Sunday was an abysmal day for the Cleveland Browns. Playing their second-straight game against an AFC North opponent, the Browns fell to 0-2 after being defeated by the Baltimore Ravens 41-17. It’s hard to find any positives from an embarrassing loss like that, but there was one good thing Cleveland can hang it’s hat on that’s being overlooked by the final score. The defense actually put together another good performance.
Looking at the final score and seeing that Baltimore scored 41 points, the Browns and good defense being in the same sentence might seem a bit odd. However, the 41 points had more to do with the failure of Cleveland’s other units, and not just because the Browns offense gave up a defensive touchdown to Baltimore.
Browns defense had another good outing ruined by the rest of the team
While the Ravens finished with 41 points, their offense didn’t just run through Cleveland’s defense. Baltimore was limited to 45 rushing yards on 21 carries, and Derrick Henry was kept in check with 23 yards on his 11 rushes. Additionally, the Ravens only had 242 yards of offense — less than the Browns — and was 3-of-12 on third down. If Cleveland’s defense had gotten any help from the other units on the team, the defensive performance would’ve mattered.
Instead of support, the Browns defense was sabotaged by the other units. The offense couldn’t move the ball much, and had two turnovers, setting the Ravens up for two easy scores. Cleveland also had a blocked punt that gave Baltimore’s offense another short field to score a touchdown. The Browns defense kept fighting, and aside from two deep shots to DeAndre Hopkins, didn’t give up much all game. Ultimately, it didn’t matter since the other units didn’t do their parts.
All offseason, Cleveland made it known it wanted to return to being a team that played elite defense and leaned on the run game offensively. Through two games, the defense has held up its end of the bargain, making things challenging for two elite offenses. Unfortunately, those performances haven’t resulted in wins. While it would be great for the Browns to get this level of play from the defense all season, history has shown the bottom will eventually fall out if the unit doesn’t start getting support from the offense and special teams.