DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Looking Back: Browns 16 Bengals 17 Postgame Thoughts

- New season, same issues. It's the type of loss we've all seen dozens of times before.

- Flacco played within the conservative game plan to try and not turn the ball over. WRs still had balls bouncing off their hands and into the defenders.

- Thanks for the memories, Szmyt.

- Tough drop by Fannin Jr. but overall looked great.

- Sampson is slippery with the ball in his hands. I like him.

- Offense could only muster two TDs against a bad Bengals defense.

- The Browns defense only gave up 7 net yards in the second half.

- Ford should be released as soon as Judkins is ready and NFL decision is made. He's terrible.

- Browns lose the turnover battle again.

- Browns TOP 35:49, Bengals TOP 24:11. Browns 327 total yards, Bengals 141 total yards. Still manage to lose the game.

- Great games by Garrett and Ward.

On to the Ravens where they will be celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Ravens franchise. Scum bags.

Stripper will post more.

Good game by Flacco. Those picks were not on him. Just irks the hell out of me. Flacco did everything he was supposed to do.

Cut Szmyt yesterday.

I’m angry.

Felt like we dominated the game after their first drive. the drops and missed kicks are so deflating. We've been down this road hundreds of times ... it's just miserable

Better team on the field today lost. The Browns dominated offensively and defensively today but field goals and unacceptable tipped passes for INTs doomed us.

Flacco looks really good.
Berry's draft class looked really good.
Garrett looked really good.
Defense, overall, looked really good.
We had a tough time running in-between the tackles but expect that to change with Judkins.

Ugh. What a depressing loss. It should have been a W.

Sampson looked really good, as did Fannin except for a crucial drop.

OL couldn’t open any holes.

Kicker choked.

Defence looked really good. Shout out to Newsome he had a solid game against a good Bungle receiving corps. And as always, Ward.

What is Flacco supposed to do? Catch his own passes? Those drops/bobbles turned into INTs were killer.

We were better than the Bengals today, except where it counts.

Our run game looked really bad

Actually watched the whole game

Not sure why WRs are throwing the balls up in the air instead of just letting them hit the ground

D Jones had his name called more then he should have, although the one holding call was iffy

Nothing worse hearing how the kicker hits everything right down the middle in practice, but can't game time. Felt like a York day. 4 points missed was a big hurt for a loss.

Not a fan of Bubba Ventrone

The defense looked really good. Myles off sides also hurt the outcome of the game.

Loved how they were smothering Burrows on the drive where the D almost got him for a safety.

Our defense almost won the game by itself on that one possession. That was good

We dominated the 2nd half and still lost! This was one of the most deflating losses that I can remember....

Other thoughts:

Our punt return guy is fast and decisive. He looked good, better than anyone we’ve had in years.

After the first quarter, our run D was a LOT better. Carson S. didn’t have his name called much but I watched him a lot and it seemed like he’s been in the league for years.

Disappointing outcome, but a lot of positives from that game.

Ford tries hard but is a lightweight and can't run through tackles. Sampson is similar but is quicker to the hole. We really miss Chubb but I am hoping that Judkins can fill his shoes....

We desperately need that pounding type RB who can push the pile. It felt like our RBs hit the hole and just crumbled

Our OL did not run block well, too many times, our RBs were met at the line of scrimmage. I don’t think we had a run of more than 10 yards. If that.

"We dominated the 2nd half and still lost! This was one of the most deflating losses that I can remember...."

Sept 18th 2022, the Browns home opener

Flacco leads the Jets from a 17 - 30 come behind 4th quarter win with a 1:55 left to win 31 -30

That was really awful

We've had some bad home openers over the years

Chiefs in 2002 home opener… Dwayne Rudd

Defense held the Bengals high powered offense to 141 yards and 17 points so they did their job, the Offense racked up 327 yards and put us in the position to win the game, and Special teams did their job other than the our kicker. tough loss to take. We do need to get better at running the ball because we can't rely on Flacco to throw for almost 300 yards every game and we need to get a LT next year as Jones just isn't talented enough to man the left side.

I really Carter

I kind of felt the blocking for him wasn't there

He will hopefully run one or two three four or five back for TD's

Yes they have

Which lead to

Bad seasons

haha always

Taking off the freaking helmet

Why did you mention that

LOL

So horrible !

Some memories need forgotten

Sorry Deisle, I went down the rabbit hole 😎

LOL !

Making history.

I guess I'm not surprised. Kinda expected to lose this one.

That said, Flacco did his job. Sampson is fun to watch. Garrett and Ward and were typical, Great. Newsome looked decent. The lines did a good job for the most part. Geez the D killed Burrows in the next to last drive...

Speaking of Burrows, I wonder if he goes to bed at night and has Nightmares about the number 95?

Overall, the D was pretty darn solid. We had some exciting moments from the O as well.

I'm surprised it was that close.

Whos Next!

A missed extra point and FG really made such a big horrible outcome

New year same browns

Kicker sucks…. Flat out sucks… defense played well overall especially second half. Running game needs Judkins on the field… WRs need to hold onto the damn ball. The two INTs were on the WRs. First one could have been better thrown but both hit the guys in the hands.

Honestly it was closer than i expected but we still found a way to lose in the most browns way possible… sucks…

Amen, all KICKERS stunk today.....check the game stats, FGs and extra points, we need to sign new kicker in next hour.

Sign a freaking kicker tomorrow. They won this game. If Judkins comes as advertised, I think this team will be better than most expected. Kickers, the scourge of the earth

Was surprised Woo missed the 44 yard FG to tie the game

think about the Fannin drop, Jeudy drop and then the two drops for INTs ALL in a stretch of a half

I'd rather not

LOL

Those drops didn't leave 4 points off the score board

Yeah maybe those catches may have put the Browns in a position to score

Would it have been TDs or FG attempts ?

Plain and simple

4 points lost the game by a kicker

The drops were just murder.

I think Sampson will be an excellent third down/change of pace back, but we need a guy like Judkins in there. The Bengals were almost an automatic W when we had prime Chubb. We need to get back to having that bell cow back.

When we got the ball TWICE around the 40 in the 4th quarter with a chance to take the lead, I remember thinking "Chubb wins this game right here"

Not the Chubb of today

Maybe the Chubb before the injury

yes of course

Unfortunately I witnessed that in person

the Rudd loss ranks in the top 5 for me. Today's was bad, but sadly not even close to what we've endured

make matters worse: Jags won

Everyone blames the kicker.. and he deserves it. The reality is if he makes the kicks - Bengals don''t punt and we lose in a different way.

I know a guy plays for the Texans

Browns lose again - shocking LOL

One of the most disgusting losses we'll ever see.

Fire this (so many words I can't say) kicker and just bring in Justin Tucker now.

I dont care about the baggage, I don't. I just want to see kicks under 40 yards go through the uprights



sick of it, absolutely.... sick of it.

Justin Tucker is suspended for the first 10 games

One key play that get skind of lost was made by Joe Burrow. During his 3rd sack, when he was in the zone, he was smart enough to dive out of the end zone to avoid a safety. Could have been the difference.

Dustin Hopkins
Greg Zuerlein
Eddy Pineiro
Michael Badgley
Greg Joseph
Austin Seibert
Zane Gonzalez
Cade York
Matt McCrane


those guys are available

I was at the game. D looked great

Sampson looks like a player. Very good at avoiding and bouncing off tackles. He will be more than a change of pace back.

I feel bad for the kicker. I hope we stick with him a while longer. If he doesn't get better, cut him and make Berry go kick the ball so he can get booed. He's the guy selecting these kickers.

Flacco played well. The picks go to his stat line but the receivers had something to do with that.

Jerome Ford, I will now call him Gerald Ford, the dead Ex President. He runs like a dead man. He should be the cut once Judkins is ready to go. Sampson is clearly a 1A or 1B with Judkins being the other. Rocket whatever his name is should be the other back.

Gerald is soon to be cut.

Maybe I should cut Gerald Ford a break. He was President of the United States which puts him in rarified air, and he was also an All-American football player.

Szyt

Sampson will definitely be a good change of pace guy. A Darren Sproles-esque mold.

Ford needs to go. He has no vision and falls on immediate impact

We let go a veteran kicker who couldn't make PATs or field goals for a rookie who can't make PATs or field goals. We have no running game. Nick Chubb had more rushing yards and higher average than the entire Browns offense. Browns always doing Browns things.

Bummer, didn't know

Somewhat similar to our QB list, dontcha think?

I'm gonna hold off on our offense until I see us with Judkins ... but the self inflicted mistakes are so tough to take

Ravens lose the best kicker of all time, and plug in a sixth round pick who has drilled field goals from 52 and 49 yards tonight. We dig up a guy Ho can’t make a chip shot or a PAT.

we had 1st and 10 on like the 12 yard line .. around 4 minutes left or so ... and we had 3 of the worst plays imaginable. I said it half kidding, but I wanted us to be aggressive and throw it in the end zone so we didnt miss another kick. Then we did

lmao. We've already kicked six of those bums to the curb! I guess maybe sign the last three and let them go paper-scissors-rock for the starting job. 🤣

Yeah, maybe Piniero is the answer

Bro. You've been doing this a long time. There is no answer.

The endless mediocrity and failure to ever dominate a game dictates that every time a kicker misses a kick or two he will be scapegoated straight out the door.

It's not unlike the days when we couldn't score anything other than FGs and every close-game-loss had Joe Haden as the scapegoat. If he didn't shut down the opposite probowler every week -- "he sucks".

This year's incarnation of "stupid is as stupid does" has the same stench of cutting Greg Joseph for Austin Seibert. I fully expect Hopkins to exercise his Brown and Orange demons and go on to be the steady, reliable kicker (with the huge leg) he had always been before last year.

Wash, rinse, repeat... puke, wash, rinse, repeat.

Is phil dawson still available?

Kicker…

I can see why we were so enamored with Sampson in the offseason. That said, we are missing that battering ram RB. Ford being our starter is a killer.

Defense looks to be stellar. I continue to be in awe of the Schwesinger pick. Similarly, we really really like Fannin. Crazy how many touches he got over Jeudy and Njoku.

Well now we go there for the battle of last place

(Replying to BigG)

This was an atrocious series once they got down to the 13 yard line. It was an ultra conservative approach that screamed, "please don't turn the ball over and just kick a FG."

A kicker jersey needs to be the new Browns QB jersey. Browns have had 15 kickers since Dawson last kicked in 2012. Naming all of them makes for great Browns trivia.

https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/cle/career-kicking.htm

Can't make it up. Haven't even killed the first demon and we need to hire another seamstress.


I decided to ask AI why the Gods are so cruel. She kept offering more and more as if actually making fun of me. In the end, I had to show her the door.


Give me a poetic line about the gods being so cruel and unforgiving...

poetic line about the gods being so cruel and unforgiving...
"The gods stand high, cruel and unyielding, their silence sharper than any blade."


Perplexity: Would you like me to expand this into a full stanza with a darker, mythic tone, or keep it as a single haunting line?

Yes, please. But center this terrible tale around the exploits in futility by the Cleveland Browns kicking game.


Here is your stanza blending myth, cruelty, and the futility of the Cleveland Browns’ kicking game:

"The gods are cruel, their laughter thunders low,
each field goal sails where no uprights grow.
Boots strike leather, fates turn to stone,
in Cleveland’s dust, the kicker stands alone.
No mercy granted, no blessing given—
the uprights mock, while hope is riven."


Perplexity: Would you like me to carry this into a longer multi-stanza poem, almost like a tragic myth retelling of the Browns’ kicking woes?

I don't see why not.


Here is a longer tragic-myth style retelling of the Browns’ kicking woes as if the gods themselves conspired against them:

"The gods are cruel, their laughter thunders low,
each field goal sails where no uprights grow.
Boots strike leather, fates turn to stone,
in Cleveland’s dust, the kicker stands alone.

The crowd, like supplicants, lift up their cries,
yet prayers dissolve beneath unkind skies.
In temples of iron, in stadium gloom,
hope withers swift at the uprights’ tomb.

Year upon year the legend is spun,
of chances squandered, of victories undone.
The gods, unyielding, exact their jest,
turn triumph to torment, deny all rest.

The river still flows by the city’s heart,
while banners of faith are torn apart.
And still the Browns send forth their brave,
to chase the echo no foot can save."


Perplexity: Would you like this styled even more like an ancient epic (with grand invocations and named gods of fate), or kept in this tragic ballad style?

You had me at hello, I am Fate... and I'm on my third.


Then you’re already speaking the language of the gods—except theirs is whiskey and missed field goals. Here’s a dark chuckle to clink your glass with:

"In heaven they sip ambrosia,
in Cleveland we sip bourbon—
both are bitter, but only one
comes with fourth quarter heartbreak."


Perplexity: Want me to spin a few more short, barroom-styled toasts about Browns kickers and cruel fates, so you’ve got lines to match that third pour?

I don't know how many more ways I can tell you goodnight before you understand that you're just not my type.


Fair enough—message received. Sounds like it’s time to call it a night and let the whiskey keep the last word. Sleep well, and may tomorrow’s gods be a little less cruel.

Goodnight.

Oooff. Tough loss. But then that's the Cleveland way right?

Overall: We were competitive against a good team and good offense. Defense obviously did great ... I even txt a friend after the first drive and said it was all about the 2nd half. And we were more than good enough on D.

Strong highlights from the receiving corps. Getting open. Personally I'll chalk the tipped interceptions down to "that's football" - guys are trying to catch the ball not thinking 'Oh if I can't catch it cleanly I need to make sure I bat it down' .... they were't high balls being tipped to the safety behind them, they were just football plays. jmo. Decent OL play other than in the running game. Did Conklin come back in? I know he was off for an eye injury at one point. For such a veteran OL + a massive Dewand Jones the lack of ability to create a crease or prevent the D from getting the RB at the LOS is bad/perplexing. Sampson a real joy to see - nice shoe string catch and run, ability to bounce and has quicks. Ran into the blockers a couple times up the middle, would imagine over time he'll learn to be a little more patient. Ford looks like a 4th string RB - hard to fathom how he is on the roster . . . Honestly don't need to say too much about the D - they look legit. MG - dominanting. Everyone contributing. Well coached and good play calls. Undone by bad kicking and snatching defeat from the jaws of victory....

Positive: We should have won a game that many probably didn't think we'd have a chance in. Sampson looked good, Jeudy - Fannin and Tillman looked good. Joe looked good when he was given time and the play went according to the script. D looks legit, should only get better. I'm honestly more upbeat about the team and season after week 1 than I was before.

Negative: Joe Flacco threw the ball 45 times. He's 40. Even assuming we want to groom Gabriel and have him start games at some point this season - Joe won't last very long if we keep doing that to him no matter how poor the run game is working. Not surprising that at the start of the second half Stefanski gets pass happy - 3 passes leading to an INT. It's what KS does. . . And while Joe looked 'Good' - when the play broke down and the 1st and 2nd read weren't there - he looked old. And while the new kicker needs time and a chance - this is a story we have seen for Berry's entire time as GM ... for those that want to give Berry a pass on finding a QB (the hardest position in the NFL to find) .... what is the excuse for this eternal issue at kicker ? What excuse are folks going to trot out for Berry on this one? . . . and I guess, while we mention QB, it can't have been lost on many that at the end of the Browns game coverage went to Tampa just as Baker engineered a last drive comeback win throwing the ball beautifully with a commentator gushing about Baker's play and ball placement all game. Ouch.

To beat a team like the bengals, you have to keep their offense off the field. I totally understand the conservative, move the chains keep the clock running gameplan KS drew up. Our path to victory was a low scoring, long TOP affair. It was executed beautifully. The kicker lost the game for us.

Rookie kicker TWICE cost us game. CAN NOT keep him, replace yesterday.

one play I forgot was the little screen to Njoku that was deflected. That thing woulda been a game changer that just fell flat

I’m a stefanski supporter but if you don’t know that a great practice kicker is potentially very different than a great game kicker… that’s on the coach. The kicker decision was the whole game.

I can't imagine us keeping the kicker. I think it sends a message to the players if we replace him

He’s under a magnifying glass and he should be, but if we’re also talking about single, devastating gaffes, any WR/TE getting hit in the hands with a football, who then tips it to the DB for an INT needs to also be in the discussion.

Also, I really hate when our guys are out there celebrating after plays when we’re behind and/or the play results in the opposing team being 2nd and G from the 4 yard line.

Our defense was as good as possible yesterday IMO. The Bengals might have the best offense in the league on any given day. It's such a shame we wasted that effort

Well Yesterday...CHUBB.....CARRIES 13 YARDS 60 AVG 4.6

Unfortunately, you can't know how he'll do in a game that counts until he's in a game that counts. Even guys that have historically been good in games can suddenly lose their mojo for no apparent reason.

I don't think Stefanski signed either kicker, and I had no faith in Hopkins, so blaming Stefanski for that decision (if he's even the one that made it) seems a bit harsh.

It was week one. Hopefully Szmyt got his misses for the year out of his system. Hopefully the same for our receivers with drops/toss ups.

Hopefully Judkins can hit a hole/crease without falling down if someone breathes within 3 yards of him.

Hopefully Diabate gets back up to speed after missing some time and doesn't forget about his assignment. Holding Cinci to the FG instead of the Fant TD is another way we could have won.

Young guys flashed and we were right in it the whole way. Hopefully we can get some things cleaned up and finish some games out going forward.

Tough test next week.

Agreed Bull, you never know what a kicker will be like in live action. I'm sure the guy yesterday looked solid all training camp ... until it counted yesterday

If you're not a fan of conservative football then I would seriously recommend you up any self-medication in which your partake before each game. Not trying to be a jerk, but this team is what it is this year. To have a chance, we gotta slow games way down to low-scoring, grinding games. Especially against teams like the Bengals.

And then people wonder why some of us hate AI.

yeah, I totally understand the idea of ball control and being close to the vest (especially when playing the Bengals, Ravens, Bills, etc) ... but once we got down there, I thought we had to at LEAST give ourselves a shot to score a TD

Oh I think TOP vs the Bengals and any other potent offense is a stellar concept and game plan. I think this team will probably struggle at times and overall I was pleasantly surprised that we coulda/shoulda won the game vs a very good Bengals team. Where I disagree - and this is something born out time and time again - playing any game and any sport "not to lose" really only ever does one thing. Geez - I forget the game and ccoach, maybe it was Hue or maybe it was KS. CLE were up by 21 or maybe 27 at the half. We could do just about what we wanted but then we changed everything. Nothing was thrown over 5-6 yards and we ran a lot.... we lost the game. It's a trend you see all over the NFL and other sports it is not a CLE thing.

Posters like to claim that whatever the call - people will complain. No, that's not it. I feel like this year when we're likely to struggle going for a higher number of 4th downs is a reasonable call. So no problems going for it vs the Bengals. On the goal line, I would have had no problems running it 4 times and not getting in (we scored) but it would have been the right call if we hadn't.... now - getting cute and calling a double reverse or some other gadget... not so much. At the point in the game when we were 1st and 10 inside thier 15 - if you don't have a play where you can let Joe decide to toss a ball to Njoku or Jeudy or Tillman on a post or the back corner ... I don't know, just strikes me as playing scared. jmo

I understand the apporach to the game. I was speaking specifically to the playcalling once they got down to the 13 yard line after the kicker had already missed an XP and Flacco had thrown a TD to Tillman in a similar situation.

Otherwise, I have no clue what you’re even talking about.

Get Eddie Pineiro in the building to see what he can do.

thats such a sad stat

If we had only kept Baker and Chubb and all the first round draft picks that we gave up for Waston, I think we would be in a much, much better position today.