Browns whitewash Cardinals 27-0

  DeShaun Watson threw two touchdown passes in his return to the lineup and Amari Cooper finished with 139 yards receiving as the Cleveland Browns stomped the Arizona Cardinals 27-0 in Cleveland.

The Browns defense allowed only fifty-eight total yards to the Arizona offense, sacked Clayton Tune seven times, and intercepted the rookie twice in a complete demolition of the Cardinal offense.

Cleveland improved to 5-3 with the win and will travel to Baltimore to face the 6-2 Ravens in what will be a vital game for tiebreakers inside the division.

This is shorter than usual since I was away on Monday and Tuesday, and this is now old news.

Brownie Bits

1) DeShaun Watson struggled at first but he was sharper as the game moved on and his fifty-nine-yard dart to Amari Cooper was the type of throw that the Browns hoped they would see from Watson.

It's a bit away from the day that I could truly say this is the player that they traded for and he is consistently at that level but this was a flash of hope.

2) The Cardinals are a bad football team with only one win and starting a quarterback that had never taken an NFL snap, so the Browns should have been impressive in victory but this was a domination that good teams do to bad teams.

This is how it should be done but that doesn't mean that they deserve little credit for doing so.

3) The wide receiver position is still a worry to me as other than Amari Cooper, the wideouts caught only three passes (two to Elijah Moore, one to Cedric Tillman) for a combined seventeen yards.

4) The defense's seven sacks was a strong outing but it seemed like it could have been even more as the pass rush was bothering Clayton Tune with every dropback.

5) Dalvin Tomlinson was signed to shore up an interior defensive line that was abused consistently last season and he has done so.

Tomlinson finished this game with two and a half sacks and in my opinion, is playing at a Pro Bowl level thus far this season.

Tomlinson is responsible for the improved play of Jordan Elliott this season as he occupies two blockers and allows Elliott to deal with just one with Elliott stepping up his play to the highest of his career.

PPM

  The conference championships are up for grabs with tickets to the Super Bowl at stake.

Last Week: 3-1

Overall: 156-98

AFC

Bengals over Chiefs 41-35

NFC
Eagles over 49ers 26-24

PPM

 Conference Semi-Final Weekend for a trip to the conference championship is at stake in this week's games.

Last Week: 3-3

Overall: 153-97

AFC

Bengals over Bills 36-34

Chiefs over Jaguars 45-13

NFC

Cowboys over 49ers 27-24

Eagles over Giants 31-21

PPM

 Been feeling under the weather this week so this and the boxing challenge are going to be written in the Jack Webb style.

Last Week: 4-2

Overall: 150-94

NFL Playoffs

Seahawks over 49ers 20-17

Chargers over Jaguars 32-21

Bills over Dolphins 34-14

Vikings over Giants 28-17

Bengals over Ravens 24-10

Cowboys over Buccaneers 29-21

Another Wasted Year-Browns bumped in Pittsburgh

    The Cleveland Browns concluded another mediocre season with a loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers in Pittsburgh 28-14.

DeShaun Watson threw two touchdowns and two interceptions in the loss with Nick Chubb rushing for seventy-seven yards to lead the offense.

The Browns finished the 2022 season at 7-10 and would have picked in the 12th position in the first round but they will transfer that selection to the Houston Texans in return for DeShaun Watson.

Brownie Bits

1) I'm not going to get too into detail on the loss in Pittsburgh as much as write on a few different Browns topics but a major concern suddenly is the offensive line.

An offensive line that looked to be a strength of the team allowed seven sacks of DeShaun Watson and might have allowed even more if not for the ability of Watson to avoid the pass rush.

2) Some of the woes may be corrected by a training camp with Watson to develop the chemistry and "feel" for what Watson needs for his protection.

The Browns lacked that this year and hopefully that will help- I believe it will.

3) I've written before about the Browns having to make a key decision on activating their option on Jedrick Wills for his fifth season during this off-season.

A decision that has become more difficult with the second consecutive disappointing season from Wills after a pretty good rookie season as the Browns first-rounder in 2020.

I liked Wills entering the draft and rated him as my second-rated player at the position in a year that was an excellent crop at tackle.

The Browns could have drafted my top tackle, Tristan Wirfs from Iowa but selected Wills instead.

Wirfs landed with Tampa Bay at the 12th slot and has been a Pro Bowl selection in each of the last two seasons

I do not envy the Browns position here.

4) I haven't written about the comments by Jadeveon Clowney this week about the Browns which led to him not joining the team for the game against the Steelers.

Clowney's comments about being held back as the team preferring to place Myles Garrett against a more favorable blocker may be valid but not the reasons for favoritism as Clowney claimed.

The Browns are hardly in a position to care about where production is coming from and I'm going to side with the coaching staff on this one.

5) Nick Chubb needed a huge rushing day to have a chance of winning the rushing title and he would fall short as he was given only twelve carries for his seventy-seven yards.

That was never going to be enough to overcome the eventual winner (Josh Jacobs of the Raiders) or Derrick Henry, who nosed Chubb out for second by thirteen yards.

6) Part of the reason that Chubb was not going to receive the workload was the decision to throw twenty-nine passes with DeShaun Watson and while that may not have been the best path to a victory in Pittsburgh, it was part of the following plan...

7) So much of what has happened in the final six games of the season has been about DeShaun Watson and preparing him for next season.

In hindsight, it is very clear that some of the game plans (Watson throwing so much in the freezer-like conditions against the Saints as one example) were not planned to give the Browns the best chance of winning that particular day but were to see how Watson would react to certain conditions or situations to prepare for next season.

By having film on what he may do and actually did, Kevin Stefanski and the staff have some concrete ideas on what Watson needs work for 2023 and how they can best use those skills.

8)  The Browns fired Joe Woods as the defensive coordinator after the game and there are quite a few big names available.

I'm going to write about that later in the week about my preferred candidates but I'm pretty sure that this was a needed move.

9) The Browns have enough people that are on the proverbial "Hot Seat" next season that they could not afford to add Joe Woods to that ship.

There could be enough changes next season if the Browns stumble to a poor first half that the team couldn't gamble on a third season in a row for a bad defensive start.

10) Finally,  

It's another disappointing season for the Cleveland Browns and I'm not sure how I feel about the future.

The Browns seem to have their quarterback and that's something but there are many holes on this team and I'm not brimming with confidence that they can be filled by the current administration.

On offense, a wide receiver to move opposite Amari Cooper is a must and cannot be ignored again.

On the defense, anything along the defensive line is must have and the same at linebacker as well.

This is not what has been portrayed by the Browns as a team in need of only a quarterback to take them over the top.

This is a team that has some talent but isn't a surefire plug and play contender.

The clock should be running on Andrew Berry, Kevin Stefanski, and especially Paul DePodesta, let's see what they have in mind.

PPM

  It's the final week of the NFL year and the college title game is on Monday, so hoping for a strong finish.

Last Week: 3-3

Overall: 146-92

College

Georgia over TCU 46-31

NFL
Steelers over Browns 20-16

Saints over Panthers 23-20

Chargers over Broncos 31-14

Games of the Week

Packers over Lions 28-21

Bengals over Ravens 24-21

 

Browns win in Washington 24-10

 DeShaun Watson threw three touchdown passes, two of those to Amari Cooper, and Nick Chubb rushed for 104 yards on only fourteen carries to lift the Cleveland Browns to a 24-10 victory over the Washington Commanders at Washington.

Cooper would finish with over one hundred yards receiving and the Browns would intercept Washington quarterback Carson Wentz three times in the win that lifted the Browns to 7-9 on the season with one game remaining- in Pittsburgh next Sunday against the Steelers.

Brownie Bits

1) Washington entered the game with playoff hopes but it was the Browns that played harder and with more passion.

Cleveland could have thrown in the towel after a pretty bad first half but instead dominated the second half to earn a victory that meant little in the standings or draft position.

2) I've always been a believer in Grant Delpit and even when Delpit was badly beaten at times earlier in the season, I still thought Delpit could be a standout with his ability if used properly.

Delpit was drafted as a ball-hawking Ed Reed type to play center field and run to the ball, yet wasn't being utilized as such until late, and Delpit had only two interceptions in his career before the loss to New Orleans.

Delpit intercepted one pass against the Saints and added two more vs Washington, one of those in the end zone and seems to be starting to make a move toward being a standout for next season.

3) DeShaun Watson struggled in the first half but led the Browns to three consecutive touchdowns in a row in their first three second-half possessions.

The arm is still there for Watson and he still needs plenty of snaps before next season but I think that Watson will only get better after a training camp and should be where he needs to be for the opener in 2023.

4) Nick Chubb ran for over one hundred yards and did this on only fourteen carries.

Browns fans often talk about not using Chubb enough and maybe that argument would be a winner with Chubb averaging over seven yards a carry against the Washington run defense.

5) Amari Cooper only had four passes thrown to him but caught three and two for touchdowns.

Cooper still needs some help on the other side at wide receiver for next season and should Andrew Berry land such a threat, the Browns could have just what DeShaun Watson needs to move to the next level.

6) Cooper's touchdown of forty-six yards saw him break tackles and elude Commanders as he ran down the sideline for a score.

I thought for a minute that the Commander's defense looked like the Browns with such poor attempts at tackling!

7) The Browns are still taking things very slowly with DeShaun Watson and he threw only eighteen times (completing nine) but the second half seemed a little (just a little) more open in the play calling to loosen up the offense.

8) Watson was sacked five times by Washington's talented defensive front and that makes me think of a key decision coming up on left tackle Jedrick Wills in the off-season.

Wills will come up for the team to pick up his fifth-year option in the summer and the team has a big decision to make.

Wills hasn't really improved since a strong rookie season but left tackles are expensive on the open market and without first-round picks in 2023 and 2024, it is unlikely the Browns can address this position in the draft.

Cleveland may be forced to activate the option whether they really want to or not.

9) Washington's one touchdown was a ninety-eight-yard drive that saw over eleven minutes removed from the clock.

That drive alone is what accounted for the lower-than-usual offensive plays from the Browns.

10) Washington held their playoff destiny in their own hands entering the game.

A win over Cleveland and a win next week over Dallas and Washington would be playoff bound.

Instead, the loss combined with other results saw the Commanders eliminated from contention..

Late missed kick sinks Buckeyes in Peach Bowl

  Noah Ruggles field goal attempt with seconds remaining from fifty yards came nowhere near the uprights and therefore ended the Ohio State Buckeyes season in the Peach Bowl with a 42-41 loss to the top-seeded Georgia Bulldogs.

C.J. Stroud threw for 348 yards and four touchdowns with an effort that may have erased his non-clutch reputation at Ohio State with Emeka Egbuka and Marvin Harrison Jr, each finishing with over one hundred yards receiving with Harrison grabbing two touchdowns and Egbuka another.

Ohio State finishes the 2022 season with a disappointing 11-2 record and returns to action on September second kicking off the 2023 campaign against the Indiana Hoosiers.

Olentangy Offerings

1) Give C.J. Stroud all the credit that you can give for the type of effort that redeemed himself for his previous shortcomings in big games.

Stroud had often rolled up acceptable statistics in games that Ohio State lost, yet always seemed to come up short.

In those games, I've felt the argument was reasonably fair but in this one, C.J. Stroud stood tall and deserved better.

2) Stroud battled through his running game missing TreVeyon Henderson and getting Miyan Williams for only three carries, losing tight end Cade Stover in the first half and the biggest loss of all-Marvin Harrison Jr in the third quarter, and yet had his team in position to win with a long field goal.

What a game from Stroud and he nor the Buckeyes have anything to be ashamed of.

3) Stroud had often been criticized for not running enough over his career and yet it was his twenty-seven-yard run that placed Ohio State in a position to try the game-winning field goal

It's funny after all the quarterbacks that saw various criticisms (J.T Barrett) for running too much, Stroud was the entire opposite.

4) Where the game seemed to turn was on a third down throw to the back of the end zone to Marvin Harrison Jr in the last minute of the third quarter.

The throw seemed to be Stroud throwing the ball away (Chris Fowler called the pass out of the back of the end zone in live action) but Harrison came very close to grabbing the score before he was blasted by a Georgia defender.

Initially, a personal foul was called, which would have given Ohio State a first and goal from Georgia's one with a touchdown that would have stretched the lead to eighteen points.

Instead, after a review, the call was overturned and OSU settled for a Noah Ruggles field goal and a fourteen-point lead- AND the loss of Marvin Harrison Jr for the remainder of the game,

5) After the loss of Harrison, Ohio State was outscored 18-3 without its biggest offensive threat and despite the play of Emeka Egbuka, seemed to lack a big play threat to the Dawgs.

6) But the biggest issue came against a defense when Lethan Ransom fell down and left Arian Smith wide open for a seventy-eight-yard strike that would cut the lead to three after a successful two-point conversion.

Until that moment, I felt Ohio State would hold on for the win but not as much after.

7) Ryan Day called an excellent game for three quarters and seemed to be the innovative play-caller of days past and then when Ohio State needed it most, crawled back into a shell.

On first down, Day called a run play with Dallan Hayden for the loss of a yard, and then two incomplete short-range passes at the time that Ohio State still needed a chunk of yardage to feel safe about a Ruggles field goal try,

8) In other words, Day spent most of the game throwing the ball down the field and opening up holes for their receivers and then decided to reign Stroud in when he had his best game of the season with a wide-open offense.

9) I'm not going to beat Ryan Day too much for this because he had confidence in his kicker and showed that he hasn't lost his touch for play calling but he still will need work on his tendency to play things too safely in big games.

It's easy to fire off about Day in the fourth quarter but for now, I'm going to choose to remember his best work and not his lesser from this game.

10) Day also called for a fake punt in the fourth quarter that worked for what would have been a key first down and kept Georgia off the field but just as the ball was about to be snapped, Georgia head coach Kirby Smart saw the lack of coverage by his team and managed to call a timeout.

That alone may have been the play that saved the Dawgs.

11) In the end, despite the disappointment of losing, Ohio State redeemed itself with its performance and showed its qualifications to be in the final four.

However, between the losses to Michigan and then Georgia, it's tough to say that this was anything other than a disappointing season.

Not awful, disappointing.

I wouldn't say Ryan Day is on the hot seat or anything ridiculous as that but it will be interesting to look back at this time next season and see what may have changed in his status then.

PPM

Due to last week's eye injury and the resulting lack of blog posts, there was no PPM, and lots of bowl games weren't selected.

I include what I would have selected in the NFL if I had the ability to do so.

Last Week: 1-1 
Overall: 143-89

College

Peach Bowl 

Georgia over Ohio State 31-21

Fiesta Bowl

Michigan over TCU 24-14

Pro

Commanders over Browns 24-17

Eagles over Saints 28-14

Chargers over Rams 31-17

Games of the Week

Bengals over Bills 34-31

Patriots over Dolphins 21-13

Browns slip against Saints,lose 17-10

    The Cleveland Browns allowed two touchdowns in the third quarter and didn't score a point in the second half as the Browns threw away a would-be victory in their final home game in an icebox-like stadium to the New Orleans Saints 17-10.

Nick Chubb rushed for 92 yards to lead the offense and Amari Cooper caught six passes for seventy-two yards to lead the receivers.

Cleveland drops to 6-9 on the season and will finish the year with two road games in Washington and Pittsburgh.

Brownie Bits

1)  Maybe the ground wasn't covered with snow but the weather was certainly a factor (six degrees and a windchill of fifteen below at kickoff) with the temperature and wind chill.

The game was the third coldest ever played in Cleveland and you would think that the home team would have an advantage over a team that plays in a dome in the Deep South.

2) However, you would be wrong as once the Saints figured out in the second quarter that using running quarterback Taysom Hill and Alvin Kamara to pound the football at the Browns run defense was the best way to get back into the game.

After the Saints committed to the running game, they outscored Cleveland 17-0 for the remainder of the game.

3) And there are the weekly Kevin Stefanski play-calling questions.

Early in the fourth quarter after two Nick Chubb runs, the Browns have a third and two on their own thirty-nine.

Considering the conditions and having Nick Chubb on your team, one would think that at least one running play would be in order.

Instead, DeShaun Watson throws two incomplete passes.

Too smart for his own good could be the epitaph on the Kevin Stefanski tenure in Cleveland.

4) The vaunted Cleveland pass rush never got to Andy Dalton and while Dalton threw only fifteen passes, I only remember one time that Myles Garrett (or anyone else) came close to dumping Dalton to the ground.

5) DeShaun Watson threw thirty-one passes (Over twice as many as the Saints tossed) on a day that should have favored what the Browns offensive identity is supposed to be.

No matter the performance of Watson, that's on Kevin Stefanski.

6) Watson didn't dazzle but in this weather very few could do so.

Watson's one interception wasn't a great pass but David Bell couldn't haul it in as it bounced off Bell and into the hands of a nemesis of Browns past- safety Daniel Sorensen, who returned the ball thirty-six yards to the Cleveland fifteen and gave the Saints a short field for what proved to be the game-winning touchdown.

7) Watson also didn't receive help from his pass catchers on the final drive when second and third down throws to Donovan Peoples-Jones and David Njoku were both on the money with both receivers failing to bring the ball in for game-tying scores.

Watson was then sacked on the fourth down attempt to end the game.

8) Watson also threw an excellent pass to Amari Cooper in the end zone in the second quarter but Cooper dropped the ball when just as the ball arrived, Cooper slipped on the slick turf and was unable to grab the throw.

It's understandable to have these things happen under the playing conditions but receivers are paid to catch the football.

9) The Browns did make a move earlier this week by signing veteran right tackle Jack Conklin to a three-year contract extension.

The signing of Conklin locks three of the five starters on the offensive line (Wyatt Teller and Joel Bitonio) into long-term contracts with a looming decision in the off-season for the team to choose whether or not to pick up the fifth-year option of left tackle Jedrick Wills.

10) The Browns were officially eliminated from the playoffs with the defeat.

This took longer than expected as due to an eye injury, I am only able to read/write in short time bursts.

That is also why there was not a PPM this week. 

Browns bully by Ravens 13-3

  The Cleveland Browns are mostly playing for pride and for positions, next season and their opponent the Baltimore Ravens are involved in a fight to the finish for the division title entering the Saturday game in Cleveland.

And even though Baltimore was missing Lamar Jackson, the Browns defense still stepped in allowing only three points and the offense was just good enough to get by as Cleveland scored a mild upset over the Ravens by a score of 13-3.

Nick Chubb rushed for 99 yards and DeShaun Watson threw the game's only touchdown to Donovan Peoples-Jones.

Cleveland improved to 6-8 on the season and will host New Orleans next Saturday on Christmas Eve in their final home game of the campaign.

Brownie Bits

1) This is a little different than usual because I missed the entire first quarter due to the length of the Colts' historic loss to the Vikings in overtime.

The Browns game was the middle of a three-game Saturday, all on the NFL Network which forced fans that didn't live in Cleveland or Baltimore ( Washington is considered our local city) to miss the start of the game.

2) A major key in the win was the sudden arrival of Baltimore's potential Hall of Fame kicker Justin Tucker appearing human for a change as Tucker missed one field goal and had another blocked.

Tucker's miss from forty-eight yards was the final play of the first half and his second-half attempt was blocked by Jordan Elliott.

Baltimore gains such a large advantage every week in the kicking game with Tucker that it is a surprise and can be a bit demoralizing to the Ravens when Tucker isn't his usual standout self.

3) The snow that would later blanket the Cleveland area began during this game and fell harder in the second half and entered into play for the Browns kicking game as well.

Cade York was drafted to change the Cleveland kicking woes since Phil Dawson's departure and to narrow the above-mentioned gap between Justin Tucker and the previous Browns kickers.

York missed two of four field goals in this game, one of them an awful shank, and while you can use weather as a reason or excuse for the misses, York was drafted to deal with the weather that inevitably will come in late-season games in Cleveland. (Baltimore, Cincinnati, and Pittsburgh as well).

4) Baltimore was without Lamar Jackson in this game and Tyler Hundley under center didn't have the same zip.

Hundley finished with 138 yards and completed seventeen of thirty passes, which is many more than Baltimore would have liked to have seen him throw.

5) Baltimore received a big day from former Ohio State running back J.K. Dobbins, who ripped the Browns run defense for 125 yards on only thirteen carries.

Add to Dobbins's total, fifty-five more from Gus Edwards on just seven rushes, and Baltimore's two backs ran for 180 yards on twenty attempts for an average of nine yards a rush.

Andrew Berry may not believe in the value of defensive tackle when he is shopping for personnel but he better grasp the concept in the off-season because if he doesn't, the problem of stopping the run will continue.

6) The Browns defense did manage to bend and not break and even though the two Raven field goal misses hurt Baltimore, forcing them to play from behind and not pound the ball through the run game.

The Browns ended a Baltimore drive with a fourth-down stop and stopped them on the first drive of the game on fourth down.

I thought that was a huge stand as it established that Baltimore wasn't going to out-physical the Cleveland defense and the Browns would fight back.

7) Perhaps the biggest play of the game would occur early in the second half as Baltimore took the kickoff and marched to the Cleveland fifteen.

Tyler Huntley's pass to DeShaun Jackson is taken away from Jackson by Denzel Ward to kill the drive.

If Baltimore punches the ball for six points, the game completely changes as Baltimore would have taken the lead at 10-6 and may have been able to run the football against the Cleveland run defense more often in the half.

8) And then, DeShaun Watson moves the Browns ninety-one yards in twelve plays for the only touchdown that either team would score on the afternoon, ending with a four-yard pass to Donovan Peoples-Jones for the touchdown.

9) With a 13-3 lead to protect, the Browns then force a fumble on the next Baltimore possession, block a Justin Tucker field goal try, and on the final Baltimore try, sack Tyler Huntley twice, both of those sacks by Myles Garrett.

10) For the second straight season, the Browns defense started the season in terrible fashion and finished the season strong after most hopes for the postseason had evaporated.

The question is this- Which is the true Browns defense and have they saved defensive coordinator Joe Woods's job for the second straight year?

As of now, I'd say no but should the Browns dominate each of the final three foes (New Orleans at home, Washington, and Pittsburgh on the road) there could be a chance that Joe Woods could point to the injuries and lack of depth at linebacker combined with Andrew Berry's lack of attention to the defensive tackles to argue that he was handed a short deck.

11) Nick Chubb rushed for 99 yards on the day as the offensive standout and just missed becoming the first back this season to rush for one hundred yards against the Ravens stout defense.

12) I think Kevin Stefanski is doing the right thing with DeShaun Watson in keeping the offense very basic and not throwing too much too soon at the quarterback.

Allow him to use these games to find his sea legs and then open it up next season.

The Browns didn't spend the draft capital that they sent to Houston for Watson to use him as an advanced Jeff Garcia.

I may add more thoughts if I have time to rewatch the game today.

 

PPM

The Bowl Season begins and the pro season keeps churning toward the playoffs, playoffs without the Cleveland Browns.

Last Week: 5-0 

Overall: 142-88

Bowl Season

Bahamas Bowl

UAB over Miami Ohio 37-21

Duluth Bowl

UTSA over Troy 45-42

Fenway Bowl

Cincinnati over Louisville 27-21

Las Vegas Bowl

Oregon State over Florida 30-20

Jimmy Kimmel Bowl

Washington State over Fresno State 40-35

Lending Tree Bowl

Southern Mississippi over Rice 28-17

New Mexico Bowl

SMU over BYU 41-36

Frisco Bowl

Boise State over North Texas 27-21

Myrtle Beach Bowl

Marshall over Connecticut 38-24

Potato Bowl

San Jose State over Eastern Michigan 21-14

Boca Raton Bowl

Liberty over Toledo 37-31

New Orleans Bowl

South Alabama over Western Kentucky 42-37

Armed Forces Bowl

Baylor over Air Force 31-28

Pro

Ravens over Browns 20-14

Chargers over Titans 27-17

Falcons over Saints 24-21

Games of the Week

Bills over Dolphins 34-28

Lions over Jets 24-21

 

Bengals beat Browns 23-10

   The Cleveland Browns defense allowed another big play touchdown in a season filled with big play touchdowns and it was the backbreaker in a 23-10 defeat to the Cincinnati Bengals by the Ohio River.

Joe Burrow's third-quarter touchdown pass of forty-five yards to Trenton Irwin moved the Bengals lead to 20-3 and despite a few Browns drives that proved fruitless and their lone touchdown, Cleveland never really challenged Cincinnati enough to truly push them in crunch time.

DeShaun Watson threw for 276 yards and hit David Njoku in the third quarter on a thirteen-yard touchdown pass for the only Cleveland end zone trip with one interception.

Donovan Peoples-Jones caught eight passes for one hundred fourteen yards to lead the Browns' offense.

The loss drops Cleveland to 5-8 and essentially takes them out of any remote playoff contention.

Cleveland will host Baltimore next week on Saturday afternoon to start the final month of the season.

Brownie Bits

1) Kevin Stefanski is catching a lot of heat after this game for various reasons but much of it comes from his mantra of "Accountability" after his team committed nine penalties for ninety-eight yards with several of those being key mistakes.

2) Stefanski drones on every week with these few phrases but as his third year winds down, his version of the Cleveland Browns is slowly degrading into the same undisciplined group with bonehead mistakes galore, and nothing is ever done about it, although Stefanski did show visible emotion toward Tony Fields after Fields roughed Bengals punter Drue Christman on a play that would have seen the Browns start a possession close to their own forty.

3) It was that possession more than any other that showed just how the dumb mistakes have damaged this team.

After stopping the Bengals on their own seventeen and forcing the mentioned punt, Tony Fields then roughed Christman giving the Bengals a first down.

Two plays later, Jadeveon Clowney sacks Joe Burrow but rookie defensive tackle Isaiah Thomas is called for hands to the face, giving the Bengals another first down.

4) The immediate play sees Joe Burrow throw to JaMarr Chase incomplete but Denzel Ward grabs Chase and is called for pass interference, giving Cincinnati thirty-three more yards.

Four plays later Burrow hits Chase for a touchdown and the Bengals had a lead that they would never lose.- All due to three dumb penalties.

5) And then there was the coverage breakdown that ended with Trenton Irwin's touchdown that slammed the door on any real hopes of winning.

I've tried to be patient with Grant Delpit but again it was Delpit biting on Joe Burrow's fake to charge and stop what he thinks is a run.

Instead, Irwin is wide open down the seam for another big chunk touchdown allowed.

6) DeShaun Watson was better this week than he was in Houston and you can see some things in him that Cleveland quarterbacks have lacked since the Eisenhower administration.

You can run him, he moves from the rush well, and he showed accuracy improvement in his second week (26 of 42) as he played from behind all of the game.

It's a work in progress that may not pay dividends until next season but there are more reasons to be encouraged after this game than the win over the Texans.

7) Watson's throw to Donovan Peoples-Jones in the fourth quarter with Bengals rushers hanging all over him showed how special he can be by making that throw.

However, on the next play, Watson overthrew Peoples-Jones for his only interception as a waiting Jessie Bates hauled in the gift interception.

8) I sometimes roll my eyes at Kevin Stefanski's tendency to go for it so often on fourth down and in the first quarter, the Browns had driven to Cincinnati's twenty-five for a fourth and one.

As they did last week in Houston, Stefanski removed DeShaun Watson for Jacoby Brissett for an expected sneak where the larger Brissett has proven to be quite proficient this season.

Instead, Brissett threw to the end zone where Donovan Peoples-Jones had beaten his man but Brissett overthrew him.

Normally, I'd be unhappy with that call but I'm not, and here's why.

9) Years ago when the Browns would use Josh Cribbs, who was known best as a returner but was a quarterback at Kent State, at quarterback when the "Wildcat" formation was the rage in the league, I would tell anyone that would listen that the Browns had to give Cribbs a chance to throw the ball once in a while- if only to gain the respect of defenses by the threat of a pass.

Instead, Cribbs always ran the ball and after a while, defenses didn't even give the pass a chance when Cribbs entered the game and defenses rendered the Wildcat obsolete, without the threat of a pass, it was just a single wing.

By having Brissett throw the football in this situation, the defenses will have to play the Browns honestly the next time they try this and they are likely to succeed.

10) Cincinnatti held Nick Chubb to only thirty-four yards on fourteen carries and with Amari Cooper hampered by injury entering the game (Cooper was held to two catches of the seven passes thrown to him), the Bengals kept the Browns' two biggest weapons from making a difference in the game.

11) The Browns didn't give Denzel Ward very much support from their safeties in Ward's duel with JaMarr Chase and paid the price as Chase finished with ten catches for one hundred nineteen yards.

The lack of support didn't help Ward but for the money that Ward is being paid, it's not unreasonable to expect better coverage for the Browns' top cover man against the Bengals' best receiver.

If this is a matter of JaMarr Chase matching up very well against Denzel Ward, Cleveland will have plenty to worry about twice a year for the next few seasons.

12) The pass rush did its job in the loss with Myles Garrett collecting two sacks (one of those of JaMarr Chase on an option pass) and Jadeveon Clowney had one taken off the board with a penalty.

It was what the Browns have hoped to have seen more often from their talented defensive ends during their two seasons together.

13) And now that the playoff hopes are unofficially sunk, the Browns can color this season a disappointing one, and unless they can receive a final month that shows progress from DeShaun Watson, I'm struggling to come up with anything positive from this season that can give me good feelings entering the off-season. 

PPM

 Light schedule as the college's prep for the bowl season around the corner and the NFL heading into the run for the postseason.

Last Week: 8-8

Overall: 137-88

College

Army over Navy 30-19

NFL

Bengals over Browns 23-17

Chargers over Dolphins 31-28

Games of the Week

Bills over Jets 32-21

Eagles over Giants 28-17

Browns take down Texans 27-14

 The long-anticipated Cleveland Browns debut of DeShaun Watson was supposed to cure some offensive ills but it was two defensive touchdowns by Denzel Ward and Tony Fields combined with a Donovan Peoples-Jones punt return for a score that accounted for Cleveland's end zone visits in a 27-14 win over the hapless Houston Texans in Houston.

Watson would finish with only twelve completions from twenty-two throws for 131 yards and threw an interception into the Houston red one to end a scoring threat.

Nick Chubb rushed for eighty yards on seventeen carries and Kareem Hunt added fifty-six yards on nine carries to lead the offense.

Cleveland improved to 5-7 with the victory and will travel down I-71 to visit the Cincinnati Bengals next Sunday.

Brownie Bits

1) The big question was how DeShaun Watson would be treated in his return to Houston and while I'm sure there was some noise made and plenty of comments, they didn't really come across on the television broadcast.

This could be due to the Texans seeming to have poisoned a once-robust fan base into just ambivalence so it will be interesting to see how Watson is treated next week by the Cincinnati crowd.

2) I didn't expect DeShaun Watson to be sharp and he wasn't.

On the interception in the end zone to Jalen Pitre, he had a receiver open (Donovan Peoples-Jones) and instead attempted to squeeze it into Amari Cooper.

Those things will hopefully develop as Watson plays more often, even if the payoff doesn't arrive until next season.

3) On a few plays though, you could see what Watson could bring to the Browns as he scrambled around the pocket, tucked the ball down, and ran for a first down on an eleven-yard dash.

There are some things that Watson will need to work on but the mobility is still there intact.

4) The Browns entered this game with three interceptions in the previous eleven games but picked two passes in this win, including John Johnson's grab on the first offensive play of the game.

Johnson's interception didn't result in any points but it did set the stage for the Browns defense to make big plays throughout the game.

5) It was a big game for second-year linebacker Tony Fields, who forced a fumble that led to a touchdown, recovered a fumble, and grabbed a ball that was deflected by Chase Winovich, running sixteen yards for a touchdown.

Fields saw some action last week against Tampa Bay and could see even more playing time between his play against Houston and a second-half injury to Sione Takitaki that looked somewhat serious.

6) The other touchdown from the defense was really strange as Fields hit a sneaking Kyle Allen at the Houston two, knocking the ball loose, and seemed like no one saw the football except Denzel Ward, who strolled into the end zone untouched early in the third quarter.

7) Cleveland's other touchdown came from Donovan Peoples-Jones, who returned a punt seventy-six yards for the Browns first score late in the first half.

Peoples-Jones's return was the first punt return touchdown dating back to 2015 and Travis Benjamin.

For a team with so many great returners in their history, the Browns have had major issues filling the void since Josh Cribbs other than Travis Benjamin for a short time.

8) I was disappointed when Nick Chubb was tackled for a safety in the first half as Houston's defensive line pushed the Browns offensive line back and Chubb never came close to getting out of the end zone.

Remember that while it is only needed to break the plane of the goal line to score a touchdown, to avoid a safety the ball needs to completely reside outside of the end zone at the time of the tackle.

10) Other than that, the Browns had no problems running the ball against the Texans and Kareem Hunt looked as good as he has been all season on his carries.

11) Houston is the worst team in the league for a reason and the Browns couldn't score an offensive touchdown against them.

DeShaun Watson will need some time to really sharpen his skills and while the offense has been waiting for him as the savior, he isn't likely to be that for this season anyway.

The Browns missed David Njoku and Watson will naturally improve when his tight end is part of the weapons that he has on the field.

I'd still argue that the Browns need to upgrade those targets in the offseason to give Watson the best chance to succeed but that can wait until another time.

DeShaun Watson will face a good team in the Bengals next week and though they have their defensive issues as well, Cincinnati is much better than Houston, and the Browns have had the Bengals number in the last few seasons, so the Bengals will be much more motivated than one would suspect for a game against a 5-7 team.

We won't receive all the answers next week but we will likely get a few and they will go a long way toward the Browns playing for something in the final month of the season or playing out the string as they get a feeling for DeShaun Watson and what he does best in their offense.  

PPM

 It's college football's league championship weekend, and as usual, at the PPM, I'll select each league title game.

Last Week: 8-9  

Overall: 129-80

College

Pac 12 

USC over Utah 30-24

Conference USA

UTSA over North Texas 38-31

 

Big 12

Kansas State over TCU  41-31

MAC

Ohio over Toledo 27-24

Sun Belt

Coastal Carolina over Troy 45-35

SEC
Georgia over LSU 27-17

American

Tulane over Central Florida 24-21

Mountain West

Boise State over Fresno State 31-21

Big 10

Michigan over Purdue 36-21

ACC

North Carolina over Clemson 39-36

Pro

Browns over Texans 24-10

Buccaneers over Saints 23-14

Chargers over Raiders 34-31

Games of the Week

Chiefs over Bengals 41-34

Vikings over Jets 29-24

Browns bounce Brady and Bucs in OT!

  David Njoku's incredible one-handed, over-the-head grab and pull of the ball into his torso while leaping into the air and managing to stay inbounds fourth down catch with thirty-two seconds remaining in regulation forced overtime. 

Nick Chubb scored on a three-yard run with nineteen seconds remaining in overtime lifted the Cleveland Browns to a 23-17 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and kept any mild heartbeat of a postseason berth alive.

Chubb finished with 116 yards rushing and Amari Cooper caught seven passes for ninety-four yards including a deep catch late in overtime that set up the game-winning score.

Cleveland improved to 4-7 with the win and will travel to Houston next week with some fellow named Watson starting and making his team and season debut at quarterback.

Brownie Bits

1) The catch by David Njoku to allow the Browns to reach overtime is one that has to be seen to be believed.

2) It's the type of play that Njoku has occasionally delivered in his seasons with the Browns and that the team hoped it would see more consistently after signing him to a long-term contract.

Njoku has so much talent and such tremendous physical attributes that he should be among Travis Kelce as the best in the league at his position.

3) And the forgotten man arrived as Anthony Schwartz suddenly appeared in the first half to score on a thirty-one-yard running play and caught a pass for seventeen yards.

Schwartz has been a disappointment since being selected in the third round in 2021 and for all of his vaunted speed, he hasn't been very good as in his kick-returning appearances either.

Perhaps Schwartz's best role may be to stop depending on him as a contributor among the team's top five receivers on the depth chart and use him as a "Swiss Army Knife" to use the current phrase for multi-dimensional contributors.

4) Myles Garrett may have re-injured his shoulder in the Browns win but he was in the Tampa Bay backfield all afternoon and finished with a sack and a half.

Garrett seemed to be pounding Tom Brady on every play in the final period and overtime and that's the type of impact that Garrett can have on a game when properly inspired.

5) Amari Cooper had a topsy-turvy game that began when a wide-open Cooper dropped a well-thrown ball from Jacoby Brissett in the fourth quarter on a fourth down.

The drop was so out of character that I was more than mildly surprised to see Cooper unable to catch the ball.

6) Cooper more than redeemed himself in overtime with a forty-five-yard catch to the Tampa three-yard line that would set up the winning touchdown.

The acquisition of Cooper certainly ranks at the top of the moves that Andrew Berry has made since taking charge.

7) Speaking of high/low, Cade York smacked another fifty-plus yard field goal and yet shanked a 39-yard try about as badly as a weekend duffer could doink a golf ball.

Such are the travails of dealing with a rookie kicker.

8) The Browns continued their pattern of first-drive dominance as they scored a touchdown on that drive and added a field goal on their next drive.

I'm not sure what it means that Kevin Stefanski has such control over the planned drives and struggles on the fly on play calling thereafter but the data on this is building in a particular direction.

9) I was surprised that Kevin Stefanski didn't go for the two-point conversion after David Njoku's touchdown reception,  not that kicking the extra point wasn't the right call but considering Stefanski's reliance on analytical projections that going for two seemed to be more of what I expected from him.

10)  The Browns now will own a unique note in football annuals.

The win was the first time that Tom Brady led by seven points or more with one minute remaining in the game and lost.

11) Jacoby Brissett was better than the Browns could have expected in his eleven games as the starter.

The Browns' 4-7 record under Brissett wasn't what they needed or hoped for when the handover to DeShaun Watson takes place but give the Browns a win that they literally handed to the Jets and 5-6 would have been more in the range hoped for.

Brissett wasn't great and some of his play showed why he has been a career backup but his play never reached the level of awfulness that cost the Browns games, which is more than they could have asked for.

Jacoby Brissett turned out to be what the Browns needed, a steady hand that may not have won as many games as hoped but blended a team with some class and professionalism that badly needed it.

12) And now we start seeing just what the Browns traded three first-round picks for in DeShaun Watson.

Don't expect miracles right away, although I do expect a win in his game against the terrible Texans but this will be a pre- pre-season of sorts to prepare Watson for what is hoped to be an excellent season next year.

Buckeyes throw a Shoe, lose to Michigan 45-23

   In what was expected to be a redemption game for the Ohio State Buckeyes, Ohio State put forth the most puzzling performance from the program in years and they were manhandled by the Michigan Wolverines in a 45-23 loss at Ohio Stadium in Columbus.

C.J. Stroud threw for 349 yards and two touchdowns along with two late-game interceptions for Ohio State.

Marvin Harrison Jr. and Emeka Egbuka each finished with over 120 yards receiving yards and a touchdown reception from each player.

Ohio State finishes the season at 11-1 and 8-1 in the Big Ten and with the defeat, they will now wait to see how the conference championships play out for their postseason destination and foe.

Olentangy Offerings

1) So many negative things to say and I hate to be one of those people griping about a one loss season.

However, if you ignore the issues, one never repairs them, so please forgive what will likely read as a tantrum over one defeat.

2)  Ryan Day is receiving heavy criticisms for some of his decisions during this game but most of those decisions I was basically fine with other than one time that he chose to punt early in the second half on a fourth and five on the OSU 49 after Michigan had scored to take the lead.

Ohio State's punt bounced into the end zone and Michigan drove eighty yards for a touchdown.

I would have gone for the first down there but otherwise the decisions were understandable.

3) Day is especially receiving some heat for his decision to kick a field goal with under eight minutes to go in the game on a fourth and four from the Michigan nine yard line.

I was okay with that as well for this reason- you are running out of possession so cut the lead to eight and hope your defense can hold.

It didn't as Donovan Edwards ran for a seventy-five yard score on the first play of Michigan's drive to place the game safely in their win column but I would have kicked the field goal as well.

4) None of that is to say that I have zero criticisms of Day, who has regressed as a play caller before my eyes over the last two seasons.

It's hard to believe that the bright innovative playcalling that earned Day the head job to begin with has degraded to this screen pass/short out pattern reliance that has become so predictable.

I think Day should give serious consideration to either handing that duty to Kevin Wilson or Brian Hartline or hire someone else because much like Kevin Stefanski with the Browns, Day has become almost bland after starting as the head man.

5) Don't believe me?

C.J. Stroud will be a top ten pick in next year's NFL draft, Marvin Harrison Jr. is the best wide receiver in the nation, Emeka Egbuka is developing to the point that he is a likely 2024 first rounder, and Julian Fleming was the top rated wideout in his recruiting class and could be anything from a first to a third rounder in his eventual draft class.

And for all of that talent, J.J. McCarthy threw more times downfield than C.J. Stroud did.

Not completed ( although that applies as well), attempted.

That's not using your talent properly.

6) When Ryan Day is asked about Dallan Hayden, he always refers to Ball Security as an issue despite Hayden not fumbling in his first season in Columbus.

I know Miyan Williams was able to return to the field (thirty-four yards on eight carries) in limited action and Chip Trayanum in his first major action at running back rushed well in leading the team with eighty-three yards (Trayanum played running back for Arizona State but transferred to OSU as a linebacker) but Hayden rushed so well against Maryland and I would have thought that performance (146 yards and three touchdowns) would have earned him more than two carries.

7) And with three long touchdowns allowed from the passing arm of J.J. McCarthy (one was a short pass with some awful arm tackling and the other two appeared to be blown coverages) how much blame should fairly go to defensive coordinator Jim Knowles?

Depends on if you blame Knowles for coverages that allowed Michigan the type of passing game big plays that one expects to see from Ohio State.

Were they bad coverages called or player breakdowns?

In either case, Ohio State isn't paying Knowles almost two million dollars a year to watch a performance like that on the team's largest stage of the season.

8) And in hindsight, a backbreaker was a Michigan eighty yard drive that ate almost eight minutes and could have been a Buckeye spark in holding Michigan to a field goal after rushing J.J. McCarthy into a hurried heave to the back of the end zone.

However, Ronnie Hickman was called for pass interference and even though an argument could be made for the pass being uncatchable, Michigan was bailed out and would score a touchdown on a McCarthy rush.

9) Five touchdowns of forty-five yards or longer against a Michigan team not known for its explosiveness looks really bad and I really can't blame the front seven all that much until the final two drive of the visitors.

10) J.J. McCarthy was a Buckeye fan growing up and as a recruit was thought to be a potential commitment but Ohio State decided to move towards Kyle McCord as their preferred passer in that recruiting class and McCarthy decided to commit to Michigan.

McCord has the inside track to start next season and prove that to be the correct decision but McCarthy has the attitude that it takes to win this game.

You may not like it or him but gotta respect the passion.

11) C.J. Stroud likely has played his final game in Columbus and he will likely leave with a legacy of the most decorated quarterback that didn't win anything.

I know the Rose Bowl win over Utah is nice but that doesn't carry the weight that it used to in program importance.

Stroud is rattled by a good pass rush and he's not the most mobile guy in the pocket.

I understand the financial aspect for Stroud and I can't blame him for leaving with the money involved for his draft projection but he needs another year of development in my opinion.

12) The worst part of this?

Ohio State will enter next year with another first year starting quarterback in either Kyle McCord or Devin Brown and will play the 2023 game in Ann Arbor, which is really a tough out and why winning this game was so important.

13) Because one loss can be explained as an aberration, two is a pattern, and the potential for three is there, Ryan Day thinks he will have heat on him for this year?

Try losing next year's game and fans will tag him with the hyphenated name of Ryan Cooper-Day.

14) This is also a tough loss for recruiting as recruits won't remember all the dominance of Ohio State in the series, they will only remember 2-0 and with the Covid year, next year's recruits would have been high school freshmen when Ohio State last defeated Michigan and the recruits that will be worked out for the following class would have been in middle school for the last Buckeye win.

The players want to win and play on the biggest stage possible and this isn't a problem for Ohio State yet but another loss or two and it could become one.

15) As for the playoff hopes, I really don't think that they deserve to after this but they are still alive with losses by LSU and Clemson on Saturday as well.

I think Ohio State may get in should TCU or USC lose their title games (TCU vs Kansas State, USC vs Utah) and almost definitely should both teams lose.

No one has a better loss of the one loss teams and Ohio State brings the two things that shouldn't count so much but do- Traveling fans and eyeballs on TV.

I think it would be very tough to take Ohio State over an undefeated TCU and maybe even over a one loss USC but from what I saw against Michigan, and while I want the Buckeyes to be successful, I'm not sure it matters if Ohio State would slide in at the fourth seed and play Georgia for the right to have the fact that Ohio State has become a finesse' program slammed into my face.

Again.

PPM

 It's rivalry week in college football with so many trophies on the line in those games and the NFL heads toward the playoff stretch run in the PPM this week!

Last Week: 13-4 

Overall: 121-71

College 

Ohio State over Michigan 31-21

Oklahoma over Texas Tech 40-37

Boise State over Utah State 24-13

Ohio over Bowling Green 32-21

North Carolina over N.C.State 28-17

Oregon State over Oregon 31-28

Arkansas over Missouri 23-17

Houston over Tulsa 38-24

Appalachian State over Georgia Southern 30-24

Middle Tennessee State over Florida International 28-13

Games of the Week

USC over Notre Dame 34-31

Cincinnati over Tulane 24-19

Pro

Buccaneers over Browns 27-17

49ers over Saints 34-17

Chargers over Cardinals 35-20

Games of the Week

Cowboys over Giants 24-17

Titans over Bengals 27-24

PPM

 Another weekend of football where we sadly will miss out on what could have been a classic snow game with the Browns-Bills game moved from Buffalo to the dome in Detroit.

Last Week: 11-7

Overall: 108-67

College

Ohio State over Maryland 47-17

Texas Tech over Iowa State 24-20

Oregon State over Arizona State 25-17

Louisville over N.C. State 24-21

Ole Miss over Arkansas 31-28

Toledo over Bowling Green 30-20

Houston over East Carolina 42-31

Boise State over Wyoming 27-24

Marshall over Georgia Southern 25-23

Middle Tennessee State over Florida Atlantic 29-24

Games of the Week

Oregon over Utah 30-27

USC over UCLA 39-32

NFL 

Bills over Browns 31-17

Chiefs over Chargers 34-24

Rams over Saints 24-13

Games of the Week

Jets over Patriots 20-17

Cowboys over Vikings 30-27