Browns show flashes but fatal flaws end the party

Before we get to the meat of week two, a quick blurb about the taunting penalty everyone is freaking out about:

The refs have been calling that kind of taunting consistently this season, and it’s not like the Ravens DB was directly in the path of the official. Even if Pryor just missed the toss, the optics on that fit pretty well with the similar taunting calls we’ve seen this season. Okay, moving on.

If anyone reading this is a lifelong Browns fan–or watched the game with one–you know how conditioned the Browns fan’s mind is to heartbreak.

Sunday’s 25-0 run by the Ravens to comeback and beat the Browns 25-20 is no surprise to those who know the team best. As soon as Patrick Murray’s extra point was blocked and returned all the way for two points, the groans in Cleveland could be heard across the state of Ohio. “Here we go again.”

When a team goes down by three scores in the first quarter, it’s no secret the trailing team is going to throw the ball a ton. Case in point, Joe Flacco threw 45 passes Sunday. When a team is that one sided on offense, it usually makes them easier to stop. But the Browns break a lot of trends that make sense.

Joe Haden looked like Good Joe Haden on Sunday, allowing just four catches for 57 yards and intercepting two passes according to Pro Football Focus. Yet Flacco still threw for 245  yards and two touchdowns outside of that. The Browns have no reliable corners outside of Haden (sometimes) and the pass rush wasn’t there to help them out Sunday.

Per Pro Football Focus, Flacco was pressured 12 times on 45 drop backs, sporting a QB rating of 49.0 on those plays. The Browns would’ve been fine had they been able to generate a consistent pass rush, but instead they tried to forge one with Blitzes and were burned because of it. Losing Carl Nassib to injury didn’t help, but Nassib wouldn’t have turned the pass rush from fruitless to dominant, either.

On the 14 pass plays the Browns blitzed against Sunday, Flacco completed 10 of 14 passes for 161 yards and a touchdown, per PFF. Flacco averaged 11.5 yards per attempt on those passes. The Browns struggled to pressure Flacco–even when they brought extra rushers– and left their inexperienced non-Haden cornerbacks on islands where they couldn’t survive.

On the flip side of the blowout equation, the best way to maintain a lead is to have success running the ball to keep the ball away from the desperate opponent and keep the clock moving. The Browns struggled mightily with that.

Isaiah Crowell’s 133 yards on 18 carries look great on the surface, but when you remember 85 came on one play, that changes the perspective. Taking out Crowell’s touchdown run, he carried the ball 17 times for 48 yards, good for 2.8 yards per carry. Not even close to being good enough to hold a lead.

All of the highlights from the offense came in the first half, and Josh McCown’s left shoulder injury appeared to get worse throughout the game. It didn’t help that McCown was pressured on a third of his drop backs, but a clean pocket might not have made much difference with the pain he was experiencing. Cleveland.com reported this morning that the injury could keep him out for a while, and it’s Cody Kessler or free agent signing going forward.

Whoever it ends up being will get to throw to the stud-ly Corey Coleman, who is far and away the brightest bright spot from yet another dark Sunday afternoon. Coleman showcased his big-play ability Sunday as he caught 5 passes for 104 yards and two touchdowns. He averaged 20.8 yards per catch (!!!) and showcased the speed he was drafted for. Granted, he was facing the 23rd ranked pass defense from 2015 (plus Eric Weddle), but he still impressed, and when Josh Gordon comes back, the Browns will have secondaries awake at all hours of the night before a game.

The quarterback question is real (again), but it’s not a terrible thing to try out Cody Kessler to see if he has any real NFL starter potential. I still believe the Browns’ franchise QB–like many other fixes– will come from the 2017 draft, but it can’t hurt to give Kessler a chance given the emergency situation.

The Browns as a whole will continue to struggle, but they will also learn more about the young players on their roster, which is all they can ask for at this point.