Factory Of Sadness
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Cleveland Browns: 4 Candidates For Week 7’s Dawg House

By Jamyson Frierson

Aug 13, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Dawg Pound flag after a touchdown during the first quarter of preseason NFL football game against the Washington Redskins at FirstEnergy Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 13, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Dawg Pound flag after a touchdown during the first quarter of preseason NFL football game against the Washington Redskins at FirstEnergy Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports /
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Oct 23, 2016; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver A.J. Green (18) catches a pass for a touchdown against the Cleveland Browns in the first half at Paul Brown Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 23, 2016; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver A.J. Green (18) catches a pass for a touchdown against the Cleveland Browns in the first half at Paul Brown Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports /

Secondary

Browns secondary, you are in the Dawg House. They weren’t only terrible, but they were dominated by one player, wide receiver A.J. Green. Green had eight receptions for 169 yards and one touchdown. LaFell also added five receptions for 83 yards and a score.

Since Green came into the NFL, cornerback Joe Haden would go up against him, and would play him well. However, he missed his third game of the season and it was up to Tramon Williams and Jamar Taylor to contain him.

It didn’t work out well. Green averaged 21.1 yards per catch, and was unstoppable for the Browns overmatched secondary. He used his height over their shorter defensive backs and made it look easy.

Jackson should have made a gameplan double-teaming Green, and let LaFell and the others produce as they may. But you cannot let the best player on the opposing team destroy and embarrass an inexperienced secondary as he did.

It got even worst before halftime. After confusion on both sidelines with timeouts and “strategy, the Bengals only had one play left to close out the half–which was the Hail Mary.

There were four defenders around him–including safety Ibraheim Campbell just sticking his hand out to reach for the ball, but Green bobbled it and caught it for the touchdown. It was a microcosm of how the Browns season has been this year.

Defensive backs are always taught to knock the ball down, and they didn’t.  He also made a spectacular one-handed catch on rookie cornerback Briean Boddy-Calhoun, and he would have scored if not for the late tackle by him.

I put the blame on Jackson and Horton for the struggles of the secondary. They failed to make a gameplan to at least try to contain Green. The results were a young, inexperienced core getting demolished by one of the best receivers in the NFL.

On Sunday, they will be going up against wide receiver Brandon Marshall. Even with Haden, he’s a tough matchup.

Jackson and Horton can’t go out there and play on the field, but they can create a better way for this young team to defend opposing offenses. The defense as a whole was atrocious and must find a way to play better–or this season will remain treacherous.

Next: Starting McCown Is The Best Option

Honorable Mention: Hue Jackson, Ray Horton, Tramon Williams

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