Cleveland Browns Pregame Scribbles: Can this exhausting team finally quiet the noise?
Updated 7:34 AM
https://www.cleveland.com/browns/2019/11...heir-image.htmlBy Terry Pluto, The Plain Dealer
CLEVELAND – Scribbles in my notebook as the Cleveland Browns prepare to face the Miami Dolphins on Sunday in FirstEnergy Stadium (1 p.m., WJW Channel 8) :
1. It seems like forever since the Browns have played a game. It’s actually 10 days. They beat the Pittsburgh Steelers, 21-7, on Nov. 14. It should have been a fun 10 days for the Browns and their fans, finally dumping the Steelers. Instead, it’s been All-Myles-Garrett-Helmet, All-The-Time.
2. Jay Glazer is a well-known NFL commentator. He now works for Fox Sports and The Athletic. He was asked by a reader if the Browns “have a culture problem or simply a lapse in discipline?"
3. “Both,” wrote Glazer. “Their head coach Freddie Kitchens is saying there’s not but every week there’s something. When you have one player tweeting out death threats one week, then another player with a watch controversy, then there’s this big fight, there’s just too much noise out of there.”
4. Glazer is right. The exhausting part of the Browns is too much noise. Odell Beckham Jr. is the source of much of it. The Browns knew that when they traded for the receiver. Beckham is not a bad person. But there are aspects of his personality that wore out the New York Giants. His subconscious need for attention is doing the same here.
5. The Browns won’t admit concerns about Beckham. Maybe they don’t have any. I probably wouldn’t mention it if Beckham was one of the top receivers in the NFL this season. But he’s not. He’s caught one TD pass. He is averaging 14.4 yards per reception with 48 catches in 10 games. It’s an OK season, but certainly not Pro Bowl worthy.
6. Profootballfocus (PFF) rates Beckham No. 31 out of 44 starting receivers. They have him with six drops, third most among receivers. He has been flagged for six penalties (three declined), tied for the most among receivers. They rank Jarvis Landry No. 23.
7. Beckham can change things with a strong finish to the season. The same with the Browns. That’s why beating Miami would be a good step. That would put the team on a three-game winning streak, all at home. That comes after losing the first three home games of the season.
8. Glazer also wrote of the Browns: “There was a lot of noise going into the season, you knew it going in. Somehow, someway, someone has to quiet the noise. There’s a lot of big personalities in there. There are way too many penalties. The quarterback isn’t being developed. There’s always something with the Browns.”
9. Not everything Glazer wrote is correct. But the perception was developed in the first eight games of the season. The Browns were 2-6, leading the NFL in penalties and Baker Mayfield was one of the lowest-ranked QBs. They lost, 24-19, to a poor Denver Broncos team. Jermaine Whitehead was tweeting out post-game threats while still in uniform following the loss.
10. In their victories over Pittsburgh and the Buffalo Bills, the Steve Wilks’ defense has come together – holding those teams to 16 and 7 points. In those victories, Mayfield is 43-of-70 passing (61 percent) with four touchdowns and zero interceptions. He has been sacked only three times.
11. Then there’s Nick Chubb, averaging 101 yards per game. He is turning into a great running back, a role model of consistency and a team player. The offensive line is growing together since Wyatt Teller took over as the starting right guard. Landry is having a strong season.
12. Those are the things Browns fans would be talking about had the Pittsburgh game ended eight seconds earlier. Instead, the fight that began between Garrett and Pittsburgh QB Mason Rudolph has dominated the news and once again made the Browns look undisciplined.
13. The Browns need a “normal” game and a decisive victory. The 2-8 Dolphins are a weak opponent. Even without three starters on the defensive line, the Browns should be able to control this game on offense and defense.
14. From a football perspective, the Browns have played two dominating games this season. They beat the Baltimore Ravens, 40-25, and then there’s the 21-7 victory over Pittsburgh. Beating Buffalo (19-16) also was impressive. That’s who the Browns can be when they are fully engaged.
15. As for the fallout from the fight, it’s still stunning that the NFL reduced the suspension of Pittsburgh’s Maurkice Pouncey from three to two games. The guy was kicking Garrett. Rudolph was fined $50,000... no suspension. Given how the NFL ruled on this, I’m surprised they didn’t pay Rudolph $50,000 for his trouble.
16. I know, that’s sounding a bit bitter. Garrett deserved the six-game suspension, but it should not be indefinite. Yet, that remains... and they added an additional $45,623 in fines to him losing about $1.8 million in salary. I’m not excusing Garrett or teammate Larry Ogunjobi (suspended for a game), but the NFL took a bad/sad situation and made it worse with later rulings.
17. Miami will start 37-year-old Ryan Fitzpatrick at QB. He is having a solid year for a very bad team. The Dolphins are 2-5 when he starts. He’s completing 63 percent of his passes, eight TD passes and eight interceptions. He has a 5-1 record vs. the Browns.
18. Fitzpatrick can get hot and put up some numbers. But the Browns should pile up the points against a defense ranked second-worst in the NFL, allowing 30.5 points per game.
19. I want to see more of what the Browns can do with the Kareem Hunt/Chubb backfield. Mayfield has been far more at ease since Hunt returned from a suspension two weeks ago. Hunt has embraced any role from blocking, to catching passes, to running the ball, and his teammates love his unselfish attitude.
20. Prediction: Browns 27, Miami 13. I’m 6-4 picking Browns games this season.
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.... i prolly will take a break soon though ... this Place ain’t much fun Right now ... and whenever its not fun i take a break .... done it 4 or 5 times over the years ...