DawgTalkers.net Forums The Archives 2016 NFL Season Looking Back: Browns 20 Redskins 31 Postgame Thoughts

I only watched the first and the fourth due to church.

Kessler looked more poised. I like how he doesn't force throws. I want to see continual improvement.

Crow's come into his own this season.

We need a defense.

Cody didn't cost us the game anyway.. The Johnson's dropping their balls did us in today.. We aren't talented enough to overcome turnovers. Lousy routes by rookie WR's and too young and injured on defense added to the loss.

Long ways to go before they can play 60 minutes.

The Browns have zero margin for error.

The team can hang in there for a little while, but are a ways away from being able to close games out.

Crow is running the ball well. He may be the league's leading rusher by the end of week 4.

Parkey didn't miss any FGs.

New guy Cam Johnson made a couple impact plays.

I think Kessle's arm is big enough for the NFL. He made the throws with zip that he needed to.

He has a ways to go, but i'd like to see him for the rest of the season over McCopter and IR3.

I don't need to see the Glass brothers under center anymore. Give the kid the reps. At worst we've then given at least our backup game time.

I think that the offense has some real potential to be special. The Browns were able to move the ball at will, they just fell apart with the turnovers. Kessler made some good decisions with the ball and showed that highly touted accuracy.

The defense needs some work. They were getting owned in all facets of the game. I don't necessarily fault Horton. He doesn't have much to work with.

Parker didn't miss any FGs!

Kessler was adequate IMO. Crowell good. Both better, But we took our foot off the gas on O. Vertical. Pryor needs some habits broken now that are bad in routes.

Defense is not there; no lead is safe with this secondary's whiffs and missed tackles. Just stopped being aggressive enough on two sides of the ball. Some new blood showed well. We might be over thinking some of the coaching IMO. We showed improvement, but we failed to do enough.

crow was at his best. still don't get why malcolm would get a carry in that spot??

This game is on Hugh and the staff IMO. Malcom is a blocking fullback. Why he is running the ball at that point is overthinking. Dumb move. That changed the whole Mojo. We would have scored had we kept feeding the Crow. I am a bit concerned when Hue gets a chance to out think himself. We came off a injury and ran some pump fake screen at little earlier. Just keep doing what's working for crying out loud.


I think Kessler had another decent game. We are still going to need to drive the ball deeper, but the guy managed the game well. I see no need to throw him to the curb, or put him on notice at this point.

Parkey came through. I was happy for the kid. He had a tough row to hoe last week. I am impressed with his leg strength. He made a 50-51 yarder that looked to go through the uprights pretty high. Looked like it could have had a chance at 62 yards. I am glad we didn't simply cut him last week. I am convinced we can win with him as our kicker for many years to come..

We need to hope Coleman works out well because the other receivers we drafted aren't any good. They are just dime a dozen guys IMO. I wish we hadn't used as many picks on receivers.

I am still encouraged by what I see from the team, at least on O. No, we didn't win, but we will.

The D needs more push. You can't rely on a corner blitz to provide your sacks. I am thinking we need to draft Myles Garrett and add 12 sacks to our defensive front.

Man .. That was OURS ...

WE BLEW IT ... The fumbles (not Dukes) and the pick ..

They hadn't stopped us since the 2nd drive of the game other than Duke's alleged fumble

DAMM IT ... We're running out of chances ... IMO .. This was our best chance the rest of the way ..

OH WELL .. Here's to 2 weeks from now ..

NE lost today .. They could beat us by 60 next week ...

Hue tried to get cute and trick the other team. It was dumb. I don't think he had a carry at Mississippi, and maybe 1 carry as a pro.

Live and learn. I still like what I am seeing...we are on the right path.

I doubt they will bro.....I think we win next week. Well, ok....I hope we do, as do you.


There is something about these guys I like. The results lack at this point, but I like what I see. I mean, 1 win, 5 wins, does it really matter this year? It was never about this year.

1 wins plenty ... I just don't want to go winless and I am worried about that now ..

I'm with U ... Not a fan of Hue's play calling .. Someone in the chat room put it nicely .. He gets to CUTE .. U may have even mentioned it ..

Last week he BLEW IT taking a knee .. That was just MORONIC ...

Every game he's made 2 - 4 HORRENDOUS DECISIONS ..

Very worried about him when the game is on the line .. Like u said ..

He OUTSMARTS HIMSELF ...

I'd like to comment on some of the players, but apparently I have to wait three years to do so.



Just kidding.

Some thoughts:

--Why does Crow only get 15 carries? He was the best player on the field.

--Kessler looked pretty good for a rookie, but I don't like constant dinking and dunking.

--Pryor was balling in first half.

--Browns have some quicker pass rushers.

--Why give the ball to M. Johnson? Why give the ball to Duke when Crow was so hot?

--The Browns have a losing culture. As soon as they took the lead, the first thought in my mind was how would they blow it this week. They always find a way to lose.

Seriously ... Put the BALL IN PRYORS HANDS ...

And then we run wildcat and Pryor's not taking the DIRECT SNAP .. WTF is that? ...

Duke was getting checked for a concussion, and Crow needed a blow. At least that is what Hue said.

Did anyone ask him what was wrong with Pryor down there? ...

I need to add something:

The OL played very well today. It's too bad that center got hurt. I hope it isn't serious. This line is much better w/Erving not playing.

The OL opened holes in the running game. Greco was killing it!

And they gave Kessler a lot of time to throw the ball.

Btw...........Pazstor played much, much better.

You know.................I think Greco is one of the most underrated players to ever play here.

Then throw the ball to Johnson....he can catch, or take a timeout. There are critical moments in a game, and not all of them are at the end of the game. A timeout then would have been better than taking the timeouts when we did very late in the game when down by a impossible amount..we would have scored and gone on to win the game.

I know coaches like to save timeouts, but that is a stupid book to follow. Take them when you need them. We needed one then. A coach has to understand critical moments in the game. In most games, they boil down to 6-7 plays. You have to win most of those moment if you expect to win. We had a chance to go up by 10. Don't try to buy time by handing it to a useless fullback who has carried the ball maybe 3 time in the last 5 years. Call timeout, give Crow the ball a couple more times and watch him score, and we win.


That's how it could have worked out.

I feel like Hue still doesn't trust Kessler in the pocket. It's a shame, because in the 2nd half, the play calling did not do much to help Kessler. That being said, I thought he played a very good game, his ball placement is top notch. There is something to work with there. Should be noted that FedEx Field is a tough place to play for a team with a lot of rookies.

That being said, they lost a winnable game, mostly because of basic mistakes. As long as this doesn't cost any COACHES their job, then whatever.

Next week MIGHT get ugly, but if we run Crow more, it could be tolerable.

BTW, After a few solid weeks, Demario Davis came way back down to earth. Goodness, he cannot cover me. Just awful in space.

I don't think what Hue said is correct:

Here is the play by play:




The Washington guy was hurt on the previous play........right? Crow had time to rest.

We got too cute.

It is all just opinion, but I think Hue is doing a tremendous job of masking Kessler's weaknesses.

I disagree w/Hue not feeding the Crow more, but he is calling a great game that hides just how poor Kessler's arm is.

Sure seems like our running game significantly improved after Erving's injury. Pretty certain he lost his starting spot.

Post Game Thoughts:

--I will preface this first comment by saying I am in no way in favor of making any changes at the coaching or FO level. I am in favor of continuity. However, I don't see this huge difference maker that Hue is. I don't see how the results are any different than any other regime. There seems to be this desire to romanticize this staff and say things like "they're improving" or "they're playing hard" or "this feels different than the other coaches". It doesn't feel any different to me. It's just more losing. I read something that the Browns have won 3 games since November 2014. That is a losing culture that is going to be very hard to unravel. It's a monumental task for any staff and FO. I fear if this staff and FO don't start getting some wins, they are going to lose buy in. Vers has mentioned this before, and I think it's true. Hell, Hue himself has acknowledged it. If the hard work doesn't start paying off, it's only going to get more difficult to turn this thing around.

--I'd also like to remind fans that are saying it feels different this time that we were also saying that with other staffs. Romeo had us at 10-6 in year 3 showing a natural progression of development. Pettine had us at 9-7 in year 1. If we went back to those threads, I'm sure there were a ton of "this feels different" comments.

--I guess my bottom line is it doesn't feel any different to me. It just feels like another loss. Another predictable Sunday. I hope that Hue and Co. have what it takes to get this turned around, and I hope they get the time to do it. But without a franchise QB and a losing culture to boot, it's going to be tough. They need to be given the time though.

--I am very unimpressed with Hue as a play caller. He can kill drives with silly decisions.

--I have never seen a professional team in any sport demonstrate a lack of ability to handle in game adversity like the Cleveland Browns. One mistake and it all comes unraveled. I don't mind the losses. But this really bothers me. It's a hang your head kind of attitude that is in complete contradiction to a competitive spirit.

--I thought Kessler had a nice first half, but Hue is afraid to let him chuck it. That concerns me. That means Hue doesn't have confidence in him. That means he's not the answer. This disappoints me because I think this team is due to catch lightning in a bottle, and I want Kessler to be our Brady. But the second half felt very McCoy like, and if the coaches don't have confidence, he's destined to be a backup. My prediction is as soon as McCown is healthy, Kessler will be back on the bench. If that happens, then Kessler's ceiling will be confirmed as a backup. I'm not sure what all that "trust me" stuff from Hue was about.

--Crowell has really taken to coaching. Wilbur mentioned him aligning his eyes correctly and exploding through holes. Man, he has come on.

--Defense was pretty disappointing today. Cousins is only marginally better than Kessler and that's with a lot more experience. Our DL has literally no idea how to rush the passer. There is no pass rush ability there. No moves, nothing. It's a straight Kruger-like bull rush or nothing. Cousins literally had all day to throw today. Even average QBs will make you pay for that.

--Run defense. What happened there? It went from a pleasant surprise of the season to pretty much non-existant.

--It's hard not to believe the officiating is rigged when Haden played picture perfect technique on the deep pass and gets flagged. You can tell from the side judge's body language that he was throwing a flag no matter what. He had his mind made up. And he followed through on it. Disappointing.

--I thought Haden played like a true shut down corner today against one of the fastest receivers in the NFL. And on a sore groin to boot. Jackson simply wasn't open most of the game.

--I think Hue is going to run out of things to say at his pressers. He has 12 more losses to go. If I were him, I'd start mixing some comedy in to lighten the mood. This new coaching staff and FO are going to be tested so much the rest of the way. I hope they hold it together. I hope Haslam assures them they are in it for the long haul. I don't want to hear about any infighting. That will make the monumental task of turning this thing around even worse.

--I'm not college football guy, but I was watching the Louisville - Clemson game yesterday. I stopped watching in the 4th when Louisville looked to have firm control of the game. I see that Clemson came back and won. But from what I saw, Deshuan Watson did not look like a QB to me. He looked like an athlete but not a QB. Lamar Jackson looked much more like a QB, even going through progressions on drop backs. I'm not sure what all the fuss is about Watson, but again, I don't watch much college football. I'm basing it just on this game.

If you guys are going to complain about handing the ball off to Johnson,then you should also complain about throwing passes his way,that's only fair.
But then the passes worked out and hand off didn't,and the blame lies squarely at the hands of the head coach,not the professional football player,who gets paid to not fumble.

I like your post. I don't agree w/all of it, but at least it is a thoughtful football post. Thank you for that.

I wanna address this:




I hope Hue doesn't take the blame for the lack of talent the FO has given him. I was a coach for quite some time and I know this:

You can demand a lot of players. You can get them to work harder, study more, be more accountable, me more selfless, put in extra time, make all kinds of sacrifices, etc.......

..........but, if you don't win some games, that narrative loses credibility w/the players and grumbling begins to bubble like lava in an active volcano.

It is absolutely imperative that your team has some success.

And guys.......this FO did not do a good job of putting Hue in a position to win some games. Football is a team game. This is NOT baseball. You can't find all the answers inside a computer.

I am so worried that Hue is going to be the fall guy for the what is going to transpire.

That, my friends, will be yet another mistake in a long list of mistakes that this god-forsaken franchise has endured.

Good call, except that Johnson was a TE at Miss. St and not a FB.

I believe that Hue is firmly entrenched in the collaborative approach to football decisions. I think he shares a lot of that burden as well. I think the staff and FO own that together. The absolute best possible thing that Haslam can do is tell these guys they are here for the long run no matter the wins or losses. Then no one has to be a fall guy.

And this is just speculation on my part, but I think Hue was the single biggest driving factor of not drafting Wentz.

Good points. I don't know for sure, but you may be right.

I still wanna give the guy 3-4 years no matter what..........

I'm wondering if the gameplay was that they figured Norman would shut down Pryor and thereby we didn't have a viable downfield option? Barnidge was getting some looks early and Ricardo go in there a few times. Was he worried bout the new Center and protection with our line having to keep moving around?

I thought with Crow running so well that we'd start looking downfield a bit more - especially with the holes up the middle. Seems like there should have been some good 15-20 yard tosses down the middle for most of the day via some play action...

They were keyed in on the screens and Duke in the flat seems to yield nada but Crow int the flat would be some positive gains...

Crow did have a couple of catches I think.

I remember him bailing Kessler out on a 3rd and 8 dump off pass, breaking some tackles, and picking up the first down.

I have been watching some college ball as of late, and I am no expert by any means, but the two QBs I think look like they have a shot in the NFL are Lamar Jackson of Louisville and Winston Speight of Michigan. I don't expect to see either in next year's draft, but those two look better than most of the potential top picks who might come out next year.

My $0.02

I'll add that I think Kizer looks the best of all 3.

I haven't seen much of him yet, so I will have to keep an eye out for him. Yesterday's game, Jackson put the team on his back and willed Louisville to score, kind of like what Pryor has been trying to do, I did not see that same "it" factor from Watson...

I got to watch this game in spurts. What I saw of this game and this team this year, I am not discouraged. I predicted 3 wins at most. I think that was liberal at this point. As disappointed I am that we let it slip away, I am not upset. My emotions will be back when we show any semblance of being good, or after next season (since we clearly tanked this year) we still show no improvement.

For this team, with as many young players as we have, to be able to hang with any other team, I am encouraged.

I love this reply. Let's find out if it will work and give it time. I am willing to be patient. Being impatient has not worked, so why not?

This. That is all.

I'm in my 60's now. Mortality looms (hopefully, not imminently). I am NOT patient. I've seen other teams turn things around quickly, but somehow it never happens here. I am NOT on board for another 3-4-5 year plan. Fix this, and win some games for goodness sake. There's not another fan base in existence that has been asked to swallow as much garbage as this one has.