NFL Power Rankings: Cleveland Browns tumbling down

Oct 25, 2015; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Rams running back Todd Gurley (30) scores his second touchdown against the Cleveland Browns during the second half at the Edward Jones Dome. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

The Cleveland Browns hit the low point of the 2015 NFL season on Sunday in their loss to the St. Louis Rams.

Penalties, turnovers, ineffectiveness in the red zone, inability to stop the run, add it all up and it is easy to see why the Browns came out on the wrong end of the 24-6 score.

It was just one game, though, according to quarterback Josh McCown, who’s not ready to abandon ship on the season.

“Took a step backwards as a team? No. I think anytime you lose a game, it’s not a step in the right direction, that’s for sure,” McCown said. “I don’t think we took a step backwards, though. I just think we lost that game. We didn’t play well. We’re capable of better so it’ll be how we bounce back, that’s what will matter the most.

“You just have to focus on your preparation and really bare down in that aspect throughout the work week. Then when we go into these games, have to take that preparation to the field and transfer it over. Take care of your job, do your job the best you can and stack up good plays. That’s what we have to do and not have negative things that were happening the other day.”

McCown may be confident that the Browns will bounce back, but that belief is not shared by the various weekly power rankings, which saw the Orange and Brown take a tumble in all but one.

Elliott Harrison at NFL.com (23, down 3):

"After down-to-the-wire contests against the Raiders, Chargers, Ravens and Broncos, Cleveland laid a brown … egg? … on the turf in St. Louis. Penalties, stalled drives and Todd Gurley destroyed the Browns in the 24-6 loss. The four fumbles weren’t too helpful, either. This game pretty much sucked for the Brownies. (Cincinnati No. 3, Pittsburgh No. 8, Baltimore No. 29)"

Frank Schwab at Yahoo Sports (22, down 1):

"I’d like to see rookie Duke Johnson get a real chance to shine. He has as many rushing attempts as Robert Turbin the past two weeks. What’s the harm in seeing what he can do with more opportunity? (Cincinnati No. 3, Pittsburgh No. 6, Baltimore No. 29)."

Sean Tomlinson at Bleacher Report (23, down 3):

"Spotting the Cleveland Browns’ rushing offense requires some intense squinting."

"Browns running backs totaled 56 yards on 17 carries during a loss to the St. Louis Rams. The math on that isn’t pretty: They averaged 3.3 yards per attempt, and now overall this season Cleveland is plodding along at 3.6 YPC (tied for 27th)."

"The complete absence of a rushing attack is putting games Browns quarterback Josh McCown’s hands. That’s a dangerous place for any outcome. (Cincinnati No. 2, Pittsburgh No. 13, Baltimore No. 26)"

More from Dawg Pound Daily

FanSided (23, down 8):

"The Cleveland Browns problem right now is consistency. One week they take the undefeated Denver Broncos into overtime, and quite frankly, should’ve won that game. Then the next week rookie running back Todd Gurley is running all over them en route to a blowout win by the St. Louis Rams. Josh McCown hurt himself and ran into a wall in a rather bizarre play though he wasn’t really playing poorly. Johnny Manziel made an appearance under center as well but didn’t do a lot of damage on the field. The biggest problem for the Browns was turnovers, they fumbled the ball four times. (Cincinnati No. 3, Pittsburgh No. 11, Baltimore No. 28)"

Pete Prisco at CBS Sports (27, down 1):

"It looks like it’s Johnny Manziel time in Cleveland. That’s a good thing for evaluation purposes. (Cincinnati No. 2, Pittsburgh No. 17, Baltimore No. 32)"

ESPN (24, up 3):

"Seven touchdowns on 20 red zone trips for the Browns this season. Only the Seahawks have produced a lower touchdown percentage in the red zone. (Cincinnati No. 3, Pittsburgh No. 10, Baltimore No. 26)"

Next: Browns vs. Rams: Film room session

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