Under the C: Ramirez Turns the Tablers + Big RG3 News!
August 19, 2016WFNY On Location: Indians walk-off in once-in-a-lifetime fashion
August 20, 2016Behind the scenes in Berea, the Cleveland Browns offense has a bit of a mandate. You can call it a goal, but you’d be fooling yourself if you thought that it was just some silly whiteboard scribble that the guys look at before they take the field. Knowing where the state of the NFL is in 2016, Browns head coach Hue Jackson, an offensive coach, says that his offensive unit needs to score at least seven points per quarter if they want to win football games.1
Some may look at this as a reflection of the team’s young and relatively inexperienced defense, but Jackson knows what’s up. Even his Bengals from 2015, one that featured one of the best defensive front sevens in football, gave up 19 to the San Diego Chargers, 24 to the Baltimore Ravens, and 21 to the Kansas City Chiefs and Buffalo Bills—only one of which made the playoffs. To win football games, you need to score points. It seems simple, but to anyone who has followed the Browns over the last decade or so, you know these pesky things don’t come so easily.
In 2015, the Browns managed a combined 13 points in the two games they played against the Bengals, including that 37-3 barn burner in the early days of December. Good news is, the Browns offense on Thursday night, in their preseason tilt against the Atlanta Falcons, had a chance to put up seven in each of the first two quarters. Bad news is—well, you already know what happened.
WINNER: Robert Griffin III
Inconsistency in Week 1 of the preseason appears to have given way to “Oh, hey—Robert Griffin III is here.” The box score reads 23 snaps, 6-for-8 passing for 96 yards, two touchdowns, zero interceptions and 36 yards on the ground. A passer rating of 154.2 is nothing to be ashamed of, but just like Cody Kessler a week earlier, the numbers don’t exactly tell the full story.
Griffin’s first pass, a quick shot to the flat to Terrelle Pryor, fell incomplete, meaning he would go on to complete six of his next seven attempts—two of which were more than 20 yards down the field and found pay dirt. There were also, however, multiple throws behind the line of scrimmage as well as a dump off to Duke Johnson on a third-and-long that simply led to a fourth-and-not-as-long. Point is, Griffin is showing flashes, but this Browns offense is far from a well-oiled machine.
This isn’t to take away from either touchdown pass, both of which were thrown beautifully. The Browns looked like a legit NFL team for a sizable portion of the first half. Bonus points for picturesque slide on this drawn-up run.
LOSER: Cameron Erving
While things don’t appear to be as bad as they were last season, you can’t snap a shotgun play over the head of the quarterback. You just can’t. You can’t even.
WINNER: Hue Jackson
The guy continues to call a decent game and indirectly call out those who aren’t carrying their own weight. The drop-off from the first team to the reserves was glaring, and following the game Coach essentially fired a warning shot across the bow of those low-tier guys who want to keep playing football at a professional level. Dumb penalties—like an illegal formation when the team is attempting to convert a fourth down play–were called out, as was Erving (“I don’t want to have to coach that”) and kicker Travis Coons (more on this later).
The theme for this coaching staff continues to be one that will improve morale and culture by holding players accountable for their missteps. So far so good for Coach Hue.
LOSER: Ray Horton
Opposing teams will need to have a reason to pass the ball at all when facing the Browns in 2016. It may get to the point where they simply get bored of playing football like it’s the mid-50s, but until the Browns defense can show a modicum of resistance in the run game, they will continue to get carved up.
Devonta Freeman averaged 10.5 yards per carry. Brandon Wilds averaged 6.1. Gus Johnson took a break from doing play-by-play for college hoops and tallied a quick 42 yards on just five carries (8.4 per tote). Oh, and Cyrus Gray—he of the 99 total yards since being drafted in 2012—added 76 yards on 18 carries.
Once the weather breaks and this magical summer in Cleveland turns into the winter that makes up for last year’s mild season, football in FirstEnergy Stadium will turn to ground and pound. Right now, it looks like the Browns defense is the one on the “pounding” end of that stick.
WINNER: The entire Browns offensive line
Yes, this seems a bit odd as I skewered Cameron Erving above, but for a unit playing without the best left tackle to ever wear a Browns uniform in Joe Thomas to come and set walls for Griffin on multiple occasions–well, they deserve some kudos. Following the game, Griffin made sure to mention that both touchdowns could not have happened if not for their stellar blocking, and for this offense to sustain any sort of point-scoring ways, that will have to continue.
LOSER: The entire Browns defensive unit
In a way, I feel bad for Ray Horton. The guy is super cool, but for the second time in his career, he’s handed a Browns defensive unit that simply doesn’t have the horses to consistently execute his system. But just like old times, Horton’s defense saw a unit that could not get off of the field on third down and could not handle the pressure of the red zone.
It is not Horton’s job, however, to teach professional football players how to tackle.
Here’s Hue Jackson following the game: “I can’t wait to watch the tape to see exactly how many missed tackles we had. We have to be a better tackling football team. This is a work in progress.”
WINNER: Terrelle Pryor
The kid continues to look like an NFL receiver. It’s crazy to me that he was cut last year for an injured running back, but then again—nothing about that last regime seemed to make sense. Kudos to Pryor for taking advantage of an opportunity that most in his position wouldn’t even have been given.
Watch below as he absolutely toasts Desmond Trufant off of the line, and how his strides only seem to get bigger at the top of his route.
I went into this preseason thinking the Browns could simply utilize Pryor’s athleticism in the red zone, but the kid continues to open eyes. He also may want to consider changing his name to Desmond Trufant Sr.
LOSERS: Wide Receivers on the outside looking in
For every opportunity to succeed that Pryor receives, there will be another receiver—a rookie, or even someone like Taylor Gabriel—who will be the collateral damage. Corey Coleman, Andrew Hawkins, Josh Gordon and Terrelle Pryor will have jobs. This doesn’t leave much wiggle room on the fringes so for the second unit to struggle as bad as it did does not bode well for Marlon Moores of the world.
WINNER: Carl Nassib
This kid may very well be the defensive unit’s MVP through two preseason games. He continues to make plays, be they in the back field or using his gargantuan frame to tip passes.
“The guy is doing some really good things, and he’s going to be a good football player,” said Jackson. “He has to keep learning how we do things, how we go about our business on defense and keep getting better, but he has the characteristics that we’re looking for.”
LOSER: Justin Gilbert
And then there’s the former first-round pick who has been given yet another chance to prove his worth, but did not exactly do so on Thursday night. Watch how bad he whiffs the edge on this Freeman touchdown run.
Much of what was said above regarding Horton and the defensive unit can be boiled down to this very play. This was a third-and-1 play that could have resulted in a field goal. Giving up three or four yards would have stung, but nowhere near as badly as what actually transpired.
WINNER: Gary Barnidge
Hi, my name is Gary Barnidge and I make plays.
Nothing more I can say about that snag that wasn’t articulated in Joe Gilbert’s tight end preview. Go read it. If you already did, go read it again.
WINNERS: Isaiah Crowell and Duke Johnson
I try to follow each winner up with an inverse loser, but two things are in the way here: Barnidge really doesn’t have competition at the tight end spot, and I was really impressed by the limited work of the running backs in this one. Crowell fought hard on all seven carries, totaling 28 yards, and Duke Johnson added his flash on the ground and through the air (two receptions on three targets). As much as Robert Griffin III has looked willing and able to throw the ball down field, Hue Jackson’s offenses have always featured a lot of running. To see these two compliment each other as well as they did in limited time was a great sign.
WINNER: Andy Lee
Hereby will be named Badass Andy Lee. Five punts, a 56 yard average with a long of 61, one nailed down inside the 20. Given the defensive woes, field position will be vital, and Lee’s leg will play an integral role.
LOSER: Travis Coons
This all falls under the complete lack of safety net for this year’s Browns team. Just like they can’t afford to throw interceptions at the 1-yard line, they cannot afford to miss point-afters at any stage of a game. They’re simply not good enough to leave points on the table. If Hue Jackson is going to set a goal for seven points in a quarter, that includes the point after attempts actually being converted.
- Editor’s Note: Not sure what that says about his faith in Ray Horton and the defense. [↩]
19 Comments
WINNER: Nassib. His motor never stops. And unlike Mingo, he gets to the right place.
WINNER: Pryor. Play bump and run on this guy at your own risk.
LOSER: Gilbert. This guy is allergic to tackling. Spent the night either whiffing or avoiding.
LOSER: Shelton. I didn’t know it was possible for 330 pounds of anything to be invisible.
LOSER: Horton. Second verse, same as the first.
Winner: Derrick Kindred. Played against the backups, but looked really solid in both run and pass coverage.
Winner: Jamar Taylor. Had a couple of pass breakups and showed great coverage from the nickel position.
Winner: Joe Haden and Tramon Williams. No one is coming to claim their starting spots, that’s for sure.
Loser: Demario Davis. He wasn’t terrible, but made at least one bad read and struggled to make an impact.
Loser: Cody Kessler. He was quite ineffective.
Winner: Browns fans. Win or lose, it looks like we’re finally going to have an exciting offense.
No one gets out of position faster than Bark Mingo
winners : RGIII , pryor , c.erving , nassib , j.taylor , t.watson & s.wright
losers : desir & gilbert
did anyone see the formation in the 2nd half where some of the O-lineman lined-up wide & there was only a C & the 2 G’s in the middle of the field ?
one more winner : Hue Jackson
Griffin has a nice touch on deep passes, and can run fast. But not excited at all yet. We’ll only see what necessary nuances, if any, he’s learned when division defenses break out the real stuff at full speed.
Even if Pryor can’t run a route, as long as he can release and run free like that, that’s a gen-u-wine field stretcher right there, boys. Even when they don’t throw his way. That’s room for Barnidge, or a screen, or some chicanery to spice up an awful roster and a dismal season. Yes, please.
Nassib has that motor thing, all right. Which means even when he can’t beat his man he’ll get his garbage points, like Tristan. Nice pick, pointy heads.
Those who see Shelton doing fine, well, I can’t, even after concentrating on him. Not pushing anyone around, certainly not drawing double teams as advertised. Looks like a solid 5th rounder to me.
Pretty clear Justin Gilbert doesn’t really feel like being out there. Gives off an eerie lack of passion. As Chuck Noll once said after cutting a physically talented player, “I’m not going to give guys a reason to play football.”
I’m cautiously optimistic about Griffin and Pryor.
personally , i would keep scooby wright over d.davis … the kid has great instincts & a bigger heart.
I need to see a lot more of Scooby before I am ready to say that. Fortunately, I do think Hue will give him his chance if he shows he’s ready.
fair enough … not me , though … scooby is a tackling machine & i hope he makes the squad.
Over Davis? Our LBers are not incredibly deep. Should be room for both if they are capable.
And no one gets further out of position than Gilbert, so we got that.
“I’m not going to give guys a reason to play football.”
Wow, you may have just summed up the entire PetFarm era.
Mingo is miscast as anything but a pass rush specialist at this point. He can’t contain or cover, and whiffs to often on tackles in the open field.
I finally finished watching the game, so I’m incredibly late to this party. The game was a mix of promise and crushing reality.
Takeway 1: We actually have skill players now. Depth on the O-line is going to be a potential problem, as will mistakes in general, but I think we have the potential for a non-first down making, all-at-once scoring, destroy-their-own-defense with TOP offense that puts a lot of points on the board.
Takeaway 2: We have some good players on defense, including some promising youngsters, but not very many and not nearly enough. I don’t even know how to evaluate Ray Horton or his scheme, because tackling. I’m not surprised, though. Last year’s defense was bad for a lot of the same reasons this year’s will be regardless of who the DC or the scheme is, and we lost most of the best players on defense from last year. (Gipson, Whitner, Dansby, Bryant)
Winners:
WR Corps – no not the decent players who won’t make the roster, but that’s what happens when you improve
RG3 – He will frustrate at times, but he’s clearly more talented than what we’ve been working with lately.
Terrell Watson – He’s a guy who might be a long-shot to make the roster, but he flashed in this game.
Carl Nassib – not a super high ceiling, but he’s a guy who will make a good pro and be fun to watch
Offensive Line – Dan France filled in for Thomas admirably, and both potential RT options looked passable. Cam Erving was surprisingly not terrible at center, although it’s possible he benefited from being book-ended by Greco and Bitonio. (awful snap over RG3’s head notwithstanding)
Derrick Kindred – he benefited from all the whiffs in front of him, and I really don’t know if he was in position or not, but he put more hits on ball carriers than anybody else.
Andy Lee – for the obvious reasons
Losers:
Justin Gilbert – oh man he was bad. If the Browns had decent db options he’d be on thin ice for a roster spot. Alas…
Tramon Williams – I remember being disappointed by him last season, and he doesn’t look better now.
Danny Shelton – The trimmer version of Shelton looked the part, but he made zero amount of push or disruption ever, and he wasn’t drawing double teams. Is Mack just that good?
John Hughs – Swallowed up by his blocker every time. Irrelevant on every play.
Ray Horton – I don’t think he did anything wrong, but his roster makes him a loser here
Travis Coons – Just not good enough.
Tackling – we’re apparently staging a boycott
Agree on all of this, except I think Nassib could be better than that. His ability to be in the right place at the right time remains to be seen, but the motor never hurts.
John Hughes didn’t play. You thinking of Xavier Cooper or Nick Hayden? Neither was terribly impressive but Hayden did have a TFL.
Hmm, I wonder how I mixed that one up. I’m remembering the starters from two days before I wrote the post, I guess, so I’ll resist the temptation to blame the announcing crew. I was just overwhelmed by the overall disappointment in the DL, lol.