And it's not just the AFC North that we have to contend with. I'm not sure how the heck we beat Miami, because I'm telling you, we wouldn't beat them today. And we're certainly nowhere close to the same orbit as the 49ers, Patriots, Saints, and Packers. Hell, even the Giants gave the Packers a great game today. You think we could do that with the horse crap product the Browns are putting on the field right now?
Yeah, I don't think so either.
The score today was a whole lot closer than the game actually was. Honestly, I can't think of any better word to use to describe their effort today than "pathetic." And no one can escape this—the offense, defense, special teams or the coaching. There was no positive unit today, and that makes this a complete team loss.
I don't often think like that when going over a game, but think about it. The Browns were down just 10-0 at the half. They came out, traded punts with the Ravens, before taking the ball down the field and scoring a field goal on a drive highlighted by a 52 yard pass from Colt McCoy to Peyton Hillis. It was a wheel route, and I guess the Ravens just forgot he was there. And after that, the Browns pretty much got nothing, but they cut into the lead 10-3, and suddenly it felt like a whole new ballgame.
But then the defense came out and showed their pathetic side by giving up a 67 yard run to Ray Rice on the first play after the kickoff. Are you kidding me?!
I don't have to tell you how after that, the wind was just completely knocked out of the Browns' sails.
And so begins our talk of the myriad of problems the Browns had today, the most glaring of which was the Browns (lack of) run defense. They gave up 295 yards on the ground today—204 of them to Ray Rice on 29 carries. Yikes.
Colt McCoy looked really bad today, going 17/35 on his throws for just 192 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Peyton Hillis didn't look too great either, gaining just 45 yards on 12 carries—but he only carried the ball twice in the second half. Yes, a healthy Hillis only carried the ball two times in the second half, when we came into the third quarter down by just 10 points.
And that bring me to my newest favorite whipping boy—head coach Pat Shurmur. What the hell was he doing today? Let me be clear, hell yes I still want this guy fired, because he's completely incompetent!
What have we been saying since week one? The offense lacks creativity. You know how many times Josh Cribbs got the ball in his hands today? A big fat zero! He's a playmaker! You have to put the ball in his hands somehow, someway. Put him at running back and throw it to him in the flat. Screen pass. Reverse. Something!
Now I know Colt didn't execute well, but the fact is that it looks like there are too many three step drop and throws that result in just five yard plays. I found this little gem out today—last year Pat Shurmur's offense in St. Louis averaged 5.9 yards per passing play. This year, it's the same number in Cleveland.
Can you guess what the Packers and Saints average?
Aaron Rodgers gets a whopping 9.6 yards per play, and Drew Brees (who I think might be playing even better than Rodgers) averages 8.02. Those guys are playing a completely different sport than McCoy and the Browns offense, and it's not going to get any better until the coaches figure out how to maximize the talent we have.
Look, the bottom line is it was bad today and we've got the Steelers on Thursday (grrrrrrreat...). This team is just nowhere near good enough to compete with the big boys and they proved it today. But none of that is an excuse to just go out and lay down like they did today.
There's absolutely no excuse for that, and to me, it makes this year's version of the Browns a complete embarrassment to the history, colors and fans of this franchise.
I'll see you Thursday...
~MAS
