While expectations weren’t high after a frustrating Week 1 loss to the Bengals, the Browns, especially their defense and special teams (for some parts), really stepped up in Weeks 2 and 3. Both the Ravens and Packers are teams with great playoff expectations and high-powered offenses, yet the Browns managed to win one of these matchups.
The offense is still, to put it lightly, a work in progress. But the defense brought back memories of 2023, showing why this unit can still be a difference maker. In this article, we will break down the recurring offensive struggles and what the last two weeks revealed about the makeup of this team.
Offensive Breakdown
The Quinshon Judkins Show
After being a breath of fresh air in his debut against Baltimore, Judkins doubled down against the Packers. Since Nick Chubb’s injury in Week 2 of the 2023 season, the Browns hadn’t had a true difference-making RB.
Judkins’ 94 rushing yards against Green Bay were the most by a Browns player since Week 10 of 2023. His ability to consistently pick up positive yardage will continue to take pressure off the passing game.
While Cleveland’s run blocking unit had its fair share of struggles, finally having a back with good vision and the ability to make defenders miss in the hole and create for himself is something the Browns have sorely missed over the last two years.
Another element Judkins brings is chunk plays. He has already produced three runs of 10+ yards in the past two weeks, including two 30+ yarders, which are the Browns’ two longest plays from scrimmage so far.
The workload tells the story, too. Giving Judkins 18 of the 19 carries against the Packers (compared to 10 of 22 against the Ravens) makes it clear: Cleveland fully intends to make him the workhorse back and a key part of their offensive identity.
The only time Judkins comes off the field is in 3rd-down situations. With Sampson struggling in pass protection, Ford has been the primary option there. While blocking wasn’t necessarily a strength in Judkins’ game at Ole Miss, and he didn’t get many chances at Ohio State behind TreVeyon Henderson, Judkins has the build to become a capable blocker and, more importantly, an intriguing receiving threat.
It’s only been two games, but the Browns may have found something special here.
Passing Game Struggles Continue
In Week 1, the Browns had success with checkdowns and short routes. But against the Ravens and Packers, defenses were much more prepared and equipped. Both units aggressively broke on those short passes, limiting completions and yards after the catch.
The biggest reason: Cleveland’s inability to threaten downfield. Poor pass protection, especially at the tackle positions, has been the persisting issue. With constant changes in the lineup, this group hasn’t been able to build rhythm. The result? Frequent miscommunications on blitz- (especially delayed blitzes) and stunt-pickups.
The Browns mainly played three tackles in Dawand Jones, Cornelius Lucas, and KT Leveston, and all struggled mightily to handle opposing pass rushers. Leveston in particular, a 7th-round pick from 2024 who was acquired just before the season, looked overwhelmed in his first NFL snaps. Several times he was late sliding off double-teams, leaving edge rushers (mostly Rashan Gary) to get pressures or sacks with little resistance, sometimes just facing a chip block.
In response to Jones’ season-ending injury, the Browns signed Thayer Munford off New England’s practice squad. Entering his fourth season, Munford brings swing tackle experience and has started at both LT and RT with the Raiders. With Conklin hopefully returning soon, Cleveland still needs to find an answer at left tackle, because protection up front is a huge part of what’s holding this offense back.
That said, not all the blame falls on the pass blocking unit. While Flacco hasn’t been as bad as many fans claim, there were costly mistakes, especially against Baltimore. His interception came on a forced throw into tight coverage while on the run, and his fumble was the result of simply letting go of the ball while being tackled to the ground.
Beyond turnovers, Flacco did leave some opportunities on the field. On several occasions, he either passed up open reads in the intermediate-to-deep range or didn’t even look that way. His internal clock seems sped up from constant pressure, but those missed chunk plays are continuing to kill drives.
Against Green Bay, he at least attempted some deep shots. Flacco nearly connected with Jeudy, Thrash, and Tillman (called back on OPI) on deep shots to the sideline in man coverage. Without those explosive plays, though, the Browns’ margin for error is razor-thin. Each neutral or negative play feels like a drive-killer, as obvious passing downs are nearly impossible to manage for this offense right now.
The numbers back it up. Cleveland’s 5.0 yards per passing attempt rank last in the NFL this year and is even worse than their (also) league-low of 5.9 yards last year.
One silver lining is the looming emergence of Isaiah Bond. Despite only recently joining the roster, he had a couple of impressive moments and climbed into the starting slot role already. Against the Packers, the Browns dialed up a rather unproductive screen off a flea flicker that also created a great look for him downfield. Whether through designs like that or tapping back into play-action bootleg plays, Cleveland has to find ways to generate chunk plays and force defenses to respect the deep ball.
When Flacco was able to operate in rhythm, the results were encouraging. He hit timing routes cleanly, especially out-routes, and layered some nice throws to Jeudy and Fannin over linebackers for solid gains. But because he lacks the athleticism to extend plays, he has to maximize these opportunities within structure more consistently.
Right now, too many of the Browns’ passing concepts revolve around static route concepts that limit yards after the catch. With two tight ends who break tackles for a living and legit speed in the receiver room, I’d love to see more dynamic concepts that allow playmakers to catch the ball in stride and turn upfield.
Defensive Breakdown
Welcome to Hell!
After already starting the year strong against the Bengals, I feel confident saying this defense has bounced back from a down year (2024), and it might even be better than in 2023.
Last season, the pass rush and coverage were mostly elite, but run defense was the Achilles heel for this defense. That’s not the case anymore. The Browns have cleaned up the missed tackles and undisciplined run fits that too often led to long, draining drives.
A huge part of that improvement is the linebacker corps, headlined by rookie Carson Schwesinger and Devin Bush, along with Grant Delpit taking his run defense to another level. Delpit has always been a strong fit in Schwartz’s scheme, but this version of him looks like a legit All-Pro candidate.
Another big change: moving Greg Newsome back outside and playing a more natural nickel in Myles Harden, who brings better tackling ability. Completing this run stopping unit is the defensive line, the heart and soul of this defense. With an incredible mix of athleticism, technique, and hustle, they make life hell for any offense trying to run the football at them.
Add in Schwartz’s versatile use of personnel packages (such as 5-man fronts on early downs and even some 4-linebacker looks) and there isn’t a down or distance this group can’t win. In the last two weeks, they’ve faced two top-5 rushing teams from 2024 and shut both down: holding the Packers to 81 yards and last year’s No. 1 rushing team, the Ravens, to just 45.
At one point Baltimore had 1st & Goal on the Browns’ 1-yard line, yet the defense managed to hold them to only a field goal. They also forced two fumbles over the last two weeks, though both were recovered by the offense. The one area left to clean up is defending option runs. Especially against Green Bay, the defensive ends (Isaiah McGuire in particular) often crashed down on the RB, opening the door for easy gains by the QB.
After the Bengals game, I was cautious. Now, I’m convinced: this is an elite run defense. Maybe even the best in the league.
The story is just as positive against the pass. This defensive line, led by the best defensive player in football in Myles Garrett, is borderline unstoppable. Nobody can block that man 1-on-1, and even double or triple teams aren’t always enough.
But trying to neutralize Garrett only creates 1-on-1s elsewhere, and that’s usually a win for Cleveland. Through three games, nine different players (seven of them linemen) have recorded at least half a sack. Additionally, the Browns are tied for second in the league with 11 sacks.
Even more impressive: Cleveland has the NFL’s third-highest pressure rate while blitzing only 21.7% of the time (6th-lowest) and running some variation of a stunt on just 12% (9th-lowest). Generating that kind of pressure with four rushers makes life exponentially easier on the coverage unit. And even when there were miscommunications or busted coverages, Lamar Jackson and Jordan Love often couldn’t take advantage, because the pressure got there first.
One surprise standout has been Maliek Collins. Initially I didn’t see him as a real upgrade over Dalvin Tomlinson, but boy was I was wrong on that. Collins brings a full toolbox of pass-rush moves, including a nasty spin move, and is a nightmare in 1-on-1 situations. But it doesn’t stop with him: Mason Graham has flashed, Adin Huntington has had some big moments, and this DT room is still waiting on the return of last year’s 2nd-rounder Mike Hall. It’s by far the best interior group the Browns have had in years.
This defense gives Cleveland a chance on any given Sunday. We saw it against the Ravens, where they kept the deficit within 10 points until offensive turnovers made life too tough, and again last week against the Packers, holding them to only 10 points. Despite the offensive struggles, Cleveland actually outgained Baltimore by 81 yards and trailed Green Bay by only 9. If the offense can get even close to average, this team is going to win a lot more football games than many, myself included, expected.
The Weak Link
The one real concern for this defense is the third cornerback, or rather the slot corner. Myles Harden won the job in camp over Cameron Mitchell and has been the primary slot defender through three weeks.
Mitchell pushed himself even further out of the picture with a disastrous performance against Baltimore. Filling in for a cramping Denzel Ward, he allowed three touchdowns in coverage and was a healthy scratch the following week. Against Green Bay, Harden became the preferred target instead. He wasn’t nearly as bad as Mitchell, but it was still clear he’s the weak link.
If there was a miscommunication in coverage over the last two games, odds are it involved either Harden or Mitchell. To be fair, Harden is just a second-year player from South Dakota State about to play in his fourth meaningful game, so it may just be growing pains. Still, it’s something to watch.
And this week, the challenge gets even tougher. Harden will be matched up against one of, if not the, best slot receivers in the league and I’ll be paying very close attention to how that matchup plays out.
Outlook
Midway through one of the toughest stretches to start a season for any team, the Browns sit at 1-2, with the next three weeks likely shaping the trajectory for the rest of the year. With uncertainty still surrounding the offensive tackle situation and the highly anticipated change at quarterback potentially still a few weeks away, the challenges ahead are clear.
This Sunday, the Browns face another tall task against the Lions, one of the most productive offenses in the NFL. It will be a true clash of Titans, with Cleveland’s defensive line going up against a Lions offensive line that bullied the Ravens in prime time last week.
Given the Browns’ areas of weakness highlighted in this article, we can expect some interesting and potentially decisive individual matchups. The already mentioned Myles Harden versus Amon-Ra St. Brown battle will be a key matchup, as will Aidan Hutchinson taking on the Browns’ offensive tackles.
Ultimately, this game will tell us a lot about how much Browns fans can dream this season.
Image Licensing: “Cleveland Browns Brown Helmet Unveiling” by “Erik Drost” originally licensed under “CC BY 4.0“
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