Makin’ good: Cavs to sign guard Dionte Christmas to non-guaranteed deal
October 9, 2015Browns to wear white jerseys, brown pants vs. Ravens
October 9, 2015It was another Brownsy loss on Sunday, as our hometown heroes fell to the San Diego Chargers, 30-27. The Browns blew a chance to get to overtime by going offside during the Charger’s first field goal attempt, which ended up being wide right. Before the Chargers had a chance at the field goal, the Browns defense allowed an easy drive for Philip Rivers to move his team into the field goal position.
This was just another example of the Browns defense playing horribly and allowing opposing offenses to run right over them. The Chargers drove 57 yards in just over two minutes on just eight plays, with the first four plays amassing 49 yards. What went wrong with this struggling unit for the Browns?
Let’s take a look at the four big plays on the final drive of the game that led to the Charger’s second chance game-winning field goal.
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Play No. 1: RB Danny Woodhead five-yard run
This five-yard run by Chargers running back Danny Woodhead started off the final drive of the game. The Browns have six defenders in the box, while the Chargers are in a shotgun formation with Woodhead on the left of Rivers in the backfield. The call is a draw play for Woodhead. Here is how it happened.
The reason for the success of this run by Woodhead can be summed up in this shot. Like many other successful runs against the Browns, the defense loses edge integrity. Armonty Bryant is in charge of setting the left edge of the line. But when he bursts off the line, he runs inside, losing his ability to keep contain on Woodhead. Woodhead makes a quick cut to the outside and finds space for a five-yard gain.
Play No. 2: QB Philip Rivers 17-yard pass to TE Ladarius Green
The second play of the drive for the Chargers was a huge momentum play for their offense, as they gained a huge chunk of yardage on one play. Here is how Philip Rivers’ completion to tight end Ladarius Green transpired.
The Chargers line up in a shotgun formation with two receivers on each side, one out wide and one in the slot. The key routes are those run by the two players in the slot. Tight end John Phillips is in the right slot, running a short route to the center of the field where he sits down as a safety valve. Tight end Ladarius Green is in the left slot, running a short crossing route across the field.
The key to the play was the “unintentional” rub that Chargers tight end Phillips puts on Browns corner Johnson Bademosi, who was assigned to cover Green. Phillips stops his route in the middle of the field right in front of Bademosi, slowing the Browns corner down. The pick by Phillips allows Green to get wide open for him to catch the ball and make a big gain.
Play No. 3: QB Philip Rivers 8-yard pass to WR Keenan Allen
This play by Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers is pretty impossible to guard against. Receiver Keenan Allen runs a quick comeback route against Browns corner Pierre Desir. The coverage by Desir is pretty good with not much space given between Allen and himself. The key to the play is Rivers’ quick release. Rivers releases the ball before Allen makes the cut back to the ball, making it extremely difficult for Desir to react in time. Rivers’ pass is inaccurate, forcing Allen to dive to make the catch. This inaccuracy makes it more difficult for Desir to adjust to, making him hesitate just enough for Allen to make the catch.
Play No. 4: RB Danny Woodhead 19-yard run
This 19-yard Woodhead gain was probably the biggest play of the drive. This run put San Diego into prime field goal position for their eventual game-winning field goal. Here is how the run happened.
With three receivers out wide and pass expected, this play fooled the Browns defense completely. This shot shows how much. The Browns were defending the edges, but with only one linebacker in the center of the field, the middle was vulnerable. Woodhead runs directly up the middle of the line and as you can see from this shot, the Chargers block the Browns perfectly. Woodhead has a big hole to run through with no contact being made until he’s already deep in the secondary. Not one Cleveland defender could make a play and get off their block. It was a huge play for the Chargers that helped them earn their eventual victory.
Highlight of the Game
Running back Duke Johnson was the highlight of last week’s game. In his most productive day as a professional so far, Johnson rushed for 31 yards and caught nine passes for 85 yards and a touchdown. He led the team in receiving, showing his playmaking versatility that he can give to the team. Quarterback Josh McCown targeted him frequently on Sunday. When he had the ball in his hands, he made multiple defenders miss with his agility and underrated strength. With more touches, Johnson could become a true playmaker on the offense, both in the run and pass game.
Lowlight of the Game
The Browns pass rush was the lowlight of last week’s game. The Browns did have two sacks on the day, but they should have put a lot more pressure on Philip Rivers because the Chargers were without three of their starting offensive linemen. The Browns had early success, but the pass rush seemed to taper off as the game went on. One of the more struggling pass rushers on the Browns is Paul Kruger, who had a good year last season rushing the passer. Kruger must step up and become the threat as a pass rusher he was last season.
8 Comments
Well, that’s nice, the officials let them get away with an illegal pick, then we get flagged for a questionable offside on the FG. Pretty much par for the course in the NFL
Thanks for the write up, this defense in it’s current version is awful.On to Baltimore (for more of the same)!
yes. The largest problem is that its not just a scheme problem, or a personnel problem, its both. We could have put 80% worth of the salaries and draft picks towards offensive players, and gone with a defense full of late round picks, street free agents and treating other teams’ practice squads like a vulture treats carrion, and probably had a similarly capable defense. Except we’d have an offense that might be able to keep pace.
Seriously, a defense with Craig, Joe, Richard, TD, Andrew, MGB, RGB, GO, Harv, Shamrock, and myself could be 32nd in the league. I guarantee it.
hi Joe … good stuff. from watching all the games , the run defense looks bad mostly because of the LB play … watching the woodhead run , they are pushed back into the secondary & cannot shake the blocker. not to mention , poor tackling … i truly believe they don’t work on tackling enough at this level , like they think everyone should already know how.
and on the pass defense : i do like watching our CB’s lining-up directly in front of the WR’s & playing aggressive bump & run , instead of backing-up & giving them a 5-10 yard cushion , but to me it’s seems like we play WAY TOO MUCH man-to-man coverage … this is why ladarius green is so wide open & there is no one in that zone . this was a great play call by the chargers going on the premise we would be in man-to-man coverage. they need to mix-it-up more & play more zone & give the offense some different looks. to me , jim o’neill has got to get it going & mix-it-up.
… and be more aggressive & blitz more. even on 1st down & on running situations. maybe this will help stop the run a bit.
As Coach Marty said when he replaced Coach Sam, football is a simple game. You have to beat the guy across from you. After 4 games it’s a little shocking that, with all the resources devoted to both lines, the Browns are getting dominated at the point of attack. Take away the first half of the Tennessee game and it’s happening pretty consistently.
Something feels wrong, and not just the schemes. Or that a 3-4 defense frees LBs to make plays and our LBs don’t appear fast enough, strong enough or smart enough to make them. It’s that so many positions don’t demonstrate knowledge of nuances. Defensive guys in the wrong place with their backs turned, receivers who don’t make themselves available when a play breaks down, RBs who don’t/can’t read holes. Almost none of the multiple high draft picks of the last few years making significant contributions. The drafting has been bad but few are improving as should be expected. Aside from Benjamin, where is everybody? Like Kruger, Hawkins, Gabriel, Haden, Dansby … If these coaches are in fact competent they’re certainly not getting any traction with the players. Not sure what it is but right now this doesn’t feel like a team, one with any identity imparted by anyone, whether coaches or supposed veteran leaders. There’s just talk. Something feels wrong.
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