Cleveland Browns vs New York Jets: Shame, Disappointment & Misery
By Backwoods
Dec 22, 2013; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New York Jets wide receiver David Nelson (86) breaks a tackle by Cleveland Browns cornerback Jordan Poyer (33) during the second half at MetLife Stadium. The Jets defeated the Browns 24-13. Mandatory Credit: Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports
Many of you know me for my optimism, but today I struggle to find any. Instead, I find only shame, disappointment and misery. I do see a bright future for our Cleveland Browns, but if there was something positive to take away from this game, I don’t know what it could be. Perhaps the utterly dismal play of Jason Campbell will show those faithful to him why we should move on, but this game was much worse than the struggles of any single player.
I have continually talked about the “fight” that our Browns have shown. Today, the only fight I saw was on the opposite side of the ball. We were outplayed. We were outfought. We lost, and we deserved to.
A common question today: What is wrong with the Cleveland Browns?
My answer: What isn’t? I have had shoulder dislocations that were more enjoyable than this game.
I contribute this loss to a multitude of factors: dropped passes, missed tackles, third-down defense, third-down offense, Jason Campbell and the Jets running it down our throat.
In a comment following my last article, I defended the third-down defense of the Browns. I certainly cannot do the same today. I have complimented the fight, the fire, and the heart of our defense. Today, I make no such claim. We have much work to do.
To many, the loss is a blessing in disguise as it does not worsen our draft positioning, but for me, it is a shameful day to be a fan. I cannot lift my head with the pride of a hard-fought battle. I cannot defend any aspect of their play, with the exception of Edwin Baker and Josh Cooper.
Our defense was beat down, beat up, and beat up and down the field. Nagging injuries and lack of depth certainly did not help, but they were simply beaten and beaten badly.
Our offense was hindered without Jordan Cameron, but once again I watched and waited for Jason Campbell to look for anything down the field. Even with a flea-flicker and a wide open Josh Gordon with nothing but green in front of him, Campbell opted to give up on the play and took a sack instead. Not to mention the interceptions, overthrown balls and widely missed passes. At least with the shunned Brandon Weeden at the helm, we could look forward to record setting performances by Gordon and some downfield attack, in between the flips, bad decisions and turnovers, of course.
As I stated in a previous article, the two games in which Gordon recorded his record-breaking 498 receiving yards, Jason Campbell threw for 124 total yards. Brandon Weeden on the other hand, threw for 579 total yards in those two games, one of which he only played a quarter and a half, plus a few seconds. Perhaps we have shunned the wrong quarterback.
This week’s Dawg Poo: The whole stinking game!