Worry Season In Full Effect For Browns Fans

Since it seems like the entire northeast Ohio region is football obsessed, at least the broadcast and print media that is, there are various stages of the year for the pigskin folks.

Of course, from late July to January, everyone is focused on the play on the field, unless of course, the team starts out 0-5 and then we have continuous draft talk until April. But in a year where the Browns remain in playoff contention for most of the season, the weeks following the end of the regular season is spent talking about who should be assigned blame for not winning the Super Bowl.

Since Kevin Stefanski did not get fired and Joe Woods did, that part of the year has passed, so people have moved on to the needlessly worrying about next season phase.

Or Myles Garrett’s dislocated toe.

There is a whole lot of time between now and when training camp opens in late July, and we doubt that Andrew Berry and the rest of the front office are hibernating in some cave, ready to arise shortly before the draft.

One of our favorite lazy sportstalk topics usually happens in the week before the conference title games, when the question is asked: How can the Browns compete with the two teams in the game?

The answer is quite simple. Right now, they can’t. But that’s what the off-season is for.

We are pretty confident Berry, Paul DePodesta, and Stefanski know their team has a bunch of holes to fill, and they will do their best to accomplish that.

Here is where the worrying comes in. They have no draft picks, though. The Browns should trade Nick Chubb or Denzel Ward, or even Myles Garrett to get draft picks to improve the roster.

Remember, the Browns stripped down the roster to get a bunch of draft picks and in the process went 1-15 and 0-16. With all of those picks, they have one playoff appearance, and the last two seasons of unfulfilled playoff hopes.

The reality is there are several ways to upgrade the roster. The first will come when the new league year starts and there will be free agents to be signed. And yes, we know Cleveland is currently over the salary cap, which means they are likely working behind the scenes with several highly paid veterans to restructure their current deals to free up some money.

They also can release players too.

The worry has even been linked to Deshaun Watson. What if he never regains the ability he had with Houston?

Watson is 27 years old and he didn’t miss almost two full seasons due to injury. Did he struggle when he returned for the last six games of the regular season? Of course. Still, this is a guy who was one of the top five or six quarterbacks in the game when he played his last full season in 2020.

Yes, the Texans finished 4-12, but their offense put up 30 or more points in five games. Houston was 2-3 in those games. Watson threw 7 interceptions that season. He threw five in the six games with Cleveland, and we will remind you two of those contests were played in terrible conditions.

While it’s a possibility Watson will never be an elite QB again, we are comfortable the Browns will have very good a top guy at the position, and for all the X’s and O’s Stefanski and Watson discussed at the “recruiting” meeting, having the opportunity to see him first hand and work with him, we are sure the head coach has a better idea of how to get the best out of him.

Perhaps people and talk show hosts should relax and think about other things to discuss before they drive themselves crazy?

Schwartz Has The Chops To Fix The Defense

Let’s face it, the best thing about the Browns’ hiring of Jim Schwartz as defensive coordinator is that he is not Joe Woods. No doubt, fans had to be tired of the excuses and lack of communication on that side of the ball.

Another positive is the experience factor. It seems the most heralded assistant coach Kevin Stefanski has is offensive line coach Bill Callahan, a former college and pro head coach who has been around a long time. His unit is arguably the strongest on the team.

Why not add another veteran of the coaching wars. Schwartz got his start right here on the heralded Bill Belicheck Browns’ staff which also featured Nick Saban, Eric Mangini, Kirk Ferentz, and Woody Widenhofer. He’s been around the NFL for a long time.

We are not going to judge the hire now, nor are we going to predict how Schwartz is going to coach the defense. Our hope is he will do what good coaches do, that is, look at the personnel he has and develop a plan that maximizes the talent of the players.

In a radio interview, former Titans’ safety Blaine Bishop said Schwartz reinvents himself wherever he goes because he looks at the talent on the roster and adjusts his scheme to suit the strengths of the players. We certainly hope that trend continues.

However, in 14 years as defensive coordinator with Tennessee (2001-08), Buffalo (2014), and Philadelphia (2016-20), his defenses have finished in the top half of the league eight times, and six of those seasons ranked in the top ten in yards allowed.

In points allowed Schwartz’ defense finished in the top 16 nine times, four of those in the top ten.

He seems to put an emphasis on stopping the run, finishing in the top ten eight times in allowing rushing yards. That should be a relief to Cleveland football fans who watched opposing teams punish the Browns’ defense running the ball. The Browns probably would have been worse than 7-10 had some teams not forgotten the brown and orange couldn’t contain the running game.

We understand there will be an adjustment to a new coordinator next year, so it is unlikely the defense will be dominant to start the season, but really, is that any different from the last two seasons? In each of those years, Woods’ defense was below average in the first eight games.

We also get there will be some personnel changes too. But those would have been made anyway because it is doubtful the Browns would be able to effectively stop the ground game with the current roster. However, this team still has some top end players in Myles Garrett, Denzel Ward, Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, Greg Newsome, and rookie Martin Emerson.

Our guess is Schwartz will look at those cornerbacks and will play more man-to-man than his predecessor, and we fully support that. He will also likely look at the defensive front and ask for help so the defense can be stouter against the run.

You know how we feel about that. You can’t win in the NFL unless you can stop the run.

Bringing in a veteran coach with a track record of success most likely isn’t a bad thing. The defense was the reason the Browns went 7-10 this season, not playcalling or lack of yelling by the head coach.

That’s why we should all be happy about the hire.

Browns Play Hard, Hurt Commanders Chances

Well, it’s going to be a bad week for those folks who want the Cleveland Browns to fire everyone in the front office and start fresh in 2023.

That’s how it works doesn’t it? We mean, when the Browns lose, the coach should be fired usually because a play call doesn’t work. These people do understand there is another team on the field and they can execute as well, right?

Anyway, the Browns went out on Sunday and beat a team with playoff aspirations on the road, defeating the Washington Commanders 24-10, thus raising their record to 7-9 and next week they have a chance to do the same thing to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

And if they win, they will have the same record as last season. It’s not progress, but it’s not regression either.

What the game re-emphasized to us is this team has not quit on its head coach, and for that reason alone, Kevin Stefanski should continue with his current gig.

We will say again, this doesn’t mean Stefanski doesn’t need to improve some things, and we would also say we are sure even the great Bill Belichick learns something every season.

We wish Stefanski had kept the field goal in the first half which would have given the Browns a 6-0 lead. We understand the analytics people would say the field goal didn’t mean much because a touchdown would allow Washington to take the lead, but much as we say in basketball about long twos vs. threes, taking three points is better than getting none, which is what happened.

The stars came out offensively for Cleveland. Nick Chubb ran for 104 yards on 14 carries. Amari Cooper caught three passes for 105 yards and two touchdowns, and Deshaun Watson threw three TD passes.

Watson was sacked four times in the first half. His receivers couldn’t get open and his offensive line was having a problem with the Commanders rush. Adjustments were made and the second half was dominated by Cleveland, whose defense forced three turnovers.

After forcing just eight turnovers in the first 11 games, the defense has come up with 11 in the last five. That’s a weird statistic.

Also odd was Watson’s passer rating of 122, his highest of the season. We have always said QBs will have a good passing efficiency rating if they stay away from interceptions, and have a very good yards per attempt ratio.

Watson completed only half of his 18 passes but had a great 9.4 yards per throw. The league leader for the season is Tua Tagovailoa at 8.9. Watson’s best average as a Brown was 6.6 in the loss to Cincinnati.

Slowly, week by week, he is shaking the rust off.

However, back to the coach. We have said previously we would only consider a change if the team quit playing for this staff, and based on Sunday, that’s simply not the case.

It does not mean change aren’t needed on the staff. We understand this group doesn’t give out a lot of information to the media, but when they do talk, it makes you shake your head.

Joe Woods said last week the defensive tackles weren’t the problem in stopping the run. Our first thought was if it isn’t them, then do you know what the problem is, and if so, why not fix it?

One more game remains, and the Browns should have the same goal: Win and spoil another team’s playoff hopes in front of their fans. In a bitterly disappointing season, that would add some sweetness.

If We Were Kevin Stefanski This Off-Season

After the Browns’ loss at Cincinnati, we put out on social media that someday the team would lose a game and no one would blame the coach, but that wasn’t the day. That day wasn’t after Saturday’s loss to the Saints either.

It was an embarrassing loss, probably the second worst of the season, as nothing can top the debacle in week two against the Jets.

We aren’t saying Kevin Stefanski doesn’t have flaws, and he didn’t call a perfect game on Christmas Eve to be sure, but in watching the game unfold, after the Browns took a 10-0 lead in the second quarter, we thought to ourselves, get the next score and New Orleans might be done.

Instead, the Saints remembered what some teams have taken a quarter or two to recall: Cleveland can’t stop the run. Using a platoon of Andy Dalton and pretty much non-thrower Taysom Hill at QB and mixing in direct snaps to Alvin Kamara, New Orleans hammered the Browns’ defense for 152 yards on the ground on a bitter cold day.

It is the seventh game this year Cleveland has allowed 150 or more yards in running game. Yes, Stefanski’s play calling has been an issue at times, but if you want to really know why the Browns are 6-9 right now? The defense cannot stop the run.

Stefanski is a smart man and hopefully knows he can be better. So, if we were him, here’s what we would do when the season ends…

…fire Joe Woods as defensive coordinator and find someone who runs a defense that gives offenses something to think about. Woods’ plans are usually vanilla. He has games where he moves Myles Garrett around, and others where he lines up in the same spot every play. Some games blitzes are part of the plan, others they rush four, constantly. When you are in Stefanski’s position, you have to put friendships aside.

…tell Andrew Berry they need a wide receiver who rack up yards after the catch. The offense doesn’t have a threat to go the distance on every play, meaning every drive has to be multiple plays and converting first downs. The longest touchdown play of the year from scrimmage was Nick Chubb’s 41-yard run vs. the Chargers.

…utilize Chubb in the passing game more. Chubb is 4th in the NFL in rushing attempts at 276, but he’s only caught 21 passes and usually comes off the field in passing situations. By contrast, Derrick Henry (TEN) leads the league in attempts with 319 AND he’s caught 32 passes. Las Vegas’ Josh Jacobs is next at 306 carries and he’s caught 47 passes.

…get David Njoku the ball more. Yes, we know he dropped a certain TD pass on Saturday, but he’s probably the second biggest threat to go the distance on any play, behind Chubb.

…stop zagging when the other team zigs. Yes, when teams are trying to take any your best offensive player, figure out a way to get him the ball any way. You don’t have to ignore him, that’s what the defense wants.

…don’t change how you deal with the media. That’s not who Stefanski is and really, for the media to expect more at this point, is ridiculous.

We believe the coach deserves the opportunity to make adjustments, particularly with Watson at quarterback. And by the way, you can see Watson is an excellent player. If you look at numbers, you will think he didn’t play well in the win over the Ravens, but if you watched the game, he played very well.

Truly, the most disturbing news out of Berea was the report Sunday that owner Jimmy Haslam is enamored with the offense used by the University of Tennessee. Any reports of Haslam trying to influence the football people is terrifying.

It has been said before, the smartest people know what they don’t know. The Browns’ owner should consider that.

Hoping There Is No False Hope With Browns’ Defense

The Cleveland Browns accomplished something Saturday afternoon that is very unusual.

No, not winning a game against the Ravens, although since Baltimore coach John Harbaugh is tied for second (behind Hall of Fame Steeler coach and Cleveland native Chuck Noll) for most wins against the Browns, that would qualify as something odd.

What we are talking about is the Browns picked up a victory despite getting gashed on the ground by the Ravens, allowing 198 yards on the ground. It was the sixth game Cleveland has allowed 150 or more yards rushing in a game this season, but until Saturday, they didn’t win when that occurred.

As a frame of reference, they allowed that many yards three times last season.

To prove it can happen, the Browns have lost three games when gaining 150 yards on the ground (Jets, Falcons, Chargers) although to be fair, in the latter two games, the brown and orange were outrushed by their opponents.

And that’s why we cannot get excited about holding Baltimore to three points. Imagine the talk on Baltimore sportstalk stations this week, no doubt criticizing the play-calling by Greg Roman, the Ravens’ offensive coordinator. His team averaged 7.1 yards per carry and still had Tyler Huntley throw the ball 30 times.

Our only conclusion is the NFL has become so pass happy, that teams feel the need to put the ball in the air even if there is no evidence the opponent can stop it.

We’ve seen it in other games too. The Browns’ defense had success against Buffalo for the first quarter and a half until they remembered Cleveland can’t stop the run, and decided to march down the field using the ground game.

So, we are not among those praising Joe Woods’ defense for holding Baltimore to three points today. This defense continues to be bad against the run, ranking 30th in the league in yards per carry and 24th in yards allowed total. The only teams worse than Cleveland in this statistic with a winning record are Dallas (10-4), New York Giants (8-5-1) and the Los Angeles Chargers (8-6).

Keep in mind, the Browns have had games where they held opponents to 36 yards (Cincinnati) and 54 yards (Carolina) rushing. Six games of 150+ rushing? It’s simply not acceptable.

At this point, we will say it again: If you can’t stop the run, it is difficult to win football games.

People talk about the defense struggling early and getting better as the season went along last season, but maybe the improvement is due to the weather not being as nice in most NFL cities in November and December as it is in September and October?

Whether it’s the schemes improving or it’s a result of colder weather, the fact remains it is not acceptable for the defense to be bad the first half of the season every year. There are 17 games in this league, and even if the pundits like to say the real season doesn’t begin until November, the early season game still count.

That’s why there shouldn’t be any saving of Joe Woods’ job with the win over the Ravens.

And even if the Browns run the table and finish at 9-8, a game better than last season, it still won’t be enough in our eyes. We hope it won’t be enough for Kevin Stefanski and Andrew Berry either.

Stefanski Should Stay, But Be More Flexible

We have gone on record saying we do not want the Cleveland Browns to fire Kevin Stefanski. But that doesn’t mean the coach doesn’t have things he needs to adjust in his style going into next season.

We have alluded to this before, but it’s a bit unfair to hang this year’s win-loss record on the head coach because we wonder if the front office was all in on winning in 2022 after the suspension of Deshaun Watson.

There are those who question Stefanski’s ability as a “leader of men” and we think that’s unfair because we don’t know how he reacts with the players on a daily basis. Football fans love the “in your face” style of coaches like Bill Cowher and Dan Campbell, but in a lot of cases, that wears thin after a while.

Earlier in the year, when the defense was playing poorly, we wanted Stefanski to be proactive and say he was going to get involved with the defensive game plan, in other words, be responsible for the entire operation and not just the offense, which sometimes it feels like.

We get the Browns are very tightlipped in matters like this, and perhaps Stefanski has had many conversations with Woods, but it would be nice to know he sees the same things we all see.

The coach also needs to improve in this area: You don’t always have to be the smartest guy in the room. This is an issue with a lot of young coaches, and the good ones learn from it. We think sometimes the obvious decision is the right decision.

Decisions like kicking field goals on the road early in games. We know the numbers probably say to go for it at times, but if you are going to take the human element out of things, you really don’t need a head coach.

The analytics thing actually goes toward the entire organization. The Browns were recently said to be the organization that uses the number more than anyone.

We aren’t anti-analytics, but it shouldn’t be the only way of reaching decisions any more than the old school coaching system would be. It should be a mixture, and by the way, that should apply to all sports. The more information from all areas the better.

We would also like to see the coach be more proactive rather than reactive. He seems to go away from the strengths of his team too soon. Again, from last Sunday, the Browns scored their only touchdown on three straight plays to David Njoku. We feel the tight end should be one of the focal points of the offense. We know he’s had injury issues, but when he’s healthy, maybe he should get the most targets.

Kind of a “ride the hot hand” mentality.

Most people get better at their job the longer they do it. Coaches don’t get a long leash these days, but it certainly isn’t the Hue Jackson 1-15 and 0-16 seasons for the Browns.

If the Browns win their last four games, and they have a solid chance to do just that, they will finish 9-8, a slight improvement from last year.

We would like to see Stefanski make some changes to his coaching staff going into 2023 and then re-evaluate him. If he doesn’t want to make changes, that might give you the answer we are looking for.

Also, notice we didn’t say anything about his demeanor in interviews or press conferences. The way he handles these is not going to change, and quite frankly, we are stunned people are still upset by his monotone cliche answers. That has nothing to do with his ability to coach.

Is Winning A Priority For Browns?

If the plan of the front office of the Cleveland Browns’ was to play the “long game” with the trade for Deshaun Watson, then they got their wish, because the team was basically eliminated from playoff contention with the 23-10 defeat in Cincinnati at the hands of the defending AFC Champs.

We say that because we have heard it from so many places, including some media people we respect greatly. And if that’s the case, our question is simple, why do so many fans invest so much love into the Cleveland Browns?

They simply don’t give a damn about the fans.

First, from a talent standpoint alone, getting Watson was a good move. He thought going into last season he was one of the top five quarterbacks in the league, and we still believe he will be again once he gets more acclimated to playing.

It’s been a long time since the Browns have had a franchise quarterback, probably the first since Bernie Kosar was on the field.

Even without Watson, the offense kept up their end of the bargain, but the defense didn’t, and despite the last two contests, that unit is the reason Cleveland is sitting at 5-8 today.

The Browns’ vaunted running game has sputtered a bit lately, mostly since center Ethan Pocic was injured. We love when people call Pocic the “third string center”, which he was going into training camp behind Nick Harris and Michael Dunn, but when he went in, he played as well as any center in the league.

His absence and the decline of Jack Conklin because of injuries have limited the effectiveness of the running game, which was the team’s bread and butter, especially with Watson suspended.

We know you can point to stats for everything, but Sunday was the third time this season Cleveland rushed for less than 100 yards. They are 0-3 in those contests.

Kevin Stefanski is taking a lot of heat for the fourth down call on the first drive of the game, but it was poor execution. Donovan Peoples-Jones are open and a better throw results in six points. Frankly, considering what was at stake for the Browns, we thought the play book would be opened up more. The Browns needed this game badly.

Instead, the Bengals used more trick plays. One worked for a touchdown, the other resulted in a sack by Myles Garrett. We are guessing had Cincinnati lost, fans would be calling for Zack Taylor’s job because of the latter. Or does that only work in northeast Ohio?

Cleveland has four games left. There is nothing to be gained by losing. They have no first-round draft pick.

So, they should do everything they can to win the remaining four on the slate. They need to establish an importance on winning not only in the locker room, but throughout 76 Lou Groza Blvd. That’s what the Ravens (the next opponent) has, it’s what the Steelers have.

And we fear until the Browns have that mentality among the front office, this cycle is just going to continue. They will keep finding reasons why it’s okay to lose.

As for the coaching staff, there needs to be changes made going into next season, but we would stay with Stefanski in charge unless he has the stubbornness issue and is resistant to make changes on the staff.

One playoff win in 28 years should be enough to put a huge emphasis on winning. Doesn’t seem like it today, right?

Two In A Row And A Huge Game Vs. Bengals

When the Browns defeated Tampa Bay last week, we thought it was kind of like the “double dip”, scoring right before halftime and then getting the second half kickoff and scoring as well, because the dreadful Houston Texans (sorry, Nick Caserio) were next on the schedule.

Even though Cleveland didn’t score an offensive touchdown, the maligned units of the team, defense and special teams, contributed three of them and Kevin Stefanski’s crew went to 5-7 with the victory.

This sets up a huge matchup in southern Ohio against the 8-4 Bengals this Sunday, a contest that could be a big turning point for the brown and orange.

Winning in Cincinnati would put the Browns at 6-7 with two games at home against the Ravens and Saints, and Baltimore could be without Lamar Jackson in that one, although they will have Justin Tucker.

Stefanski’s squad is in a tough spot because of the tie breaker situation in the AFC, where they lose most of the head-to-head comparisons. Here is a list of the non-division leaders sitting at 7-5 or below:

Jets 7-5 – beat the Browns in week two
Patriots 6-6 – beat the Browns in week six
Chargers 6-6 – beat the Browns in week five
Steelers 5-7 – Browns won the first matchup
Raiders 5-7 – no game between the two teams.

Could the Browns lose one more game and still make the post-season as a wild card? Sure, but a lot of things would have to bounce their way. And a loss next Sunday in the Queen City surely means Cleveland would have to run the table to have any chance at playing beyond January 8th at Pittsburgh.

To us, a victory against the Bengals would improve the post-season chances from slim to decent, and not just because the Browns would get closer to .500, but it would be their third consecutive win, signaling perhaps they have turned the corner.

There is no doubt Deshaun Watson was very rusty Sunday, completing just 12 of 22 passes for 131 yards, spiking a number of them into the ground. We would expect a better performance next week, but the Cleveland game plan still should go through, or should we say run through Nick Chubb.

The Browns ran for 174 yards against the Texans, the seventh time in 12 games they have gone over 170. The last three times they’ve done that have resulted in wins, including the 32-13 win on Halloween against Cincy. And the Bengals are just middle of the pack in terms of stopping the run.

Stefanski also needs his defense to continue to hold up their end of the bargain. The Browns allowed their fewest yards of the season in the first game against the Bengals, but they will have Ja’Marr Chase this weekend, and he’s one of the best in the league.

We don’t buy into Cleveland’s recent success against Joe Burrow and the Bengals. They are the defending AFC Champions and are coming off a big win against the Chiefs in a rematch of the AFC Championship game last season.

It will take the Browns playing at their best, which is what every team should be striving for, to get better each week.

We say a win next Sunday puts Cleveland seriously back in the playoff chase. They can’t slip up for sure, but it feels like their positions will be much stronger.

“Fire The Coach” Isn’t The Answer After Every Loss

It’s the reaction pretty much every time a good team loses: Fire the coach!

We have heard it each week the Browns lose. Kevin Stefanski needs to go. We heard it after Ohio State lost at home to Michigan, fire Ryan Day.

Confession here. We have coached at the high school and AAU levels, and although we understand it is not the same as coaching at the collegiate or professional levels, we understand that no matter what coaches map out, sometimes the players don’t do what they are supposed to do.

We also are not saying coaches should never get fired. When the players start tuning out what their leader is saying, it’s usually time to make a change.

To us, coaching is getting the most out of the players they have. We dislike the “system” coaches, the folks that say this is the way we coach, the scheme we use and the talent has to adapt.

That’s silly, and that thought comes from coaching at the high school level. You don’t get to pick your players at that level, so you can’t have a “system”, you coach the players you have.

Bad coaches become slaves to their systems. They are one trick ponies. And if that system doesn’t work and they fail using it time and again, and don’t alter anything? Then, they should lose their job and the reason should be stubborness.

The best coaches understand that. The great Don Shula won with a crushing ground attack and then drafted Dan Marino and decided a passing attack was the way to go.

However, it really is about understanding that coaches are people, and they make mistakes just like anyone else. They have bad days and sometimes they make bad decisions. If they make the same bad choices week after week or game after game, then their boss may have to do something.

One thing a coach should understand is the players know who can play and who cannot. And coaches need the trust of the players. They lose that trust if they use someone in a situation where they cannot succeed or if they lose a less talented player because of a personal issue.

Do the Browns trust and want to play for Kevin Stefanski? Right now, we see no evidence they aren’t, but if the defensive players have lost faith in Joe Woods, and he doesn’t do anything about that, he could have a problem in the locker room.

As for Day, first of all, his record at Ohio State is 45-5. He deserves the benefit of the doubt and the benefit of tweaking his philosophy. His “crime” right now is perhaps the Buckeyes have become a bit of a finesse team. If Day sees the same thing, and his team gets better on the line of scrimmage next year, then he will have fixed the issue, but that won’t be fully tested until they play their rivals.

Coaching isn’t just x’s and o’s. It’s being a leader, being accountable, being a listener, being a counselor, and also knowing something about the sport they are coaching.

Think about that the next time your favorite team loses. It may not be the coach’s fault and he should not have to pay for having a bad day with his or her job.

Browns Win, Still Have A Pulse

The Cleveland Browns live for another week.

A loss on Sunday to Tampa Bay would have pretty much put the final nail into the coffin representing the 2022 NFL season, but because David Njoku made a tremendous catch to send the game into overtime and the defense kept Tom Brady off the scoreboard in overtime, the Browns won it in the last minute to go to 4-7.

Now, nothing is for certain because it’s the NFL and you know, “Any Given Sunday”, but with the woeful Texans coming up on the schedule Cleveland should be able to get to 5-7, and then it’s a matter of winning division games if Kevin Stefanski’s squad have any chance at a playoff spot.

Again, the odds are heavily stacked against them, but there still is a chance.

Cleveland was able to win because the Buccaneers decided not to run the ball, probably because they have Tom Brady. In the first half, they had success (most teams do) on the ground, not ended the game with only 96 yards, albeit on just 20 attempts. So, they averaged almost five yards per carry. It was a situation similar to the first 20 minutes of the Buffalo game until the Bills remembered the Browns can’t stop the ground game.

They were able to dial up pressure on Brady in the fourth quarter. Myles Garrett, who some feel (we do not) doesn’t get “important” sacks, came up with one and a half late in the game and also drew a penalty for an offensive lineman having his hands in Garrett’s face.

He came up big in this one for sure.

Oh, and by the way, he now has 68.5 sacks in 78 career games. Since we go by the ProFootballreference.com statistics, that puts him 4th on the team’s all-time list behind Bill Glass (94 games), Clay Matthews (232 games), and Jerry Sherk (147 games).

They won because Martin Emerson played a tremendous game, holding Mike Evans to just two catches for 31 yards.

Last week, Denzel Ward took Stefon Diggs out of the game against Buffalo. Could the defense be beginning to realize their best option is to play man-to-man on outside receivers?

And they won because Nick Chubb was, well, Nick Chubb, gaining 116 yards on 26 carries, including a big run on the game tying drive.

It pushed Chubb over 1000 yards for the four straight year. The last Cleveland runner to do that? Try the GOAT: Jim Brown. He’s now 4th on the Browns’ all-time list behind Brown, Leroy Kelly, and Mike Pruitt. It’s not a stretch to think he could be #2 by the end of next season if he stays healthy.

Cleveland has six games left and likely needs to win all six, or at least five, but then the tiebreakers become an issue, and the Browns don’t have a lot, if any, advantages there.

The three non-divisional games are at Houston (1-9-1), home vs. New Orleans (4-8) and at Washington (7-5). And remember, Deshaun Watson is back for next week. The Browns have the talent to win those games, but the question remains as to whether or not they can.

And of course, there are the three divisional games, with Cleveland already at 2-1 against the AFC North. We know from the past, all of those games will be a dogfight.

It has been a disappointing season to say the least, but now they have their franchise QB back, a guy they committed a boatload of money to, and a player we believe is a top five quarterback in the NFL.

Could the Browns run the table? Probably not, but they have a chance, something they wouldn’t have without Njoku’s catch, Chubb’s running, and a defense that stepped up.