Browns winners & losers from Week 1 loss to Cowboys

The Cleveland Browns lost in Week 1 for the fist time since 2021 as they fell 33-17 to the Dallas Cowboys. Sadly, it wasn't even as close as the score indicated.

Dallas went up 20-3 by the half and Cleveland never closed the gap. They struggled both offensively and defensively and have a lot to get figured out before facing the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 2.

As the Browns turn the page to their next oppnent, we take a quick look back at the winners and losers in Week 1.

Loser: Jerome Ford, RB

A touchdown on the final drive helped his stat line look better but overall, this was a game to forget for Jerome Ford. Starting in place of an injured Nick Chubb, Ford had 44 yards on 12 carries, which is an an average of just 3.6 yards per attempt.

Far too often, he was stuffed at the line of scrimmage and did little to help the offense get rolling. Give Dallas credit for coming into this one forcing Deshaun Watson to throw but Cleveland has to consider moving to D'Onta Foreman if Ford doesn't show more in Week 2.

Loser: Dawand Jones, RT

Early in the game, the Cowboys were in danger as the Browns were set up to go for it on fourth-and-two. With Micah Parsons across from him, Dawand Jones jumped and was flagged for a false start, which set them back five yards. Now facing a fourth-and-seven, Kevin Stefanski elected to kick a 51-yard field goal instead. Dustin Hopkins natually drilled it but a 7-0 lead would have been much better than 3-0.

Jones drew a second flag on the next drive as he again was hit with a false start. Down 7-3, Jones put them in the hole with a first-and-15.

He was far from the only player getting hit with flags but Jones struggled in this area and helped set a negative tone. That was the last thing they needed from the tackle they weren't supposed to be worried about.

Winner: Jaleon Darden, Returner

He didn't score a touchdown the way KaVontae Turpin did but Jaelon Darden had a solid outing in Week 1. Signed to the active roster over the weekend, Darden was added to give them a spark in the return game.

Darden gave them this with 72 yards on five punt returns and 97 on four kick returns. He set up their first three points by returning a Bryan Anger punt 28 yards, giving his team the ball on the 46. The offense never did enough with it but Darden continued to set them up for success.

Loser: Deshaun Watson

Now in year three of the Deshaun Watson experiement, we're hearing the same things. Watson needs to get comfortable in the offense. Watson needs to shake off the rust. Watson needs to find his zip.

Look, it's been four years since Watson was a good quarterback and he looked worse in the first half of this game than he did when we last saw him in 2023. He was inaccurate, slow to make decisions, and while he threw one pick, he easily could have thad three in the first half.

Watson finished with 169 yards and two turnovers on 24-of-45 passing. He lost 32 yards on six sacks and nearly had another turnover on the final drive when he fumbled the ball. Cleveland is tied to Watson for another three years and if he doesn't commit to getting better, rather than saying criticism is a sign of his greatness, this will be the norm.

Winner: Myles Garrett, Defensive End

There weren't many stars in this one but Myles Garrett was one of the few who stood out. Garrett, who was going against a rookie left tacke in Tyler Guyton didn't dominant the game but he impacted it.

Dak Prescott was continually aware of No. 95 and had several plays designed to roll him to the opposite side of the field. Garrett still made his share of plays, including a strip sack that could have given his team the ball back in the first half.

Two tackles and a sack don't tell the full story of Garrett's impact.

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