I think I'm cooled down enough to write this one. But it's another excruciating loss, another "what if" and another case of coulda, woulda, shoulda. But it's the same old song and dance if you're a Cleveland Browns fan. The team loses a very winnable game, and we're all left here either fuming, saying some choice words, begging for Joe Woods to be fired, or just scratching our heads. Me? It's a combination of all four. But let's take a look at the Keys to Victory to see where this one went awry.
Win the battle in the trenches
The Browns lost this area of the game, which was probably the main reason the lost the game overall. Offensively, they did run for 177 yards on the day as a team. But defensively, they gave up 202 on the ground to the Falcons, and only got home once for a sack. That will not get it done. Ever. Can't keep the ship afloat if you're struggling to bail out water at the same time. I'm seriously concerned about this run defense. If you can call it that. I use the term run defense extremely loosely. The Browns were shutting Atlanta down on the ground through most of the second half. But once the Falcons made an adjustment, Cleveland had absolutely no answer for the Falcon rushing attack, no matter who had the ball. They gave the Browns a big dose of their own medicine. Unacceptable.
Contain Marcus Mariota
The Browns actually did really well here. Mariota went 7-19 for 139 yards and an interception. I did not expect them to do well against him. When I was doing my research for the pregame article, once I heard comparisons to Lamar Jackson and his playing style, that definitely got my attention. But they largely bottled him up, which was nice to see.
Get Cooper Going!
"Excuse me. Yes, Atlanta Police Department? I'd like to file a missing person's report. Amari Cooper is nowhere to be found. Haven't seen him since last Thursday in Cleveland. Thanks."
This one was an absolute shocker to me. Here's Amari Cooper's stat line. Ready? One catch for nine yards. That's it. He wasn't involved at all today. I don't know if he just had a bad day, if Brissett wasn't getting him involved enough, or if Falcons cornerback AJ Terrell just shut him down completely. I'll go with Terrell doing his job and shutting Cooper down. Sometimes the opposing team's top cornerback just shuts down your best wide receiver, and there's absolutely nothing you can do about it. All you can do is tip your hat to them and get ready for the next game on the schedule.
The next game on the schedule? Against the Los Angeles Chargers at home in Cleveland next Sunday at 1 PM. I don't know how this team will prepare for that one, or what their game plan will be going into it. But I've given up trying to expect anything from the Browns this season so far other than the unexpected.
Statistical Leaders
Jacoby Brissett: 21-35, 234 yds., INT
Nick Chubb: 19 car., 118 yds., TD
David Njoku: 5 rec., 73 yds.
Source: ESPN
Picture Credit: neosportsinsiders.com
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