Myles Garrett Dominated as the Browns Win Another Nail-Biter

It wasn’t pretty, but a win is a win. After beating the 49ers in a one score game decided by a missed field goal from San Francisco, Browns fans had to sit through another nail-biter. With both units struggling, Myles Garrett dominated Gardner Minshew and the Colts’ offense, leading the Browns to an important road win and a 4-2 record.

QB Struggles Continue

In what should have been his return to the field, Watson clearly wasn’t ready to play again. In the limited snaps we witnessed from him, his throws were low and short, resulting in one, and nearly two, interceptions on just five passing attempts. After Watson went out of the game, P.J. Walker once again stepped in at quarterback for Cleveland. His performance was similar to the 49ers game, with a few impressive throws but also a good amount of questionable decisions and inaccuracy. On his interception, Walker launches the ball down the field, but instead of leading his target to the sideline, the ball sailed over the middle, making it an easy pick for the defender.

Throughout most of the game-winning drive, Walker didn’t appear poised. Fortunately, he was bailed out several times on that drive, including penalties and a batted ball that likely would have resulted in a game-sealing interception. Near the goal line, he failed to spot Harrison Bryant, who was wide open for a potential touchdown, and rushed a pitch pass to Njoku, resulting in an incompletion. However, Walker’s accuracy can be quite impressive on occasion. One of his best throws came on third down to Moore on the sideline during the aforementioned game-winning drive. Nevertheless, his accuracy is just too hit-or-miss at the moment, and coupled with his difficulties reading defenses, it significantly limits this offense’s potential.

Offensive Game Plan

The Browns’ game plan heavily featured 12 and 13 personnel sets for screens, runs, and play action, which was reminiscent of the 49ers game. However, with Walker leading the offense, they aren’t really threatening defenses with deep passes, drawing second and third level defenders closer to the line of scrimmage. When facing these stacked boxes, it’s challenging to establish the run game, especially through the middle. On the positive side, the Browns were able to get some good runs on the outside. Stefanski utilized many screens and outside zone or pitch runs to put ball carriers in space with blockers up front.

Two players who shined on these screens were Moore and Njoku, each possessing different playstyles but proving effective with the ball in their hands. Unfortunately, Ford, one of the few big-play threats on this offense, went down with an injury midway through the game. He showcased impressive explosiveness and top speed on his 69-yard touchdown run during the first drive. On the bright side, Pierre Strong, although in limited snaps, showed promise, and I believe he can play a similar role in this offense as Ford did.

Following the Walker-Cooper connection against San Francisco, it was surprising to see Cooper receive no targets in the first half of the game. In the second half, it appeared as if Walker was trying to force it to him, resulting in Cooper only managing two catches on eight targets. He also had two drops, one of which occurred during the final drive. While Njoku and Moore mostly got schemed open, Cooper’s targets were often sideline shots on contested catches. Communication breakdowns on the offensive line were another issue, leading to several instances where linemen struggled with blitz pickups, allowing free rushers to disrupt plays.

Myles Garrett Dominated

In what was arguably the best performance by any defensive player this year, Myles Garrett dominated the Colts’ offense. He recorded two strip sacks, one leading to a turnover and the other to a touchdown. Additionally, he batted a pass, made a total of 9 tackles, and even blocked a field goal on special teams. These turnovers alone account for 17 points while also denying the Colts 3 on the blocked field goal. This performance solidified his place among the top contenders for this year’s defensive player of the year. However, he had two costly penalties, where he jumped offside and stopped his rush, allowing the quarterback to take a risk on deep passes. The first penalty resulted in a 59-yard touchdown pass to Downs, though a coverage breakdown played a significant role here as well.

Defensive Breakdowns and Missed Tackles

Despite Myles Garrett’s dominant performance, this was one of the weaker performances of this Browns defensive unit. Following Minshew’s two rushing touchdowns against Cleveland’s man coverage, the Browns adjusted to a more balanced defensive approach. Unfortunately, this shift resulted in several busted coverages and communication breakdowns in zone assignments. For instance, the 59-yard touchdown pass, as previously mentioned, occurred when Denzel Ward failed to maintain his deep zone due to him breaking on a receiver underneath. It became evident that the defensive secondary thrives when they can play aggressively and leverage their cornerbacks’ strengths in man-to-man coverage. While Jim Schwartz’s defensive strategy can occasionally give up big plays, there where too many avoidable ones in this game. While the offense struggles to produce with a backup quarterback, minimizing these lapses should be a top priority.

Another defensive issue was tackling, particularly in the secondary. Although defenders frequently found themselves in position to make plays, they struggled to wrap up tackles or chose bad pursue angles. For instance, take a look at the 75-yard touchdown pass to Pittman, where Newsome and Emerson both had opportunities to bring him down but failed to make the tackle. Since this has been a problem for a few weeks now, it might be something the Browns should emphasize in practice.

SPECIAL Teams

Last but not least, I think you have to mention the special teams unit. In addition to Garrett’s blocked field goal, they excelled in punt and kickoff return coverage. Given the limited offensive production, Dustin Hopkins played a pivotal role, successfully converting all three of his field goal attempts from 50+ yards. This included a 58-yarder in the middle of the fourth quarter. Looking back at the preseason, this Browns team could very well be 2-4 right now if it wasn’t for the addition of Hopkins.


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