The Cleveland Browns traveled to Pittsburgh to play the Steelers on Sunday hoping to get a regular-season win there for the first time since 2003. But they lacked effort from the start in their demoralizing 27-6 loss.
After a great start to the season, with Cleveland making it a habit of notching late-game comebacks, there were no such heroics in this laugher.
The Browns were embarrassed in every aspect and won't earn any high marks for a game that never became the battle that many Cleveland fans were hoping to see.
Let's hand out some dismal grades for the Browns in Week 8.
Browns bullied by the Steelers in an embarrassing loss
Quarterback
Deshaun Watson played terribly from the start. His stat line for the game might not have looked horrible, but his play on the field helped define the offense's lousy day. Watson lost an early fumble and held onto the ball too much when he had open receivers. He was sacked eight times and never put his team in a position to win the game.
Considering the importance of this AFC North matchup to both teams, fans were hoping Watson would bring some of his veteran presence to this battle, especially at the start of the game. Instead, he ran around trying to avoid sacks and wasn't decisive. Many of his incompletions were deflected by the defensive linemen all afternoon.
Watson finished the game with 324 passing yards, with 197 of them coming in the fourth quarter when his team was trying to play catch-up. While the Browns had 319 yards of total offense, Watson never found the end zone all game.
Grade: C
Running Backs
Quinshon Judkins had a bad game. He danced too much in the backfield. He even picked up an unsportsmanlike penalty after picking up a first down on a pass play. Judkins continues to struggle to run the ball this season as he often runs into tackles more than he avoids them.
Cleveland's other running back, Dylan Sampson, had a better game than his teammate. Sampson was primarily used in the passing game, where he caught six passes for 62 yards. He also returned a couple of kicks on the day for a 24.5-yard average.
Grade: D
Wide receivers and tight ends
The standout player in this group was tight end Harold Fannin Jr. He caught 10 passes for 154 yards.
Wide receiver KC Concepcion had three catches for 37 yards. Concepcion had a career game a week ago but couldn't replicate that performance. Rookie wide receiver Denzel Boston finished with six catches for 37 yards.
Grade: B
Offensive and defensive lines
Both of these groups got schooled by a more physical Steelers team. The Browns' offensive line couldn't open holes in the run game, which managed only 34 yards. Their quarterback was sacked eight times as well. Several of the sacks weren't the offensive linemen's fault, though, because Watson kept running into sacks while holding the ball too long.
The Browns' defensive line was shredded by the Steelers' run game. Pittsburgh ran at will and toyed with the group, going for 200 rushing yards on only 33 carries. It was an embarrassing effort.
Grade: F
Linebackers and defensive backs
The two groups Cleveland had relied on most of the season had one of their worst efforts in this game. Both linebackers, Carson Schwesinger and Quincy Williams, were exposed in the passing game, where they were outmatched. Schwesinger seemed to be out of position several times. Williams lost his cool as well getting a personal foul called against him late in the game.
The Browns cornerbacks and safeties also played poorly. Early in the game, veteran corner Denzel Ward tried to tackle the ball high instead of the player and had opposing running back Jaylen Warren run right through the effortless tackle for an early touchdown.
That type of tackling was seen by many of the Cleveland players throughout the game and led to the embarrassing loss.
Grade: D
Special teams
This unit did what it was asked to do, at least. Andre Szmyt made both of his field goals, with his longest going for 49 yards.
Punter Corey Bojorquez had four punts on the day with one going for 58 yards. He also placed three of his punts inside the 20.
Grade: A
Add us as a preferred source on Google