Nearly every commentator pointed out that the Browns would have knocked off the Steelers and Saints if they'd had a functional kicker.
They all call the Browns defense one of the best in the NFL, and were ranting and raving about what Mayfield did, and how he seemed to lift the entire team.
Some even got into the terrific wide receivers, Njoku, and solid running backs.
All of these were prefaces to "Are they going to make the playoffs? Probably not."
See my point? Okay back to the second paragraph: With a decent kicker, the Browns would have beaten the Steelers and Saints with Tyrod Taylor at quarterback.
The Saints and Steelers are still expected to contend for the Superbowl. A number of very smart people have named either or both as Superbowl favorites.
So why do these guys think the Browns under Baker Mayfield are unlikely to make the playoffs?
In fact, the majority of these guys seem to be expecting the Raiders to beat them next sunday.
Could the Steelers or Saints beat the Raiders? Think they'd have a shot? I'll stick my neck out here, and say I think they would both stomp the Raiders.
The Browns now have Baker Mayfield at quarterback and (cross your fingers) an at least average young kicker -snap-snap-, and have an extra three days to get healthy and prepare, but the Raiders will probably beat them?
I'm not really bashing these guys for their ingrained skepticism. "That's so Browns" has become a common expression. The Browns have been a model of incompetence for decades, and these commentators all got that and 1-31 in their heads.
It does seem unthinkable that any 0-16 team could win nine or more games the very next season. That would be a Disney movie, right? It just doesn't happen in real life!
Therefore, regardless of what this team (and this quarterback) have already proven in the first three games, everybody has to mention that they "probably won't make the playoffs (anyway)" to make sure nobody makes fun of them.
I haven't heard from Nate Burleson yet, but I'm pretty sure that he and Joe Thomas are two guys who would say "why not?"
The why not:
Rookies and young players in general tend to screw up. Callaway, Mayfield, Harrison (left tackle), Ward and others are all rookies filling critical positions.
Garrett, Ogunjobi, Njoku, Peppers and others are all second year players as well. That's eight starters, or around 40%.
I left out Genard Avery, but shouldn't have. I don't think Kirksey will be getting his job back.
This inexperience is one rational reason to doubt the 2018 Browns' prospects, but most of the guys who throw water on their playoff prospects, or even their shot of beating the Raiders don't cite it.
Another reason for pessimism is Hue Jackson's persistant presence as the nominal Head Coach. A number of these guys actually think he's actually running everything, and expect him to mess it up.
Hue doesn't help himself by saying that he needs to review the game films before he can decide which quarterback will start next week after what the whole world just saw.
But I digress:
If you have learned to think with your brain, it is obvious to you that the 2018 Browns have a decent shot at a wildcard slot, if not the Division.
If you just shot beer out your nose, you are not thinking with your brain:
1: Baker Mayfield is not a typical rookie. He started FOURTY college games, the majority of which were at the highest level.
While the offenses he ran and defenses he faced were comparatively simplistic, his recognition and mechanics are already well-honed.
Mayfield graduated college with a doctorate of quarterbacking, while Sam Darnold needed summer school to get his bachelor's degree.
If you think that Baker Mayfield will screw up as much as Sam Darnold still will, you don't get it.
No knock on Sam here: 3-4 years from now, Darnold could be working on his second or third Pro Bowl, for all I know. My point is that Baker Mayfield was more pro-ready than any quarterback in his draft class, maybe including Rosen.
2: Mayfield might just be THE most accurate quarterback ever. If he's not, he's right up there with Brees, Werner, and Montana. Shut tf up: This is a FACT. If you don't believe me, ask Brees, Warner, or Montana.
3: You witnessed this: Everything changed when Mayfield took over. Todd Bowles stopped blitzing his cornerbacks and safeties (because he had scouted Mayfield).
The running game became effective. The defense went apeshit.
Mayfield is magic. The NFL Radio guys have a hard time describing exactly how it works, but Baker Mayfield brings out the best in all of his teammates somehow.
It's partly because he's truly a team guy. We saw him rooting for Tyrod Taylor, and jumping up and down like a cheerleader when a defensive player made a great play.
It's not an act. That's who Mayfield is. Charlie Weiss says that Mayfield, due to that personality of his, was exactly what the perennial loser Browns needed. (Charlie also said that the less emotional, calmer Sam Darnold was what the Jets needed).
Anyway, part of this is that Baker's teammates know that he's one of the guys, and respects all of them.
Everybody loves Baker.
Another part of this "team-elevating" effect that Baker has always had is confidence: They KNOW how just plain good he is, and that if they do their own jobs right, the ball will be gone, on the money, and good things will happen.
No offense to Tyrod Taylor, but Baker Mayfield is simply that much better than he is.
I liked Bryan Hoyer a lot, but remember? Whenever he had to flee the pocket or improvise, the play was over. He'd end up throwing it away.
Tyrod is like that, except he can wreak havoc with his legs (if not contained).
Baker Mayfield sees the field better than both these guys, and he'll as often complete a pass as throw it away.
The receivers know this, so they come back to him, waving at him (and following his hand-signals, as he points at where they should go and stuff--as he runs).
This aint over. We can still make a big play with Baker.
It's a lot different with Tyrod or Hoyer. With these guys, the receivers think "ah, shit" and not much more, once they see them outside the pocket.
Mayfield's magic is hard to break down clinically (I just tried), but it's irrefutable and real, so who cares anyway?
3: The 2018 Browns defense is a turnover machine and a top five unit overall.
Ogbah should be back for the Raiders game, with something to prove.
Do you think this is a fluke? Williams has done a lot of this without blitzing (note I mean sending more than four passrushers).
He did this to the Steelers, Saints, and Jets. I haven't researched this at all yet, but do the Raiders have a top ten offensive line or something? Is Derrick Carr now a master-impoviser now that he's got Yoda Gruden as his Head Coach?
For some inexplicable reason, the 2018 Raiders defense has struggled to pressure opposing quarterbacks...
Ah, but John Gruden is a quarterback expert, so he will know exactly how to screw up Baker Mayfield!
Not really. Mayfield can burn blitzes, exploit zones, go horizontal or vertical, and (listen to me here) HAS no weaknesses!
John Gruden is also tied with Marvin Lewis for the most overrated Head Coach in the NFL title (*Hue Jackson could pass them both up if the Browns do make the playoffs*).
Derrick Carr is a terrific (and improving) quarterback, but I don't think he's as good as Brees or Big Ben...
But I digress (and want to change the subject):
1: Don't expect DT/NT Larry Ogunjobi to disappear any time soon. He is an elite talent, and Gregg Williams is making the most of him.
He IS as good as he looks DO YOU UNDERSTAND? And oh yeah--he's next to Myles Garrett.
2: I had my own doubts, but Damarius Randall is probably one of the best five free safeties in the NFL.
3: When Ogbah gets healthy (should be vs the Raiders) the passrush will get even nastier:
Thanks to Kendricks' release and Kirksey's injury, Genard Avery has had more opportunites, and (as I predicted blush-blush) is a James Harrison-like player.
Ogbah himself has been all but forgotten in many microbrains, but he's only marginally behind Myles Garrett as a passrusher, and as good or better vs the run (get the stars out of your eyes dammit)
Rodney Ogbahfield's return to health will significantly upgrade this defense (more vs the run than vs the pass, but upgrades in both).
This is a domino-effect thing:
Avery is now established as a scary passrusher (inside or outside), but he's also a real linebacker who can cover in zone and stop runs
In Ogbah's absence, Gregg Williams has experimented with various guys to bookend Myles Garrett's passrush, and Avery became that guy, even though he's not a defensive lineman.
As I had predicted (blush-blush).
Anyway, once Ogbah returns to the lineup, he will be Garrett's bookend in both 3-4 and 4-3 "looks"...
As you know if you read this blog (blush-blush) Gregg Williams is likely to rely primarily on Garrett, Ogunjobi, and Ogbah as a base defensive front.
He will want Schobert, Collins, and Avery on the field as often as possible as well.
These are his best six front-end players.
But this is semantics: Collins can put his hand in the dirt (but why bother?). Cousins or Peppers can play WIL.
Really a lot of this crap is silly: Gregg will rotate heavily, and adapt to situations with big strong guys or small fast guys, but will obviously use his best players as often as possible, as often as he can.
The six guys I named are the "core" of Gregg's "front seven" (*an obsolete term*), but he can replace two or three of them (and let them suck oxygen and rest) based on the given situation.
Indeed, Dorsey's recent acquisitions of Odenigbo and Lawrence gave Williams massive flexibility. Both these guys are very good already, but are "specialized".
These are top-flight "rotational" players who...
Too deep in the weeds here. Sorry.
...okbye
The running game became effective. The defense went apeshit.
Mayfield is magic. The NFL Radio guys have a hard time describing exactly how it works, but Baker Mayfield brings out the best in all of his teammates somehow.
It's partly because he's truly a team guy. We saw him rooting for Tyrod Taylor, and jumping up and down like a cheerleader when a defensive player made a great play.
It's not an act. That's who Mayfield is. Charlie Weiss says that Mayfield, due to that personality of his, was exactly what the perennial loser Browns needed. (Charlie also said that the less emotional, calmer Sam Darnold was what the Jets needed).
Anyway, part of this is that Baker's teammates know that he's one of the guys, and respects all of them.
Everybody loves Baker.
Another part of this "team-elevating" effect that Baker has always had is confidence: They KNOW how just plain good he is, and that if they do their own jobs right, the ball will be gone, on the money, and good things will happen.
No offense to Tyrod Taylor, but Baker Mayfield is simply that much better than he is.
I liked Bryan Hoyer a lot, but remember? Whenever he had to flee the pocket or improvise, the play was over. He'd end up throwing it away.
Tyrod is like that, except he can wreak havoc with his legs (if not contained).
Baker Mayfield sees the field better than both these guys, and he'll as often complete a pass as throw it away.
The receivers know this, so they come back to him, waving at him (and following his hand-signals, as he points at where they should go and stuff--as he runs).
This aint over. We can still make a big play with Baker.
It's a lot different with Tyrod or Hoyer. With these guys, the receivers think "ah, shit" and not much more, once they see them outside the pocket.
Mayfield's magic is hard to break down clinically (I just tried), but it's irrefutable and real, so who cares anyway?
3: The 2018 Browns defense is a turnover machine and a top five unit overall.
Ogbah should be back for the Raiders game, with something to prove.
Do you think this is a fluke? Williams has done a lot of this without blitzing (note I mean sending more than four passrushers).
He did this to the Steelers, Saints, and Jets. I haven't researched this at all yet, but do the Raiders have a top ten offensive line or something? Is Derrick Carr now a master-impoviser now that he's got Yoda Gruden as his Head Coach?
For some inexplicable reason, the 2018 Raiders defense has struggled to pressure opposing quarterbacks...
Ah, but John Gruden is a quarterback expert, so he will know exactly how to screw up Baker Mayfield!
Not really. Mayfield can burn blitzes, exploit zones, go horizontal or vertical, and (listen to me here) HAS no weaknesses!
John Gruden is also tied with Marvin Lewis for the most overrated Head Coach in the NFL title (*Hue Jackson could pass them both up if the Browns do make the playoffs*).
Derrick Carr is a terrific (and improving) quarterback, but I don't think he's as good as Brees or Big Ben...
But I digress (and want to change the subject):
1: Don't expect DT/NT Larry Ogunjobi to disappear any time soon. He is an elite talent, and Gregg Williams is making the most of him.
He IS as good as he looks DO YOU UNDERSTAND? And oh yeah--he's next to Myles Garrett.
2: I had my own doubts, but Damarius Randall is probably one of the best five free safeties in the NFL.
3: When Ogbah gets healthy (should be vs the Raiders) the passrush will get even nastier:
Thanks to Kendricks' release and Kirksey's injury, Genard Avery has had more opportunites, and (as I predicted blush-blush) is a James Harrison-like player.
Ogbah himself has been all but forgotten in many microbrains, but he's only marginally behind Myles Garrett as a passrusher, and as good or better vs the run (get the stars out of your eyes dammit)
Rodney Ogbahfield's return to health will significantly upgrade this defense (more vs the run than vs the pass, but upgrades in both).
This is a domino-effect thing:
Avery is now established as a scary passrusher (inside or outside), but he's also a real linebacker who can cover in zone and stop runs
In Ogbah's absence, Gregg Williams has experimented with various guys to bookend Myles Garrett's passrush, and Avery became that guy, even though he's not a defensive lineman.
As I had predicted (blush-blush).
Anyway, once Ogbah returns to the lineup, he will be Garrett's bookend in both 3-4 and 4-3 "looks"...
As you know if you read this blog (blush-blush) Gregg Williams is likely to rely primarily on Garrett, Ogunjobi, and Ogbah as a base defensive front.
He will want Schobert, Collins, and Avery on the field as often as possible as well.
These are his best six front-end players.
But this is semantics: Collins can put his hand in the dirt (but why bother?). Cousins or Peppers can play WIL.
Really a lot of this crap is silly: Gregg will rotate heavily, and adapt to situations with big strong guys or small fast guys, but will obviously use his best players as often as possible, as often as he can.
The six guys I named are the "core" of Gregg's "front seven" (*an obsolete term*), but he can replace two or three of them (and let them suck oxygen and rest) based on the given situation.
Indeed, Dorsey's recent acquisitions of Odenigbo and Lawrence gave Williams massive flexibility. Both these guys are very good already, but are "specialized".
These are top-flight "rotational" players who...
Too deep in the weeds here. Sorry.
...okbye
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