One of the people under the most pressure for the Cleveland Browns this season is new defensive coordinator Mike Rutenberg. The first-year defensive coordinator inherited one of the league’s best units, and while the group did trade out Myles Garrett for Jared Verse, expectations were still high for Rutenberg and company entering the year.
That's why it was so disappointing to see the Browns' defense dominated by the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 1. Fans and media members immediately questioned whether the unit could still be good without Garrett, and there was also a question about whether Rutenberg was the right guy to lead the defense.
Cleveland’s defense quickly eased those concerns, putting together a competent performance in the Week 2 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Along with the unit’s overall improvement, there was one noticeable difference about the defense: the Browns ran a lot of man coverage in Week 2.
Going from a lot of zone in Week 1 to a lot of man in Week 2, it’s clear which worked better for Cleveland.
Browns' defense had success going back to their man-coverage roots
Last season, Cleveland ran man coverage more than anyone in the league, and it was a big reason why the defense was so good. Under previous defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz for three seasons, the Browns played 50% of their snaps in zone coverage.
However, in Week 1 of this season, Rutenberg had the defense in zone 67% of the time, and it led to a lot of discussion in Cleveland. Browns defensive backs noted that they felt the increase in zone coverage, and how that’s a different style of defense than what they played last season.
With Jacksonville exploiting Cleveland’s zone, media members were quick to ask if the increase in zone coverage led to the Week 1 struggles. Defensive stars Denzel Ward and Carson Schwesinger shut the conversation down, saying that the unit just needs to be better. When it was Rutenberg's turn at the mic, he made it clear that he’ll call whatever is going to put players in the best situation to succeed.
It seems like he realized that’s man coverage, because the Browns ran man more than any other team in Week 2. That increase in man coverage led to a much better outing for Cleveland. After giving up 234 passing yards in Week 1, the Browns only allowed 176 in Week 2.
Rutenberg obviously noticed the difference, so it’s safe to expect a lot of man coverage from the Browns moving forward. In Week 3, that coverage will be tested against Bryce Young and a Carolina Panthers offense that has the passing attack rolling through two weeks. If the defense can contain Carolina, there will be a lot of confidence that the group is back to its elite form.
Add us as a preferred source on Google