Cleveland Browns Week 9 Winners and Losers
November 3, 2014Ohio State cruises; high school playoffs one week away
November 3, 2014Have the Cleveland Browns been slow-playing their competition the last couple of weeks? You ask yourselves that question and then start making some observations. When was the last time you saw Johnny Manziel? No, I’m not talking about an incessant FOX sideline view so that the commentators could go to their pre-planned QB controversy talking points. I’m talking about the trick plays that the Browns tried in order to catch the opposition off-guard?
That failed trick play was September 21 against the Baltimore Ravens. That’s just one example, of course, but there’s even more evidence that the Browns are strategically leaving tricks in the bag. When was the last time you saw the Browns run end-around with Travis Benjamin, Andrew Hawkins or even Taylor Gabriel? Well, I’ll tell you Gabriel had a rushing attempt Week 1 against Pittsburgh and two more against the Ravens in Week 3.
Granted they weren’t overly successful, but these are the kinds of plays that change a defense’s perception of their competition. Same thing with Benjamin. His rushing attempts came against Pittsburgh Week 1, against Baltimore Week 3, and against Pittsburgh in the Browns’ Week 5 victory.
The Browns are treating this season as a long journey. They might not be “looking past” opponents, technically, but it sure seems like they’re judging the portion of the schedule and deciding when it’s most beneficial to pull out all the stops. I introduce more evidence from Mike Pettine’s media comments yesterday talking about the win over Tampa and also the short-week matchup with the Bengals. (Emphasis added is my own.)
“It’s big, and we’ll celebrate a little bit tonight, but with the emphasis on a little. It is a short week. Then, after Thursday it’s like having a mini-bye. That’ll be good for our guys. We’ll be all in on this one – whatever it takes to find a way to go down there and get the ‘W’ then get that long weekend off. I think we’re in a good spot and our guys are confident, but this is one here where we know we’ve got to be all in this week. It’s a very compressed time frame.”
So, nobody other than Mike Pettine and Kyle Shanahan likely know what that means. Does it mean Johnny Manziel? Does it mean some trick plays—maybe a flea-flicker or an end-around and a pass? Does it simply mean taking the pressure off the middle of the Browns’ offensive line by finding ways to get the ball to the flat?
Whatever it means specifically, in general terms, I expect us to leave Thursday night’s nationally televised experience having seen some plays that we haven’t seen in the last three weeks in what was the softest portion of the Browns’ 2014 schedule. Were the Browns slow-playing? Call it what you will, but it seems to me the team knowingly left some of their tricks stuck to the bottom of the bag the past three weeks against the Jags, Raiders and Bucs. They went 2-1 during that stretch and find themselves at 5-3 overall. If they can find a way to beat Cincy, in Cincy, on a short week as an underdog, it will all have been worth it.
46 Comments
Nice article. Same might be said of not using the crow on sunday as well. Joe J. and golic were saying on the 5th quarter that in the typical NFL week, monday and tuesday are sore/hurting days, Wednesday you hit practice, even though you dont want to, and thursday you are just starting to feel better. Maybe they were saving Crow to have a big game thursday night?
I’m okay if he was playing the cards close to his chest against inferior (by record only) competition in order to unleash hell in the Queen City. Here’s hoping…but I still don’t want to see Johnny under center.
This makes sense, and seems consistent with the best strategy given the schedule. High-risk/high-reward strategies are more useful as an underdog. I’m fine with the Browns playing it (relatively) safe in games they are expected to win.
Could argue they’ve been playing possum the whole season by starting Hoyer…
I think of course teams reserve tricks and even some concepts for specific games, such as divisional games or the playoffs to get a big play by catching the opponent off guard. And yes, divisional games ‘count extra’ because you’re also handing them a L in the standings.
But it can’t come at the cost of losing games meanwhile, such as Jacksonville. You can afford to “win ugly” to save stuff for a bigger game. It can’t come at the cost of what needs to be a W.
FWIW I don’t think that it did, just noting it.
Craig: quick math=
Browns’ opponents combined record this year is 25-43. The team is 5-3 as you know, playing the steelers (twice), Ravens (ratbirds, the old browns), Saints tough, even playing a sold half against Tenn. However, the rest of the season the team looks like a .500 ball club at best, finding ways to win ugly. (Remember, we have lost a lot of ugly games in recent years, the worst was to the patriots last year when up 19-3 after a long gordon touchdown.)
Winning is all that matters, as even seatle did not look great against Oakland yesterday either. (30-24 in in seattle, since the browns won by 10 in CLE I won’t say we the Browns are ready to knock off the defending champs).
Nonetheless, not sure if they are playing coy, but the Browns need a mistake gree game from Hoyer, and whoever plays center can’t let Gino Atkins eat him up.
And where is Crowell (as another article said.) Statistically, he is our best back, and honestly, I think Tate should be third on the depth chart.
I am concerned that this is a soft 5-3, not a strong 5-3…
Honestly, a healthy Jordan Cameron and Josh Gordon will REALLY help this offense, even if the competition is stronger. hoyer I believe will throw it up and Gordon will come down with it deep. I think come week 11, teams will really need to prepare differently and the running game should come back a bit as they will have to count for receivers in the secondary.
No. If they pull some tricks it’s because they’re desperate, not because they were “saving” them. Tricks work when the defense is forced to concentrate one another thing. E.g., Gabriel sprints behind Hoyer while Tate heads straight ahead for a hand-off, or not. But if the LBs no longer fear the run they aren’t leaning, not getting beat wide if Gabriel gets it, not out of position to chase Hoyer if he keeps it.
If they pull tricks it will be Mangini tricks: do it early when we usually struggle, try to get a lead and dictate the game pace, because head-to-head at the line of scrimmage doesn’t smell much like a winner lately.
http://www.threadbombing.com/data/media/2/trek_hmm.gif
Does this mean we are going to run the Invisible Man play?
http://cdn0.sbnation.com/assets/3425297/faketonobody_medium.gif
Or, my personal favorite, the snap like it’s a dead-ball play?
http://www.gifbin.com/bin/112010/1289238789_middle-school-football-trick-play.gif
LoL nice one Craig I see what you tried to do!
“Playing possum” when winning (“Browns”)? Sure you’re not thinking about Packers & Bolts?
Photo: terrier & opossum, VA, 9.21.08, wc.cca, Cale.
but, if McGahee and Campbell can pull off a flea-flicker, then anyone can do it
http://usatftw.files.wordpress.com/2013/10/brownsfleaflicker.gif?w=1000
Browns expected to win. I like the sound of it.
You can only play the teams on your schedule. Just because the AFC North was gifted a soft schedule and is a big reason why everyone is above .500 doesn’t mean we don’t get to be happy that our team has taken advantage of that schedule.
So they lose a game to winless JAX then continue to “play possum” to barely win games at home against brutal NFL teams.
/good strategy
Craig was clearly inebriated when he came up with this idea!
I am enjoying the 5-3 start too. I just tend to wonder though, without Gordon, Cameron, and Taylor (and Mack), is this a team good enough to beat the Ben-gals this Thursday? Listen, we all have been through hell cheering for this team. The high for me this year was at 3-2 after pouncing on the Steelers. This has been tempered by being barley better than 2 of the worst teams in the league, and well, getting punched in the face by a winless team. That 3-2 browns team I think beats Cinci in the Jungle. This 5-3 team, not so sure. But being 5-3 or 5-4 is not so bad at all, I enjoy it.
I think he is referencing focus. The players really need to be 100% focused on a short week to be prepared to win.
Craig….I have the feeling you will look like a prophetic genius late Thursday night.
I think you’re right. This was probably the conversation earlier this week:
Ok, McDonald, we need you to look like you have no idea how to block. When you get rushed, just fall over backwards. It’ll look like they can just pressure us up the middle and stop the run incessantly.
It’s the perfect ploy. SUPER BOWL!
Fast action GIF. I hear the Benny Hill music playing in my head when I watch this.
Also, Josh! The return is so near…
any given Thursday
Or how about we have our slot receiver faint as the ball is snapped?
BTW, did you guys see that trick play the Jets tried last week (I think)? They had two men deep to receive a kickoff. With the kick in the air, the guy who was on the other side of the field laid down and sort of blended in with the green paint in the end zone. He was supposed to pop up after the other guy caught the ball and they were going to do one of those cross-field laterals. But it blew up in their faces and the returner got stuffed at the 2 before he could throw the backward pass.
A for effort, F for execution.
would you say it was played with “elite” speed?
That makes one of us!
The defense has certainly been more vanilla than usual in the past 3 games. I can see not wanting to leave tape of your best plays unless you absolutely have to. But the problem is the Browns have also left plenty of tape for other teams to learn how to stop them.
This has been an embarrassingly bad team for 15 years. Injuries and suspension have them thin at important spots. If they have been slow-playing things, then they are either undeservedly arrogant or wildly foolish. Do what it takes to win every week, because screwing around and holding back puts you in position to lose when you should not. Maybe going all in against the Jags would have helped. I understand the idea behind the article here, and maybe that is what’s going on. I just think it would be an absurd approach by a new coach and staff.
They are not playing like a .500 ball club – they ARE a .500 ball club. Inconsistent, beating more bad opponents than good, and occasionally looking brilliant.
Also, perhaps Pettine is no “slow playing”. Perhaps he is trying to make the Bengals prepare for extra looks on a short week. He has done this most of the year. I would like to see some aggressive play and not looking for Field Goals because TDs are risky..
Do what it takes to win every week
I think you can meld these 2 ideas though. Against JAX, we took some unnecessary risks (going for it early when we should have taken the FG) when against bad teams, sometimes you just have to play a Tresselball game and take the win, which is what I felt we have done the past 2 weeks.
However, we cannot use such tactics against the Bengals, so we can likely expect more aggressive playcalling. Whether one wants to dub it playing possum or not is up to the observer.
I’d rather be a weak 5-3 than a strong 2-6 (or weak 2-6) any season… We need one win to reach my dream season from the last 3 years (anything more than 5!) so I’ll take it however we get it. Getting W’s against any team will build confidence, and beating good teams builds swagger. We don’t have swagger yet, and honestly I don’t think we need it… Just win!
I think that if this is true, and it cost us the game against JAX, then shame on them. If it’s not true, then we’re in trouble.
Or since 99…
http://media.giphy.com/media/nuTCYnEPpzRYc/giphy.gif
We have Swagger. He’s that colossal mutt that sits on the sidelines.
“…barley better than 2 of the worst teams in the league…”
One of those teams handed it to the Steelers. We handed it to the Steelers who just handed it to Indy and the Ravens. You have to win the games you play to get in the playoffs where ANYTHING can happen. Strong and soft are just fodder for endless debates which don’t matter when the games are played.
I’m a Brown’s fan but you sir are an idiot. Hoyer is 8-3as a starter and he keeps winning. Why would you throw Johnny in when Hoyer is playing so good?
I was a big Hoyer fan at the start of the season but Hoyers performance these last 3 weeks has been everything but good. Hopefully its just a slump he will get out of Thursday but if his inaccurate passing and inconsistant play continues another game, I think we’re gonna see a change soon.
I disagree, as long as they are winning it doesn’t matter if Hoyer struggles a bit, they won’t bench him for an untested rookie. Why on earth would you replace the most important position on your team if you’re winning?
Maybe, and I could definitely see him getting a handful of carries this week, but I buy the talk that they really like how Terrence West has played (and practiced). He did a good job with the limited space that the offensive line afforded him on Sunday and he looked great in blitz pickup. I also don’t think his body is feeling the least bit beat up after that win… I expect him to get 15+ carries again on Thursday.
Yeah, possum, uh huh…
http://img2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20131130205416/degrassi/images/4/4a/Puckleberry_-_Yeah.gif
1. Sorry that I left my sarcasm font at home. I’ll make sure to spell it out after my post for all the geniuses out there next time.
2. The fact that you note Hoyer’s record as a starter as his key stat (1 game which he threw 4 freaking passes and got injured in the first half) is everything that is wrong with head in the sand Hoyer supporters. I don’t know if Manziel is ready to play, but for everyone to be screaming “DURR HOYER IS 8-3 WITH WINS OVER OAKLAND AND TB CLEARLY SUPER BOWL BOUND” is freaking ridiculous. I’m not an idiot because I can support my team and also be critical of them.
Hoyer 6-1 at home 5-3 on the yr were in the hunt for the division he’s 8-3 overall as a starter here throws 300 yds 2 TD’s,On pace for 4,000 yds passing and 20TD’ 8INT’s,
Oh and Hoyer is the first Browns QB to throw for 200+ yards in each of team’s first 8 games since Brian Sipe in 83 &
Hoyer 13.9 yards per completion #1 in the NFL amongst all QB’S I guess those are pedestrian numbers as well
That trick play where we lost a whole game to an winless Jacksonville team to throw off future opponents. Brilliant!!! Can’t wait for more browns strate gery.