How else can you describe what happened at Cleveland Browns Stadium today? The Browns have lost three in a row, and allowed the Baltimore Ravens to clinch a playoff birth with their 20-10 loss today.
I think to say it was ugly would be an understatement. The Browns managed just 280 yards of offense today, and had 4 turnovers - 3 interceptions and a fumble. Colt McCoy had his worst day as a pro, going 15/29 for 149 yards and those three interceptions, earning him a 27.0 QB rating. Yikes. The running game was no better, as Peyton Hillis was game planned against, and only managed 12 carries for 35 yards. I think he was hurt, as Mike Bell was in for a lot of the game, and had 7 carries for 27 yards along with 2 receptions for 48 yards. Also on the receiving end, Chansi Stuckey had 4 catches for 39 yards, many of which coming on a drive that ended in an Ed Reed interception in the 4th quarter.
What's amazing about this game is that the Ravens somehow had less total yards than the Browns with only 258. That's because the Ravens focused on the running game today on the cold shore of Lake Erie and the Browns didn't force Joe Flacco to beat them. In total, the Ravens had 161 yards on the ground, a glaring number that highlights why the Browns sometimes have a tough time getting off fo the field. The ground attack was led by Ray Rice, who had 92 yards on 25 carries. It's nice to note that the Browns didn't allow an individual 100 yard rusher, but I guess that doesn't matter when you allow 161 total, does it?
In the air, Flacco was an efficient 12/19 for 102 yards with 2 touchdowns and an interception by Joe Haden, his 6th of the season. No wide receiver had more than 50 yards for the Ravens, with Derrick Mason leading the charge with 4 catches for 50, and Anquan Boldin was held to 2 catches for only 15 yards. Clearly the strength of the Browns team is their passing defense, which has been brought on with the emergence of both Joe Haden and T.J. Ward. It's been nice to see them progress and become great players this season.
So what does all this mean? Well, first off the Browns are 5-10, and have lost double digit games for the 3rd consecutive season, and 7th time in the last 8 years. Yikes. It also doesn't make the case for keeping Eric Mangini any stronger, as the Browns have now lost three in a row. I still think the turning point of the season was when the Browns lost to the Jets in week 10 - to me they just haven't looked the same.
This game was also really poor for Colt McCoy, who didn't make his case stronger to be the Browns quarterback for the long term by not playing well in the cold weather. It's the first time he has looked like a rookie all season, but I really expect him to bounce back and have a better game next week against Pittsburgh.
Try to enjoy the rest of your day and the rest of the Holidays, Browns fans. I'll be back with you next week for the final game of the season as the Steelers come to town.
~MAS
Showing posts with label Joe Flacco. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Joe Flacco. Show all posts
Sunday, December 26, 2010
Start Me Up - Ravens vs. Browns
I've got a new, sleek, awesomely-wonderful-in-every-way MacBook Pro and this is the first blog coming to you from this fine piece of machinery as the 10-4 Baltimore Ravens come into snowy Cleveland to take on the 5-9 Browns. A lot has been said about the Browns losing two consecutive games to 2-win teams (surprisingly, little by me) and head coach Eric Mangini's chances of keeping his job, but for now the Browns have still got the Mangenius so we'll have to see what they can get done today.
If you go back to the game these two teams played way back week 3 of the season in September, the Browns put up a valiant fight in the loss. They had the lead in the fourth quarter before blowing it when Anquan Boldin caught a 27 yard pass to cap off a touchdown drive, and then Billy Cundiff added a field goal to seal the deal. That game, Seneca Wallace was 18/24 for 141 yards passing and a touchdown, but Peyton Hillis was huge with 144 yards on 22 carries. We've already heard Ray Lewis come out this week to say that's not going to happen again, and I believe him. People just don't run on the Ravens like that two times in one season.
The key to this game on the offensive side will be if we can establish and then maintain balance with the run and pass. Now, I'm pretty sure you could say that with just about every game you come across, because who doesn't want balance in their offensive game plan? But I think it's especially important this week as they are clearly going to be keeping bodies in the box to stop Hillis and at the same time will undoubtedly blitz the heck out of Colt McCoy in clear passing situations. It's going to come down to if the Browns can get enough yards on first and second down to make "Third-and-Manageable" situations, so third-and-three, or third-and-four. If there's ever a third-and-long, look out for the blitzkrieg.
Defensively, the Browns are going to have a tough time dealing with both Ray Rice and Joe Flacco. Both have had solid seasons, with Rice rushing for 1,051 yards and 4 touchdowns, and Flacco throwing for 3,395 and 23 touchdowns, good for a 94.8 rating that's 7th in the NFL (6th if you don't count Tony Romo). Although Rice is widely regarded as one of the best in the league, it's really not because he goes over 100 yards rushing each week - it's the receptions. He has 62 of them for 556 yards and a touchdown so far this season. Last week, the Ravens beat the New Orleans Saints behind Rice's best game of the season as he had 153 yards on 31 carries, 80 yards on 5 receptions, a rushing touchdown and a receiving touchdown. You add in wide receivers Anquan Boldin and Derrick Mason, who have 813 yards and 718 yards, respectively, and you can see why defensive coordinator Rob Ryan has certainly had his hands full.
The Browns did a nice job defensively during the first three quarters of the Baltimore game earlier this season, and I think a big part of the breakdown was Flacco challenging Eric Wright who just was not up to it. That was before the emergence of Joe Haden, and Wright has since been placed on the Injured Reserve list, so I doubt we'll see Bolden catch 8 passes for 142 yards and 3 TDs again. It would have been really nice to have Scott Fujita back this week for run support, but he has also been placed on that IR, which meas everyone else has to be on their A-game for run support. The Browns cannot afford to let Rice run all over them like they did with Cedric Benson and Bernard Scott last week.
Do I think the Browns can pull out a win today? Well, I certainly hope so. But based on the way this team has played since they lost to the Jets back in week 10, I just don't really see it happening. As an optimist, I hope they do. I hope they can get the win to maybe help Mangini keep his job. Rob Ryan gave the head coach a shining endorsement earlier this week, and said that it would be dumb to blow up everything now. I think he's right about that. But will I predict the Browns to win today?
Nah...The Ravens could be a championship-caliber team, and they're not going to let the Browns play the role of "Spoiler" today.
The Prediction: BAL 30 - CLE 20
See you at the half,
~MAS
If you go back to the game these two teams played way back week 3 of the season in September, the Browns put up a valiant fight in the loss. They had the lead in the fourth quarter before blowing it when Anquan Boldin caught a 27 yard pass to cap off a touchdown drive, and then Billy Cundiff added a field goal to seal the deal. That game, Seneca Wallace was 18/24 for 141 yards passing and a touchdown, but Peyton Hillis was huge with 144 yards on 22 carries. We've already heard Ray Lewis come out this week to say that's not going to happen again, and I believe him. People just don't run on the Ravens like that two times in one season.
The key to this game on the offensive side will be if we can establish and then maintain balance with the run and pass. Now, I'm pretty sure you could say that with just about every game you come across, because who doesn't want balance in their offensive game plan? But I think it's especially important this week as they are clearly going to be keeping bodies in the box to stop Hillis and at the same time will undoubtedly blitz the heck out of Colt McCoy in clear passing situations. It's going to come down to if the Browns can get enough yards on first and second down to make "Third-and-Manageable" situations, so third-and-three, or third-and-four. If there's ever a third-and-long, look out for the blitzkrieg.
Defensively, the Browns are going to have a tough time dealing with both Ray Rice and Joe Flacco. Both have had solid seasons, with Rice rushing for 1,051 yards and 4 touchdowns, and Flacco throwing for 3,395 and 23 touchdowns, good for a 94.8 rating that's 7th in the NFL (6th if you don't count Tony Romo). Although Rice is widely regarded as one of the best in the league, it's really not because he goes over 100 yards rushing each week - it's the receptions. He has 62 of them for 556 yards and a touchdown so far this season. Last week, the Ravens beat the New Orleans Saints behind Rice's best game of the season as he had 153 yards on 31 carries, 80 yards on 5 receptions, a rushing touchdown and a receiving touchdown. You add in wide receivers Anquan Boldin and Derrick Mason, who have 813 yards and 718 yards, respectively, and you can see why defensive coordinator Rob Ryan has certainly had his hands full.
The Browns did a nice job defensively during the first three quarters of the Baltimore game earlier this season, and I think a big part of the breakdown was Flacco challenging Eric Wright who just was not up to it. That was before the emergence of Joe Haden, and Wright has since been placed on the Injured Reserve list, so I doubt we'll see Bolden catch 8 passes for 142 yards and 3 TDs again. It would have been really nice to have Scott Fujita back this week for run support, but he has also been placed on that IR, which meas everyone else has to be on their A-game for run support. The Browns cannot afford to let Rice run all over them like they did with Cedric Benson and Bernard Scott last week.
Do I think the Browns can pull out a win today? Well, I certainly hope so. But based on the way this team has played since they lost to the Jets back in week 10, I just don't really see it happening. As an optimist, I hope they do. I hope they can get the win to maybe help Mangini keep his job. Rob Ryan gave the head coach a shining endorsement earlier this week, and said that it would be dumb to blow up everything now. I think he's right about that. But will I predict the Browns to win today?
Nah...The Ravens could be a championship-caliber team, and they're not going to let the Browns play the role of "Spoiler" today.
The Prediction: BAL 30 - CLE 20
See you at the half,
~MAS
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