Browns' Sloppy Win Shows Great Promise. It's Coming Together. The Trend is Your Freind.

A win is a win, but I'm kinda glad I wasn't allowed to watch the game (my boss makes sure I can't every week).

Although the red zone performance was just inexplicably bad (CHUBB getting STUFFED repeatedly!?!), there were some rays of hope for the future:

1: Freddie is running the "pony" backfield with Hunt and Chubb a lot (he must read this blog!).

As I posted, Hunt often lines up in the slot or wide to drive linebackers, safeties, and defensive coordinators nuts, and his lead blocks for Chubb were excellent as well.

Kareem Hunt made a real impact in this game.

2: Rashard Who? Higgins was allowed to play and came up with the winning touchdown.  I hope he'll get more opportunities, as Baker Mayfield never seems to miss him.

3: In the second half, Baker seemed to start "clicking" with OBJ for a change.  (But I have to mention here that OBJ was an instant record-breaking superstar right out of college with Eli Manning, despite missing preseason and several games with an injury.  This is troubling in re Baker Mayfield.  It shouldn't have taken this long).

4: The Bills have one of the best defenses in the NFL, (notably the cornerback who stuck to OBJ like a leech for most of the game).

Chubb and Hunt didn't get the memo.

5: Doug Dieken noted that inside the 3 yard line, the Browns added extra tight ends and linemen and bunched them all together.

Then (you guys tell me) they sent Chubb inside.  I kept hearing Jim tell me he "bounced" outside and "tries to stretch it out".

Doug thinks that a more conventional spread might work better.

You got Hunt in there.  Are they going to ignore him--even on the one yard line?  They have to put a safety or linebacker right on him if he deploys outside...and he can BLOCK that guy TOO!!!

Move one of the (real) tight ends outside a little.  Ditto!  Now the Chubbinator has more GAPS to hit, and you can angle him or pitch to him and let him attack like he does with zone-blocking!

Oh sorry: Zone blocking doesn't work on the goal line.  It's all smashmouth, because (nevermind).  But the Browns' 2019 offensive line isn't built for smashmouth, and Doug Dieken has a point about spreading out a little more inside the 3 (and NOT committing Chubb to an a-gap).

I'm pretty sure that this will dawn on Freddie when they watch the films, and next week's goal line offense will look a little different (at least if Captain Obvious is consulting).

6: The defense did a good job overall, and the special teams did better.

7: For the second week in a row, there weren't many dumbass penalties, and for the FIRST week in a row, there weren't many dumbass offensive playcalls either.

In other potentially good news, LB S Takitaki made an appearance on defense.  LB Wilson made a significant impact as a blitzer (as well as in coverage and vs the run), and looks like a rising star.

(Update:  PFF said he sucked).

A third rookie, Safety Sheldrick Redwine, had to play more on defense, and looked pretty good.

So did 2018 draftee DE Chad Thomas, filling in for the injured Olivier Vernon.

(Update:  PFF said Thomas sucked.)

Veteran "blocking" TE Demetrius Harris is emerging as a clutch receiver.

Baker Mayfield showed signs of becoming himself again (under pressure).

8: Baker rolled out more, threw more screens, and more play-actions (read my last 2 posts--and the rest: Freddie is doing everything I said he should do!  Obviously he reads this blog or is a genius -blush-blush-)

Next are the Stoolers on thursday night.  The Steelers just whupped the LA Rams; mostly because their defense punked the Rams' offense.

...Austin Corbett is one of the Rams' starting offensive linemen, and they've generally been wiped out by injuries.  One (very young) guy has started at 3 different positions in as many weeks as guys went down.

The Rams line the Steelers punked out is less talented and (especially) less stable/integrated than the Browns' line.

Also, the Rams 2019 defense is not all that great.  I frankly expected the Steelers to beat the Rams, and that the 2019 Rams won't make the playoffs.

...anyway once you get past the hype, and check out the trends, you should understand why the Browns are favored over the Steelers, as they were over the 6-2 Bills.

I hereby predict that the Browns will beat the Steelers unless they screw it up, and you can take that to the bank.

Also, I'm sticking with my 10-6 W/L prediction (will update this friday when I have more data).

I HAVE SPOKEN