Daily Dawg Tags: Browns simply can’t buy a break

The Cleveland Browns never seem to get a favorable break or a lucky bounce of the ball. Such is life in the NFL when you are 1-27.

The Cleveland Browns dropped Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers.

That shouldn’t come as a surprise as the Browns have now lost all 12 games they have played this season, and 27 of the 28 games played under head coach Hue Jackson.

Go back a little further, to November of 2014, and the Browns have managed to win just four times in their last 49 games.

In a league where parity is supposedly the selling point, the Browns continue to defy the odds. And in a league where it is almost impossible to go through an entire 16-game season without a win, the Browns are just four losses away from pulling off the feat.

Outside of making a stupid comment about “Harvard lawyers” and “analytics,” it is baffling that the Browns could be this bad for so long. They have reached this point through a combination of poor drafting, most notably from “football guys” like Joe Banner, Mike Lombardi, Ray Farmer and Tom Heckert; historically poor game day management from Jackson; and a lack of viable play at the quarterback position.

They also continue to experience a run where the ball simply does not bounce their way, ever.

Thing back to the fourth quarter of Sunday’s game with the Browns facing a third-and-goal at the Chargers’ 15-yard line. Quarterback DeShone Kizer was stripped of the ball by Chargers defensive end Joey Bosa, the Chargers recovered the fumble and the ball game was over.

A great play by Bosa? Certainly. A lack of awareness from Kizer? Most definitely. But once the ball hit the ground was there any doubt that the Chargers, and not the Browns, would somehow recover the fumble? Or if the situation had been reversed that the Chargers would have retained possession and pulled out a win?

There seem to be moments like that every week where the Browns just can’t get the ball to bounce their way. That’s not to excuse everything else that goes wrong during the game as much of Cleveland’s woes are self-inflicted.

But you would think that over the course of these past 49 games, the ball would bounce Cleveland’s way once in a while.

Let’s move on to today’s edition of the Daily Dawg Tags.

Cleveland Browns news:

5 takeaways from the Browns loss to the Chargers

The Cleveland Browns fell to 0-12 on Sunday in what turned into a record-setting day for head coach Hue Jackson. Here are five takeaways from the game.

Browns fall to 0-12 on the season

The Cleveland Browns made too many mistakes in the 19-10 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, and are now 0-12 for the second straight season.

Browns grab two-game lead in race for top pick (ESPN)

"While the Browns moved closer to securing the top overall pick in next year’s draft on Sunday, the competition for the No. 2 pick is heating up. Though the 49ers still have the second-best average projected draft position, the gap between them and the next-closest team — the Giants — has tightened following San Francisco’s victory over the Bears on Sunday."

Refocused: Los Angeles Chargers 19, Cleveland Browns 10 (PFF)

"The Los Angeles Chargers are now tied for the best record in the division after their 19-10 victory over the Cleveland Browns in the StubHub Center. With that, we give you our PFF-exclusive takeaways from the contest for each team."

Another Sunday of almosts for the Browns (cleveland.com)

"It was another Sunday afternoon of almosts for the Browns in their loss Sunday to the Chargers. The defense almost got enough stops. The offense almost hit Josh Gordon on enough big plays. The Browns almost repeated their upset of the Chargers from a year ago."

NFL news:

By grounding the Eagles, Seahawks show they are contenders (Seattle Times)

"The Seahawks took the fact that they were home underdogs personally, and shoved around the team with the best record in the NFL en route to a 24-10 win."

It took one game for Jimmy Garoppolo to prove he was worth the hype (Mercury News)

"Were those the 49ers on the field in Chicago Sunday? The hapless, talent-depleted 49ers who started the season 0-9 and had a 1-10 record going into Sunday’s game against the Bears? No, while the team that played in Chicago might have been wearing the 49ers’ jerseys and helmets, but they didn’t look like the 49ers we’ve come to know over the last few years. This team looked poised. They looked competent. They even looked — get this — fun."

Titans hang on to defeat Texans in injury-plagued matchup (chron.com)

"Tom Savage went almost 59 minutes without committing a turnover for the first time in six starts, but LeShaun Sims made an end-zone interception on a pass intended for DeAndre Hopkins and Derrick Henry sprinted 75 yards for a touchdown in the final minute to give the Tennessee Titans a 24-13 victory, ensuring that the Texans, ravaged by injuries on both sides of the ball, can’t finish better than .500 this season."

Tyrod Taylor and Bills offense not up to big moment (Buffalo News)

"Sean McDermott jumped the gun when he made Nathan Peterman his starting quarterback before the Chargers game. But anyone who watched Tyrod Taylor against the Pats on Sunday could understand why McDermott felt he needed something better at the position."