Cleveland Browns: 3 keys to beating the Kansas City Chiefs
How can the Cleveland Browns ensure they win in Week 1 against the Chiefs?
Football is finally back and this Sunday, the Cleveland Browns will look to enact some revenge on the team that bounced them from the playoffs last season, the Kansas City Chiefs.
The Browns are loaded from top to bottom this year and are a legitimate threat to dethroning the Chiefs in the AFC. If Cleveland wants to win just its second season opener since 1999, they must do these three things in order to do so.
1. Cleveland Browns need to get Patrick Mahomes out of rhythm
Patrick Mahomes is one of, if not the best, quarterbacks in all of football. If he isn’t one in your books, surely he’s No. 2. No possible way he is lower than three on your list.
Regardless of all of that, Mahomes is lethal, especially when he gets into a rhythm. Once he starts to get going, the opposing defense is in for a long day, one in which they will want to bring their hard hats and pack a lunch.
Last year, the defense was the Achilles heel of the Browns, which is why general manager Andrew Berry went out and got reinforcements to try and get this team closer to the Super Bowl. The road to the Super Bowl goes through Kansas City, the site of Sunday’s opening week contest.
Cleveland’s defense has a lot of promise and potential this season, but don’t be surprised if it takes a few weeks to gel. With that said, the Cleveland pass rush needs to bring their A-game. The likes of Myles Garrett, Jadeveon Clowney, Malik Jackson, Andrew Billings, Takk McKinley, and Malik McDowell have to keep the pressure on Mahomes.
Sure, Mahomes will make plays even under pressure, but as the Tampa Bay Bucs showed in the Super Bowl earlier this year, the more pressure you can get on Mahomes, the better. The Bucs were able to sack Mahomes three times and apply pressure to the tune of 10 QB hits.
Speaking of Malik McDowell, a potential comeback story for the ages, Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com believes he should start due to how massive he is and how disruptive he was to the Falcons offensive line in the preseason. Sure, it was only preseason, but the Browns will need every ounce of effort from all involved to slow down Mahomes.
The former Super Bowl MVP is 10-0 in the month of September. Cleveland hasn’t won a season opener since 2004. The Browns can put an end to both streaks this Sunday if the pressure is amped up on Mahomes.