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Browns: Donte Whitner Week 7 Player Review

By Justin Blum

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A bad game by not just SS Donte Whitner, but the Cleveland Browns as a whole made Week 7 a very long Sunday for the team in a loss to the St. Louis Rams.

For Week 7, I thought that Cleveland Browns SS Donte Whitner could play a key role in stopping the rookie running back that everyone is talking about– Todd Gurley, of the St. Louis Rams.

Since Whitner is a big hitter and effective in run support, my prediction was that if he shadowed Gurley, it would have been enough to stop the Rams’ one-dimensional offense. As it turned out, nothing the Browns had was going to stop Gurley.

Unfortunately, the Browns’ fifth loss of the season came about a month and a half earlier than I expected.

I had high hopes for the Browns this season and it’s difficult to see a team with so many talented players play so poorly. It is truly depressing.

With so many good players on the roster, Browns head coach Mike Pettine is the one who should be blamed for the team’s struggles. I cannot believe I am ready to write their eulogy after seven weeks.

The Browns were supposed to improve this year. The fact that they have had injuries to several starters does not matter.

They have played unmotivated, uninspired football for most of the season. Browns QB Josh McCown has proven to be the best free agent acquisition of the offseason for the team.

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The Browns defense was supposed to carry the weaker, McCown-led, offense. That has not been the case and if anything, it is the McCown-led offense keeping Cleveland in games to the end, just before losing them.

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Cleveland does not only have the NFL’s highest paid defense, but through seven weeks they are also the most disappointing defense in the league. Last season against the Indianapolis Colts, Cleveland’s defense looked like a lean, mean, hitting machine.

They were playing fast and looked like a defense that would be one of the league’s best with another year of experience in the defensive system.

McCown is playing so well with what he has to work with that the Browns should be 5-2 instead of 2-5 right now. That is, if the defense was earning it’s $80 million.

Whitner has been part of the problem. He has been out of place and just flat out missing tackles despite being the second leading tackler on the team.

Only half of the players on defense are earning their paychecks so far this season. The Browns are not going to, against all odds, make the playoffs this year.

If the Browns continue to play on the same level they have so far this year, Cleveland should fire Pettine.

Next: Hayes Pullard Is Not On The Team Anymore

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