This game went pretty much according to what a lot of people expected. With
the Browns playing better than many predicted, there was a lot of optimism.
Playing the team widely viewed as the NFL’s best was a challenge for an up and
coming team like the Browns. Obviously, on the scoreboard, the Browns were not
up to that challenge. But the score doesn’t tell the whole story.
Offense
There really isn’t a lot to say about the offense. The Browns moved the ball
well and had five more first downs than any of the previous New England
opponents. The offensive line continued to play fairly well and Braylon Edwards
had his third 100-yard game of the season. Despite losing Jamal Lewis and Joe Jurevicius early in the game, the offense did pretty well. Jason Wright did a
solid job filling in and to my surprise, Tim Carter actually caught a touchdown.
The story on offense was the three interceptions thrown by Anderson. Take
those away and this is likely a very different game. The first one, on third and
goal, was a terrible decision. It was thrown into multiple coverage and cost the
Browns three points. This was a Charlie Frye-like decision. The second pass was
tipped. Some say the ball was forced, but I felt that it was not so much a
terrible throw as a good defensive play. The third was a classic “arm hit while
throwing” interception. It did not help that Anderson had some pressure in this
game, something he has not had to deal with all that often. The Patriots did a
good job of using different blitz looks and overloading the line here and there.
The other story was how the Patriots shut down Kellen Winslow for much of the
game. Perhaps it was the coverage, perhaps it was his injury, but whatever the
case, Winslow didn’t look like the same player we’ve seen this season to date.
He came alive a bit down the stretch, but the fumble that made the final score
lopsided was unfortunate. Perhaps without the injury, he holds onto that
ball. My sense was the Winslow wasn’t playing at 100% effort for whatever
reason.
Kudos to the offensive line for giving it back to Mike Vrabel for his dirty
late hit with 11 seconds left in a game that was not in doubt. Vrabel is no
stranger to Browns fans. His late hit on Tim Couch in 1999 allowed the Browns to
drive for the winning field goal in a 16-15 win over the Steelers. I was stunned
to see that there was no flag on that play.
In years past, the Browns offense has not been able to keep the team in
games. You have to be pleased with 22 first downs and playing toe-to-toe with
the Pats in terms of most of the offensive stats. But you can’t turn the ball
over four times against an elite team and hope to win.
Defense
The defense mounted zero pass rush, nor did it stop the run when the Patriots
were forced to play some backups. Still, the defense overall had one of its
better games. Coming into the game, New England had punted five times in their
first four games. In this game, the Pats had six punts. The defense also held
Brady and company out of the end zone a couple of times.
The defensive line continues to be a disaster, yet, the Browns tried some
different tactics with some success. In a surprise move, Ted Washington was
inactive, and not due to injury. The Browns played their 4-3 look for a good
part of the game, or more correctly, a 2-4-5 look. Robaire Smith made some plays
in what was probably his best showing of the year. Simon Fraser also showed some
flashes. Beyond that, Orpheus Roye, Shaun Smith, and Ethan Kelley did not show
all that much.
Once again, this 2-4-5 look made Willie McGinest and Kamerion Wimbley
essentially defensive ends in more of a 4-3 look. Problem is, that allows the
outside linebackers to be handled by offensive linemen. The Browns aren’t
getting off blocks, and they cannot effectively flow to the play. Meanwhile, the
middle linebackers were all too often physically manhandled. One of the most
telling images of the day was Leon Williams getting shoved backward by a running
back. Don’t get me wrong, but while there are problems in this linebacking
corps, it’s hard to criticize them too much when very little is happening to eat
up blocks up front. The defensive line is playing so badly that the linebackers
have little chance.
In the secondary, it’s tough to cover when there is absolutely no pass rush.
Still, the Browns held Randy Moss in check. The big problem was covering the
tight end. That fell largely to Sean Jones, who did not have his best game.
Brodney Pool also left in the first half with an injury. The secondary had its
problems, but it might have been much worse.
The biggest problem of the day was yet another game filled with terrible
tackling. A miss by Leigh Bodden, for example, led to the first New England
touchdown. This has to get fixed.
Special Teams
Scott Player had another solid game filling in for Dave Zastudil. Phil Dawson
made his one field goal attempt. As usual, the story of the game was Josh Cribbs
who became the all-time kickoff return yardage leader for the Browns.
Considering some of the players the Browns have had, such as Bobby Mitchell and
Eric Metcalf, that’s pretty impressive in just his third year.
Coaching
The Browns got down 20-0 with some bad plays. It would have been easy to
fold. Instead, the Browns played hard right up until the final play. The
Patriots did not play their best game, but they took advantage of Cleveland
mistakes, as one expects from a top tier team. I liked the fact that Romeo
Crennel showed a little fire. And closing to within 10 points twice in the
second half, the Browns were not out of the game until the end.
I know I decried moral victories just two weeks ago. Let me be clear -- this
game was not a victory in any sense. But unlike the recent past, this was not an
effort that was an embarrassment. This game showed that the Browns could make
mistakes against a tough opponent and not fold. They even made it competitive.
The time will come in the near future when the Browns will manage a mistake-free
effort in a game like this and pull the upset.
Bottom Line
While there were plenty of problems, there were some things in this game the
Browns can build upon as they go forward.
Next Up
A home trap game against the 0-5 Dolphins. This is a huge test for a
still-developing team.
The season is short. Bark hard!