The Cleveland Browns are leading the visiting Green Bay Packers at halftime, 14-7. Cleveland has put together a solid half of action that has been highlighted by the home return of Josh Gordon. Gordon has helped make DeShone Kizer relax in the pocket through two quarters of play and it has shown in the rookie quarterback’s performance.
Let’s look at the three takeaways from the first half.
1. Flash Of Greatness- Remember when there were questions about how Josh Gordon would return to football after being out for two years? Those were a few fun days.
Gordon has quieted every single one of his critics both on and off the field, returning to the field and with a bang. Flash put together a half’s outing of three receptions for 69 yards and a touchdown, his first score since 2013. Gordon even had a chance to haul in a second touchdown near the end of the second quarter but was facing heavy contact and could not bring the pass in.
Gordon has electrified the masses and is giving Browns fans a ton of hope not only for the conclusion of this game, but also for next year.
2. Kizer Impressive So Far- Rookie quarterback DeShone Kizer is an interesting case. It seems as if he cannot manage to put together a string of solid games, always going one step forward and two steps back. Today is much of the same for Kizer, this time on a positive note.
The Notre Dame product has completed fifteen of his eighteen passes thrown for 174 passing yards and two touchdowns. Kizer has looked poised in the pocket and has often times made quick, smart decisions. He has also been elusive and scrambled for a few first downs to keep drives alive, showing why Hue Jackson liked him so much coming out of college.The only bad play that Kizer made was at the end of the first half, where he failed to look off Ha-Ha Clinton-Dix when targeting Josh Gordon. The failure to mislead the defender led to a Clinton-Dix interception.
3. Defense Standing Tall- The Browns have held the Packers to 22 rushing yards, which is a testament to Gregg Williams and his side of the ball. Cleveland has been a tough nut to crack when trying to run on them all season and today is no different. Along with their stout run defense, Cleveland has held quarterback Brett Hundley to 80 passing yards.
If the Browns can continue to isolate the Green Bay offense, they may not need many more points to pull out a victory.
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