Dec 7, 2014; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Browns inside linebacker Craig Robertson (53) celebrates with inside linebacker Chris Kirksey (58) after recovering a fumble for a touchdown against the Indianapolis Colts during the first quarter at FirstEnergy Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ron Schwane-USA TODAY Sports
The numbers are a bit staggering when you take a look at them.
Heading into the 2015 NFL season, the Cleveland Browns have had:
- Only two winning seasons since returning to the NFL in 1999 – and none since 2007.
- No more than three wins in the AFC North Division since the NFL went to the current division alignment in 2002.
- Only two playoff appearances since 1989 and no playoff wins since 1994.
- Double-digit losses in a season six times in the past seven years, and 10 times in the past 12 seasons.
- More players suspended by the NFL since 1999 than playoff wins.
But that is all old news and we’re trying hard to get past the history and look to the future as it relates to the Browns.
Every time there has been a regime change in the halls of Berea, we’ve always tried to remind Browns fans that you can’t hold the news guys responsible for what preceded them, but you can hold them accountable for fixing those problems.
Heading into their second season working together, general manager Ray Farmer and head coach Mike Pettine have kept busy in trying to turn things around. Through two drafts and a pair of free agency periods, Farmer and Pettine have tried to pain over the sins of the past.
The margins have been filled in and the bigger picture is starting to take shape as to what the Browns will be on the field come Sundays in the fall.
Have they done enough – or had enough time – to transform the Browns into a competitive team on a weekly basis? We will all know soon enough, but they appear to be moving in the right direction.
To that end, here are five things the Browns simply must do this fall if they want to build on last season’s 7-9 finish and find success.
Next: Protect the Quarterback
Dec 21, 2014; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Josh McCown (12) reacts as he is sacked by Green Bay Packers outside linebacker Clay Matthews (52) in the second quarter at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Manning-USA TODAY Sports
Josh McCown will enter the 2015 NFL season as the fourth-oldest starting quarterback in the NFL, trailing a few guys you may have heard of – Peyton Manning, Tom Brady and Drew Brees.
The rest of the top 10 includes Carson Palmer (if his knee is healthy), Tony Romo, Eli Manning, Philip Rivers and Ben Roethlisberger.
The comparison ends at age, though, as that group of quarterbacks have, on average, started 175 games in their career, while McCown has only made 49 starts.
“We just look back to when (Josh) was in Chicago, when he had a pretty good supporting cast around him, and he was able to be more than functional.” – Head Coach Mike Pettine
The Browns are hoping that McCown can increase that number by 33 percent this fall after making 16 starts, and for that to happen the offensive line needs to keep McCown clean.
While McCown was certainly part of the problem last season in Tampa Bay, when a team goes 2-14 like the Buccaneers did it is clear that the quarterback is not the lone issue.
Related: Browns 2015 Position Preview – Offensive Line
McCown was sacked a career-high 36 times in just 11 games with Tampa, explaining, at least in part, why he completed just 56 percent of his passes and threw 14 interceptions. Compare that to 2013, when McCown took just 11 sacks in eight games (five starts) while with the Bears. That same year, McCown threw for 1,829 yards, 13 touchdowns and just one interception.
Given the time to throw McCown, like any quarterback, will perform much better, which is good news for the Browns as Cleveland clearly has a better offensive line than Tampa’s, with Pro Football Focus ranked Tampa’s offensive line as the 25th-worst in the NFL last season.
Keeping McCown upright and avoiding long-yardage situations on second and third down will allow the Browns to utilize Terrance West, Isaiah Crowell and Duke Johnson in the ground and pound offense.
“I don’t think he’s ever been at a place where we feel as confident taking some of the pressure off him during a game in terms of running the football,” offensive coordinator John DeFilippo told the team’s website. “I don’t want to speak for Josh, you can ask him that, but that’s the striking, glaring thing that’s going to be there for Josh.”
Making McCown be just a piece of the offense, rather than the focus, can only mean good things for the Browns.
Next: Win in the AFC North
Sep 7, 2014; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (7) is sacked by Cleveland Browns linebacker Chris Kirksey (58) and defensive lineman Armonty Bryant (95) during the second half at Heinz Field. Pittsburgh won the game, 30-27. Mandatory Credit: Jason Bridge-USA TODAY Sports
If the Browns ever hope to have a chance to stop being the division’s little sibling, they need to start winning consistently within the AFC North Division.
Since returning in 1999, the Browns are 27-69 against Pittsburgh, Baltimore and Cincinnati, and have never won more than three games in a single season against those teams.
The picture becomes even bleaker when you consider that the Browns have not won in Baltimore since 2007 nor in Pittsburgh since 2003. And with the Browns playing the ninth-hardest schedule this fall (for what this worth), if they once again go 2-4 or 3-3 in the division, it puts even more emphasis on those non-division games.
“I think it’s the best division in football. Hopefully we’ll get out there and prove that.” – Head Coach Mike Pettine
The AFC North was the only division to send three teams to the playoffs last season, and the division’s cumulative record of 38-25-1 was an NFL best. The AFC North has sent more than one representative to the playoffs six times in the past seven seasons.
“You have to build your team around what you’re going to see on a weekly basis,” linebacker Paul Kruger told Monday Morning Quarterback late last season. “A lot of teams have taken the same approach in scouting. You have to have a game plan that allows you to defend consistently what teams in your division are doing.”
The Browns made the playoffs for five consecutive seasons in the late 1980s in part because they went 21-9 within the division from 1985 to 1989. Own the division and the path to the playoffs (or at least a winning season) gets a whole lot easier.
It looked like the Browns were on the right track last year as they rolled over Pittsburgh at home and Cincinnati on the road, but being swept by Baltimore and just splitting with the Steelers and Bengals derailed that progress.
“If you look at the teams, everybody’s looking to run the ball, everybody’s looking to play great defense, and again like I said, it’s very competitive just because we all know each other and a lot of the guys on the teams know each other,” head coach Mike Pettine told The Baltimore Sun. “I think it’s the best division in football.”
Next: Stop the Run
Dec 14, 2014; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cincinnati Bengals running back Giovani Bernard (25) runs versus the Cleveland Browns at FirstEnergy Stadium. The Bengals won 30-0. Mandatory Credit: Joe Maiorana-USA TODAY Sports
We’re going to put on the broken record here, because until the Browns consistently stop the run on defense, nothing is going to change.
Last season, the defense was last in the NFL in rushing yards allowed per game, 27th in yards per carry, and 28th in runs of 20-plus yards. Opposing teams ran the ball 500 times on the Browns last year, and on 87 of those rushes they gained eight yards or more.
The defense only held opposing offenses to fewer than 100 rushing yards four times all season, gave up more than 150 rushing yards six times, and more than 200 yards three times.
Related: Browns 2015 Position Preview – Defensive Line
“We want to be a bully on defense. To be a bully on defense, you have to stop the run. To win in the AFC North, you have to stop the run.” – Defensive coordinator Jim O’Neil
The struggles against the run was reflected in the standings. In the Browns’ nine losses they gave up an average of 163 rushing yards per game. But in their seven wins, that number was cut to 114 yards a game, which if the Browns could have maintained that for an entire season would have placed them 20th in the league and possibly led to some additional wins.
With seven of the team’s 10 highest paid players being on the defensive side of the ball, not being able to stop the run simply has to change.
“Stopping the run leads to a lot of things,” defensive coordinator Jim O’Neil told The Beacon Journal. “It leads to more turnovers [and] more sacks because you’re putting offenses in more predictable situations. It leads to less plays on the field, which leads to less injuries when you’re not out there as much. Then it also leads to more possessions for our offense, which means more points.”
Stop the run, get the ball back to the offense and good things may follow. It really could be that simple.
Which leads us to our next point.
Next: Win the Fourth Quarter
Dec 21, 2014; Charlotte, NC, USA; Carolina Panthers running back Jonathan Stewart (28) catches the ball to score a touchdown pass during the fourth quarter against the Cleveland Browns at Bank of America Stadium. The Panthers won 17-13. Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports
Things started to turn around slightly last season as the Browns were only outscored by 38 total points on the season.
That was the lowest total since 2007 and a major improvement compared to the previous six seasons, when the Browns were outscored by an average of 94 points.
Those baby steps were hampered, however, by some late-game breakdowns, as Cleveland lost to Indianapolis on a late 90-yard touchdown drive, to Pittsburgh on a Shaun Suisham field goal as time expired, and against Baltimore on a Justin Tuck field goal as time expired. In addition, they had a fourth-quarter lead against Carolina but couldn’t hold on.
Turn two of those games around (stopping the run in the final period would help) and suddenly the Browns are coming off a 9-7 season and feeling a little bit better about themselves.
It wasn’t all on the defense in those games, as the offense:
- punted five times and threw an interception in its seven second-half drives against the Colts;
- punted on its final two drives against the Steelers, gaining just 43 total yards;
- missed two field goals and punted twice in the fourth quarter against the Ravens;
- and threw and interception and punted on their final two possessions against the Panthers.
If the offense can do what it is built to do in the fourth quarter (ground and pound), and the defense consistently plays like the one that collectively is the highest-paid in the NFL, then the fourth quarter may become the property of the Browns.
Next: Stop the Nonsense
Oct 5, 2014; Nashville, TN, USA; Cleveland Browns head coach Mike Pettine pumps his fist as he leaves the field after his team defeated the Tennessee Titans 29-28 during the second half at LP Field. Mandatory Credit: Jim Brown-USA TODAY Sports
The Browns will be entering their seventeenth season this fall since returning to the NFL as an expansion team.
And it is beyond time to stop the nonsense and focus solely on those things that only matter on the field.
No more suspensions, no more inflatable swans, no more players being suspended for showing up late, no more texting anyone during games.
Related: Mike Pettine Growing More Comfortable in Cleveland
Just stop it already.
“I would rather be functional internally and appear dysfunctional on the outside because we’re going to do things the right way.” – Head Coach Mike Pettine
Much of this is the Browns doing, of course, but it is also perpetuated by a lazy media that uses the Browns as easy fodder for a quick column. Have nothing to write about? Then just type out something about the “dysfunctional” Browns and their mysterious rifts between the front office and coaches, or the coaches and players, or their meddlesome owner who only wants to “make headlines.”
For the most part the Browns have spent the past 18 months getting things in order.
After correcting his own mess by firing Joe Banner and Mike Lombardi, owner Jimmy Haslam has stayed out of Farmer and Pettine’s way. For everyone who wants to paint Haslam as a Jimmy Johnson or Daniel Snyder wanna-be, there is no reality to back it up.
It was stupid for Farmer to text during a game, but the bigger crime seems to be that he was caught doing it. Fences were mended and it is time for everyone to move on.
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The best thing the Browns have going for them right now is that Pettine is definitely the guy to put a stop to the nonsense.
“A variety of ways, tough love being one of them. It’s something that I’ve talked about it a number of times throughout the season. I think the staff can only go so far in getting players to do it the right way. I think our veteran leaders have stepped in and understood that we have some talented guys that need to be kind of herded in the right direction,” Pettine said at the close of the 2014 season.
“I think you have to understand what motivated each player and push those buttons to get them going. Like I said, I told the team today that the guys that do it the right way we’re thankful for, and the guys that aren’t that if they want to take it as a warning we’re going to encourage them and coach them hard to do it the right way. If we exhaust all opportunities, all options and can’t then they won’t be here.”
Winning solves many things, and if the Browns can find success in the five areas we’ve outlined here, they have a very real chance to build on last season’s 7-9 record.
What are your 5 keys to the Browns having success in 2015?