I must start with a couple self-corrections:
1: Hubbard replaced Teller at RG; Conlin wasn't hurt.
2: The Defense (effectively) scored 9 of the 32 points vs Indi (including the 2-point safety Myles Garrett forced).
The Offense did rack up 23 on that stingy Colts' Defense, which was pretty respectable, but the game wasn't without some red flags, as several other guys have pointed out:
Mayfield does need to get better, as he looked like 2018 in the first half, and worse than 2019 in the second.
There were some mitigating factors there, including Comrade Stefanski's determination to salt the game away by running the ball. The resiliant Colts managed to get some second and third and longs out of this, and pin their ears back.
I'm not criticizing Stefanski. For most teams, going smashmouth that soon would be dumb, but not for the 2020 Browns.
The 49ers are in trouble now, but when Kyle Shanahan got them deep into the playoffs, he sometimes ran the ball 5-10 times in a row (successfully) even early in games, vs a fresh Defense that saw it coming. These Browns should have been able to do that vs a fatigued Colts Defense.
3rd and longs are no excuse for Mayfield, though. He has to deliver in the crunch. If he screws up like that vs the Stoolers, it'll cost them the game.
But his rib injury undoubtedly messed him up somewhat. I have experience with these injuries. I assume the trainer shot him up with cortisone or something, but still can't imagine this not messing him up.
As the red flags were there for the Browns' second half Offense, the checkered flags were there for the Defense, as the Colts' Offense only managed 16 points against it for the game.
If you want to get technical, it was Colts Offense 16, Browns Defense 9 (and 60 or so yards too), so some of you people might want to get up off the Browns' Defense a little, ok?
Despite the key injuries, the overall Defensive unit seems to be improving.
There are certainly issues at Safety, but this petition to dump Sendejo is really silly (and unneccessarily hateful--not that I want to censor or ban it or personally attack it's sponsors because I'm not a communist but I digress):
The bashing of the 33 year-old is all true. Father Time has obviously overtaken this formerly pretty decent player, but don't you think Joe Woods and Andrew Berry can see this as well as we fans can?
I'm not sure, but suspect that with SS Karl Joseph down, Woods ran more 2-deep. This splits the field in half vertically between to hybrid Safeties, and may have been a last-ditch attempt to salvage Sendejo.
Sendejo won't start vs the Steelers, obviously, and feels bad enough without you gleefully kicking him in the face.
The Browns hope to get Karl Joseph back for the Squealers' game (He's best in the box), and have their fingers crossed about pick 6 Ronnie Harrison, who's in the concussion protocol, but Rodney Redwinefield is also languishing on the bench (and I've been trying to figure out why).
Redwine was forced into a starting role as a rookie in 2019, and had a tough time for much of the season, until his "light went on" in the last quarter of the season, and he got pretty good pretty fast.
Coaches are blockheads, so it's understandable that Joe Woods wanted experienced geezers first, and proceeded to "dry-dock" Redwine, who was a Dorsey draft pick, but Joe isn't mentally impaired, and must reluctantly force himself to actually allow a player with only just around merely 13 or so NFL starts to actually get on the field...
Ronny Harrison was drafted only one year earlier, and has only slightly more eggzzbeereeunzzz than Redwinefield, so maybe now we see why Woods kept Sendejo on the field, and these two whippersnappers off it for all these games?
Reminds me of Schottenheimer (and most other Coaches not named Belichick): They keep younger players on the bench well past the point that they've surpassed the geezers, because they can't trust the young guys not to screw up...
Comrade Stefanski isn't like this. Rookie Tight End Harrison Bryant has been allowed to step right in, along with Wilks. Wyatt Teller is in his third season, and he used D'Earnest Johnson extensively after Chubb went down.
Rookie Center Nick Harris is the legit backup for JC Tretter.
Stefanski might need to slap Joe Woods awake behind closed doors:
Gramps Smith and Joseph are the ONLY back 7 Defensive geezers who have prospered in this Defense.
Takitaki and Phillips have outplayed Goodson, but Goodson still monopolizes the snaps.
I don't have enough info on the EDGE guys, but wouldn't be surprised if Porter Gustin was all but benched once Gramps Clayborne came (partly) back from his injury, and Joe Jackson hadn't seen a snap.
I could be wrong about Joe Woods being a Martonian, but he sure looks the part:
Guys like this destroyed Earl Campbell, and drasticly shortened the carreers of a lot of other players.
Was Myles Garrett on the field over 85% of the time? Was Vernon? Goodson? Lawrence?
Will this Defense be exhausted and cave in late in the 3rd quarter vs the Stoolers because Joe Woods is a Martonian blockhead?
Hey KEVIN STEFANSKI: You need to talk to Marty Woods right TF now about Redwine, Jackson, Gustin, Phillips, Jackson, and even Harrison!!!
I would love to play poker with Joe Woods. I'm a "grinder" my own self, but this guy I'd bully all day long! Fold-fold-fold til he gets a pair of face cards but I digress:
We hope Ogunjobi will be back, as rookie Jordan Elliott had another tough game (it looks like the Offensive Linemen got a bead on him after his first couple games, and he needs another move or something to defeat them)
Greedy Williams to IR why tf not? But stop conflating Safety with Cornerback, you people! These are different positions DO YOU U N D E R S T A N D?
Rodney Mitchellfield has, as usual, been one of the best Cornerbacks in the NFL, and Kevin Johnson was solid starter outside before he defaulted to the slot here! Tavierre Thomas has started and would start for some teams, DO YOU UNDERSTAND?
All that is in Zone or Man—sans Williams, the Browns’ Cornerbacks are still above average.
They can hang with the Steelers if Joe Woods rotates his DL depth in and lets his young Linebackers on the field...
Let us pray okbye
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