Pettine’s Loyalty Bites Him Today

Normally, when a defense forces four turnovers and scores two touchdowns at home, you can expect a victory.

The Cleveland Browns did just that today, yet still lost to the Indianapolis Colts, 25-24 at First Energy Stadium to drop their record to 7-6, and the light showing the brown and orange’s playoff hopes in flickering at best.

Early in the week, coach Mike Pettine showed his faith in Brian Hoyer by having his remain as the starting quarterback, but once the game begin and Hoyer turned it over in the red zone after a four play drive in which the Browns had excellent field position (they took over at the Indy 46), Pettine backtracked.

The play calling was such that the coaching staff was trying to protect Hoyer from committing more errors.

If you are going to do that, then he should have just played Johnny Manziel.

Cleveland left points on the board all day long. In the first half, they started drives on their own 45, the Colts’ 46, and their own 35 yard lines, and scored no points.

The had just one scoring drive all day long, that late in the second quarter when the key play was a 27 yard toss to Travis Benjamin. That may sound good, but on the previous play, Hoyer missed a wide open Taylor Gabriel overthrowing him by 1on yards. An accurate throw there results in a touchdown.

That gives the Browns a 14-7 lead at halftime, the other score coming when Andrew Luck was sacked and fumbled, which was recovered in the end zone by Craig Robertson, who was all over the field today, for six points.

For the second straight week, the defense forced a turnover on the first drive of the second half, when Joe Haden forced a fumble which Paul Kruger recovered at the Indianapolis 38 yard line.

No points resulted, as the Colts forced a punt.

The defense, magnificent all day, took matters into their own hands again when rookie CB Justin Gilbert picked off Luck and raced 23 yards for a touchdown. That was as good as it got, a 21-7 Cleveland advantage.

Another interception early in the fourth quarter, this one by Jim Leonhard, who had a sack as well, give the Browns the ball on the Colts’ 23 yard line. A touchdown would have given the Browns a 28-19 lead with 12 minutes left.

The offense couldn’t move it again and Cleveland settled for a Billy Cundiff field goal keeping it a one possession game at 24-19.

Hoyer completed just 14 of 31 throws for 140 yards and two interceptions, the last on the penultimate play of the game, extinguishing any chance of the comeback win.

The defense gave Pettine every chance to win the game, the offense simply didn’t take advantage. Hoyer was struggling so much that it wouldn’t have been a surprise if Manziel would’ve started the second half, but the coach stuck to his guns.

However, he shot himself in the foot.

More on the defense, which seemed to be on the field the entire second half. Robertson and Leonhard were already mentioned, but Joe Haden and Buster Skrine were great today, and Barkevious Mingo deflected a pass and had a sack.

The way the entire unit played, they deserved to come away with the win.

The offense was simply not up to par with their teammates on the other side of the ball, nor was Cundiff, who missed another mid-range kick, this one from 40 yards.

The guess here is the Browns will have a new field goal kicker next week against the Bengals.

That will go along with their new quarterback, because if Pettine thinks about what’s best for his football team, he will give the nod to Manziel in the last home game.

Yes, the Browns are still in a race for the post-season, but they now need to win every game remaining on the schedule. They showed today they are capable of that, but they need the offense to help.

Hoyer played the first 11 games because he gave the Browns the best chance for success. We don’t think you can say that any more.

Hoyer’s Lack Of Production Means It’s Time for Manziel

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you know that one of our central theories in evaluating players is the “can’t do any worse” theory.

Simply put, when looking at a veteran player’s performance, you have to determine whether a young player could do any worse than the incumbent, because it isn’t a stretch to believe the young player will get better with age and experience.

That’s where we are with the Cleveland Browns and their quarterback situation.

In the first nine games this season, Brian Hoyer provided stability at the position. No, he wasnt’ Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, or Aaron Rodgers, but he moved the team and protected the football, leading the Browns to a 6-3 record, one far better than most figured at the beginning of the season.

He threw 10 touchdown passes and just four interceptions in those nine contests.

In the last four games, something has changed. Hoyer has become turnover prone and his inaccuracy has become a huge problem. He’s thrown just one TD pass and six interceptions in those three games. His completion percentage, never high even when he wasn’t turning the ball over, is a paltry 50.8% over that span, which has resulted in two losses.

We understand that players have bad games, but the good ones rebound with a solid game the following week. When a player like Hoyer, who really doesn’t have a proven track record in the NFL has three straight mediocre games, you have to question whether or not he is the guy to lead the team going forward.

And it’s not only protecting the ball either. Hoyer isn’t taking advantage of the turnovers his defense is creating for him.

Against Atlanta, the Browns’ defense handed him the ball twice in Falcon territory and in both cases, Cleveland could only muster a field goal.

And Sunday versus the Bills, Joe Haden picked off Kyle Orton on the second play of the second half, giving the Browns the ball on the Buffalo 30-yard line. This time, the offense was forced to punt the ball away when Hoyer took a critical sack.

That’s the kind of performance you would expect from an average or below average player at the position. And because of that, the Browns need to find out if Johnny Manziel can be a difference maker.

We have said all along that the quarterback who gives the Browns the best chance to win should be the guy who plays, which is what Mike Pettine has always said. Right now, do you really think Manziel gives Cleveland less of a chance of winning?

With all things being equal, why not play the younger, more athletic player? Manziel has more upside and quite frankly, why not see what you have in a first round draft pick.

Had Hoyer been playing at the same level he was during the first half of the season, it would be ridiculous to make such a change in the middle of a post-season race, and make no mistake, despite not having the advantage in the tie breaking scenarios, the brown and orange are right in the thick of the playoff chase.

However, the offense has bogged down and the Browns need to score points to win.

Still, offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan and Pettine need to tell Manziel that possession of the football is a precious thing, and stress to him that the Cleveland formula for winning is the way they played during the first eight games, and that is mistake free/turnover free football.

If you can get the best of what Hoyer did in the first half of the season with Manziel’s arm and mobility, it may be just what the doctor ordered for the Browns.

The time is here. Manziel should get the start against Indianapolis at home this Sunday.

Browns Loss Sure To Be Overshadowed.

The Cleveland Browns were in trouble at halftime even though they were leading 3-0 over the Buffalo Bills at Ralph Wilson Stadium.

Why? Because they pretty much dominated the half and yet had only a three-point lead. Billy Cundiff missed a 37-yard field goal, his third miss inside 40 yards in the last three games.

The Bills had only one sustained drive, and that resulted in Jim Leonhard’s interception in the end zone.

Otherwise, the Browns controlled the game. They had two drives of 15 plays and yet put only three points on the scoreboard.

Once the second half started, once again Cleveland made big plays yet couldn’t do anything.

Bills’ QB Kyle Orton’s second half of the half was intercepted by Joe Haden, giving the brown and orange the ball on the Buffalo 30 yard line.

But the offense could do nothing and a sack of Brian Hoyer resulted in the Browns having to punt, thus getting no points out of the turnover.

And that was really the story of the game. Buffalo got 10 points off of the three Cleveland turnovers, while the Browns didn’t or couldn’t take advantage of the Bills’ two.

Yet, all anyone will be talking about is who will start at quarterback for the Browns next week at home against Indianapolis, because after Hoyer’s second pick, his fifth in the last two games without a touchdown, coach Mike Pettine decided to give first round draft pick Johnny Manziel a shot.

And the rookie took advantage on his first drive, moving the Browns down the field and getting into the end zone himself on a 10-yard run.

He looked poised and in charge, telling players to get in the correct position. He didn’t look like he was unsure at all.

The next time Cleveland got the ball, he looked like a rookie, almost fumbling (the officials ruled his arm going forward) and throwing a 5-yard pass on 4th down and 6, thereby turning the ball over to Buffalo.

Still, we can understand Pettine’s decision.

Hoyer’s chief attribute this season was not making the big mistake and in the last two games he has committed five turnovers, putting undo pressure on the Cleveland defense.

If he’s not going to take care of the football, why not go with the guy with the better arm and more mobility.

That’s not to say that Manziel should be the starter next Sunday. It could be that Pettine and offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan was sending a message to Hoyer that carelessness cannot and will not be tolerated.

Or perhaps the coaching staff feels Manziel is ready to play after watching 11 games from the sidelines, and his time is now.

It’s a delicate decision because only Cincinnati won in the AFC North today, meaning the Browns are still tied for second at 7-5 with the Steelers and Ravens, and don’t forget, the Bengals come here in two weeks.

There is no doubt that whatever Pettine decides it will over analyzed and over discussed.

Hoyer needs to have a strong running game to play well, and the Bills put eight and nine men in the box regularly, determined to stop the run.

Isaiah Crowell had just 29 yards in 17 carries, and even though Terrance West had 32 in seven attempts, his fumble gave the Bills a 14-3 lead when it was returned for a touchdown. Cleveland gained just 2.8 yards in 26 attempts.

On defense, Joe Haden made life miserable for rookie WR Sammy Watkins, who caught just three passes for 11 yards. After a slow start to the season, Haden is showing again why he is an elite cornerback.

Now, the season is into the last quarter, and the Browns, despite today’s loss are right in the thick of the playoff race. So, while fans may want to look toward the future with Manziel, Pettine still wants to win games. He now faces the controversial decision of just who gives him the best chance to do that.

Turnovers and Not Stopping Run = Recipes for Defeat

After the Cleveland Browns’ convincing victory last Thursday night in Cincinnati, many people started convincing themselves that Mike Pettine’s team was one of the better teams in the AFC.

The reality is that yes, the Browns are a good team, an up and coming squad, but they are like most NFL teams in that if they make a bunch of mistakes, they could lose to anybody as well.

That’s what happened against Jacksonville, and it happened today in a 23-7 loss to the Houston Texans at First Energy Stadium.

If there is a recipe for losing in the NFL, what happened today could be considered as the formula.

First, lose the turnover battle. Cleveland has been very stingy in turning the football over today, but the Browns lost this category today, 2 to 1, and the game probably turned on Isaiah Crowell’s fumble on the Texans’ 19-yard line with 3:11 left in the second quarter in a tie game.

Instead of taking a 10-7 or 14-7 lead late in the half with the Browns getting the ball to start the second half, the defense let Houston go 78 yards in ten plays for a TD and a 14-7 halftime advantage.

That was huge.

Second, you have to be able to stop the running game. Houston didn’t feel the effect of not having Arian Foster today, as his back up, rookie Alfred Blue gained 156 yards in 36 carries, and in total, the Texans ran for 213 yards for the game. It is doubtful many teams win in the NFL allowing 200 yards rushing.

This has been a problem all year, and with DL Phil Taylor done for the season with a knee injury, it isn’t going to get any better. GM Ray Farmer, Pettine, and defensive coordinator Jim O’Neil have to fix this and they have to fix this before next Sunday’s game against the Falcons.

And lastly, you have to do well on third down. The Browns converted just 3 out of 15 third downs on the day. They simply couldn’t stay on the field.

These were the most glaring problems.

The Browns’ can’t have Brian Hoyer throwing the football 50 times a game and hope to win, and today’s game bears that out. Hoyer had his accuracy problems again, completing only 20 of those throws for 330 yards.

The special teams were bad too. Billy Cundiff shanked a 38-yard field goal. Christian Yount snapped a ball over Spencer Lanning’s head on a punt, Marlon Moore fumbled a kickoff return, but was ruled down, and there was a holding penalty on another kickoff return by Moore that he took to the house.

Defensively, besides not being able to stop the run, there was little to no pressure on Ryan Mallet, who was making his first NFL start. He wasn’t sacked at all, and there were few plays where he was forced to throw before he wanted to.

The coaching staff isn’t immune today either. One of our pet peeves is coaches trying to show off, and Kyle Shanahan was guilty of that today.

How? In the win against Cincinnati, Terrance West played very well, gaining 94 yards in 26 hard carries. Today, he toted the rock just five times for 12 yards as Crowell was the featured back.

We like Crowell, but we don’t understand the change from West, who has played well for most of the season.

Regardless, the Browns are now 6-4 for the season and still in the thick of the playoff race, although they aren’t the good position they were to start the day.

And they get All Pro wide receiver Josh Gordon back for next week’s game against the Falcons.

Still, the winning formula for this team is to play error free football. They didn’t today and they paid a stiff price.

Browns Performance Workmanlike, Dominant

Anybody else doubt that things are different for the Cleveland Browns under Mike Pettine?

The Browns broke their losing streak against divisional foes on the road with a dominating performance at Paul Brown Stadium, winning 24-3 over the Bengals to move into a first place tie with the Steelers at 6-3.

It’s the most wins for Cleveland since 2007 when they went 10-6.

Pettine likes to use the expression “play like a Brown”, and tonight his entire team did just that. They played tough defense, ran the ball effectively, and avoided mistakes.

First, the running game returned for Kyle Shanahan’s offense as the three-headed monster of Terrance West, Isaiah Crowell, and Ben Tate combined for 170 yards on the ground with each scoring a touchdown. West was the feature back, getting 94 yards on 26 carries. And Crowell reemerged to give the offense a boost in the second quarter.

Brian Hoyer was incredibly efficient, completing 15 of his 23 throws for 198 yards, with Miles Austin being the primary target. Austin caught five throws for 48 yards.

On a windy night, Shanahan obviously wanted to keep the ball on the ground, and his offensive line and backs didn’t let him down.

The offense played efficiently. The defense was dominant.

In fact, it was the kind of defense fans thought they were going to see from the opening game, as they held Cincinnati to just a measly 165 yards in total offense, and QB Andy Dalton was particularly dreadful, completing only 10 of 33 passes for just 86 yards. He compounded that by throwing three interceptions, including one on the Bengals’ first drive, which was picked off by Craig Robertson.

Joe Haden was criticized early in the season when he struggled a little bit, but tonight, he took All Pro wide receiver A.J. Green completely out of the game, as Green caught only three passes for 23 yards.

Another player who gets called out when beaten on big plays, Buster Skrine, picked off two passes. Truth be told, Skrine is a solid NFL cornerback and is excellent in the slot.

Besides the interceptions, Dalton was also sacked twice on successive plays by DE Desmond Bryant in the third quarter.

And the Cincinnati running game wasn’t a factor either, getting just 86 yards on 22 carries, an average of less than four yards per carry. It was by far the Browns best performance against the running game all season.

Cleveland dominated the time of possession, holding the ball for 36 minutes, partially because of the success of the running game, but also because Jim O’Neil’s defense held Cincy to just three of 17 on third down conversions.

In short, the Browns has an answer for everything that Cincinnati threw at them.

Punter Kevin Huber was perhaps the busiest Bengal, having to kick the ball away to Cleveland eight times.

The win ensures that Cleveland will be playing meaningful football in November and should be in the mix for an extended period. That, of course, should end any thought of playing Johnny Manziel unless Hoyer is injured.

The Browns have won two divisional games in dominating fashion and the two games they lost were on field goals on the last play of the game. In order to be a playoff team, you have to be competitive within the AFC North.

Right now, the Cleveland Browns have shown the rest of the teams in the division they can no longer be taken lightly. And they showed the nation they are no longer the doormats of the NFL.

It Isn’t Easy to Dominate NFL Teams, Even the Bad Ones.

Cleveland Browns’ fans overestimated this team after they routed the Pittsburgh Steelers in week six. With Jacksonville, Oakland, and Tampa Bay coming up on the slate, most supporters figured three blowout wins would follow and the Browns would go to Cincinnati with a 6-2 mark.

However, that’s not how the NFL works.

Instead the Browns lost to the Jaguars, and then won two home games, both in workmanlike fashion, and head to the Queen City at 5-3, still very much in the playoff race as the calendar turned to November.

The truth is that the Browns are not an elite NFL team, they aren’t even a very good team. They are in the middle of the pack, and that is good enough to play meaningful football at this point in the season.

After years of hopelessness regarding this football team, we should all be excited about that.

Cleveland’s offense couldn’t get into the end zone in the first half, getting only three Billy Cundiff field goals (49, 29, and 43 yards) and trailed going into the locker room 10-9.

After a touchdown a little less than six minutes into the second half, Mike Pettine’s team took a 16-10 lead.

The lead was short-lived, as the Bucs’ went deep to Johnny Manziel’s former teammate at Texas A & M, Mike Evans, caught a 24-yard throw from Mike Glennon to give Tampa a one point lead.

But Brian Hoyer led the Browns back, hitting rookie WR Taylor Gabriel (with the aid of a crushing block by Terrance West) to give the home team a lead it would never surrender.

As we said before, it isn’t easy in the NFL.

Look at today’s results. Cincinnati didn’t blow up Jacksonville either, although they did beat them, and San Diego, thought to be one of the AFC’s best teams, were dominated by Miami, losing 37-0.

Earlier this year, this same Tampa Bay team went into Pittsburgh and beat the Steelers.

Style points do not matter, but wins do, and right now the Browns have collected five of them, one more than they had all of last season. In fact, the last time Cleveland won more than five games in a season was 2007, when they went 10-6.

That’s not to say the Browns are a team without problems.

The running game continues to sputter without Alex Mack, averaging less than two yards per carry again (50 yards in 28 attempts), and Mack’s replacement, Nick McDonald was dominated by Tampa Bay DT Gerald McCoy, who sacked Hoyer twice.

Another problem is the run defense, which to be fair, did improve in the second half, but still allowed 113 yards in total. Former Brown, Bobby Rainey, deemed unusable by Joe Banner and Mike Lombardi, picked up 87 yards on 19 carries.

Defensive coordinator Jim O’Neil did make an adjustment in the second half, as Rainey gained just 17 yards on his last nine carries.

The special teams were also a huge factor in today’s win. Billy Winn blocked a field goal in the first quarter, and Craig Robertson blocked a punt that set up the winning touchdown. It was the second blocked punt of the season, and both were major factors in victories. We can’t remember the last time a Cleveland special teams unit blocked two punts in a season.

Donte Whitner had his best game as a Brown too, getting an interception off a pass batted away by Joe Haden, and he forced a fumble on a play that was called back because of a penalty. The former Glenville product is starting to make his presence felt.

And we have to mention Hoyer, who threw for 300 yards despite two interceptions, one a horrible throw, and the other off a deflection. He evened up the two picks by throwing two touchdown passes.

It’s a short week for both the Browns and Bengals as they play Thursday night. Because the AFC North is so good and so bunched up in the standings, any divisional game is huge.

Cleveland is 5-3, but they need to start playing better if they want to stay in the race for a playoff spot.

Playing Manziel Would Likely Mean Mistakes to Follow

It seems that even when the Cleveland Browns are playing good football, we still have a quarterback controversy.

For the first time in several seasons, the Browns are sitting at 4-3 and most definitely in the race for a playoff spot in a division where every team is currently over .500, the AFC North.

Yet, fans are still debating who should play quarterback, the incumbent, Brian Hoyer or the rookie, Johnny Manziel.

Whether there would be any debate at all stems from Hoyer’s and the entire team’s poor performance against a winless Jacksonville team on October 19th, because had Cleveland won that game, even in a squeaker, they would be sitting at 5-2 and there wouldn’t be a reason for a change.

And, of course, if the back up wasn’t Manziel, the people’s choice and former Heisman Trophy winner, there wouldn’t be a discussion either.

But Hoyer completed less than 40% of his throws that day and the offense couldn’t get into the end zone, and followed that up by not scoring a touchdown for the first three quarters of Sunday’s game against another opponent without a victory, the Oakland Raiders.

Therefore, the entire offensive unit is under scrutiny, including the guy taking the snaps.

There are Hoyer people who staunchly support the local kid and there are Manziel folks who believe he will have the same success he had in college immediately after taking the field in the NFL.

Our opinion is that Hoyer shouldn’t be in jeopardy of losing his job because he is performing decently and the team in winning.

Think about it, if another 4-3 team’s coach announced he was changing his starting quarterback in favor of playing a rookie, you would think he was crazy. But some people want Mike Pettine to do just that and the sooner the better.

Look, Brian Hoyer isn’t Tom Brady, he isn’t Peyton Manning, and he isn’t even Ben Roethlisburger. Those guys are all Super Bowl winners and most likely will be enshrined in Canton someday. Hoyer will never be in the upper echelon of passers in the NFL.

However, right now, he gives the Cleveland Browns the best chance to win games. Why? He doesn’t make a lot of mistakes. He’s thrown two interceptions on the season and fumbled once. He takes care of the football, and that’s what Pettine wants. He doesn’t want to put his defense in a jackpot and have to defend a short field.

And mistakes are what you get with a rookie quarterback. Last week, we documented that the three players drafted in May who are currently starting signal callers preside over among the worst offenses in the NFL in terms of both yardage and scoring. And while Oakland’s David Carr has been relatively interception free, his team doesn’t score a lot of points.

Now Hoyer has had a problem getting the Browns into the end zone the past two weeks, and he hasn’t exactly been a precision passer lately, but he doesn’t turn the ball over either. Yes, at times he’s the dreaded “game manager”. And right now, he’s in control of a team that, with a win at home against Tampa, could be 5-3 at the halfway point of the season.

The coaches see Manziel at practice everyday. If they deemed him a better fit right now for this football team, they would play him. To be sure, they have to be weary for the mistakes that come with being a rookie.

Fans only see the upside with playing Manziel, which is excitement and spectacular plays. Pettine and his staff see the warts and they don’t want to deal with them at this time.

No one, particularly us, is writing off Johnny Manziel. We believe he has a bright future. But it’s not his time right now.

Browns Formula For Winning Today Is What We Expected

The Cleveland Browns didn’t lose to another winless team this evening, defeating the Oakland Raiders, 23-13 to run their record to 4-3 on the season. This means they have already won as many games as they did all last year and they still have nine games remaining.

They also demonstrated that Alex Mack may just be the MVP of the AFC this morning, because since he went out, Cleveland has had all kinds of problems running the football. They gained just 39 yards on the ground in 25 attempts, a paltry 1.6 yards per carry.

If the Browns can’t correct this, they will have a huge problem on offense the rest of the season.

In reality, the last two games for the Cleveland Browns were what everyone thought they would be in the off-season, a strong defense and an offense that would put just enough points on the board for victory.

The Browns’ defense had three sacks and three turnovers and two of those turnovers set up the offense for scores on a day where the running games was once again non-existent.

Mike Pettine’s crew had a 9-0 lead as they couldn’t get in the end zone again, and with the Raiders getting two field goals late in the second quarter it looked shaky for the home team.

Three straight three and outs for the offense didn’t exactly inspire confidence, and following a punt, the Raiders started a drive on their own nine, and started moving down the field until the play of the game.

On a 2nd and 6 from the Browns’ 29, Darren McFadden was stripped by Donte Whitner and when the ball popped in the air, it landed in the arms of Joe Haden, who returned it to the CLE 47.

Four plays later, QB Brian Hoyer hit Andrew Hawkins with a 4 yard TD pass and that extended the advantage to 16-6. From then on, the Browns were in control of the game.

Raiders’ QB Derek Carr played up to his norm so far this season, that is to say, he put together a good statistical game, but didn’t put points on the scoreboard. Oakland came into the game one of the worst scoring teams in the NFL.

The Browns defense looked shaky against the run on the game’s first drive, allowing 23 yards on the first two Oakland runs, but after that, the Raiders gained just 48 yards on the next 20 attempts, so the opponents’ running game was not a factor.

Paul Kruger had three sacks and a forced fumble and Tashaun Gipson had another interception, his fifth of the year as he continues to make a case for a Pro Bowl berth.

And Haden was in on nine tackles and broke up several passes in his best game of the year, and first round pick Justin Gilbert also played the best contest of his young career.

Hoyer hit on 19 of 28 throws for 275 yards and the TD toss to Hawkins, but still made a couple of throws that should have been picked off by Oakland defenders, something his critics will no doubt bring up tomorrow.

Hawkins was his main target, grabbing seven catches for 88 yards, and TE Jordan Cameron was a factor early as well (3 receptions, 40 yards) before leaving with a concussion just before halftime.

However, whatever is ailing the running game has to be addressed before next Sunday’s game against Tampa Bay. Although Mack is an all pro, he cannot be that much of a difference in this area. There has to be other adjustments that have to be made to get the running game going once again.

Defenses are stacking men in the box to try to make Hoyer beat them, so it may have to start with short throws on first down to get the opponents on their heels just a bit.

And once again, something has to be done with the punt return unit. Travis Benjamin went back there after a few weeks off, but fumbled his second return.

With another home game next week, the Browns are 4-3 and just a half game out of first in the balanced AFC North. After several years in a losing abyss, that’s a nice thing to say as the schedule moves into November.

Jags Stuff the Run, Offense Couldn’t Handle It.

Cleveland Browns’ fans have a history of over reacting and it showed up again today.

After the Browns’ huge win over the Steelers last week, supporters of the team starting talking about how the team had turned the corner.

The Jacksonville Jaguars reminded everyone today that although the Browns have indeed improved, there is a long way to go, defeating the Browns 24-6.

We have sung the praises of Brian Hoyer after the first four games, but Jags’ coach Gus Bradley decided to see just how good Hoyer is, and put the game on his arm by playing nine men in the box on a regular basis, and stuffing the best things about the Cleveland offense after five games, the running attack.

Kyle Shanahan’s offense gained just 69 yards on 30 carries, an average of just over two yards a crack, and that put the entire onus on moving the ball on Hoyer’s right arm. And he had a bad day.

Meanwhile, the weakness on the Cleveland defense also killed them, the inability to stop the run. The Jaguars had one of the worst running games in the NFL coming into the game, but they ran for 174 yards today.

Once again, we will reiterate. If you can’t run the ball, and you can’t stop the run, it is difficult to win in the National Football League.

And add in three turnovers, two by Hoyer (fumble being hit while throwing, and an interception), and a horrible decision to try to catch a punt inside the five yard line by Jordan Poyer, and it became a recipe for defeat.

Also, to be sure, other teams will copy this formula to stop the Cleveland running game, and it is up to Shanahan to devise a counter for what Jacksonville did to his offense.

It certainly didn’t help that Hoyer was inaccurate either. He completed just 16 of 41 throws for 215 yards, and for the first time this year, he couldn’t guide the team into the end zone.

The best way to combat the Jags’ philosophy is to throw on first down with so many players near the line of scrimmage, but Hoyer couldn’t hit on some short throws early, and add in some drops by receivers as well, and they seemed to be in second and third and long all day, in direct contrast with the season’s first five contests.

Many will point to Mike Pettine’s gamble late in the first half with Cleveland leading 6-0, to go for it on fourth down from the Jacksonville 24-yard line with two minutes to go. They failed and the momentum switched. The Jaguars suddenly had hope.

The defense tried its best to keep the Browns in the game with three interceptions of rookie QB Blake Bortles, two by Tashaun Gipson and another by Buster Skrine in the red zone.

Bortles threw for just 159 yards on the day, but once again the defense couldn’t contain the ground game and that made it is easier for Bortles, who hurt the Browns in the second half with some read option plays.

Keep in mind, even with all of the problems Cleveland had today, this was very much a game until Poyer dropped the punt with a little over six minutes to go. It was a 10-6 game at that point.

Pettine and GM Ray Farmer simply have to shore up the punt returner spot, as it has been a problem all year.

With the next two games against losing teams and at home, here’s hoping today’s defeat was a wake up call that the Browns aren’t as good as they thought they were.

The coaching staff should be held accountable too, they seemed to coach like the Jaguars had no chance to win, and it came back to bite them.

Playoff teams would have found a way to win this game, it just shows the Browns aren’t there quite yet.

Titans Gave It Away, But Give Browns Credit for Taking It

At halftime, it appeared the Cleveland Browns inability to stop the running game was going to cost them another game they should’ve been able to win.

The Browns did score right before the half on a Brian Hoyer 1 yard pass to TE Jim Dray, to cut Tennessee’s lead to 28-10, but based on how the Titans moved the ball on the ground, it looked bleak for the brown and orange.

Then, two things happened. Titans’ QB Jake Locker was ruled out for the rest of the contest, and apparently, so did the home team’s willingness to keep running the football.

It got so odd, that in the middle of the fourth quarter, we were wondering about Tennessee’s refusal to continue to exploit the Cleveland defense’s obvious weakness, stopping the ground game.

The Titans ran the ball 30 times on the day, gaining an average of 5 yards per carry. Let us repeat, 5 yards per carry! If you are a Tennessee fan, you have to be seriously second guessing your coach, particularly with your starting quarterback out of the game.

After reserve passer Charlie Whitehurst completed his first two passes for 86 yards and two TDs, he went 11 of 19 the rest of the game for a paltry 108 yards.

Yes, the Titans gained 38 of their 149 yards on the ground on a reverse to WR Kendall Wright, and Locker picked up 34 more yards on scrambles, but to basically ignore the running game in the second half is puzzling.

All that said, the Browns still had to put up the points to overcome the 25 point deficit, the largest comeback in the team’s illustrious history, in order to come away with the 29-28 win to square the season record at 2-2.

Some of them were the usual, such as the running game, which gained 175 yards during the game, including 123 in 22 carries from Ben Tate, who returned to the lineup after a knee injury in the opener at Pittsburgh.

Hoyer was solid as well, completing 21 of 37 passes for 292 yards and three touchdowns, including the game winner to Travis Benjamin, who overcame a muffed punt earlier in the game to garner two TD receptions.

Taylor Gabriel caught four passes for 95 yards and Miles Austin had two big catches on scoring drives. And TE Jordan Cameron returned to be part of the offense after getting a little healthier during the bye week, grabbing three Hoyer throws for 33 yards.

The special teams chipped in with a huge blocked punt by Tank Carder that resulted in a safety, making the score 28-15. It took all conversation about when to go for a two-point conversion out the window.

Defensively, the Browns needed to pitch a shutout in the second half and they did. K’waun Williams played a big role in the game with first round pick Justin Gilbert out of the mix, making six tackles and getting a sack. Armonty Bryant and Jabaal Sheard also sacked the Tennessee passer during the game.

We also have to mention the horrible officiating crew, which clearly lost control of the game after Locker early in the second quarter to give the Titans a 14-0 lead.

First, they set up the first Tennessee TD with a pass interference penalty on the struggling Joe Haden which gave the Titans a 29-yard penalty. The pass just at least five yards out-of-bounds.

Second, the personal foul call on the Locker touchdown against Chris Kirksey could be because the Cleveland player was blocked into the sliding Locker. He did hit the quarterback with a forearm, but to us, we thought it was at least questionable that he aimed for his head.

So, the Browns now sit at 2-2 just a half game behind the Ravens and Steelers in the AFC North, with Pittsburgh visiting next week.

Pettine and defensive coordinator Jim O’Neil have to figure out the run defense because you know the Steelers will come in trying to run the ball right down the Browns’ collective throats.

If that isn’t solved and solved soon, it will be a long year for the Cleveland defense. Unbelievably, the offense has carried Cleveland thus far.

Who thought that before the season began?