Cleveland Browns: Defensive health key in Week 10
By Randy Gurzi
The Cleveland Browns could get a boost in Week 10 with Denzel Ward, Damarious Randall, and Joe Schobert looking to return against the Atlanta Falcons
Week 10 of the 2018 NFL Season is here and the Cleveland Browns are looking to score a win against the Atlanta Falcons. After starting out 1-4, the Falcons are on a hot streak with three wins in a row.
Cooling them off won’t be easy for the Browns, even with the positive changes they made on offense after moving Gregg Williams to head coach and Freddie Kitchens to offensive coordinator.
While both those moves seem to have the players pumped, Atlanta is going to be a challenge as they’re incredibly stacked on offense — much like the Kansas City Chiefs, who beat Cleveland last week.
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Last week however, the Browns weren’t at full strength as three of their better starters were out for all but one series as linebacker Joe Schobert and safety Damarious Randall missed the whole game while cornerback Denzel Ward went down early. Andrew Gribble from the team site discussed how much time the three missed recently:
"“Schobert has missed the previous three games with a hamstring injury, Randall (groin) was inactive against the Chiefs and Ward missed all but the first series after suffering a hip injury.“ — Andrew Gribble, ClevelandBrowns.com"
Gribble also says the three players are listed as questionable, but it seems a safe bet they will give it a go. If so, this could go a long way toward helping the Browns steal a win.
In Week 1 and 2, the Browns played two of the best teams in the NFL to the wire as they gave the Pittsburgh Steelers and New Orleans Saints all they could handle. The reason for the close game was the defense, which was forcing turnovers at a tremendous pace.
Ward, Schobert, and Randall led the charge in this area and with the three of them sidelined against Kansas City, they never could get anything positive going.
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If the Browns are going to get a win and upset the Falcons, the three defensive stars being healthy will be paramount. When they’re on top of their game, Cleveland can compete with anyone, as we saw early in the season.