Dusted in Detroit- Browns mauled by Lions 34-10

    The Cleveland Browns' defense tried to hold them in their game against the Detroit Lions, but between a special teams snafu and being on the field most of the game, they would tire in a 34-10 Lions win in Detroit.

Quinshon Judkins rushed for eighty-two yards and scored the only Cleveland touchdown in another dull offensive effort.

Cleveland slips to 1-3 with the loss and will travel to London next Sunday to meet the Minnesota Vikings.

Brownie Bits

1) Joe Flacco threw two interceptions and fumbled on a strip sack when he took a hit from Aiden Hutchinson.

Dillon Gabriel replaced Flacco on the final drive, and while I wouldn't replace Flacco for the London game against Minnesota, the time for that change is coming.

2) The offensive line is missing both starting tackles with Jack Conklin (elbow) and Dawand Jones (Knee out for the season), so Cornelius Lucas and KT Leveston were forced into the lineup.

The Lions sacked Joe Flacco three times, with two sacks by Aiden Hutchinson, and both tackles were consistently beaten.

Leveston, who was acquired on cutdown day, has a marginal excuse, and while Lucas is a veteran with experience, he has been more of a reserve tackle in his career rather than a starter.

3) Quinshon Judkins continues to show a hard-running style and is the only legitimate weapon for the Browns right now.

Judkins will be the reason (on offenses anyway) the Browns manage to stay close in games this season.

4) And here's our weekly Jerry Jeudy post for dropping passes, underproductivity ( three catches for forty-eight yards on nine targets), and one of the Cleveland interceptions was his fault when he slipped/fell and allowed D.J. Reed to grab the turnover.

Another disappointing game from the "number one" receiver.

5) I don't blame Jerry Jeudy for all of this; I blame Andrew Berry, who overpaid Jeudy, and didn't grasp that Jeudy's performance in 2024 (90 catches for 1229 yards) was based around three huge games in which all were started by Jameis Winston at quarterback.

Each of Jeudy's games (three) with over one hundred yards receiving were Winston starts, and two of his three games with nine catches or more were Winston starts (Jeudy's twelve catch game vs Miami with 94 yards was a Dorian Thompson-Robinson start).

And yet Andrew Berry felt comfortable enough to pass on upgrading his receivers with Jeudy as the bulwark entering a season without Jameis Winston.

6) The special teams continued their erratic play, although it's always hard to blame a kicker (Andre Szmyt) for missing a fifty-six-yard field goal.

Sunday's problem was on the coverage team as Detroit's Kalif Raymond returned a punt sixty-five yards for the touchdown that slammed the door on any slim hope of a Cleveland win.

7) Tough to complain about the defense, even though the scoreboard shows thirty-four points by the Lions.

Detroit scored the aforementioned touchdown on a punt return and scored seventeen points on drives of five, sixteen, and twenty yards, which is tough for any defense to survive.

8) The Browns played Dillon Gabriel on the game's final drive but called just one pass play.

I never understand when teams play a young quarterback and then have him hand the ball off, as the Browns did on two of Gabriel's three plays.

9) The Browns' receivers are among the weakest in the league, and things may have gotten worse as Cedric Tillman was injured during the game.

Tillman injured his hamstring, and it's unknown how much time he will miss.

10) Harold Fannin dropped a pass that he should have caught, but the other tight end, David Njoku, looks like he's lost his athleticism overnight.

Njoku looks like a different player this season and might be showing signs of major decline.

Cleaning out the Inbox

    Way behind on cleaning the inbox as often happens during football season.

13th Dimension writes of the opening of the first museum devoted to the Batman 1966 television series. 

Located in Logansport, Indiana, the museum possesses items from the show, reconstructed sets, and a theatre.

This is worth the stop for the photo ops alone from the photos in the article!

ESPN writes of former Oklahoma and Dallas Cowboys head coach Barry Switzer's life in Norman, Oklahoma as the unofficial "King of Norman".

Switzer, Jimmy Johnson, and Pete Carroll are the only men to win a Super Bowl and a collegiate national championship.

In recent years, Switzer discovered that he had a daughter that he had never known, and is spending much of his time with here among his many interests in the Norman area.

The Barry Switzer story has to be read to be believed and is the greatest sports biography documentary or scripted film waiting for someone to make.

The next three notes are all from The Athletic.

The Premier League continues to move further south with fewer and fewer teams from the North side of the country.

Other than Newcastle (the northernmost city in England), the three other teams nearest the Magpies have been relegated, Sheffield United and Burnley last year and Leeds two seasons ago.

For the first time since the Premier League began, there are only five teams in the Northern half of England, Newcastle, Liverpool, Everton, and the two Manchester squads

The Buffalo Bills and Detroit Lions played an epic game a few weeks back and this article deals with two Rust Belt towns still seeking a Super Bowl trophy along with some famous names in sports with connections to both cities.

Names such as Bob Lanier, Dominik Hasek, Pat LaFontaine, and Chris Spielman are among the many with a background in both areas with arguably the most influential person, former Bills owner Ralph Wilson, a Detroit resident who owned a minority share of the Lions but unable to gain controlling interest, purchased a charter franchise in the AFL and didn't know where to base his team.

Wilson picked Buffalo after he couldn't use the Orange Bowl for his team's home stadium and pulled out of Miami.

The final word from the Athletic writes of the school with the surprising lead in the best transfer portal class- the Texas Tech Red Raiders.

The article discusses the Tech NIL operatives, who and how they look at potential recruits, how quickly Tech moves on players they want to sign, and how the entire collective works together to energize the Red Raiders, who finished 8-4 this season before a Liberty Bowl loss to Arkansas.

TechSpot writes of a small Indiana bakery that is still using the Commodore 64 as its cash register!

The 64 RAM Commodore (hence the name) has more than enough processing power to run a cash register and was released in 1982 with updates discontinued in 1994.

Ryan sends word of a fire that burnt down the four-story Morrison Hotel in Los Angeles, which is famous for the backdrop of The Doors "Morrison Hotel" album in 1970.

The hotel had been vacant for over a decade and was being used by squatters and homeless and LA firefighters have used it as a training site.

The story behind the album cover is that a clerk had told the group that they weren't allowed to take photos but when the clerk was called away from his desk the group jumped into the lobby into place for the photo taken through the window by famed rock photographer Henry Diltz.

Browns trade Za'Darius Smith to Lions

      The Cleveland Browns were expected to be a team that would be active in trading some spare parts before the Tuesday draft deadline and the player who was a sure bet to be moved was moved Tuesday morning as Cleveland sent veteran defensive end Za'Darius Smith to the Detroit Lions.

Cleveland obtained a 2025 fifth round draft choice and a 2026 sixth-rounder in return for Smith and the Browns 2026 seventh rounder. 

The Lions needed a pass rusher after their standout defensive end Aiden Hutchinson suffered a broken leg last month and Smith was the best available rusher via trade for the Lions, who expect to be a title contender in the postseason.

The thirty-two-year-old Smith played in all nine games this season and his five sacks rank him second on the Browns behind Myles Garrett's seven.

Smith played in sixteen games for the Browns last year and finished with five and a half sacks in 2023 for Cleveland.

The Browns add a fifth for the next draft and move a seventh for a sixth in 2026 for a veteran that would have been unlikely to stick around a rebuilding team as an unrestricted free agent after the season.

The fifth could prove helpful in perhaps helping the Browns move up on day three of the draft to grab a player who should have been off the board but slipped a bit on the draft's second day.

The Lions add a proven pass rusher at a time of need as a rental for a reasonable cost, so both teams acquire something they need for a decent return.

Should the Browns make other transactions before the deadline, I'll be back with thoughts on those moves.

Browns trade Donovan Peoples-Jones to Lions

    The speculation on the activity at the trade deadline for the Cleveland Browns and Andrew Berry ranged from returning Jacoby Brissett from Washington to be the insurance policy for DeShaun Watson to adding a running back to add depth and perhaps even a wide receiver to add one more weapon for a passing game that could use one even with a healthy DeShaun Watson.

BUT on my weekly appearance to talk Browns with Ramon Malpica, (have I mentioned that yet?) last night, I stated that the Browns could stand pat because Andrew Berry's track record shows he usually loves the roster he has built and is willing to let the chips fall where they may.

Well, Andrew Berry did almost just that as the Browns didn't add a player at the deadline but they did move one as Cleveland traded wide receiver Donovan Peoples-Jones to the Detroit Lions for a sixth-round pick in the 2025 draft.

Yes, you read that correctly, in the supposed "All-In" season, a team that seemed a receiver short, traded one away for a low-round pick two years away.

Peoples-Jones caught eight passes for ninety-seven yards this season and was averaging six and a half yards on thirteen punt returns this season.

Now, before you think I'm being too harsh, I see the thinking on this from both sides.

Cleveland managed to receive three years and another half-year of use from Peoples-Jones, got back what they spent to draft him in 2020, a sixth-round pick, and Peoples-Jones was likely going to leave via free agency at the end of the season, so as little as the return was, it was still something.

On the other side, Peoples-Jones had played the highest percentage of snaps among the Browns wideouts this season, at eighty-two percent even more than Amari Cooper, and if Peoples-Jones's value is that low, why was he playing so often?

Peoples-Jones has taken thirteen of the Browns' nineteen punt returns this year and while he isn't an elite return man, he had served in that role several times in his Cleveland tenure.

I am interested to see who profits from the trade with increased playing time and I'd think it would be third-round draftee Cedric Tillman, who has caught one pass for five yards and has been inactive since the week four loss to Baltimore when he suffered a hip injury in garbage time.

Tillman has been a healthy inactive for the last two weeks, so it will be interesting to see what he does with the added snaps.

David Bell and Marquise Goodwin could also see a bump in their playing time as well.

I'd say I'm sorta "meh" on the deal.

Peoples-Jones may have been seeing lots of playing time but he wasn't doing much with it, although some of the blame should go to the chaos at the quarterback position as well.

The draft pick is something for a player who was likely to leave and while that is a tangible asset it's still not much to get excited for.

It will be interesting to see how Cedric Tillman and David Bell react with their increased role but if either was impressing the coaches in practice, shouldn't they have earned time over Peoples-Jones already since DPJ was expendable?

Of more interest to me than trading Peoples-Jones is the lack of interest by the Browns in doing anything to help a failing offense during a supposed "All-In" season.

Andrew Berry has traditionally been an executive that has been reluctant to make deals involving players that he drafted or acquired and he is staking the season on DeShaun Watson not only returning to the lineup but returning to his past level of play.

If Watson cannot do the former, Berry could be staking his job and that of Kevin Stefanski on either Dorian Thompson-Robinson or P.J. Walker guiding the Browns to success.

If Watson returns but doesn't perform well, Berry has a different problem because the Browns have no other option to replace him due to the cost of acquiring him and what seems now to be an incredibly bad decision to fully guarantee Watson's contract at sixty-three million dollars for each of the next three seasons.

Andrew Berry loves his roster and thinks it's good enough to make a long run without adding anyone to shore up the roster for the stretch run.

For his sake, I hope he made the right decision. 

Browns nip Lions 13-10

      Jarvis Landry ran for a touchdown and Nick Chubb caught one in a small role reversal as the Cleveland Browns held off the winless Detroit Lions 13-10 by the brisk winds of Lake Erie.

Chubb finished with 130 yards rushing with Baker Mayfield throwing one touchdown with two interceptions.

Cleveland staggers to 6-5 with the win and faces Baltimore next Sunday night in yet another must-win affair,

Brownie Bits

1)  The number one reason for this win comes down to Nick Chubb, who only finished with top-notch stats, it was Chubb that ground out the final first downs in the final three minutes to save a wobbling offense.

2) Nick Chubb is the only above-average skill position player on this offense.

Kareem Hunt is when he is available but outside of those two -That's it.

When your best skill receivers are rated as average, it's going to be a struggle in the passing game.

3) Keep in mind the Browns went down to the wire with a winless team with a QB making his first start, and a coach that kicks a field goal on fourth and one down six points and punts with under three minutes to go down three.

4) I did like the use of Jarvis Landry on his touchdown, which had Landry possibly throwing the ball and then tucking the ball down and running with it for the score.

Other than Nick Chubb, Jarvis Landry is the player that is likely to make a play on this offense, so anything that can get the ball in his hands is a good idea.

5) The defense played pretty well other than the 57-yard touchdown run by DeAndre Swift and although it was the Lions with Tim Boyle, credit is still due.

6) Chase McLaughlin has been solid most of the season but in bad weather for the first time, McLaughlin missed a field goal and had an extra point blocked.

One more home game like that and the questions will start again about the kicking game.

7) The offensive line had its struggles with penalties and three by usually solid Wyatt Teller. didn't help matters.

Teller committed one penalty after Nick Chubb converted a third and long early in the second half that essentially ended a promising drive.

8) Now, it's onto Baker Mayfield.

Mayfield is playing with several injuries and his proponents point to those injuries as a reason for his poor play.

Someone is pulling someone's leg as the team lists these injuries as questionable yet Mayfield is acting like he is playing on career-ending injuries.

The truth is somewhere in the middle, Mayfield is far from 100 percent but if he cannot play reasonably well with these injuries, then perhaps he shouldn't be out there.

9) Mayfield's two interceptions were both awful.

His first one to a wide-open Jarvis Landry for what would have been a huge gain was about five feet above a leaping Landry and ten yards down the field.

Just awful.

10) The second one could have lost the game, early in the fourth quarter when a terrible throw allowed  Detroit to start deep in Cleveland territory and allowed the Lions to kick their field goal to cut the lead to three points.

Two terrible interceptions that could have cost the Browns the game.

11) Finally, a win is a win and 6-5 keeps them in the hunt with two games against Baltimore looming.

I don't think that the way this team is playing right now, particularly at quarterback, that I'm very optimistic for this week against Baltimore.

Lions lap Browns 38-24

The Cleveland Browns managed to hang tough for three quarters with the Detroit Lions at Ford Field Sunday, but unfortunately, football games are four quarters in length and the Lions dominated the final quarter to take a 38-24 decision.
DeShone Kizer threw for 232 yards and a touchdown with Isaiah Crowell adding ninety yards with a score on the ground.
The now 0-9 Browns return home next week to host the surprising 6-3 Jacksonville Jaguars.

Brownie Bits
1) The most talked about play came late in the first half with the Browns down 17-10 and with a second and goal with the Detroit two with fifteen seconds to go in the half.
Cleveland had no timeouts, so a running play that didn't make the end zone would make another play unlikely.
DeShone Kizer's quarterback draw fell short of the end zone and the clock ran out.

2) This then makes one wonder this was a called play by Hue Jackson or was it an audible called by DeShone Kizer?
Jackson took the blame after the game, but Kizer wouldn't address it.
Jackson whipped off his headset after the play and gave the appearance that it was indeed his quarterback that called the audible.
This was the second time this season that Kizer had called an audible deep in the red zone that went awry.

3) Other than that misstep, this was the best game that Kizer has played since the opener against Pittsburgh.
Kizer made some nice throws and only a Hail Mary interception kept Kizer from not turning the ball over in the game, which has been an issue of late.

4) The crunching hit that knocked Kizer from the game late in the third quarter was the turning point in the game.
Cody Kessler was overmatched in his three possessions including an overthrow of a wide open Bryce Treggs that would have been a sure score.
Kessler needs to be a third-stringer to be of value, not the main backup.

5) And give Kizer credit for returning to the game after being looked over by the medical staff.
Showing toughness and the ability to lead goes a long way with the teammates and for Kizer's future-even if it isn't with the Browns.

6) So many key plays, but the fumble by Seth DeValve that was scooped and scored by Nevin Lawson in the second quarter was also a key and although the hit was perfect to somewhat excuse the fumble, what I didn't like was the lack of Browns even remotely giving an effort to track Lawson.

7) One play that I loved was Myles Garrett's effort as he nearly sacked Matthew Stafford, slid to the turf, got up and made Stafford run into Emmanuel Ogbah for one of Ogbah's two sacks on the day.
I've made the comparison before that Ogbah will profit from Garrett and could be the Clyde Simmons (now the Browns DL coach) that was very productive for the Eagles opposite Reggie White.

8) Jamie Collins made a nice play on a first-quarter interception but was injured when he was tackled.
Collins would not return, although it is unknown if the injury will be a long-term issue.

9) The receivers continue to be a mixed bag.
Sammie Coates had a big gain early and nothing else, Kenny Britt had a score and another catch taken away from him by a penalty and Rashard Higgins held onto one catch, despite taking a huge hit,but Ricardo Louis continued to show his bad hands and David Njoku dropped two passes.
It'll be interesting to see how Corey Coleman fits in next week and if Josh Gordon can make it to the starting lineup against the Chargers.

10) The defense has been the better unit all season except for the secondary.
The three consecutive touchdown drives for the Lions in the second half decided the game and yet another long score that left Derrick Kindred and Jabrill Peppers trailing helplessly in the dust.
I know that the Browns basically have two safeties that are more in the box safeties than cover players, but seeing this same scene every game that Kindred and Peppers play together is getting really old.

11) It was nice to see the Browns finally use the promised running game that was to help make the transition easier for DeShone Kizer and it helped the Browns stay in a road game against a better team.
The Browns ran for over 200 yards as a team, Isaiah Crowell finishing with more than 90 of those.
I'd like to see more of this as the season moves on.

12) Now to 0-9 and our weekly thoughts on what can be won.
Jacksonville is a surprising 6-3 and a game that looked winnable might not be such now with the Jaguars developing a rugged defense.
The Bengals whipped the Browns in Cleveland, not sure if anything changes in Southern Ohio, although you can hope for one of those awful Andy Dalton days to change things.
The Chargers seem to be slowly turning things around and being the Browns only West Coast trip might work against them.
Before the season, Green Bay would have a certain selection for a loss, but without Aaron Rodgers and using a quarterback of the same experience as the Browns (Brett Hundley), the Packers are having trouble scoring points and this game being in Cleveland might be a chance at a win.
Baltimore is nothing special and this is in Cleveland too, so don't rule that out, but the Ravens beat the Browns handily earlier.
The Bears in Chicago might be possible as they are doing what you need to do with a rookie QB in Mitch Trubisky-Run the ball, play it safe and keep it close to hope for the best.
Pittsburgh would be a huge favorite if they played their starters, but they might have clinched the division by then and like last season play backups.
I think the Browns will get one or even two wins if everything falls perfectly, but they won't come until December as I see them being 0-12 before playing four games that they could win depending on circumstances.

13) San Francisco's win over the Giants would give the Browns the top pick if the draft was today.
The 49ers and Giants each have one win, so one win by the Browns could throw a wrench into that.
Houston continues to fade with the loss of DeShaun Watson and that pick could be a top ten pick by draft time.
As of this writing, the Texans pick would be the tenth overall...