3 reasons Cleveland Browns can be optimistic despite Week 1 beatdown

Yes, the Cleveland Browns got blown out in embarrassing fashion Sunday by the Dallas Cowboys. Yes, there are several things that the team needs to address going forward.

Luckily all hope is not lost. It's easy to over react after Week 1 after so much anticipation leading up to the season. After taking some time and reflecting, there were three things to feel positive about moving forward.

1. Defensive Line Played Well

No, the defense wasn't dominant in this matchup. However, they played well enough. The defensive line in particular was a net positive for the Browns.

The defensive line was able to get pressure on Dak Prescott too. To make it even better it wasn't just from Myles Garrett, who played great as usual. Garrett, Dalvin Tomlinson, and Za'Darius Smith all had a sack on the game. The team was also able to generate 11 pressures.

2. Jaelon Darden returning punts

Jaelon Darden started the year on the practice squad, but it was easy to see his path to helping the team. Last year, Darden finished with four returns for a total of 39 yards. It was clear to see that Darden put in a lot of work over the offseason. In just one game he was nearly able to double his punt return yardage from last year, finishing with five returns for 72 yards.

On his very first return of the game, he was able to get 28 yards. This let the Browns gain a measly 13 yards and still get points on the board. If Darden is able to consistently do this, the Browns have a great weapon to help flip the field for them and help set their offense up for success.

3. Wide receivers were open

This was the first game with the new offense. It's easy to say that the debut was a failure. But it was not all negative. There were several plays where the Browns had wide open receivers.

New receiver Jerry Jeudy was able to get open and show off his speed and route running. Amari Cooper was able to shake free a few times. And of course David Njoku was open underneath frequently.

Yes, the results need to be better, but it is promising that the Browns at least had open receivers. Hopefully Deshaun Watson, or whoever is playing quarterback, is able to find them more often the rest of the season and not be historically bad.

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