DawgTalkers.net Forums The Archives 2016 NFL Season Looking Back: Browns 7 Ravens 28 Kessler vs the Ravens

Kessler has been a topic conversation of late. Particularly the question of throwing deep/taking shots downfield.

Even Hue Jackson made it a talking point and last game Cody took more "homerun" shots then ever before.

From Hue's own statements and its supported by his playcalling...he wants Kessler to throw it downfield.

It makes sense because many teams have been using a lot of 8-man press Cover-1 looks on defense.

I maybe alone in this thought but I don't agree with forcing feeding a QB to attack deep. I think deep shots should happen organically. Imho Hue/Pep desire to force the deep ball took points off the board when a higher efficiency play may have extended the drive AND Kessler's strength is being able to be highly efficient and sustain the offense throw accurate short-to-intermediate passing game.


Anyhow...what do you guys think?


And, this is place to post real time, drive to drive the plays happening on the field w/ Cody and the passing game.

I kinda get what you are saying about force-feeding things, but the problem is that because we aren't beating team w/deeper throws, those same defenses [and the plan started w/New England] have taken away our running game and made us a lot more one-dimensional. That is why Hue told the announcers that having McCown in opened up the playbook significantly.


Posting while watching the game is a bad idea. I think one's full concentration should be on the game if he/she wants to analyze it properly.

If Kessler wants any sort of chance of going into next season as a starter, he has to show the ability to push the ball downfield.

He also has to show the ability to throw a receiver open.

And here's the thing: he doesn't even have to do it consistently. He's a third string rookie. I think we all get that he shouldn't even be starting right now. He just has to show the potential.

But at the end of the day, Hue handed him the keys. Hue can call these plays all he wants, but it's on Cody to pull the trigger and throw the damn ball downfield.

If he doesn't possess the arm, or the confidence, or both, then we really have no choice but to grab the top QB on the board next draft.

Am I the only one who actually watches--and listens--to the games?

no you're not. now for me i think Cody is smarth enough. He doesn't have a cannon, but if he can antisipate his throws and put it in the vicinity for the reciever to make a play, that's good. just another thing he needs to work on. And by the way i will suffer through this game in the cave. already told my wife the alarm is set. and my phone is set incase i fall asleep in the cave.lol

Going deep isn't the only way to counter the 8-in the box Cover-1 defense they've been facing so much of.

Especially if its forced.

Agreed. So are you okay with'force feeding' the deep ball?

Yep, and Hue has done a great job of masking our issues w/Cody at qb.

But sooner or later, you gotta demonstrate that you can make all the throws or you will be relegated to being a back-up qb.

That is not a bad thing. It's not an insult. It's not hatred. It's just reality.

and yes i know i spell almost as bad as Diam. My wife asked me how can you spell so bad and be a english major. told her two differant things i suck at spelling. That's why i was a mason foreman i could deciper a blueprint with ease.

Yeah, spelling isn't linked to intelligence.........or so the experts tell me.

Hope not otherwise i wasted 35yrs and 3/4 billion dollars worth of jobs.

Yes. Either he's gonna figure it out or he's not. Sometimes you gotta push a young player out of their comfort zone.

I want the QB to figure it out also except I want it to happen organically. I don't want to force a QB to press and end up wasting chances like throwing a deep ball on 3rd and 2 then having to kick a FG.

Love that play call. Trips right TE deep crossing route from a rub route.

Finally creative ways to get attack Cover-1 press man then merely chucking it deep.

I love that they keep working the comeback routes
those will be open all day against Cover 1/3

Yeah. Great Game!

That was my realistic expectation from the day Kessler's name was called on draft day. Backup QB. Gotta have One.

I'm starting to get the feeling we might just auction off Myles Garrett for a ransom and target Trubinsky.

Trubinsky and an Adams or Hooker might just be a good play come April? Garrett and Trubinsky would be a better alternative.

We gotta get a damn QB in here without reaching.

we're in a tough spot because Cody has proven to be backup material, McCown is McCown (and a worse version at this point), RG3 is injured and/or useless, we're 0-10 with a strong chance to go 0-16 ... and there's no QB worth drafting at #1

Basically, the nightmare scenario

agree with everything u just said ... 100% ... up until last weeks presser and then what happend last night ...

I agree with ED .... u can't force it ... And u certainly don't throw your 23 year old rookie under the bus one week and then bench him at the half ...

Hue UNDID everything Cody did well in the course of 5 days ...

Cody is what Cody is ... U know Vers .. Hue said on draft day or shortly thereafter ...

"TRUST ME ON THIS ONE" ... well starting with the presser on Sunday .... HUE isn't trusting himself ...

Cody's skill set is what it is .. U and I both know for him to suceed he has to ANTICIPATE throws, thats the only way he's going to be able to throw the outs and 20 yard seems ...

He's NO WHERE'S NEAR READY FOR THAT ... u know its a process Vers ... Cody's biggest strength is his brain ... and all year he's been holding it to long .. WE know why ... he's still learning reading a D in the NFL, the speed of the game ... he's doing the one thing WE know kills players .. he's THINKING ... at any position it slows u down ... at the QB position it is a death knell ... U know what i mean by thinking Vers, I'm sure the dolts will be chiming in soon ... well he has "think", your a moron Diam ...

So just because thats what Hue wants doesn't make Cody anymore ready for it ...

U and I both know Cody is not a starter, IMO he will be a very good back up ... your thoughts on that? ...

Hue messed this up big time over the last 5 days ... he FORCED it ... and no matter how hard he tries at this POINT .. the square peg, wont fit in the round hole ... so instead of trying to shape the square peg he is just running it over with the bus hoping it will work when its flat ... *L* ..

Cody needs someone to help him with the process, he's a ROOKIE with a limited skill set ... he doesn't need his head coach telling him he's the man and then saying things in public that should be between them ...

IMO ... Hue has acted like a LOSER and not a LEADER over the last 5 days with Cody ..

j/c

for him to say cody is still the starter is so hypocritical and misguided IMO ... I'd rather have him say "you know what, I have no idea what the hell I'm gonna do yet" .. yo-yoing a young player is dumb IMO

It's early and I hate to say he can't be a starter or he will be a quality back-up.

With that said, he looks to me like a guy who will have a fairly long career as a number 2. A guy who can help in the meeting rooms because he is smart. A stable guy. A guy who can give you a couple of quality starts when needed.

Those aren't insults. They are compliments. There aren't too many guys who can make that kind of living doing that.

Did he say that after last nights game or are u referring to last weeks BS?

I read that he said Cody is still the starter after the game.

U know I wait 3 years or so before i make judgements on QB's ..

I should have said ...

I liked the draft pick cause i think he has a great skill set to be a good back up for a long time and so far he has shown me nothing to change what i thought of him coming out of college ...

Is that better ... *L* ...

LOL...........it didn't bother me at all. I just thought I would add that before someone went off about not evaluating players during their rookie year.

Thats fine .. as long as he lets him play HIS GAME and not the game Hue wants him to force him to try and play at this point ...

Hopefully Hue's learned form the last 5 days ...

The QB guru sure isn't acting like one ...

after last night's game Hue said Cody will start against Pittsburgh

Hue obviously wants to see how Cody handles the benching. If more the same, I'd expect to see RG3 back.

some hypothesized that it was all a plan to get RG3 back. 10 days to prepare now ... give him one more chance here

I'm leaning that way right now as well. This draft is top heavy in edge rushers and DB's and if we have needs at both along with QB. If I had a clue on who Hue likes at QB, I could get more specific.

do i even want to trust hue right now haha ... i think he's done as well as he could with cody .. but last night was not a good move IMO

Browns' Cody Kessler 'is still the QB' and 'I don't regret' yanking him,' Hue Jackson says

http://www.cleveland.com/browns/index.ss...art_river_index

By Mary Kay Cabot, cleveland.com on November 11, 2016 at 1:40 AM, updated November 11, 2016 at 9:30 AM

BALTIMORE, Md. - Hue Jackson faced the music Thursday night about benching Cody Kessler with 92.6 rating, and when the music stopped, the Browns were 0-10 -- the worst start in franchise history.

But Jackson has no regrets about replacing Kessler with Josh McCown in the third quarter of Thursday's 28-7 loss to the Ravens, and declared Kessler the starter for the next game against the Steelers. He also insisted he wasn't playing musical chairs with his QBs, something he vowed Monday not to do.

"I made the switch at quarterback because I felt we needed a spark,'' said Hue Jackson. "I didn't think we were doing some things even in the first half I thought we could do. Nothing against Cody. It's tough when you're a young player and you come in, you play a week before and you've got to play on a Thursday.''

Despite McCown turning the ball over three times and going three-and-out on his other two possessions, Jackson stressed "I don't regret it at all.''

The Browns are now in serious jeopardy of becoming the first team since the Lions in 2008 to go 0-16.

Ask what happens now at quarterback, Jackson shot back, "what do you mean what do I do now? Cody's still the quarterback. I took Cody out of the game because I wanted a spark.

"A young player playing a couple days and all of the sudden it was a little bit different and difficult and so I wanted to try to the veteran and that's what I did. There's nothing more to it than that. I'm still going to find out more about Cody Kessler as we move forward. That's not going to change."

Jackson pulled Kessler after the opening drive in the third quarter in which he netted minus-1 yard and went three-and-out. He was 1-for-6 on third down -- 2-for-15 over the past two weeks. Joe Flacco came back and threw the first of his three second-half touchdown passes on the next drive to put the Ravens up 13-7.

During that possession, Jackson told his rookie QB he was done for the day and called for McCown, who went in with 9:36 remaining in the third quarter. Kessler had the Browns up 7-3 in the first quarter and 7-6 at the half. He finished 11-of-18 for 91 yards, with one touchdown and no interceptions for a 92.6 rating. He was sacked once.

"I thought there were some plays that we left out there on the field, so I wasn't going to sit there and keep watching the plays be missed,'' Jackson said. "You've got to try something different.

"And being in the situation we are, why not try something different? I think that's the best way to go about it, and if it works, we'll be excited about. If it doesn't, then you guys are going to keep asking me these questions. I do get that and I respect that.''

Jackson defended his decision throughout his post-game press conference, where the move was challenged.

"This is what I wanted to do,'' he said. "You guys can question the decision all you like. We lost the game. We turned the ball over. Maybe those things wouldn't have happened with him in there. I made the decision and I'm not going to back off it it.''

Despite the winless record, Jackson denied he was grasping at straws.

"I don't think it's 'desperate times call for desperate measures,''' he said. "I think it's any situation if you feel like something is not going the way you want it to, you've got to change it. You've got to change it up every now and then. That's what I decided to. Obviously being up 7-6 was good. I'd like to have been up 20-6.''

He also insisted he wasn't playing "musical chairs."

"What I was trying to do is give our offense a chance to function at a faster rate and do some different things and that's the decision that I thought I needed to make and I made it. I don't regret it at all.

"Obviously the turnovers hurt us in the second half, not able to slow them down in the second half, the same second-half issues reared their ugly head as always. I haven't solved that yet, and that's kind of where we are."

He's not worried about the confidence of his rookie quarterback, who is 0-7 as a starter. During the short week Jackson stressed it's the QB's job to win, and also said he wants Kessler to take more chances downfield.

"I know Cody very well,'' he said "Cody totally understands. So I think Cody's fine. At the time we weren't playing as good as we needed to. He'll bounce back. We'll bounce back. That's part of this league. That's the way it goes."

Jackson reminded folks that "I never said Cody was the starting quarterback for the rest of the year. I never made that statement. I said, 'I'm going to see Cody for the rest of this season, as much as I deem necessary.' That's my choice, and I decided to take him out, and I put Josh in. So, end of discussion on that."

Yet he reasserted that he still plans to see Kessler play as much as possible. That hasn't changed.

"Absolutely, yeah. He's a young player and I'm going to go put him back out there and let him go play again and I don't think he's going to be disappointed or hurt or all of the sudden hurt his confidence 'cause I took him out,'' he said. "As long as I explain to him why I'm taking him out then he's fine."

At one point, while McCown (6-of-13, 59 yards, 0 TDs, 2 INTs) was struggling, Kessler threw on the sidelines. But Jackson didn't consider pulling McCown. He had already used three quarterbacks, including two snaps by rookie Kevin Hogan in the first quarter.

"No, once I put the other guy in, I'm going to stay with him,'' said Jackson. "I'm not going to go back and forth. I knew all these questions were coming. That's part of it.''

He acknowledged he was surprised by McCown's struggles. The veteran threw a pick on his third play and on two of his first three drives. He was also strip-sacked when Joe Thomas was beat by Terrell Suggs.

"Yes, but again, I think Josh was put in a tough spot, too,'' he said. "I think it's a tough spot for all these guys, for Cody, for Josh, for all of them. And I think they're battling as hard as they can. So again, the finger points at me. I don't think it points at them. These are my choices, my decisions. How we got about doing things on offense, we've got to get better. It's just that simple.''

Is help on the way? Robert Griffin III threw during warmups and could return soon from his fractured left shoulder. He's eligible to come off injured reserve and will have a scan within a few weeks.

"I know he's getting closer,'' said Jackson. "How fast that's going to be, we'll know as we keep getting more reports about where he is. He's throwing, he's moving around, doing all those things, so we'll see where it is as we get ready for next week.''

Would Griffin be a candidate to play again when healthy?

"It's too early to say,'' he said. "But again, Cody's going to be the quarterback next week. This is no indication what I think Josh McCown is. He went in there and battled his butt off and sometimes things don't work.''

It's been a familiar refrain this season.

I thought he would throw Kessler under the bus more. The most important quote in the article was about missing plays. Kessler has been missing plays for the last four games at an alarming rate. Jackson had no choice but to pull him. It was deflating to the entire team. You could see it in the players body language. This is Colt McCoy all over again.

And when the Ravens discovered that Kessler wasn't going to take what was there, the wheels fell off. The Ravens knew they weren't going to lose, and they played with a confidence and aggressiveness that the Browns couldn't match.

I think Hue has been a disappointment but he had no choice but to pull Kessler. I'm surprised he's actually going back to him. I think that's a mistake. The best thing for Kessler is to sit. If you're too afraid to play football then you shouldn't play. Throw the ball. It shouldn't be this hard.

When they came back after halftime the Ravens had Cody nailed to the wall and overwhelmed. Hue did the right thing instead of leaving him in there to get killed. Our interior line in the second half was flat out horrible. Cody was probably going to end up hurt if they left him in to be honest.

Hue knows what he is doing. He is not a rookie at dealing with QB's. He knows he has to protect a young rookie from being destroyed when he has a QB like Josh who can come in. Granted Josh played like crap too but its more important for the long term to bring cody along the right way than to just throw him out there to the wolves. I'm glad Hue protected him.

I see it now, Hue is going to start flipping coins ala Romeo Crennel. The QB guru seems to have a full grip on the QB situation.

razor is correct about our interior OL ... LG, C, RT positions were ATROCIOUS

Benching Cody was stupid but it could work out well for Hue. It was a panic move and a really really bad one but it could also send a message to Cody in that you have to take some chances deep. He didnt like being yanked that was obvious but now he has a chance to go back look at the tape and see why he was benched.

He threw the ball away on a play where he still had another second or two and he had a streaking Coleman. That is what got him benched and it wasnt the only play. This is the same thing that led the Chargers to take Rivers. Cody can still be the guy but again, he has simply got to make those plays or he is a career backup game manager.

j/c

The way I see it, Hue was willing to do anything to get a spark started on this team. Anything to try to change the momentum. It didn't work but it was the only move he had to try.

This said oodles to me.
One, it says that Kessler needs to make the plays when they are there to be made.
Two - it says to me that we're well into viewing the rest of this season as a 16-game pre-season.