Nov 5, 2015; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Cleveland Browns cornerback Justin Gilbert (21) is tackled by Cincinnati Bengals running back Cedric Peerman (30) in the first half at Paul Brown Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports
Josh McCown, Johnny Manziel. Bad defense. Dysfunction. Bad uniforms. Losing.
It has been a non-stop party through the first nine weeks of the 2015 NFL season for the Cleveland Browns.
The Browns head to Pittsburgh this Sunday losers of four in a row, six of their past seven and 12 of their past 14 games, dating back to last season.
It all has head coach Mike Pettine looking for answers to far too many questions.
“I think when you look back – I don’t like to get into the blame game of why we are where we are – you look at the expectations from some of our position groups from the beginning of the year, some guys are playing well, and in other areas, we are not playing good enough and we are not coaching good enough,” Pettine said on Monday. “What we are not going to do is wholesale changes and hit the panic button. We believe in what we are doing. We believe in the system that we run. Some things certainly have to be done better, but at the same time, we are not panicking in that we need to make radical changes.
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“I know some things didn’t go our way, but there are a bunch of games you could point to how close we were. That is the NFL. It is a bottom-line league as I have said all along. We are still confident in what we do. We just have to get the results on the field. That is the tough part of it. When things aren’t going well, I told the team today, there are three potential things: you can let it define you, you can let it tear you apart or you can use it to get stronger, and that is the route we are going to choose.
“At times like this, that is when you find out who we are. I have talked about adversity before. You find out who we are and who is mentally tough, who is physically tough, who can push through and those are the guys you want with you moving forward.”
The Browns continuing struggles are reflected in the latest power rankings as the club keeps on sliding down.
Elliott Harrison at NFL.com (26, down 2):
"Another loss, another frustrating week for Browns fans. While Johnny Manziel showed signs of development in the first half last Thursday night, the second-half regression exemplified typical Brownies football. (Coming at you again since 1999!) Cleveland went three-and-out on its first fourdrives after the break. It wasn’t all Manziel’s fault, as two balls went off guys’ helmets (how does that happen? prime-time glare?) and another off a knee (how does a guy let a ball carom off his knee before getting his hands on it?). So I guess what we’re saying is that the Browns at least find entertaining ways to drop footballs. (Cincinnati No. 2, Pittsburgh No. 9, Baltimore No. 27)"
Frank Schwab at Yahoo Sports (28, down 2):
"The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer ran a poll, after Bernie Kosar said he wanted to take control of the Browns, asking what role Kosar should have, if any. As of Monday evening, about 73 percent were in favor of Kosar being the general manager or president of football operations. Desperation is thick in Cleveland. (Cincinnati No. 2, Pittsburgh No. 8, Baltimore No. 24)"
Sean Tomlinson at Bleacher Report (25, down 1):
"Cleveland Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel still showed the flaws we all know well by now Thursday night during a loss to the Cincinnati Bengals when he replaced an injured Josh McCown. He still missed open reads, and he still couldn’t fight the instinct to flee from the pocket at the slightest hint of pressure."
"But Manziel also made strides and had one of his best games as a professional quarterback. He leaned on his athleticism to make throws on the run and rifled several of them through tight windows. A second-quarter touchdown drive when former first-round pick completed four of his five pass attempts for 70 yards highlighted his night."
"He did more than enough to earn extended time as the starter. That is why head coach Mike Pettine’s hesitancy to keep moving forward with the Manziel experiment is a little baffling."
"Pettine wouldn’t name Manziel the Week 10 starter during his Friday press conference (via Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon-Journal). He has an out, of course, which is essentially stalling on a decision by saying McCown isn’t healthy enough to play yet."
"That might actually be true for Week 10. But McCown’s health shouldn’t matter, because a 2-7 team has nothing to gain from trotting out the 36-year-old journeyman again."
"Manziel might be the future at quarterback in Cleveland. Or he might be a flameout draft bust. But he took some baby steps Thursday, so a competent franchise would let him build on that during what’s otherwise become another lost season. (Cincinnati No. 2, Pittsburgh No. 11, Baltimore No. 20)"
"Cleveland is just a mess. Josh McCown is having a good season but now is banged up. Johnny Manziel looks like a massive project at best, and a total failure at the quarterback position at worst. The Browns are 2-7 and will once again finish with the worst record in the AFC North. At what point does Cleveland begin to draft well and develop its own players? The Browns have taken a bunch of bums with their first-round picks in recent years, including Manziel, Justin Gilbert, Trent Richardson and Brandon Weeden. Something needs to change on the banks of Lake Erie. (Cincinnati No. 2, Pittsburgh No. 12, Baltimore No. 26)"
Pete Prisco at CBS Sports (30, down 1):
"Just play Johnny Manziel. The season is over, so why not find out what he can do? (Cincinnati No. 2, Pittsburgh No. 14, Baltimore No. 26)"
"The Browns are 0-6 against teams currently at or above .500 this season. They travel to Pittsburgh, a place where they haven’t won since 2003, to take on the 5-4 Steelers on Sunday. (Cincinnati No. 2, Pittsburgh No. 9, Baltimore No. 24)"