THIS SHOULD BE A LOPSIDED WIN FOR THE BROWNS
By Steve King
So, second-year pro Sam Darnold, thought to be one of the best young quarterbacks in the NFL, has mono and as such will not play for the New York Jets when they host the Browns on Monday night?
Is that correct?
Yes. With that, then, the Browns shouldn’t just win. Rather, they should win big.
Flip the script. How much chance would the Browns have to win if Baker Mayfield were sidelined?
Not much. Not much at all. They would likely get run off the field.
Understanding that, we repeat: the Browns should win big. And if they don’t so – if they win a tight one or, worse yet, heaven forbid, they lose – then it will be time to get very, very concerned about this football team.
The Browns are already limping as they head to New Jersey, coming off a lopsided 43-13 home loss last Sunday to a Tennessee Titans team that is good but certainly not great by anyone’s estimation. That was a blown opportunity to record a win and get the season off to a good start.
The Jets game is an even bigger opportunity to win. Even with Darnold there, the Browns should have won by a comfortable margin. Now there is no reason for the Browns to do anything but roll.
Yes, of course, the Jets are no doubt going to test the Cleveland defense by pounding running back Le’Veon Bell at it time after time to shorten the game and keep the ball away from Mayfield and company. The Browns just have to be stern and stout at the point of attack and force the Jets into obvious passing situations, allowing them to pin their ears back and go after backup quarterback Trevor Siemian.
It’s all right there for the Browns. It’s a win waiting to be captured.
Can the Browns put the Titans loss behind them and take care of business against New York?
I think they will – convincingly – but then again, I, like everyone else, thought they’d beat Tennessee without much problem.
More BDD:
COME ON, FREDDIE, FACE THE FACTS
More quotes from Browns head coach Freddie Kitchens regarding all those penalties in last Sunday’s 43-13 season-opening loss to the Tennessee Titans, and more problems from my perspective.
When asked at his Thursday press conference if there were indications that the Browns had corrected those mistakes heading into Monday night’s game against the New York Jets, Kitchens seemed to bristle and get defensive. No, he didn’t seem to. He did.
“Our guys know we don’t coach penalties,” he said. “Here is what football comes down to: the smartest and the most physical team usually wins the game.
“We were a physical team the other day, but we were not the smartest team. Our guys understand that. They accept that. I have told you before, we identified a problem. Now, we are going to rectify the problem. That is all I really have to say about it. That is moving forward.
“That is how we approach every day. That is how it is going to be. Nobody is shaking here. We are going to fix the problem.”
OK, then, Coach, let’s get that problem squared away. Having 18 penalties for 182 yards – one of the worst performances from that perspective in team history – simply isn’t going to cut it in any way, shape or form.
If he and his assistant don’t coach penalties, then how – and why — did so many occur? It’s either bad coaching, or a lack of coaching altogether, which is even worse.
Kitchens doesn’t seem to get how bad – how egregious, how embarrassing and how humiliating – that was. It appeared the Browns were some kind of pick-up team, and they played like it.
No matter how Kitchens wants to parse it, that was an unprofessional performance. General Manager John Dorsey, who went out on the limb to hire Kitchens, must have been mortified.
I still like Kitchens. I really do.
But he has to face facts, and he isn’t.
That’s more than a bit worrisome.
