Bye week blues and the impending cold slap of reality named the New England Patriots
October 23, 2019Can, should, and would the Indians be able to sign Francisco Lindor long term?: While We’re Waiting
October 24, 2019The Cleveland Browns are coming out of the bye week at 2-4 and are facing the best team in the NFL this week on the road. The Browns have started the season on an up and down trajectory, with the biggest culprit of this trend being the numerous mistakes and penalties. This should be No. 1 on the pecking order of areas to address. The Browns need to be more disciplined. But, the offense, in particular, struggles with consistency in several other areas. For the team to succeed after the bye week, Cleveland has to shore up their problems on offense. Though, we have seen the team show glimpses of how to fix it. The key will be implementing these glimpses on a consistent, full-time basis. So, what is the template for the success of this Browns offense? Here are five themes that the Browns have shown early-season success with, that should be the backbone of the Browns offense for the rest of the year.
Make Chubb the centerpiece of the offense
This is simple. Just watch the clip above. Nick Chubb is the Browns best offensive player and he has shown that in the first six games of the season. The Browns have the second-best yards per carry average in the league at 5.3 yards per carry, primarily because of Chubb. His ability to create yards after contact, combined with his vision and athletic ability, makes him a tough man to bring down. The Browns need to utilize Chubb in both the pass and run game. The second-year running back must be the centerpiece of the offense. The offense should run off of him in a smart way. This doesn’t mean running the ball in second-and-long situations. But, Chubb needs to touch the ball 25+ times a game. With the defense having to worry about Chubb, this can open the playbook and the rest of the offense for the Browns.
Show the Creativity
I want more of this kind of play calling. This is the creativity that we saw from Freddie Kitchens in 2018. It stresses the defense because it has numerous options for the play to go to. The defense has to take into account every option, which leads to a numbers’ win for the offense. Misdirection, pre-snap motion, and intricate and diverse formations are some of the things that I want to see in terms of the creativity of the offense. Find different ways to get the ball to your playmakers. Lining up in five-wide or running every time in a second-and-long situation is not going to get it done. If the offense can create these creative plays, it lessens the pressure and attention on the players to have to make plays out of a tough situation. Create mismatches.
Utilize play-action more
Just watch this play. The Browns faked a handoff and the defense reacted to the run, creating open areas in the passing game. The linebackers biting down on the run gave space for the completion. Play action passes should be the friend of this offense. With Chubb playing extremely well, the play-action pass can be done with good effects because the defense must defend against a Chubb run. If the play-action can affect the defense and what they are doing, it opens up the passing lanes. Baker Mayfield has struggled with consistency this season. Play action passes can lessen the stress on the young quarterback. It gives Mayfield more space to operate and fewer eyes on him. He has shown the success already this season when he throws out of a play-action pass. According to Pro Football Focus, he is 35 of 52 (67.3%) for 511 yards, three touchdowns, and four interceptions. In plays with no play-action, he is just 77 of 146 (52.7%) for 985 yards, two touchdowns, and seven interceptions. Play action pass plays can be a way to get this quarterback back to his successful ways.
Get the ball out quickly to your playmakers
These two plays are just examples of what happens when you get the ball out quickly to your playmakers. Both of these passes were thrown in under two and a half seconds to the Browns’ two best YAC receivers. The plays gave the receivers a chance to use their talents to make a play. The Browns have far too often this season forced long drops for Mayfield and long developing routes for the receivers. The plays develop slowly and put stress on the blocking and the young quarterback. According to Pro Football Focus, Mayfield has completed 63.5% of his passes when he gets rid of the ball before 2.5 seconds. If he holds it longer than that, his completion percentage drops to 49.5%. Get the ball out quickly and let the Browns multitude of playmakers make the plays.
Limit the pressure on the offensive line
This area correlates with the previous area. The Browns need to get the ball out quickly, not only to help Mayfield and allow the playmakers to make plays, but also to lessen the stress on the offensive line, who has struggled this season. The clip above is an example of the long play design putting stress on the offensive line. The Browns were in a third-and-10 situation and had four pass-catchers out wide. Three of them ran deep routes, while the other target ran too shallow a route to be a first down conversion option. This led to Mayfield having to hold onto the ball too long, pressuring the offensive line to hold up longer than it should be forced to do. There are other ways to lessen the pressure on the offensive line. One way is to vary the formations and personnel more. The team has utilized three-receiver sets far too often. If they vary the formation and personnel groupings, defenses will have a harder time recognizing what is coming, which puts the rush on their heels more often. The Browns also need to help the offensive line by keeping more extra blockers in and utilizing chip blocks more to help the individual offensive linemen win their blocking assignment. Stop putting them on islands. And, one last way is by establishing the run. If you can establish the run, defenses have to honor this run game, lessening their ability to blitz and go all out on pass rushing.