The Browns are looking to get back on track against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 7, and to do so these three players need big games.
The Cleveland Browns are taking on the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 7, and need a win after a one-sided drubbing by the Pittsburgh Steelers. The critics went from sweet to sour on the Browns after a bad game, and while unfair, the Browns need to respond in kind. Baker Mayfield looked bad, the offensive line looked worse, and the defense was apparently in Rancho Cordova because no one showed up to tackle.
So the Browns need to answer against the 1-4-1 Bengals. If the Browns win, we get to avoid the city burning down. If the Browns lose to the hapless Bengals? Well, I already have a few fire extinguishers handy.
Baker Mayfield
Baker Mayfield got an unfair but not unexpected drubbing by fans and critics alike. Despite Kevin Stefanski outright admitting to putting Mayfield in bad places all game, the always ready crowd of dissidents who only show up to burn Mayfield effigies were out in full force after Pittsburgh. The fans were already talking about replacing him with Case Keenum (who did just as poorly) and looked not for answers, but for blood.
Honestly, Mayfield played badly. Worse yet, the entire team played bad and because of the combined struggles of everyone, not just Mayfield but coaches too, the team got walloped. Yet, Mayfield took the brunt. Why? Because some dork once said the quarterback was the most important position in sports. It’s not, it’s the offensive line, and trust me, there are plenty of receipts (as the kids say) to prove that.
The team can and has won with Mayfield. Don’t let the talking heads on ESPN and Fox Sports 1 tell you differently. They’re trying to sell you something. Mayfield had one subpar year and is in the middle of one of the best seasons a Browns QB has had in over 30 years. Why are people so quick to bail? Mayfield has to take this criticism seriously, however, and prove he can play. He can’t get trapped in that quicksand. Play your way out, and eventually, people will change their minds.
Or don’t, we’ll still be here either way.
Myles Garrett
If you’re one of the five highest-paid players on defense in the NFL, you better play like it. Getting one sack every game isn’t impressive. Not when you’re paid as much as Myles Garrett is paid. Garrett has also not been a factor against the run game, and that’s in spite of him moving all over the defensive line. The Steelers gashed the Browns on the ground and they’re not even a good rushing team.
The Steelers offense looked like the Greatest Show on Turf against the Browns, and there’s no reason for that. That offense wasn’t great. The Browns lack of…everything….sure made it look that way, however. Garrett has to be more efficient. He’s the best player on the team and frankly, the only playmaker the Browns have on that side of the ball.
Sure, it’s unfair to demand more of him, but when you agree to those fat-stacks-of-cash then you better show up to earn them. Getting one sack and coasting the rest of the game is unacceptable. If he’s really as great as PFF keeps spouting, then he better make actual plays. Not imaginary ones that don’t actually end up affecting the game.
D’Ernest Johnson
If you need PFF to tell you that Kareem Hunt has been bad at rushing the ball between the tackles, I don’t know what to tell you. This isn’t a “Well Wyatt Teller has been hurt” issue either. Hunt couldn’t do it with Teller either. Sure, he’s had some games where he’s done some work, but that was off-tackle stuff. Hunt’s been doing alright off tackle. Between? It isn’t his game anymore if it ever was.
Give D’Ernest Johnson the start. He may not be as good as Hunt, let alone Nick Chubb, but against Dallas and Indianapolis, he showed bursts. He’s got shakey hips and shoulders that dip, the right kind of combo needed for making way up the gut. The Browns need that type of play too. They have to be able to beat a team down the middle to best set up the play-action pass. That’s part of the issue, the Colts and Steelers didn’t need to fear the play-action. If the defense isn’t going to bite on the play, what’s the point of the offense then?
The Browns need that play, that’s not even a debate. Hunt is a fine player, but he’s shown he’s not on Nick Chubb’s level and it’s not even close. Johnson may not be much better but we know Hunt isn’t a between-the-tackles runner, we don’t know that about Johnson, yet.