Long-term questions arise as Browns lose to Bengals
The Browns fell to the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday, putting their playoff hopes on life-support while raising several questions about the team long-term.
The Cleveland Browns continuously shot themselves in the foot and were defeated by the Bengals 23-10 for the first time with Joe Burrow under center.
Cleveland committed nine costly penalties totaling 98 free yards for the Bengals to capitalize on. Just very undisciplined football by the Browns, resulting in a devastating loss.
On the bright side, quarterback Deshaun Watson showed obvious signs of improvement from his first start in Houston. Watson made several big-time plays that Browns fans were waiting to see since the time of the trade. Minus one bad decision which resulted in a Bengals interception, Watson had a relatively solid game.
However, Cleveland struggled yet again to play complimentary football. The story of the season for them has been the inability to have every aspect of the team click at the same time. On Sunday, the defense showed up when needed, however, the offense was unable to capitalize and execute.
Since center Ethan Pocic was placed on the injured reserve with a knee injury on Nov. 22, the offensive line has ranked nearly dead last in the NFL. Pocic signed a one-year contract last offseason to be a backup lineman, however, was thrown into the starting center position when Nick Harris went down in the preseason.
Pocic will be an unrestricted free agent following the end of this year and with the loss of Pocic appearing very costly, it makes him a potential candidate to be re-signed following the season’s end.
While the Browns are not mathematically eliminated from playoff contention quite yet, their playoff chances sit at below one percent. Even if they win out, the path to the postseason for Cleveland will be in the hands of other teams and they’ll need a major miracle.
Looking at the bigger picture, many Browns fans are calling for head coach Kevin Stefanski to be on the hot seat. With a 24-21 record as a head coach, Stefanski has made some questionable play calls and decisions in key situations throughout his tenure in Cleveland. In addition, the Browns have been an undisciplined team and commit costly penalties time and time again. Stefanski tends to struggle to make in-game adjustments and just seems to often times get simply out-coached.
The outside zone scheme that Stefanski brought to Cleveland just doesn’t seem to be working and Watson and the Browns may need a more explosive offensive scheme to find success. With that said, Cleveland needs to find another explosive playmaker on the outside for Watson to feed the ball.
Last offseason, they finally found a No. 1 wide receiver in Amari Cooper, however, they need another wideout who can be a 1A/1B to Cooper.
For example, look at the Miami Dolphins. They found a star receiver in Jaylen Waddle and the next offseason went out and acquired one of the most explosive wide receivers in the NFL in Tyreek Hill. Now, their offense is one of the best in the league. The NFL is a weapons league and a passing league, two things the Browns have seemed to struggle to find/do.
The 2023 offseason will be pivotal for this franchise as they will look to continue to improve the roster in order to make a Super Bowl run while their window is open with Watson at the helm.
This could very well include moving some key pieces around and acquiring new talent. There are many players on big contracts who very well could be cut or traded after the season to free up some cap space and give the team a different look.
Either way, fans can expect some major moves this offseason whether that is firing coordinators, or even the head coach, and acquiring more talent.
For now, the Browns will look to build momentum around their franchise quarterback and ride it into the offseason. They’ll take on the Baltimore Ravens on Saturday who’ll likely be without quarterback Lamar Jackson and potentially backup quarterback Tyler Huntley, which would result in undrafted rookie Anthony Brown getting his first career start.
