting blown out” isn’t the bar this team set for itself in the off-season.

We also don’t think Kitchens is coaching the team to commit penalties. We are sure it is emphasized on a weekly basis to not make the pre-snap infractions that have been all too frequent for this football team.

However, Kitchens and his staff should start having consequences for these types of penalties. Players should start to lose playing time or even roster spots if they cannot do simple things like know the snap count or line up in the correct position.

Look, we aren’t saying Nick Chubb should’ve been benched for his two fumbles, but guys who are reserves shouldn’t be allowed to do these things.

We think about Antonio Callaway, who seems to be frequently out of position or dropping passes. That’s a good enough reason to give Rashard Higgins more playing time at that spot.

We hate to say this, but the biggest reason to see this through is you can’t keep firing coaches after one year. Bringing in a new coaching staff would mean Baker Mayfield would be on his third coach and third (or fourth, depending on your point of view) offensive coordinator.

You have to see this through.

The nit picking about the challenge flags and things Kitchens says isn’t relevant. Whether the head coach didn’t challenge the pick play called offensive pass interference instead of saving it for a possible fumble recovery later had no bearing on the final score Sunday.

As for press conferences, Kitchens has shown he isn’t going to criticize players in the media (except for Higgins), and his answers should be taken with that in mind.

We look at the rest of the schedule and think the Browns will be the more talented team in all nine games, and that means nothing on the surface, because they have to execute.

This Sunday’s game in Denver is a must win. No, it doesn’t eliminate Cleveland from playoff contention mathematically, but they have to end a three game losing streak and beat a team with the same record, but without the same strength of schedule.

Winning next Sunday, and then following up with a win at home vs. Buffalo can get this train back on the tracks. Victories breed confidence. We saw that last season.

But it starts with baby steps. Take care of business against the Broncos. Play smart, don’t turn the ball over, keep the penalties to a minimum.

That should be the mantra this week. Do those things, and you will win.

Firing the coach? That doesn’t accomplish anything.

Winning Is Habit Browns Have To Develop

The bye week is over and the Cleveland Browns return to the gridiron rested and ready to go this Sunday.

That’s the good news. The bad news is they play the defending Super Bowl champion New England Patriots, who also happen to be undefeated this season.

The narrative surrounding the Browns seems to change every week, and since they were off last Sunday, the discussion is how can Freddie Kitchens’ team dare compete with the Baltimore Ravens, who sit atop the AFC North standings at 5-2.

After all, the Ravens beat Seattle on the road, a Seahawks team that came into the game at 5-1 after beating the Browns in Cleveland the week before.

Apparently, people have forgotten the Browns’ 40-25 beating of the Ravens in Baltimore just a few weeks before. We guess the Ravens improved by leaps and bounds in that three week span.

We aren’t taking away anything from Baltimore’s win in Seattle, it was damn impressive. However, not overreact to that contest either.

NOTE: We understand because football is played just once per week, there is a natural overemotional reaction to every game.

We were thinking though, what would the Browns’ record be if they had played the schedule Baltimore has played to date?

The Ravens opened up with the Dolphins and Cardinals, the latter in Kyler Murray’s second professional start. It’s easy to project wins in both games for either Baltimore or Cleveland.

Baltimore’s next two games were against the Chiefs and the Browns, so there is one loss in there, and those were followed by division games vs. Pittsburgh and Cincinnati. Since the Steelers were using their third string QB and the Bengals are bad, it’s not a reach to think that’s two wins for the Browns.

And again, credit to the Ravens for beating Seattle, which the Browns couldn’t do, even at First Energy Stadium.

So, the Browns would be 4-3 at least if they had played Baltimore’s schedule.

However, the biggest thing the fast start did for Baltimore is provide confidence. Winning early in the season breeds confidence. You saw that in the second half of the game in Seattle this past Sunday.

In the same vein, the Browns’ 2-4 start has the players and coaching staff questioning themselves a bit. That plays in close games late.

Remember how the team (and the fans, for that matter) felt last season after Hue Jackson was fired and they started to win. Suddenly, the big plays are made when they are needed.

And no doubt, it helps the Ravens that John Harbaugh is one of the five best coaches in the NFL. That is no slight on Freddie Kitchens.

Yes, the Ravens’ schedule gets tougher. Four of their next five games are against the Patriots, Texans, Rams, and 49ers.

After this Sunday, the Browns will have played three of those teams already, and they don’t have Houston on the slate.

But let’s say Cleveland loses this week to fall to 2-5 (which isn’t a stretch). Yes, they play Denver on the road, which is a winnable game, but it would be coming off a three game losing streak.

That means it will not be easy. It’s more difficult for teams to break losing streaks, particular for a group of players that hasn’t won together, or a franchise that hasn’t had a winning season since 2007.

So, let’s not pencil in a bunch of wins in the second half just yet.

Winning is a learned skill. The early schedule, and the early performance have not helped the Browns education.

Questioning Baker? Way Too Soon.

There is no question Baker Mayfield hasn’t played to the level he finished last season at.

His completion percentage has dropped from 63.8% to 56.6% and his interception rate has increased from 2.9% to 5.6%, almost double of his rookie season.

However, talk that he isn’t the answer to the Browns’ decade long quarterback issues is way too premature.

First, last season’s number were compiled over 14 games, 13 of them starts. This year, he has played just six games. So, there is a decent chance some of his numbers can improve over the next eight games.

This isn’t to say Mayfield has been blameless in the Browns’ difficulties in the early going. His interception just before halftime vs. Seattle was reckless considering the situation.

And yes, we know Jarvis Landry got a hand on the throw, but their were three defenders in the area, and considering the score at the time (Browns were leading 20-12), the better decision would have been to throw the ball in the seats and live to play another down.

On the other hand, Dontrell Hilliard and Antonio Callaway should have held on to passes each of the last two weeks, instead of popping them up into hands of defenders.

Quite frankly, it’s way too soon to jump off the bandwagon.

Mayfield’s biggest issue in our opinion is he is too aggressive at times. That’s a good thing in most football circumstances, but when he learns when to pull back on the throttle at times, we feel everyone will see a much more efficient (and better) player.

Some guys never get this, so we aren’t saying it will happen for sure.

What we do know is in the last seven games in 2018, Mayfield was sacked three times. Total. This year, in six games, he has been tackled for loss 16 times. That’s a huge difference, and most definitely could be a reason for diminished stats.

How many times have you heard opposing coaches say a quarterback can’t hurt them if he’s laying flat on his back.

How did the Giants beat the Patriots in two Super Bowls? The put pressure on Tom Brady. And as former Browns’ executive Ernie Accorsi has said, the two most important positions on the field are the QB and a guy who can get to the opposing QB.

No coincidence that when the Browns had the first overall picks in both 2017 and 2018 they took Myles Garrett and Mayfield.

What we don’t see, and this leads us to believe this is a blip on the radar, is a passer not being able to throw guys open, or missing wide open receivers.

Mayfield has had two games where he has hit over 65% of his throws this season (vs. Houston and vs. Baltimore).

And he’s not dinking and dunking either. The former Heisman Trophy winner ranks third in the league in average yards per completion at 13.4, behind only Patrick Mahomes and Jameis Winston.

Also, of the 10 worst pass defenses statistically, the Browns have faced one, Baltimore.

Conversely, they’ve faced two of the top 10 squads: San Francisco and Tennessee. So, Mayfield has seen more real good defenses than real bad ones.

Browns Have Plenty To Fix During Week Off.

Back in the late 1960’s, when the Browns were heading into a playoff game, the late sports editor of The Plain Dealer, Hal Lebovitz used to talk about “zero defects”, meaning the football team needed to stay away from mistakes in these big games.

We thought about that as we watched Sunday afternoon, when the Browns squandered a 20-6 lead and fell to 2-4 after a 32-28 loss to Seattle.

Freddie Kitchens’ squad is second in the NFL in turnovers on the season with 14, sandwiched in between the New York Giants and Tampa Bay, two teams who didn’t come into the season with big playoff aspirations.

And the Browns also are tied for the league lead in penalties (with Atlanta), and they have accumulated the most yards penalized to date.

You put those two things together, and it is amazing the Browns have won two games.

It is difficult for a coach to tell his team not to commit turnovers and still have them be aggressive, but in the past two games, interceptions before halftime have hurt the Browns badly.

This past Sunday, Baker Mayfield’s pick with a 20-12 lead and under two minutes to go was a terrible decision. The intended receiver, Jarvis Landry, was surrounded by defenders. With the score in his favor, the quarterback should throw the ball in Lake Erie instead of trying to fit one in.

At the very least, Cleveland should’ve went into the half with a 23-12 lead.

Now, it wasn’t Mayfield’s fault the defense let Seattle go 88 yards to cut the lead to 20-18 before intermission.

After a promising start to the season, the defense has been bad the past three weeks, allowing at least 175 yards rushing in each contest.

Here is a current list of the worst teams in the NFL against the run:

Cincinnati (0-6)
Miami (0-5)
Kansas City (4-2)
Cleveland (2-4)
Washington (1-5)

Another old adage for football teams is if you can’t run the ball and stop the run, it’s tough to win, and that holds true even in today’s pass happy NFL.

You can see from this list, you have to have an overwhelming offense to overcome not being able to stop teams from running the ball, and the Chiefs have lost two straight because their opponents have controlled the clock and played keep away.

Kitchens said during training camp the defensive front might be the strength of the team, but right now it looks far from that, and as for the pass rush, the Browns rank 4th, but it seems like if it isn’t Myles Garrett (9) applying the pressure, it simply isn’t there.

Cleveland is only in the middle of the pack in terms of quarterback pressures.

We understand it’s a pretty simplistic viewpoint, but it’s clear these are the two areas to clean up during the bye week.

The defense has to be better against the ground game. They cannot let opponents control the line of scrimmage and gash them for big yardage.

Offensively, they have to hold on to the ball, you cannot continue to turn it over at this rate and win football games.

It has been a brutal schedule to be sure. Cleveland has played two of the best five teams in the NFL thus far (San Francisco and Seattle) and will play another one (New England) in their next game.

The team currently leading the division, Baltimore, has to play the 49ers and Seahawks, as well as the Rams.

So, the division is still in play.

But the Browns have to get into “zero defects” mode. If they can, this season will still have a long way to go.

Browns Offensive Plan Seems Inconsistent.

There has been no NFL team more schizophrenic than the Cleveland Browns in 2019, and because they are still a very inexperienced group, we should have expected that.

It seems like every week Freddie Kitchens and his coaching staff are trying to reinvent themselves, and that’s why we are seeing results that resemble a roller coaster.

For example, the Browns were very successful in their win vs. Baltimore running the ball and throwing quick hitting short passes, for the most part. Yet, against San Francisco, a team with a very good front four, they decided to throw the ball downfield early.

After the pass by Odell Beckham Jr. on the game’s first play, three of Baker Mayfield’s next four passes were considered “deep throws” according to the play by play on NFL.com.

None were completed, one was intercepted, and Cleveland was lucky the turnover didn’t turn into points.

It seemed like a curious game plan to say the least.

We thought going into the game the Browns might be better off calling some short passes on early downs to gain the down and distance advantage since the 49ers are very good up front.

Get into 2nd and 4 or 3rd and 3 situations instead of long distance situations where the San Francisco pass rush can pin their ears.

Keep with manageable down and distances. However, here are the first few distances the Browns had to cover on third down on Monday night:

3rd & 13: Deep pass to Ricky Seals-Jones (incomplete)
3rd & 7: Baker Mayfield sacked
3rd & 3: Mayfield fumbled (no short pass options open)
3rd & 6: 12 yard pass to Jarvis Landry for a first down.
3rd & 12: incomplete pass

Hall of Fame wide receiver Cris Carter said he thought the Browns were trying to run their offense to keep people happy. It appeared they were forcing the ball to Antonio Callaway, just returning from suspension.

Mayfield’s first interception was intended for the second year receiver.

And the first quarter seemed to be more about getting Beckham involved. The first play was a pass from Beckham to Landry, and the second was an incomplete pass to OBJ.

Later in the first quarter was another long throw to Beckham and a reverse for him too.

It certainly seems like the coaching staff was trying to feature the former Giant after he caught just two passes last week. Was he complaining about not getting the ball? No one has reported anything like that.

Mayfield doesn’t seem to have a ton of confidence in the offensive line’s pass blocking, so why not run some short passes early and run the ball to take the pressure off of them. Putting them in long yardage situations just exacerbates the problem.

The weird thing is the inconsistency in the play calling from week to week. The Browns had a lot of success the week before using short, quick passes and then went away from that against San Francisco.

Did the 49ers take it away from them? It’s doubtful that early in the game, because they didn’t seem to try any of those plays.

And the longer passes seem to play against the weakness of the offensive line, longer developing plays seem to put more pressure on that group.

Right now, the Browns need someone to say this is how we are going to play and then implement that plan on a weekly basis. It’s called having an identity.

Hopefully they will start to develop one.

A Week Changes A Lot For The Browns

Everyone can relax, at least for a week.

The Cleveland Browns, who were described as disappointing by more than a few pundits, went into Baltimore and punched the Ravens in the mouth, leaving with a 40-25 victory and now sit atop the AFC North at 2-2.

Maybe the Browns did read the press clippings and got a little full of themselves. Their coach was vilified by many as being over his head, he got his job because Baker Mayfield liked him.

However, on Sunday the Browns looked like the team that finished the season in 2018. They did mix in some trickery, a long pass thrown by Odell Beckham Jr., and an shovel pass to Jarvis Landry which turned into an option play. But they were a power team, rushing for 193 yards (yes, 88 came on one run), and overall rolled up over 500 yards.

That’s why you don’t form opinions on NFL teams after two weeks, three weeks, or even four weeks.

Folks were talking about how good the Ravens looked in their first two games, apparently not realizing they were against the Dolphins and Cardinals, neither of whom have won a game in 2019.

Meanwhile, the Browns two losses have come against Tennessee (2-2) and Los Angeles (3-1). Look, we aren’t declaring Freddie Kitchens’ team as Super Bowl contenders, we are merely saying we thought Cleveland could be the best team in the AFC North going into the year, and we aren’t changing our minds.

And the Browns are nicked up too. David Njoku is out for several weeks, and the four guys in the starting defensive secondary have collectively played one game (by Damarious Randall) in the past two weeks.

The loss of Denzel Ward and Greedy Williams perhaps didn’t matter as much against Baltimore because they likely would have played a lot a zone to keep tabs on Ravens’ QB Lamar Jackson, but when they return, the defense, which has performed very well, could and should be better.

Still, in the NFL you are only as good as your next game, and the Browns have to travel to San Francisco to take on the 49ers, one of the remaining unbeaten team, on Monday night.

Kyle Shanahan’s team has compiled a 3-0 record beating Pittsburgh and Cincinnati, that have combined to win one game, but they did beat Tampa Bay, who if not for a missed short field goal against the Giants, would be 3-1.

Much like the Ravens on Sunday, the Browns’ defense will be the toughest one faced by the Niners, so it is a game the Browns could win before they head home to take on another NFC West foe in Seattle, in their last game before the bye week.

The Browns played like they were supposed to on Sunday.

Did they make some mistakes, sure, but all teams do, perfect games aren’t played in the NFL. The victory showed the team that both the fans and the national media fell in love with in the second half of last season, was still there.

Now the challenge is to keep it going, and follow up that performance with another one next Monday night. That’s what playoff teams do. They show up every week.

That’s what Kitchens and his players need to do going forward.