Sunday was a rude reminder that the ebbs and flows of the NFL can make you feel like you’re on top of the mountain or in a deep valley.
The Browns came in at 3-1, on fire after a primetime divisional win against the Pittsburgh Steelers, and they were quickly put out by the rain in the Meadowlands.
New York outlasted Cleveland 17-12 in a wet, sloppy game all around. The young aspect of this team showed up in a big-time way, and while they have pulled out three games in a row in the fourth quarter, these struggles were too much to overcome.
1. No Run Game
In total, today Cleveland rushed for 96 yards on 24 carries; 40 of those yards came from Deshaun Watson, and Quinshon Judkins rushed for 44 yards on 14 carries (3.1 YPC). Even though Judkins is coming off an injury, he has still not been able to crack over 4 yards per carry through the first five games.
The run-blocking has not been up to par with the pass-blocking, as Cleveland ranked 30th in the league in run-block win rate (70%) coming into the week, and 17th in pass-block win rate (49%). Hopefully Judkins is healthy also after leaving the locker room in a boot, but the run game needs to be better in order to win these close games.
2. Not Capitalizing on Turnovers
The Browns were able to force two lost fumbles, along with two more fumbles that were recovered by New York, but unlike last week, they could not do anything with the ball when they got it.
The fumbles that Cleveland took away came in crucial spots also, the first coming with the Jets threatening inside the Cleveland 15-yard line with under six minutes to go in the third quarter, where Quincy Williams forced the ball out, and Ronnie Hickman was there to recover. The Browns then went three-and-out on three run plays and punted it right back to the Jets.
The second fumble taken away came with 4:20 left in the game, after the offense was finally able to find the end zone and take their first lead of the game, 12-10. Cleveland needs to close the game out at this point; if they’re able to get a couple of first downs or just eat up some clock and flip the field, it will be a win for the offense.
But what do the Browns do? They take just 21 seconds off the clock and are forced to punt; Corey Bojorquez then mishandles a high snap, and New York gets the ball at the Cleveland 23-yard line.
3. Total Offense
The weather was obviously a huge factor in this game, as we saw many fumbles by both teams, along with lots of dropped passes. In total, though, the Browns mustered up 198 yards: 102 passing and 96 rushing.
Watson threw for 155 yards, but was sacked eight times for a loss of 53 yards, which is subtracted from the team’s total passing yards.
Watson was sacked six times over the past three wins, but him going down eight times today was a mix of bad protection and him trying to extend plays with his legs.
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