Are We Still Getting Close, Mike?

The best thing you can say about today’s utter beatdown by the Cincinnati Bengals over the Cleveland Browns is that nobody died.

The road to 2-14 started today as the Browns looked like a team whose spirit was broken in the blocked field goal return for a touchdown Monday night against the Ravens, in a 37-3 loss.

While we have been questioning Mike Pettine’s coaching and decision making for the past two months, it is ridiculous to fire him after today, something many are clamoring for on social media.

Pettine should be made and watch and suffer like the rest of the fan base, that is punishment enough for the coach and the staff.

The lopsided loss had many of the same contributing factors we have come to love all season long.

Cincinnati ran for 141 yards, the eighth time an opponent has exceeded 140 yards in the 12 games Cleveland has played this season.

The defense allowed 30 or more points for the eighth time this season.

The Browns had more penalties on the afternoon and lost the turnover battle too.

It was the fourth time on the season that the defense did not force a turnover and the 7th time in 12 games they turned their opponent over once or less.

It was the largest margin of defeat for Cleveland this year and the fifth time in the last six games the Browns have lost by 14 or more points.

And when questioned about the distance right now between the division leading Bengals (10-2) and the Browns (2-10), Pettine talked about injuries, an excuse if we ever heard one.

Excuses are for losers. Pittsburgh has had several injuries to key players this season, and they are sitting at 6-5.

Let the media make the excuses for your team, Mike.

Yet, we will hear about “being close” and “progress being made” by Pettine in press conferences.

They are regressing as the season goes on.

About the only life shown by the Browns today was by LB Chris Kirksey, who drew a personal foul for stopping Jeremy Hill from jumping into the stands after a Cincinnati touchdown.

When asked about it after the game, Pettine said he was hoping it was going to be offsetting penalties, instead of commending the young linebacker for showing some caring.

This is what kills us about the coach. He talks about accountability concerning Johnny Manziel, but the defense has been a sieve from week one on, and yet Jim O’Neil continues to be the defensive coordinator.

This may the worst situation for this football team since the expansion days. The Browns are the worst team in the NFL and they don’t seem to be playing hard either.

There doesn’t seem to be veteran leadership either. Offensively, Joe Thomas and Alex Mack aren’t rah rah types.

Defensively, out of the vets, only Karlos Dansby is performing at a decent enough level that he can give out advice and be taken seriously.

CB Tramon Williams was abused by A.J. Green today, and was beaten deep once again, continuing a streak of that occurring.

One other comment. Why wasn’t Terrelle Pryor active for the game? It is typical of the Browns to bring in a player and find all kinds of reasons not to use him.

Unfortunately for all of us, there are still four games remaining. Is this as bad as it can get?

Two Weeks Off, But Not Many Adjustments For Browns

Seriously, you cannot make this stuff up.

The Cleveland Browns lined up for a 51 yard field goal by Travis Coons to win last night’s game against the Baltimore Ravens on the last play of the competition.

Instead, the kick was blocked and the Ravens’ Will Hill scooped up the loose ball and ran it into the end zone to give Baltimore a 33-27 victory and drop the Browns’ record to 2-9 for the year.

And that makes it 14 losses in the last 16 games for Mike Pettine and his team.

It was special teams that cost the Browns tonight as they allowed a punt return and a blocked field goal for touchdowns. You can’t give up 13 points on special teams.

Those numbers, and that Karlos Dansby returned an interception for a score, will masquerade another poor performance by the defense, who allowed four and a half yards per carry on the ground, and made former Cleveland running back, Terrence West, dealt for a seventh round pick, look good.

West had 37 yards in seven attempts.

Cleveland did have another interception, as Tramon Williams picked off Matt Schaub late to set up the possible game winning field goal, but the Browns’ defense did not record a sack during the game.

So, with all of the time off the players and the coaching staff have had recently, what adjustments did the team make?

It’s hard to tell.

Offensively, it seemed like there was a more concerted effort to get the football to the team’s playmakers as Travis Benjamin caught six passes for 90 yards and a TD, and ran the ball on a reverse once.

Duke Johnson touched the ball 12 times, and actually saw action in the second half.

And TE Gary Barnidge continued his fine season, grabbing seven throws for 91 yards.

The entire time off was filled with discussion on Johnny Manziel’s off-field activities, so Josh McCown got the start, but was injured again during the game, forcing Austin Davis into the contest.

Davis acquitted himself well, hitting 7 of 10 for 77 yards and the TD throw to Benjamin.

So, get ready for more quarterback talk this week.

That discussion will overshadow the terrible time management Pettine used at the end of the game.

After Williams’ pick, the Browns had the ball on the Ravens’ 48 with 55 seconds remaining in the game, with two timeouts in their possession. Remarkably, they ran three plays in that amount of time.

Davis failed to get out-of-bounds on a run that ended at the 30 yard line on the second last offensive play for Cleveland. With Coons’ longest field goal of the year being 44 yards, it did not occur to the head coach to try to get the ball closer for his kicker, who hadn’t missed a field goal all season.

Instead, he tried a running play that lost yardage, pushing Coons back even further.

And while the joke around town is the guy who blocked the kick wedged his way between the two 2015 first round draft picks, Cam Erving and Danny Shelton, the truth is the longer kick made Coons kick the ball lower. Had the Browns gained five more yards after Davis’ run and it would be a 42 yard kick, it likely wouldn’t have been blocked.

Pettine has something to learn about using timeouts. Apparently, he thinks they can be turned in at the end of the season for coupons.

This was the seventh game out of 11 that the Browns have allowed 30+ points in a game. Although the defense was only on the field for 20 of those, it is very difficult for this team to win when the offense has to score more than 30 to win.

All the quarterback talk, both on and off the field, deflect criticism from this unit, which is the real problem with this team.

And it’s not going to be easier with the Bengals visiting on Sunday.

It’s doubtful they will lose on another blocked field goal, but we can’t say it is impossible.

Browns Add Experience, Winners

If you are an NFL fan, today is kind of like Christmas morning.

It’s the first day of free agency, and as of 4 PM, free agents are free to sign with other teams. It’s the first opportunity to start filling some holes on your roster, and it also changes what players teams are looking at in the draft.

The Browns started the league year strong by filling the gap created with T.J. Ward going to free agency by signing S Donte Whitner, a former Glenville High star and Ohio State standout.

Whitner has spent his pro career with both the Bills and 49ers, and has made the Pro Bowl twice. He’s a hard hitter and brings winning experience to the Browns, having made the playoffs each of his years with San Francisco.

Being a local product, he also brings an understanding of how much the Browns mean to the city, something he and QB Brian Hoyer can communicate to the rest of the squad.

GM Ray Farmer also addressed the lack of inside linebackers on the team by signing veteran ILB Karlos Dansby, previously with the Arizona Cardinals and reportedly are close to signing Arthur Moats, who played for Mike Pettine in Buffalo last season.

Dansby is older than former Brown D’Qwell Jackson, but he’s a much better player, ranking among the top inside linebackers in the league according to some websites, and made second team All-Pro last season.

Moats is just 25 years old and a good character guy, winning the Bills’ Walter Payton Award last season. At his age, he should still be improving as a player.

It is telling that all three free agent additions are on the defensive side of the football, which of course is Pettine’s area of expertise. And in Whitner and Dansby, you have two players who have been in the Super Bowl.

Also, it looks like all three players are leadership/character guys too. That’s not to cast dispersions on Jackson or Ward, but the new coach wants his kind of leaders on his defensive unit.

The spending also makes it appears that Farmer has a mandate to make the Cleveland Browns better in the win-loss department, and to do it as soon as possible. The days of accumulating draft picks and salary cap space appear to be over.

The Browns could sign more players in free agency, and may even do it today. However, their next big order of business is to resolve things with C Alex Mack as soon as possible.

We’ve heard people say that if Mack doesn’t want to be here, then let him go, but since the offensive line is already full of holes, it wouldn’t be prudent to create another one at center.

It also wouldn’t be good for Hoyer or whoever the quarterback is to see pass rushers coming right up the middle and be in his face immediately.

Farmer gave Mack the transitional tag for a reason. The team didn’t want him to leave and wanted to buy time to work out a long-term deal with the two-time Pro Bowl lineman.

Teams that go 4-12 can’t afford to let good players leave.