On Sunday, the Cleveland Browns will take on the Tennessee Titans. The 4-2 Browns will be hoping to keep their surprising season going against the 1-5 Titans. When these two teams met last season, Tennessee also had one win, but the Browns weren’t much better with just three wins. However, the Titans emerged victorious, winning the game 31-29.
That game is most remembered for Shedeur Sanders having the best performance of his young career. He threw for 364 yards and three touchdowns while also rushing for 29 yards and another touchdown. That was before being inexcusably pulled on a potential game-tying two-point conversion attempt.
That was the story of the game, but the reason why Sanders was asked to throw the ball around so much is that the defense didn’t show up.
Browns defense was a no-show the last time Cleveland faced the Titans
The Browns were a top defensive unit in the league last season, giving up just 283.6 yards per game (fourth in the league) and 22.3 points per game (14th). But the game against Tennessee wasn’t representative of the defense’s best.
The Titans had 292 yards of offense and 31 points, and while Cleveland’s offense didn’t help with its two turnovers, the defense was still underwhelming. The most embarrassing part was that the Browns couldn’t stop the run, giving up 184 rushing yards on 5.3 yards per carry.
Simply put, it’s hard to win games when you're being dominated on the ground like that. Cleveland can’t afford to let it happen again on Sunday.
Browns defense must stop the run to avoid being upset by Titans
Entering Sunday’s game, Cleveland is allowing 112.3 rushing yards per game, which only ranks 17th in the league. The 4.4 yards a carry that the defense is giving up is 22nd in the NFL, so there’s clearly room for this good defense to be even better, especially with star defensive tackle Mason Graham cleared to return.
Tennessee, on the other hand, is only averaging 82.8 rushing yards per game (28th) and 3.8 yards per rush (22nd). That means the Titans’ run game isn’t very good, so it would be especially embarrassing if they got things rolling on the ground come Sunday.
Cleveland's defense needs to show up ready on Sunday and avoid any letdowns, and if the unit does that, the Browns should secure their fifth victory of the season.
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