Questions For Cleveland Moving Forward
Nov 5, 2023; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson (4) points in celebration from his run for a first down against the Arizona Cardinals during the third quarter at Cleveland Browns Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Galvin-USA TODAY Sports
As the Cleveland Browns head into week 10 of the NFL season, they have all their goals ahead of them. At 5-3 overall and 1-2 in the division, they can still win the AFC North and host a playoff game. That’s all good and well, but the season will be made over the next two weeks with back-to-back division opponents.
The Browns travel to Baltimore this week who is likely playing better than any team in the league, and then they will host the Steelers in week 11. While I would love to be optimistic, the goal needs to be going 1-1 in these two games. They’ll likely lose their shot at winning the division but will still have a very strong chance of making the playoffs.
The game this week vs. the Ravens will be Deshaun Watson’s first real test vs. an elite defense, and I think all Browns fans are excited and terrified to see what we get. Accuracy is still a major concern, but in his last two full games, there have been some signs of promise.
As the Cleveland Browns push through the back half of their season, there are still a few question marks haunting this team. Can they overcome the adversity and stay a contender?
Injuries:
Injuries continue to be a huge issue for the Cleveland Browns. The two biggest impacted positions are the secondary and offensive line. Right now, on the O-Line Jedrick Wills (starting left tackle) is on injured reserve and Jack Conklin (starting right tackle) is out for the season.
On top of that, the third tackle Dawand Jones, is also dealing with a shoulder injury that is keeping him off the practice field. He hasn’t missed a game yet, but he certainly isn’t 100% healthy. With James Hudson and Jones starting at tackle I’m not in full panic mode as they are capable, but if Jones needs to come out with further issues with his shoulder, the unit gets thin quickly.
As much as I beat up the offensive line to begin the year, they have been playing much better. Kevin Stefanski has kept to the quick passes and play action which have also helped the ball get out faster.
Wills will be out for at least four weeks and Conklin won’t return, so this group needs to continue to improve and find a way to stay healthy if this offense wants to continue to get better.
The other position that is getting thin quickly is at corner. Greg Newsome has been battling an injury and missed time, and Cameron Mitchell was recently moved to injured reserve as well. What’s scary about corner, is that Newsome and Denzel Ward are both at higher risk of injury based on their history, and there isn’t much depth on the roster behind them and Martin Emerson.
Jim Schwartz loves to play man-to-man coverage and without elite coverage guys it’s tough to execute properly. If Ward, Newsome, or Emerson go down with an injury, the group is impacted drastically and can take this elite defense down a notch quickly.
Quarterback Play:
The part of quarterback play is two-pronged. For one, Watson has been dealing with a shoulder injury which has kept him out of multiple games. Watson took a big hit in the win vs. the Titans and then missed a majority of the next four games.
However, expectations with Watson are far from met after signing a $230 million contract that is fully guaranteed. In the last game vs. a very bad Cardinals team, we did see a couple of nice long throws that brought some optimism, but we also saw a ton of short passes with accuracy issues as well.
So, what is the problem with Watson? I really don’t think he just became an average NFL quarterback after multiple years of carrying the Texans on his back. But it does feel like he’s nowhere near comfortable in the Stefanski system.
I don’t think it’s completely his fault. For one his offense line has continued to shuffle with injuries, and his left tackle (who is now injured) has been less than stellar in pass protection. And while throwing a football may be like riding a bike, getting up to game speed with constant pressure is a different story.
Stefanski is also holding back Watson as well. He’s changed his entire system to open the offense, but you can tell the trust isn’t there and the play-calling doesn’t have any rhythm. The bottom line, a QB and play-caller relationship isn’t going to form overnight. And even though I wish it would happen faster, this is just part of the process.
Watson is certainly a big question mark now, but the Cleveland Browns won’t have much of a solution to fix the problem either. By giving up as much draft capital and salary cap dollars as this is a relationship that is going to happen, we will just have to find out the success of it.
Truthfully, given the injuries and lack of offensive production, this team should be thrilled to be 5-3. But if they want to be taken seriously they’ll have to find a solution to these question marks.
Up Next