5 Up, 5 Down

[LETSGOBROWNIES]

Up.

1. D’Ernest Johnson.  Kid ran well.  That wasn’t just good blocking and a good scheme, the dude picked up plenty of yards on his own.

2. Coaching.  Other than the sloppy penalties on offense, great job by the coaches.

3. Jarvis. His contributions just don’t show up in the box score, but he adds a necessary element to this offense. I just don’t see how we move on from him after the season.

4. The Hammer/McLaughlin.  Impressive game by both.  I scoffed when we lined up for a 50 something harder with 30 mph winds, but the kid nailed it.  The Hammer is back to booming kicks.

5. Myles.  It’s a pretty amazing thing when a guy has a sack and a half and people were calling it a quiet game.

 

Down.

1. OBJ.  This shouldn’t surprise anyone. More of the same ish.

2. Injuries. They just keep dropping like flies.  Ward, Juice, DPJ..  We need some of these guys to get right.

I got nothin else here.  We won a tough game on a short week.  I’ll complain more some other time.

[sonny44]

Our biggest problem is that we don't or can't throw the ball downfield.  Five or ten yard passes to OBJ, ugh.  Where is DPJ, why aren't we using him?  Why can't Schwartz run a deep route?  Why don't we use Higgins hardly at all?  Receivers catch a five yard pass and get crunched. Defenses crowd the line, hurts our run game too.  We need to stretch the defenses.

[LETSGOBROWNIES]

1 minute ago, sonny44 said:

Our biggest problem is that we don't or can't throw the ball downfield.  Five or ten yard passes to OBJ, ugh.  Where is DPJ, why aren't we using him?

He was a late scratch with an injury.

1 minute ago, sonny44 said:

  Why can't Schwartz run a deep route? 
 

They took a deep shot to him last night.  He looked like it was his first time running a pass route.

1 minute ago, sonny44 said:

Why don't we use Higgins hardly at all? 
 

Your guess is as good as mine.

1 minute ago, sonny44 said:

Receivers catch a five yard pass and get crunched. Defenses crowd the line, hurts our run game too.  We need to stretch the defenses.

Most teams are running a lot of 2 deep safeties with the goal of preventing said deep pass/big play and forcing teams to have to put together extended drives in order to score.  
 

Additionally, Keenum doesn’t have the arm to throw deep consistently.  That’s a turnover waiting to happen.

[buno67]

My ups

offensive coaching, seems like Stef and co knew exactly how to attack that defense with Case in the beginning. That opening drive was perfectly scripted and the offense the first couple drives were solid. A lot of ball control. Didnt turn into a lot of points but it allowed the Browns to establish themselves. The only issue with the offense were all the illegal formation issues. 
 

Johnson looked like a stud out there. Great schemes and great blocking helped but he was making a lot of defenders miss out there. He was turning solid 4-5yard runs into hard earned 8-9yard runs.

landry, he is the heart and soul of this offense. Just seems when he is out their everything is right with the offense 

my downs

defensive coaching, yes the browns didn’t give up that many points but you can still see the issues with the scheme. When Denver made adjustments to Woods scheme, you thought for a minute they were going to cause a lot of problems. 
 

OBJ, the drops are just starting to pile up and it’s gotta cause frustrations for everyone. 
 

I was disappointed in the DL, they played well but was expecting them to have an even bigger impact. Its the drawback of having a talented group, what should have been viewed as a good solid game for them is a disappointment. I want to see more games where that unit just completely controls the game, thought yesterday it could have been that way but it wasn’t. 
 

Refs, to the point that the browns can’t buy certain calls that are pretty obvious but it makes the past look worst. Like no calls we saw this week were personal fouls last week. Just makes you annoyed. It shouldn’t be this freaking inconsistent. Also, what thr hell does Garrett have to do to get some Damn holding calls. Its like opposing LTs know they can get away with holding him. They might get flagged for one holding and that’s it, so they can get away with holding him the rest of the night. When Garrett is getting hooked under the neck and it’s not getting called when it’s on the playside, it gets ridiculous. Imagine if a LT was feared of being called for his 3rd holding call of the night , Garett could be racking up multiple sacks a game

Edited October 22, 2021 by buno67

[sdrawkcab321]

I don’t know whether to put Case and an up or down. Maybe neutral. I get that he did just enough to win and not lose but I don’t feel good about him. He looked really bad when he had to do anything other than a short pass. 
 
up

Johnson was fantastic. He could start on a few teams. He won’t be with us for long.

 the entire oline has to be an up 

Mack Wilson surprising was an up. Can’t believe he played so well. He'll probably flaunt about it all week on Twitter. 

defense did just enough. I get Myles gets held a lot but I’m getting tired of hearing that excuse when he doesn’t play well. oline and dline hold each other, poke each other in the eye. Basically anything they can get away with all game every game since the beginning of time. You have to work though it. Especially if you’re the biggest athletic freak in the league. 
 

chase mclaughlin- still perfect in my books 

 

Landry- all heart. One of the smartest skill players we’ve ever had. That last play he had before getting hurt was incredibly smart. He got hurt and hobbled off the field instead of going down and causing us to use a timeout. He kept the clock running. Love that dude  

 

 

Down 

Denzel ward- I get he’s not a zone cover guy but he sucks. Reminds me of Haden when Haden went into a system he wasn’t good in. Either get rid of ward or change the system. Can’t do both he doesn’t fit. Plus can’t stay healthy. 

 

Odell. Made a few plays but come on can’t drop those. Higgins could have made all those catches. 
 

joe woods secondary scheme. We face any other qb other than Teddy 2 yard and they would have tore us up. Those 10 yard cushions against a 2 yard qb were stupid. 

[NateDawg]

Woods isn’t long for this team so I wouldn’t worry too much about system for Ward past 2021. If he is ever healthy, he can still play. That’s the key though. There is no way you can commit top dollar cornerback money to him right now and watch other guys walk as a result. 

[DawgX]

Up:

Johnson - What a great game for him

OL - Huge reason for our success. But even when the OL wasn't creating huge holes for Johnson, he was still creating something out of nothing. Wills gave up a couple of pressures, but it's definitely good to have him back.

ST - Good game all night minus the blocked kick.

Landry - His presence has definitely been missed. He's coming back next year. Hopefully we can extend him at a cheaper AAV.

Stefanski - called a great game and had a great game plan. Played to Keenum's strengths.

HM: Case Keenum - dude is a backup for a reason, but he played as well as we could hope for. Fortunately our screen game is crazy good since Keenum throwing it deep is far from ideal.

Down:

OBJ - he can go away now. Please.

Injuries - they keep piling up.

Woods - Defense only gave up 14 points, but that was more due to the ineptitude of Denver's offense and individual players on defense making great plays. But Woods' scheme still sucks. I mean, on Denver's last scoring drive we were having our CBs play with a 10 yard cushion when it was 3rd and 10. Just embarrassing.

 

[MWil23]

Up:

1. We won despite a ton of injuries. Just win!

2. D'Ernest. Dude stepped up and what a great story. I love the kid. That said, you could tell on a couple of those carries, Chubb/Hunt breaks a TD because of their elite breakaway speed. Still, the dude is TOUGH NOSED, HARD WORKING, and he has great vision and balance. What a great story, and I'm so happy for him.

3. Keenum and managing the game. This is why you pay a good backup that kind of deal.

4. Stefanski and the gameplan. That first drive and even the one where we ground out the clock, got a field goal (and another blocked), plus going for it on fourth down and converting (great work Case!) shows why analytics work.

5. The OL. Kept Case mostly clean and mauled dudes all over the field in the running game

Down:

1. Injuries: Jarivs and Ward (who is quickly more and more making himself expendable unfortunately) hopefully are able to go in 10 days.

2. 3rd and 4th Down defense. I get that they forced an INT in the Red Zone and had a great 1st half, but the second half woes continue, giving up 2 scores on 3rd and 9+ in the Red Zone. The lack of blitzing, giving a varied or disguised look of any kind, and the stubbornness from Woods in these regards shows why he's going to continue to suck against good teams, period. They're basically using Delpit as a hybrid blitzer only and that's a tell and concerning both from an individual and scheme level. 

[brooks1957]

Up:

D'Ernest: When Chubb went down, I went to the waiver board of my FF league and picked up D'Ernest to stash on my bench. I started him last night. We all saw, and unfortunately the rest of the country did too, what D'Ernest can do with an opportunity. Terrific one cut runner. Plant and go. We have tremendous depth in the backfield.

Jarvis: There is no denying it. Jarvis makes this offense better. And he has a monster heart. After re-injuring himself, he dragged himself back onto the field to act as a decoy on D'Ernest game clinching run for a first down. That is leadership well beyond any penny he is paid.

OL: My men did work. Plain and simple - lunch pail group. You can see the pride these boys have in their assigned mission. They knew they had a third string tailback behind them last night. That is NOT a slap at D'Ernest, it is more a testament to the talent that Chubb and Hunt possess. I think it is also worth noting that this was Jed Wills' first full game of 2021. They were simply not going to allow 30 to look like a third stringer on national TV.

Case: This game showed the distinct differences between Baker and Case. It further cemented my belief that Baker is our guy moving forward. It is becoming apparent that Baker gets a pass for the last 4 games as he has been hurt a lot worse than we knew. But Case proved to be the PERFECT backup. Veteran savvy, not a s physically gifted as the starter, but he drew on his world of experience to keep himself and the Browns out of bad situations.

Stefanski: His play calling has been very suspect the last couple of games. Last night, he rebounded with a stellar performance. He and AVP designed a game plan that played to Case and D'Ernest's strengths - and boy, did they execute. Nice to see.

Down:

Joe Woods: Denver is on the eight yard line getting ready to run what would be a TD play. Why? Because Joe Woods refused to blitz in that situation, and that allowed Teddy to take a head count of the 73K in attendance. Remember, the field shrinks in the red zone. So force the QB to commit to an action before he is ready.

Injuries: They suck. This season is coming perilously close to seasons of the recent past where we had to play half a season with half a roster. We are due for some good luck.

Joe Woods: We continue to face offensive line after offensive line that is banged up. And yet with all of our DL talent, we don't get home. Why is that? Because Joe Woods is married to the idea that our back seven gets the coverage done and our front four is getting home.... WRONG. Especially early on, send more defenders than they can block.

Halftime adjustments: There are none on our part, and we foolishly think that our opponents won't make any either. That is not on the players - that is on the coaches. Yes, that is directed at you, Joe Woods.

Officiating: Does anyone ever remember what playing an 11 on 11 game feels like? I hate this 11 on 18 ish. For the third game in a row, the calls were BLATANTLY in our opponents favor. (And we are 1-2 in those 3 games). We had 9 penalties called against us (full disclosure - most were legit). but only 2 against the Broncos. A number of ours either wiped out big plays (OBJ still can't grab the concept of where to line up correctly), or stalled drives completely.

But the biggest issue I have with the officiating is the lack of consistency from team to team. Three or four times were were called for illegal formations (not enough guys on the LOS). And yet I saw Denver's RT repeatedly line up 2 yards off the LOS, and on a few occasions, get away with a false start to start into his backpedal early (of course he was opposite Myles). WTF??

Denver's second TD drive was aided MIGHTILY by the refs putting their blindfolds on and busting out their walking canes. Where we were called for a facemask on third down to extend a drive, Doug and Jimmy were saying on the radio that I think it was Anthony Walker was getting his facemask yanked as well. Should have been either a no call or offsetting penalties.

But the most egregious error was the play just before Denver scored its second TD. Myles had a clear path to Teddy with him in his gunsights. Garrett Bowles reached out and hooked Myles' arm, dragging him to the turf - with an official staring right at the play. I think that is how offensive holding is defined in the rule book.

I hate to continually harp on the striped shirts, but we are doing everything we can to win games and it seems like these clowns are screwing with us just because they can and for the sport of it. There HAS to be a better solution to weed out the piss poor refs.

 

Edited October 22, 2021 by brooks1957

[brooks1957]

@MWil23 That is why I hope and pray Joe Woods is gone next season. He is so arrogant and married to his own schemes that he is getting in the way of team success. There is no way on God's green earth we should not be performing better on defense with the talent on this roster.

I don't think Woods has a clue what a halftime adjustment is, even if it smacked him in the face.

I always preferred the defensive theory that YOU dictate to the opposing offense what they can and can't do that day - and not simply react to what they are trying to do.

Edited October 22, 2021 by brooks1957

[mtmmike]

Stefanski 

Woods

Callahan

Johnson charge 

Defense best game of the year.

Down 

Injuries

To Landry

Ward

Beckmab

[DaWg_LB.]

My Ups.

1. The Coaching Staff.......GREAT game plan, even Joe Woods...I know people hate him...but we held them to 14 points and under 50 yards rushing for the game.

2. D'Ernest Johnson, one of those kids you wonder why and how does he keep managing to cling to the 51rst, 52nd or 53rd roster spot, last night we found out why. We now have IMO proven the best and deepest backfield in the NFL and ITS NOT CLOSE...Shout out to the 3rd head in our Cerberus Backfield.....Chubb Hunt Johnson (Or porn star backfield)...dosent help the coachs name is Stump....

3. The Tight Ends......they showed up in the running game and catching the ball last night, all the boys got in on the act....and Njoku had a LONG gain down the seem where he was open, it was a little tight, but Case just decided not to risk it.....that would have been another 30+ yard reception.

4. The offensive Line......Nuff said.....Wills was CREASING people in the running game last night. Blake Hance was also, he dosent have the pass blocking chops, but he is a OG that is filling in at OT. Teller and Joe B are All Pro for a reason and they both proved it last night.

5a. Case Kennam.....A Grizzled Veteran, eating HardTack and drinking coffee made from Rain water....while bandaging up his own leg would with a piece of his shirt, after removing the bullet with a bowie knife he sterilized over the camp fire and used a swig of whisky for anesthetic and antiseptic. 

5b. Special Teams.....Chase "Phil the Drill" McLaughlin...nuff said....... and the Scottish Hammer looked like the Scottish Hammer vs the Scottish Hammered....

Downs

1. Denzel Ward......injuries again my friend? And he missed that tackle on the 2nd TD....he makes that tackle and were 4th and goal from the 3/4 yard line. I have faith in you Sir......please get your ish together Sir.

2. Is there Truly a point to Andrew Billings? I am really disappointed here....

3. OBJ.....Played Hurt and I appreciate that, you gotta get your head in the game and keep it in the game. It shouldnt take the offense "Getting You" in the game....stay self motivated and answer when your number is called. Had 2 drops, one of them REALLY bad....

4. Penalties and a Blocked kick......TO MANY pre snap penalties, illegal formation at least 3-4 times last night. Gotta get the protection right, our Kicker is money and I dont need his confidence messed with due to piss poor blocking...

5. The Ref's for the 3rd week is a row... the League needs to step in with the refs we've been getting...I am almost willing to take her instead

The REFEREES HAVE BEEN $#!T!!!!

 

Edited October 22, 2021 by DaWg_LB.

[mtmmike]

4 hours ago, brooks1957 said:

Up:

D'Ernest: When Chubb went down, I went to the waiver board of my FF league and picked up D'Ernest to stash on my bench. I started him last night. We all saw, and unfortunately the rest of the country did too, what D'Ernest can do with an opportunity. Terrific one cut runner. Plant and go. We have tremendous depth in the backfield.

Jarvis: There is no denying it. Jarvis makes this offense better. And he has a monster heart. After re-injuring himself, he dragged himself back onto the field to act as a decoy on D'Ernest game clinching run for a first down. That is leadership well beyond any penny he is paid.

OL: My men did work. Plain and simple - lunch pail group. You can see the pride these boys have in their assigned mission. They knew they had a third string tailback behind them last night. That is NOT a slap at D'Ernest, it is more a testament to the talent that Chubb and Hunt possess. I think it is also worth noting that this was Jed Wills' first full game of 2021. They were simply not going to allow 30 to look like a third stringer on national TV.

Case: This game showed the distinct differences between Baker and Case. It further cemented my belief that Baker is our guy moving forward. It is becoming apparent that Baker gets a pass for the last 4 games as he has been hurt a lot worse than we knew. But Case proved to be the PERFECT backup. Veteran savvy, not a s physically gifted as the starter, but he drew on his world of experience to keep himself and the Browns out of bad situations.

Stefanski: His play calling has been very suspect the last couple of games. Last night, he rebounded with a stellar performance. He and AVP designed a game plan that played to Case and D'Ernest's strengths - and boy, did they execute. Nice to see.

Down:

Joe Woods: Denver is on the eight yard line getting ready to run what would be a TD play. Why? Because Joe Woods refused to blitz in that situation, and that allowed Teddy to take a head count of the 73K in attendance. Remember, the field shrinks in the red zone. So force the QB to commit to an action before he is ready.

Injuries: They suck. This season is coming perilously close to seasons of the recent past where we had to play half a season with half a roster. We are due for some good luck.

Joe Woods: We continue to face offensive line after offensive line that is banged up. And yet with all of our DL talent, we don't get home. Why is that? Because Joe Woods is married to the idea that our back seven gets the coverage done and our front four is getting home.... WRONG. Especially early on, send more defenders than they can block.

Halftime adjustments: There are none on our part, and we foolishly think that our opponents won't make any either. That is not on the players - that is on the coaches. Yes, that is directed at you, Joe Woods.

Officiating: Does anyone ever remember what playing an 11 on 11 game feels like? I hate this 11 on 18 ish. For the third game in a row, the calls were BLATANTLY in our opponents favor. (And we are 1-2 in those 3 games). We had 9 penalties called against us (full disclosure - most were legit). but only 2 against the Broncos. A number of ours either wiped out big plays (OBJ still can't grab the concept of where to line up correctly), or stalled drives completely.

But the biggest issue I have with the officiating is the lack of consistency from team to team. Three or four times were were called for illegal formations (not enough guys on the LOS). And yet I saw Denver's RT repeatedly line up 2 yards off the LOS, and on a few occasions, get away with a false start to start into his backpedal early (of course he was opposite Myles). WTF??

Denver's second TD drive was aided MIGHTILY by the refs putting their blindfolds on and busting out their walking canes. Where we were called for a facemask on third down to extend a drive, Doug and Jimmy were saying on the radio that I think it was Anthony Walker was getting his facemask yanked as well. Should have been either a no call or offsetting penalties.

But the most egregious error was the play just before Denver scored its second TD. Myles had a clear path to Teddy with him in his gunsights. Garrett Bowles reached out and hooked Myles' arm, dragging him to the turf - with an official staring right at the play. I think that is how offensive holding is defined in the rule book.

I hate to continually harp on the striped shirts, but we are doing everything we can to win games and it seems like these clowns are screwing with us just because they can and for the sport of it. There HAS to be a better solution to weed out the piss poor refs.

 

Wow you are rough calling out a defensive that yielded only 20 points to 2 playoff level teams combined.

How many below 10 points a game to make you happy?

[brooks1957]

11 minutes ago, mtmmike said:

Wow you are rough calling out a defensive that yielded only 20 points to 2 playoff level teams combined.

How many below 10 points a game to make you happy?

All of 'em......

(Channeling my inner Sonny Weaver)

But to the stats -

In our four wins (HOU, CHI, at MIN, DEN) - 48 total pts allowed for a 12 ppg average.

In our three losses (at KC, at LAC, AZ) -    117 total pts allowed for a 39 ppg average.

What's wrong with this picture? Feast or famine. Consistency would be nice.

Edited October 22, 2021 by brooks1957

[big poppa pump]

Ups

 

1.  Offensive Line play-  Can we just pay Wyatt Teller now?

2.  D Earnest is a beast-gave so much effort on his runs

3.  No turnovers- This was huge...will give Keenum credit for this

4.  Myles Garrett- He is a scary man

5.  Chase McG- killin it from everywhere, and in any condition...MVP

 

Downs

 

1.  Penalties-  Terrible job lining up on offense...this is basic stuff, and drive killers

2.  Lack of blitz, and pass rush-  I'm sick of Joe Woods bringing no heat.  We blitzed Delpit, and forced an errant throw (that should have been a sack)  How bout some more?

3.  3rd and 4th down D- As bad as Denver was offensively, they still were 50% on 3rd/4th down.  That's unacceptable to me!!!!!!

4.  Dropped passes- Yes you OBJ

5.  Screen coverage- How do you get burned on screens, when you aren't even blitzing?  It is puzzling to me, and our DB's need to tackle better