3 standouts (and 2 duds) from Browns tie against Eagles
• Mohamoud Diabate has a night
• Browns have a tough decision to make at WR
By Randy Gurzi
Browns dud: John Kelly, Jr., RB
Cleveland's offense came out playing very well, moving the ball 75 yards down to the Eagles' one-yard line on their opening drive. Rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson got the start and had several big plays, including a 14-yard pass and a 36-yarder to Cedric Tillman in order to set his team up to score.
Unfortunately, they were unable to put six on the board. John Kelly, Jr. was given the chance to punch it in but was hit in the backfield by Nakobe Dean and the ball came flying out. Philadelphia picked it up and took over, but were stopped for a safety.
Despite getting the two points thanks to their defense, the fumble was less than ideal for Kelly who is in the midst of a battle for the third running back spot.
Cleveland has Nick Chubb entrenched as the starter and Jerome Ford will be RB2 once he's healthy. That means Kelly and Demetric Felton are fighting for what should be the final spot. Felton might have already had the edge but Kelly is a powerful runner who could have set himself apart with a showing at the goal line.
Instead, he found himself being outplayed by Felton in a critical game for the two running backs.