Browns sign Troy Hill, retain Hollywood Higgins

   The Cleveland Browns continued to attempt to shore up a defense in need of repairs and with the signing of Troy Hill to a four-year contract valued at twenty-four million dollars. to man the slot corner on day three of free agency, the Browns may have delivered their secondary a sizable upgrade.

Hill will replace Kevin Johnson at the slot corner and after Hill's excellent season with Los Angeles last season that is a definite upgrade.

Hill was thrown at often last season with Jalen Ramsey manning a corner for the Rams, and Hill rated highly by Pro Football Focus (that means more to some than others) against a high number of attempts tossed his way.

Hill entered the league as an undrafted free agent from Oregon in 2015, signed with the Bengals, and spent time with Cincinnati and New England that season before being claimed off waivers by the then-St. Louis Rams to finish the season.

Hill has been with the Rams ever since, has started for much of the previous three seasons and will join Los Angeles teammate John Johnson in the Cleveland secondary as free agent acquisitions for the 2021 campaign.

The 30-year-old intercepted three passes last season and returned two of those for touchdowns with his 119 yards in returns leading the league in that category.

Brad Ward from the All Eyes On Cleveland has been wishing for the Browns to land Hill for this season during his free agency preview and I think he's on the money here.

Kevin Johnson wasn't terrible in his one season in Cleveland, but it seems that Hill will make the secondary stronger for 2021.

The Browns have addressed their secondary needs and in their remaining shopping may focus on the linebackers, perhaps another end rusher to hedge their bets on the signing of Takk McKinley, and maybe an interior defensive lineman to add to the rotation to replace Larry Ogunjobi, who departed in free agency and signed with division rival Cincinnati.

Cleveland signed a former Brown for offensive line depth in Greg Senat.

The 6'6 305 pound Senat was on the Browns practice squad last season but was signed off by Dallas to play the remainder of the season.

Senat originally was drafted in the sixth round in the 2018 draft from Wagner.

Senat will be in the mix to replace Kendall Lamm as the third tackle this season after Lamm signed with Tennessee as a free agent.

However, the signing that made most Browns fans happy was the re-signing of Rashard "Hollywood" Higgins to a
one year contract to return as the third wide receiver.

Higgins will be paid 2.38 million by the Browns and will return to his role as Baker Mayfield's most trusted pass-catcher.

Higgins caught 37 passes in 2020 for 599 yards and four touchdowns, but his numbers were very good after replacing Odell Beckham in the lineup after Beckham injured his knee.

Higgins should return to the third spot, assuming Odell Beckham is ready to start the season and gives the Browns their top five returning receivers, if Khadarel Hodge returns.

Hodge was given the lowest free agent tender level, so should Hodge sign elsewhere as a restricted free agent, the Browns would be given the right to match any offer but would be given no compensation from the signing team.

The Higgins return not only retains a popular fan favorite that enjoys playing in Cleveland but is the one receiver that seems to have natural chemistry with Baker Mayfield, which can never be understated when running an offense.

Cleveland is still expected to select a receiver at some point in the draft, but the need isn't quite as large with keeping Higgins.

Back later this evening with the boxing challenge for the weekend.

Browns season ends in close shave with Chiefs 22-17

    The Cleveland Browns gave all that they had in a loss to the powerful Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium in the AFC Divisional Playoffs and in their 22-17 defeat, the Browns may have proven more about the direction of their franchise than in any of their victories (with the arguable exception of their first-round win over the Pittsburgh Steelers) and may have finally established the franchise as more than another mirage.

Baker Mayfield threw for 204 yards, a touchdown, and an interception.

Nick Chubb led the ground attack with 69 yards, while Rashard Higgins was the top receiver with five catches for 88 yards to lead the pass catchers.

The season ends for the Browns with eleven regular season and a playoff victory on the road at Pittsburgh.

Brownie Bits

1)  I'm going to lead (Pun Intended) with the hit by Kansas City's Daniel Sorensen on Rashard Higgins that was clearly helmet to helmet and Sorensen's lowering of his helmet to deliver the blow. 

The no-call cost the Browns a likely touchdown and because the contact with the helmet isn't reviewable (as it is in college football), replay could not be brought into play.

2) I know Higgins reaching for the pylon is a risky play and I understand that, but why isn't anyone asking this- Does Higgins fumble if he's not being HIT IN THE HEAD by what is, by the rulebook, an illegal blow?

3) And I don't care about Sorensen's "intent".

How many times in college football do we see targeting called and we all talk about intent?

It doesn't matter (although I think it should matter)- There is nothing in the rules that says about whether a player 'meant' to hit the opponent in the head. 

It says you cannot.

4) If that penalty is called, the Browns have a first and goal from the half-yard line.

Four cracks at a touchdown and six/seven points in a game they lost by five to a team led by Chad Henne.

Think about that one...

5) I spent five points on one play for a few reasons.

It was pivotal and cost the Browns a likely touchdown, the officials missed the call, the NFL needs to make helmet contact reviewable for next season, and if player safety is as important to them as their lip service says (it's not) start having their officials do a better job looking for it.

6) Why didn't I mention the touchback?

Well, that is the rule and while I don't mind it as much as some do, that part of the play was called properly.

Evem if it is B.S. that the touchback could be reviewed while the guy nicknamed "Dirty Dan' by his own team didn't extend his arms to try to tackle could not be reviewed.

7) Kevin Stefanski might be the coach of the year, but he wouldn't win coach of this day.

Stefanski's constantly touted as an "analytics" believer, yet he punted on fourth and nine on the Browns final possession, gambling that he would get the ball back-they wouldn't.

8) Stefanski also botched a challenge that had zero chance of succeeded.

Still, remember just as players need experience in the postseason- Same goes for coaches.

9) Now for some good things.

Other than one bad throw, Baker Mayfield played pretty well in the loss.

Mayfield's receivers dropped some passes or his day could have been much better.

I wouldn't dog him for the loss.

10) The running game averaged five yards, but Kareem Hunt didn't touch the ball in the first half and while some of this is due to trailing for most of the game, Kevin Stefanski in the latter part of the season seemed forget this team was built on the run.

That will be interesting to follow next season.

11) The Chiefs decided to take away Jarvis Landry and they succeded even though Landry caught the Browns only passing touchdown.

Landry caught seven passes and only twenty yards.

Kansas City was able to keep Landry closer to the line of scrimmage by shadowing him and wrapped him up as soon as he caught the ball.

12) Another good game from the offensive line, who allowed only one sack of Baker Mayfield.

And that came without left tackle Jedrick Wills, who injured his ankle on the first offensive snap.

Give the Browns and offensive line coach Bill Callahan credit, they built an excellent offensive line that should be even better next season with a true training camp.

13) All of that said and it came down to a fourth and long scramble by Chad Henne.

The defense has to stop that with the season on the line and it shows just how close this team has come and how far there is to go.

For the Browns to be a true contender the defense needs to be addresses this offseason in the same manner that Andrew Berry and company worked on the offense during the last one.

The Browns have holes, they will need to fill them to take the next step-Lets see if it can be done.

14) The Browns will pick 26th in the first round.

It's been a long time since the Browns picked that low with their own draft pick.

15) Sorry that this took so long, 

It's been a long day.

I plan on a Browns season in review with the offense and defense over the next few weeks.

16) One more time-for the record.

A Tale of Two Bakers- Browns Rally Past Bengals 37-34

   Baker Mayfield threw five touchdown passes in the final three quarters and hit rookie Donovan Peoples-Jones with a 24-yard pass in the end zone with eleven seconds remaining to lift the Cleveland Browns to a 37-34 victory.

Mayfield finished the afternoon with 297 yards passing with those five touchdowns to four different receivers. 

Rookie tight end Harrison Bryant caught two of those scoring passes and Rashard Higgins grabbed all six of the passes thrown to him for 110 yards.

Kareem Hunt led the Browns in rushing with 76 yards in the victory that boosted the Browns to 5-2 on the season and in playoff contention.

Cleveland will host the 3-3 Las Vegas Raiders next Sunday before their bye week

Brownie Bits

1) Before I start on the win, the Browns announced on Monday that Odell Beckham tore his ACL while attempting a tackle on Baker Mayfield's first-quarter interception and will miss the rest of the season.

I know how it seems like Baker Mayfield has been chemistry with other receivers and it may be so to an extent, but I also know this- this team doesn't have a deep threat on the roster without Odell Beckham other than the still-raw Donovan Peoples-Jones and as opponents realize this, the underneath throws to Jarvis Landry and Rashard Higgins will be contested more and more.

2) On to Baker Mayfield, who missed on his first five passes, his first was intercepted on the play that ended the season of his star receiver, and generally looked terrible in the first quarter.

As people such as myself were going crazy with his poor play (although I did criticize him on Twitter, I didn't call for Case Keenum as many did), the Browns started their first possession in the second quarter and...

3) That Baker Mayfield left the building, replaced by this other guy that resembled the player that finished the 2018 season.

The quarterback that arrived would complete every pass that he threw for the remainder of the game with the exception of one clock spike and would throw the game-winner with seconds to play.

That Mayfield played with confidence, put the ball on a line, didn't hang his receivers out to dry, and generally looked like a quality NFL quarterback.

Kevin Stefanski didn't ask him to make long downfield throws and maybe that could be the key to success for Mayfield, but I don't think you could ask for more than what the Browns got from their quarterback in the final three quarters.

4) All of that said, it's not unfair to say we still need to see a body of work.

Baker Mayfield's career passing rating against the Cincinnati Bengals is 111 and in all other games, his rating is 83.

That doesn't' mean that it will remain that way, it just states what has been to this point.

The schedule plays to his advantage with an erratic (much like the Browns) Raiders team next before games against weak sisters Houston and Philadelphia with all three games in Cleveland followed by a visit to one win Jacksonville.

It's not out of the question the Browns could be 9-2 or at least 8-3 going into Tennessee without a true test other than maybe the Raiders and we won't know that much more about Baker Mayfield's future than we do today.

5) Rashard Higgins, the most popular player in Cleveland, steps in and finishes with over 100 yards with two of the biggest catches of the game.

Higgins digging a low pass from the grass only gained eight yards, but Higgins managing to get out of bounds was a huge play in saving time and his following catch for thirty more yards put the Browns in a spot to throw more than a Hail Mary to score.

I recently wrote that everyone loves Higgins except several coaching staffs who try to avoid using him at every turn.

Perhaps now, Higgins can have some of the respect he deserves.

6) Donovan Peoples-Jones did make an excellent catch on the game-winning touchdown, but there was a little bit of luck involved as the ball literally passed between the arms of Bengals defensive back Darius Phillips.

I'll take the luck this time, but Peoples-Jones, for now at least, is the major deep threat on the roster and he'll need to continue his development.

7) Austin Hooper missed the game after an emergency appendectomy on Friday,  but the Browns did not miss him as much as they could have with Harrison Bryant catching two touchdowns and David Njoku catching another.

I really like Bryant and the Browns might have found themselves an excellent tight end.

8) Myles Garrett continued his display of dominance with two sacks, a forced fumble on Joe Burrow, and has sacked a quarterback in six straight games, which established a team record.

9) Denzel Ward had an excellent game covering A.J. Green, but the safety position is going to kill this team (like it has done several times) if Andrew Berry doesn't step up and get someone that can play safety.

Eric Reid is a Pro Bowl level safety that is available for nothing but money and the Browns would be well served to give him a call.

10) The Browns still almost lost this game after all that- Watch the Hail Mary and after the tip drill started, the ball was going straight to A.J. Green but bounced off the chest of Sheldrick Redwine.

For all of the excitement of this game, it almost added even more.

11) The injuries are piling up on offense.

Their top running back is gone as is the only deep threat in the passing game and although the schedule will help with the next four games against one team at .500, can you rely on Baker Mayfield to outscore all of these teams without his two biggest weapons?

We shall see.

12) And can you outscore EVERYONE, even the bad teams?

Let alone the good ones?

It makes me think that although this team has improved, can they take the step forward by beating all the teams they should and do it with all offense?

13) Winding up with this- I always remember Dick Vermeil, back when he coached the Eagles, discussing the Miracle in the Meadowlands and what he was thinking before the famous Herman Edwards recovery and touchdown.

Vermeil was thinking about the game, but what he said was his thoughts were about his program.

In 1978, the Eagles were in their third year under Vermeil and his thoughts were about the foundation of the Eagles being the domination of the New York Giants and how that was slipping away before that fumble.

The Steelers and Ravens have that feeling with the Browns- they will bully them, beat them, and even when they play them close that they will find a way to win and the Browns know it.

Perhaps Kevin Stefanski has begun the foundation of his program with the domination of the Cincinnati Bengals?

A little of this, a little of that.

In these times when very little news from the sports world is available after the NFL Draft as the other three major sports are in the midst of a roster freeze, it can be a grind after a while to come up with topics to write about.
I've come up with an idea to kill a few columns if the people close to me that I've asked to participate choose to do so.
I'll have no idea how that will turn out, but it might be interesting at a minimum.

Here are a few notes and opinions on items that didn't quite make into Cleaning out the Inbox, but are newsworthy on their own.

Boy, I thought the Indians trade of Corey Kluber was light in its return as it was, but the 80 game suspension of the main piece coming to Cleveland in pitcher Emmanuel Clase for a PED, makes the trade even more questionable.
I know Kluber battled injuries last season, but he was on track for full recovery on the last time that I heard about his status and what looked to be a pure salary dump in December looks awful now with Clase's suspension.
With Clase on the sidelines, the Indians only have another light-hitting outfielder (Delino DeShields Jr) to show for a Cy Young contender as recently as two years ago.

The Browns picked up the fifth-year option on Myles Garrett and David Njoku, which would have been a mild surprise a few months ago in the case of Njoku.
The option doesn't mean more than the Browns will have the pair for the 2021 season, although the Browns are likely to work on a long-term extension for Garrett.
Njoku will be a wait and see candidate for an extension beyond 2021.

The Browns also made a popular move with the fanbase by agreeing to a one year contract with Rashard "Hollywood" Higgins to keep Higgins with the team.
Higgins had fallen deeply out of favor with former coach Freddie Kitchens and rarely saw the field after returning from injury.
Higgins took less money to remain with Cleveland, which will endear him to fans even more and will fight for the third wide receivers spot on the roster.

Since today is supposed to be Kentucky Derby Day and there isn't a Derby to run, Churchill Downs and NBC are running a virtual Derby involving all the Triple Crown winners that you can even bet on.
While I would bet on Citation, such races tend to favor the best known (Secretariat) or the most recent (Justify), but often the winner is one that you wouldn't expect.
I remember attending a computer race at Pimlico for the greatest horses of all-time and the winner in an upset was the great handicap horse Kelso.

What have I been watching during the Covid-Hiatus?
Been mixing up a few series from Netflix and the Roku Networks that aren't on the networks anymore, but I've never watched either at all or from beginning to end.
ABC's Once Upon A Time, CBS's Without A Trace and a Spanish Language mini-series on former middleweight champion Carlos Monzon have been my home viewing while I've been watching the various Star Trek shows at the road office and I'm now starting Deep Space Nine.

And the games?
Well, I've been in a basketball mode and I haven't played any of the other games of late, so it's been a lot of the 1974-75 Kentucky Colonels.
I've rallied the Colonels since the last notation and they have moved into a tie for first with the New York Nets with a record of 19-16, percentage points ahead of the Nets and a half-game ahead of the Spirits of St.Louis.
The Colonels had won five in a row before a blowout loss to the Spurs in San Antonio.
Artis Gilmore leads the team in scoring (25 PPG), rebounds (14.7), and blocks (3.3) while Ted McClain leads the Colonels in assists with 5.1 per game.
Dan Issel is averaging 18 points and 7 rebounds a game, while Louie Dampier is averaging 16 points and just under five assists a game.

Losing Streak Snapped! Browns beat Bills 19-16

On a day that you continued to have the feeling of another lost game and yet another "they should have", the Cleveland Browns kept alive any thread of hope for a miracle run down the stretch with a 19-16 win over the Buffalo Bills in Cleveland.
Baker Mayfield hit Rashard Higgins with a seven-yard strike with 1;42 remaining to take the lead and the Browns then had to hold off the final Bill drive and were then helped by Lake Erie as the wind blew Steven Hauschka's field goal attempt of 53 yards that looked to be centered coming off his foot and steadily blew the ball to left of the goalposts.
Baker Mayfield threw for two touchdowns and 238 yards in his first multiple touchdown game of the season and Jarvis Landry finished with nine catches for ninety-seven yards and a score.
Nick Chubb punished the Buffalo defense for 116 yards on the ground on twenty carries to provide the offense balance.
The now 3-6 Browns have very little time to prepare for the suddenly surging 5-4 Pittsburgh Steelers for a Thursday night game in Cleveland.

Brownie Bits

1) Allow me a little bit of joy here as Rashard Higgins caught the game-winning score.
Higgins has been neglected for weeks, despite being the one receiver that has natural chemistry with Baker Mayfield ( And think about the absence of Higgins from the lineup and correlate that with the decline in Mayfield's play) and yet after rarely playing this season, only hitting the field after what seems to be another issue with Antonio Callaway, it was Higgins that Mayfield was looking for at the end of the game!
Rashard Higgins is my favorite Brown on the offensive side of the football and he'll be a free agent at the end of the season (if any player deserves to walk away from a team, it's Higgins), so if this could be his last stand as a Brown- I feel pretty good for him.

2) Jarvis Landry played well for the second week in a row as the Browns have begun (hopefully) to realize that even attempting to use Odell Beckham downfield (it's even better if the QB can complete these attempts) can be quite effective in giving Landry room to operate in those medium routes that he can thrive in.
Funny how that works out.

3) I do have one issue with Landry, who was flagged for taunting a Bills defensive back after catching a first-quarter touchdown pass.
The penalty would haunt the Browns throughout the game as Buffalo coach Sean McDermott did what I think more coaches should do in that situation, McDermott put the penalty on the extra point, not on the kickoff as most coaches do, and forced Austin Seibert to attempt a 48-yard extra point.
The extra point predictably was missed and the Browns scrambled all during the game from the issues from the missed conversion.
All of which traced back to Jarvis Landry, who couldn't celebrate with his teammates and preferred to stick it to a Buffalo Bill.

4) I did really like the way that the offense used Kareem Hunt in his first game since his suspension.
Hunt didn't have the carries that Nick Chubb did (20 to 4), but he did run for thirty yards on those carries and caught seven passes for forty-four yards along with being a better blocker than I anticipated when he lined up in the backfield with Nick Chubb.
Hopefully, Freddie Kitchens can continue to keep Hunt involved with the offense.

5) Antonio Callaway didn't play due to what Freddie Kitchens termed as a disciplinary issue that he did not elaborate on and had Callaway been active, I'd bet that Rashard Higgins would have never been in the game for his game-winning touchdown.
Honestly, I've had about what I'm going to tolerate from Callaway, who flashes talent on occasional times and even more often shows a lack of discipline, both on and off the field.
I would have no problems with the Browns moving on from Callaway, he's been given more than his share of chances, but I'm not sure that John Dorsey will do that.
Should he make that decision, it would mean that yet another player from his once-prized 2018 draft class would be stamped as a disappointment.

6) The Browns only finished with one sack of Josh Allen on the day (by the oft-criticized by TRS Chad Thomas), but they were in the face of Allen all day and I loved the effort by Sheldon Richardson, who finished with three tackles, but was beaten up by the end of the game and yet Richardson didn't come out of the game and never stopped moving.
Some of the season thus far has been tough to take for fans and the organization, so it's nice to see veterans continuing to bust their rear no matter the record.

7) I was concerned with the eight first-quarter plays inside the two-yard line that the Browns wound up with zero points.
Passes to Odell Beckham drew two pass interferences calls, but all of the eight plays were all either passes to Beckham or runs with Nick Chubb.
I know that I've advocated running short-yardage plays with Chubb rather than Dontrell Hilliard and trying to throw the ball more to Beckham in the end zone, but there can be too much of a good thing.

8) I thought Baker Mayfield was OK in the victory.
Not outstanding, but not terrible either.
Mayfield threw for two touchdowns for the first time all season, didn't throw an interception, and led the final game-winning drive, so there were plenty of positives.
However, Mayfield is still hanging his receivers out trying to catch high passes, is still showing problems with accuracy and when Tremaine Edwards blitzed in the third quarter to sack Mayfield for a safety that tied the game at nine, Mayfield has to get the ball away there.
HAS to get the ball away and even though Mayfield didn't have very much time, he has to try.
The worst thing that happens is the officials call intentional grounding and give up the safety.

9) Maybe the Browns need to scrap the shovel pass from the game plan.
Baker Mayfield floated one that was intercepted for a touchdown against New England and in the fourth quarter, Mayfield fluttered one that was so far behind intended receiver Kareem Hunt that it was ruled a fumble and another touchdown on a scoop and score by Buffalo's Jerry Hughes.
Fortunately, the replay showed that it was actually an awful pass and took what would have been a game-clinching touchdown for the Bills off the board.
Baker either needs to practice this more or scrap the play call because he's not very good at it.

10) I love the way Nick Chubb plays this game.
Chubb never gives up on a run, carries tacklers and doesn't take plays off whether he has the football or not.
If this team voted on an MVP after nine games, It is Nick Chubb and by a large margin.

11) The 3-6 Browns keep those razor-thin playoff hopes alive, but we'll know more after Thursday's game against Pittsburgh.
It sounds cliche', but every game is a must-win game from here on out.
The division title is out, Baltimore is playing too well and the Browns would have to make up four games with seven games remaining.
For the wild-card, the Browns will have to pass seven teams to grab the second wild-card ( Bills, Steelers, Colts, Titans, Chargers, Jaguars, and Broncos) with two of those teams (Titans and Broncos) already holding tie-breaker advantages due to their earlier wins over Cleveland.
It's going to take a lot of good fortune and I think that they will have to win them all to have a chance.
One slip and it is time for draft talk...

Browns trade with Giants-Olivier Vernon coming to Cleveland

There are only five days before the free agency gold rush starts for the National Football League, but the Cleveland Browns and John Dorsey decided to make a move before the rolling out of the wagons began by trading with the New York Giants, but not for the player that so many are unrealistically lusting for.

The Browns sent starting guard Kevin Zeitler and a fifth-round draft pick to the Gothamites and added defensive end/linebacker Olivier Vernon and a fourth rounder in return.
Kevin Zeitler was signed to a large contract during the 2017 free agency period from the Cincinnati Bengals and played well in his two years in Cleveland but with 2018 second rounder Austin Corbett needing a place in the lineup, Zeitler began to look expendable and with the chance to add a solid rusher off the edge, Dorsey's decision to move now looks even better when you look closer.

Olivier Vernon turns 29 during the 2019 season and made the Pro Bowl last season (not quite the achievement that it used to be, so don't allow yourself to be too excited) after a seven-sack season for the Giants.
Those seven sacks came in eleven games after a high ankle sprain caused Vernon to miss the first five games of the season and high ankle sprains are the type of injury that can be difficult to return to full health from in-season, so Vernon's numbers, which weren't bad at all, look even better through that scope..
Vernon was signed from Miami after the 2015 season and in his three seasons in New York, sacked the quarterback twenty-two times, but for the eighty-five million (over five years) contract, Giants fans were mildly disappointed with his play considering his cost.
While I can understand that somewhat, most free agents do wind up being somewhat overpaid, it's the cost of doing business and bringing players to your town.
After all, Kevin Zeitler was very solid for the Browns in his two seasons, but you could make a decent argument that he was overpaid (48 million for five years) for a right guard, so rarely does a signee perform the feat of playing well enough that the paycheck is fair value.

Olivier Vernon is a versatile player that will likely line up as a defensive end opposite Myles Garrett for the Browns, but is more than capable of playing as a stand up outside linebacker for a 3-4 team (which the Giants put into place for the 2018 season) or in specific alignments in the 4-3 and can even drop back a bit in pass coverage without being a liability as so many end rushers are when asked to do that task.
The arrival of Vernon allows Emmanuel Ogbah to move into a backup after he's been a little disappointing as a rusher in the two seasons after the drafting of Myles Garrett or perhaps even see some time inside at defensive tackle, where the Browns are a little light (C'mon Ed Oliver!) other than Larry Ogunjobi.

Don't sleep on the flipping of the Browns fifth rounder for the Giants fourth either as the Browns move up twenty-three picks with that portion of the trade.
The Browns now possess these picks in next month's draft: 1st. 2nd, 3rd, 3rd (Patriots for Danny Shelton), 4th, 4th (Giants for Kevin Zeitler), 5th (Jaguars for Carlos Hyde),5th (Patriots for Josh Gordon), 6th and 7th (Jaguars for Cody Kessler).

I like the trade for both teams as they addressed need areas, but I like it for the Browns a little better with the slightly better player (although more expensive) and the higher draft pick, but the Giants did well here too adding a strong starting lineman for three years and move an expensive player that wasn't going to play in the defense that he signed to play in.
Good work by both teams.

I've generally been very positive on John Dorsey's moves, however, I do wonder about the decision to tender Rashard Higgins only a fifth-round compensation contract.
Higgins played well in the second half and seemed to have a connection with Baker Mayfield, so I expected the Browns to at least offer a second-round tender and with plenty of cap space, I didn't think that would be a big deal to Dorsey.
The fifth round tender comes as a surprise to me, but the Browns can match any offer, so they have a chance of retaining Higgins.
Higgins caught 39 passes (4 touchdowns) for 572 yards in 2018 and should the Browns choose not to match a contract offered to Higgins, they would receive that teams fifth-round draft pick.
Unless the contract offer would be ridiculously high, the Browns are expected to match any offer.
The Browns also tendered contracts to defensive tackle Trevon Coley and special teamer/defensive back Jermaine Whitehead.

Back later with the boxing challenge for the weekend in the fight game/

Browns knuckle through- Nip Ravens 12-9 in OT!

The Cleveland Browns survived a missed extra point, wacky officiating for the second week in a row, and yet another overtime to watch kicker Greg Joseph somehow wobble the ugliest 37 yard field goal through the uprights with seconds remaining in the game to avoid another tie and give the Browns a 12-9 victory over the Baltimore Ravens in Cleveland.

Baker Mayfield threw for 342 yards and the game's only touchdown between the two teams on a throw to Rashard Higgins with one interception
Mayfield would complete passes to nine different Browns in the victory, with David Njoku catching the most passes with six.
The now 2-2-1 Browns will host the Los Angeles (Don't call us San Diego) Chargers next week by Lake Erie.

Brownie Bits

1) Is it possible to kick the game-winning field goal, receive your first NFL game ball and not return for the following game?
I'm not saying that the Browns will release Greg Joseph, but I would not be surprised at all and it might be the best thing to do, is to bring more kickers back in to look at this week.

2) After all, Joseph did miss the extra point on the Browns only touchdown (if he kicks that, the Browns win in regulation), missed a 55 yard field goal at the end of regulation that could have won the game ( I'm not blaming him for missing such a long kick, but on a day where Graham Gano connected from 63 to win a game, 55 doesn't seem so crazy and Joseph was signed for having a "big leg") and the 37 yarder barely knuckled through.
I thought that the kick could have been partially blocked, but I remember Joseph having a similar looking wobbler in his first game in Cleveland against the Jets.
Consider me still concerned about the kicking game.

3) The controversy earlier this week was surrounding Jabrill Peppers, who had several complaints about Browns fans never accepting him because he was "from Michigan".
Since Peppers failed to notch a tackle at Oakland last week and his vaunted kick return abilities at Ann Arbor haven't translated to one memorable return in his year-plus in Cleveland, I found this to laughable since Braylon Edwards used the same reason to excuse his poor play.
Well, if that motivated Peppers, he should feel that way more often as he played his best game as a Brown with four tackles, two batted down passes and seemed to be where the ball was.
Peppers wasn't anything special again on returns (although he did have a 12 yard punt return, which is better than his average), but let's start small and credit him for a solid game.

4) What a phenomenal game from Denzel Ward on the corner and if you want to credit one player for this win, that credit would go to the rookie from Ohio State.
Ward intercepted Joe Flacco in the first half deep in Browns territory (that saved at least 3 points), blocked Justin Tucker's field goal on the last play of the first (another three points saved) and batted two other passes away.
Unless something happens such as an injury, Denzel Ward is headed for defensive rookie of the year.

5) Rashard Higgins caught the game's only touchdown and had caught three passes for 66 yards before leaving the game with a knee injury.
Higgins will undergo an MRI today and I hope it's not serious as Higgins is just starting to come into his own as a dependable third-down receiver for Baker Mayfield.

6) If Higgins is going to miss serious time, the Browns are going to have to do something major if possible, if they are going to continue to, dare I whisper it, contend.
I know the easy name to mention is that of Dez Bryant, but a far cheaper option that is available is recently waived Rashad Matthews, formerly of the Titans.
Matthews will be working out for the Browns today and is scheduled to visit the Cardinals after that.
If the Browns like Matthews, they shouldn't allow him to leave the facility.

7) Even though a veteran would help the receivers even with the hoped-for result of a minor injury for Rashard Higgins, the play of the game was in overtime with a third and eight on Cleveland's eighteen with Baker Mayfield hitting undrafted free agent Derrick Willets for a thirty-nine yard gain.
Willets is 6'4 from Texas Tech and resembles a smaller tight end more than a traditional wideout, but his catch and then avoiding two Raven tackling attempts for a huge gain.

8) The Browns committed ten penalties and were arguably screwed over again on a fourth-down pass that was ruled uncatchable after Jarvis Landry was at minimum held for a five-yard penalty.
The commentators claimed throughout the game that the ball landed out of bounds, but when I looked it up on the DVR after the game, the ball landed inbounds.
I would have had no problem with a defensive holding penalty, but the no-call was ridiculous.

9) Yet after all of that, what did Joe Flacco complain about after the game?
The only penalty on the Ravens called all day- a clear block in the back in overtime.
Ten to One and YOU complain???

10) Baker Mayfield continues to make me glad to be wrong, especially about the strength of his arm.
The two throws that he made on the only touchdown drive of the game showed that with two bullets-one to David Njoku for a first down and the touchdown to Rashard Higgins.
I underrated Baker's arm and even though I'm not ready to anoint him the savior yet after two starts, I've seen enough to consider that I may have been wrong.

11) Still liking those color rush jerseys, mainly because they look like our classic togs, except orange name/numbers rather than white.
Also still need orange or white pants with them though. Too much brown makes them look like an unwrapped Krackel bar.

12) Also still not positive that I want Hue Jackson, arguably the worst clock manager in the game, teaching Baker Mayfield how to manage the clock.
Now it was not the fault of either Mayfield or Jackson that Jarvis Landry made a bad decision in not getting out of bounds on the final drive of regulation. but the Browns lost over twenty seconds on that decision by not using their final timeout.
I understand the importance of having that timeout, but the lost time just killed the Browns.
Mayfield had to rush to the line and spike the ball, losing a down and then two incomplete passes later and the Browns are trying a 55-yard field goal.
The timeout that was saved was never even used.

13) Finally, a non-Browns note.
Is anyone surprised that Pat Shurmur is having problems in New York?
Of all the head coaches the Browns have had, Shurmur was my least favorite.
I feel bad for Giants fan that they will have three years of "we battled" to listen to.

Browns bounced in Baltimore 24-10

The Cleveland Browns didn't look as sharp in their first road game of the season in Baltimore as they lost to the Ravens 24-10.
The Browns were forced to use both of their young quarterbacks in the defeat as both starter DeShone Kizer and backup Kevin Hogan saw action.
Rashard Higgins was promoted from the practice squad before the game and led the Browns with his career high seven catches for 95 yards.
The only Cleveland touchdown came in the second quarter when Kevin Hogan hit David Njoku with a 23 yard touchdown pass.
Cleveland drops to 0-2 with the defeat and will travel to Indianapolis next Sunday to play the 0-2 Colts...

Brownie Bits

1) DeShone Kizer left the game in the second quarter with a migraine headache.
I get that, I've known people that suffer from them and I have no doubt about their pain, legitimacy and that they can come out of nowhere.
What I am wondering about are these two issues- How did the Browns not know that this was an issue (They may have, but I was searching online during the game and came up empty) and now this raises an interesting issue for the Browns.
If DeShone Kizer is the quarterback of the future, how comfortable can you be with a quarterback that could be forced to leave the game at any time?
This may mean the Browns may be forced to invest more money than a usual team in a backup quarterback, should Kizer become what the Browns hope for him to be.

2) Kizer threw three interceptions and fumbled once, but I'm inclined to give him a pass, which are words that you will occasionally see this season.
Young quarterbacks will make mistakes and they will do things that they shouldn't-particularly when encountering things for the first time.
The key will be seeing how Kizer deals with the growing process and how does he progress??

3) Kizer was only sacked twice after his being dumped seven times by the Steelers but was under pressure all day.
It's only two games,but part of the developmental process will be seeing if Kizer will be able to get the ball out faster and if he does- can he avoid the interceptions that come with getting the ball away under duress at times?

4) Kevin Hogan was impressive on his scoring drive with several nice throws, but his interception late in the first half that resulted in the Baltimore touchdown that essentially finished the game there was a bad one.
Hogan, like Kizer, is inexperienced so mistakes will happen, but something about Hogan makes me think he's going to be a popular second stringer wherever he goes and that might be many places.
He reminds me a little of Doug Flutie and that would be enough to keep him collecting checks for quite a while.

5) And welcome back Rashard "Hollywood" Higgins.
Longtime readers know that it was Higgins of the WR draftees last year that I liked most (after the first round) and Higgins rarely saw time on the field with just six catches in 2016.
Then when Higgins was waived, I figured that he was just another player that I liked, but was wrong on when the Browns decided to claim Kasen Williams instead.
Suddenly, the Browns signed Higgins to the practice squad, promoted him to the main roster and then played him over Williams (Inactive vs Baltimore) all in the span of about eight days.
Higgins (for one week at least) repaid my faith with a team-leading seven catches for 95 yards and was the only Browns receiver that the Ravens seemed to have trouble covering.
I had always thought Higgins would work better in the slot than outside and the Browns might have found a slot receiver to make the tough catches...

6) Corey Coleman was the first rounder last season and even with some flashes of brilliance, Coleman has been a mild disappointment.
Coleman finished the day with one catch for nine yards on seven targets and is suspected to have suffered a broken hand.which would be his second in two years as a Brown...

7) Dwayne Bowe, I mean Kenny Britt had another wonderful day on the field as he caught one pass for two yards, got called for a pass interference call on the other target and was tweeted about (from a non-Browns fan) for literally walking around DURING play!
I see it coming-Kenny Britt could be a poison on this team as the featured free agent among the wideouts.
What I don't know is this- was Kenny Britt a Hue Jackson guy or was he hoisted on him by Sashi Brown?
Could this be the beginning of a rift between "football" guys and "stat" guys?
and the other question is how long can the Browns tolerate a lack of effort like this from Britt?
Can you 'change the culture' without cutting loose and admitting mistakes?
Time will tell...

8) The receivers other than Higgins had trouble getting any type of separation from the Ravens defensive back and that had a small role in the four interceptions thrown by the Browns.
They did make a few big plays, but those were by the tight ends-Seth DeValve, David Njoku and even one from the blocking tight end Randall Telfer.
This is one of my major concerns as things don't seem to have improved from last season for the receivers.

9) Again, so much for the vaunted commitment to the running game as Isaiah Crowell, who was supposed to carry the load for this ground friendly offense carried just ten times.
Crowell finished with 37 yards,17 coming on one rush.

10) All of this and nothing about the defense yet?
Well, here goes-this defense for all the preseason buzz about impact playmakers in re-signing Jamie Collins and drafting Jabrill Peppers just doesn't make plays.
Christian Kirksey did have a sack,but all often this defense looks like the Browns past-tackling downfield, giving up chunks of yardage and not making the big stop when needed.

11) It's tough to blame Jabrill Peppers too much, considering that Gregg Williams continues to play him 30 yards off the ball.
I'm assuming that this is to take away the deep ball and I guess that's worked, but instead of that, the Browns give up chunks of yardage underneath and the guy that they drafted to make plays just rushes up to take tackles (five in this game).

12) It's easy to read this and feel discouraged, but I'll brush this one off as a road trip against a decent team as one of those "process" games.
I do like the Browns chances in Indianapolis next week against the 0-2 Colts and not against Andrew Luck.
I'm not sure that I'll pick them to win, but this is a winnable game for the Browns.

13) The commentators in this game seem to think the Ravens have this killer defense in allowing ten points in the second game.
Keep in mind that their opponents were the Bengals and Browns -let's not get too excited yet...

More to come this week as we have our trip to the nostalgia convention to look back on, inbox cleaning, boxing ratings and the death of Bobby "the Brain" Heenan..