Video: All of this year’s Cleveland Browns misery set to Adele’s “Hello”
December 4, 2015Columbus Crew SC: Ohio’s Best Futbol Team
December 4, 2015“He’s gone.” That’s what I told my fiancée in the waning seconds of Monday night’s soul-crushing 33-27 loss to Baltimore. The second I saw Travis Coons’ blocked kick rest in Raven defender Will Hill’s hands, I felt certain he would score. Call it premonition, call it cynicism, but I knew there was only one way that play was going to end. Still, the show must go on and even in a season as disastrous as the 2015 one has been for the Cleveland Browns (2-9), there is always the chance to make a statement. You know what they say: “Any Given Sund–“
Wait, we’re playing the Cincinnati Bengals (9-2) again? Geez, these guys can’t catch a break.
The Browns and Bengals clashed in Cincinnati during Week 9. With Josh McCown unable to perform such perfunctory tasks as breathing or sleeping, head coach Mike Pettine turned to second-year quarterback/possible Public Service Announcement-in-disguise Johnny Manziel. The former Aggie managed a touchdown toss to Duke Johnson Jr. but overall failed to sparkle under the national TV lights. Manziel finished 15-of-33 for 168 yards and a score. He also ran for 31 yards on four carries. His counterpart, Andy Dalton, looked every bit the quarterback of an unbeaten Bengal unit. Dalton threw three touchdown passes and easily led his home club to an intra-state victory. In the second half, Cleveland not only failed to score but also accrued a scant 27 total yards. Cincinnati cruised to a comfortable 31-10 win.
Since beating the Browns earlier this season the Bengals have come down to earth a bit, losing to Houston and Arizona before beating St. Louis last week. Cincinnati leads second-place Pittsburgh in the AFC North by three games, with a chance to clinch a playoff berth Sunday. The Bengal defense ranks first in points allowed per game (17.5) and 15th in yards allowed. The offense ranks fourth in points scored as well as seventh in yards per game. Andy Dalton continues his career year with 2,971 yards on 238-of-362 passing (65.7 percent) with 23 touchdowns and six picks. The running back of duo of Jeremy Hill (490 yards, 7 TDs) and Giovani Bernard (581 yards, 2 TDs) are no doubt licking their chops facing the Browns porous run defense.
File this under “W” for “Worth a shot:” Terrelle Pryor is back in town. On Wednesday, the Browns announced they signed the former Ohio State quarterback to the active roster. Pryor made headlines during training camp when he showed up ready to play wide receiver. General manager Ray Farmer added Pryor to the 53-man roster after the last preseason game, but proceeded to cut him a few days later. Pryor failed to catch on with another team during the season, so when Cleveland placed QB Josh McCown on the injured reserve Pryor was able to fill in the opening. Despite the potential playmaking ability Pryor offers, Pettine does not expect TP to make an impact on Sunday. “I would say it’s probably a little early to have any type of significant work load, if any, for him.” On top of reacquainting himself with the playbook as a receiver, Pryor doubles as a third-string quarterback/insurance policy.
As far as the starting quarterback goes, Austin Davis will take the reins under center for Cleveland. (Don’t worry, someone already updated The Jersey.) The decision also means that for the third consecutive year, the Browns will see three different men start a game at quarterback (seven different players over that stretch). Offensive coordinator John DeFilippo believes Davis is up for the task. “I just think that the circumstances provided themselves that we thought Austin earned this. We are excited he is going to be playing for us this week.”
Davis played well in relief on Monday, going 7-of-10 passing for 77 yards and a gorgeous touchdown pass to Travis Benjamin. On the other hand, Davis failed to manage the clock during his final drive, and on a long scramble chose poorly by giving himself up in bounds instead of running out of bounds and gaining a few more precious yards. The small sample size makes it difficult to extrapolate too much from his outing, and it will be interesting to see how he does with a week of practice to prepare for Cincinnati.
Sunday marks the 85th meeting in the Battle of Ohio; Cincinnati leads the overall series 45-39. While several other NFL teams play against in-state rivals, Ohio’s differ in the clubs’ shared patriarch: Paul Brown. Brown arrived in Cleveland in 1946 to coach the Browns in the inaugural AAFC season. He steered the club to four straight league titles before the Browns jumped to the NFL in 1950. Years of success followed, but when the club began to struggle, owner Art Modell fired him in 1963. Five years later, Brown pioneered the founding of the AFL’s Cincinnati Bengals. Hired as the coach and general manager, he led the team until 1975. Here is a breakdown of Browns-Bengals’ records by decade
• 1970s: Series tied 10-10
• 1980s: Bengals 10-9
• 1990s: Browns 8-6
• 2000s: Bengals 12-8
• 2010s: Bengals 6-4
Coming off a short week and a devastating loss, the Browns no doubt have some aggression they want to work out. Five games remain on the season, which puts fans in a difficult situation. In the long term, the Browns’ best bet is to lose as many games as possible which directly results in a higher draft pick. However, wins represent a precious commodity in Cleveland and the natural fan instinct is to want a win. Especially with such a long-standing rival as the Bengals in town, Browns fans may let desire pull out and get invested in the chance for a home victory. The Brown and Orange should play with one goal in mind on Sunday: Make Paul Brown proud.
1 Comment
Oh how I hate that Jersey.