The Browns are looking to go to 6-3 on the season but to earn that sixth win they’re going to have to do these three things to beat the Texans.
The Cleveland Browns are the odds on favorite to win against the Houston Texans on Sunday but that doesn’t mean it’s a lock, nor does it mean it’s going to be easy. The Texans are out of the playoff chase but aren’t going to just lie down. They’re going to want to fight and that means they’re going to come to play on Sunday
To beat them, there are things that the Browns will need to do and they won’t be easy, even if they’re obvious. So with that, let’s hop on into the things the Browns need to do to ensure they walk away with the victory on Sunday.
Keep J.J. Watt out of the backfield
This is a no brainer. J. J. Watt isn’t just really good at pass-rushing, Watt is one of the best run stoppers on the line of scrimmage in the game. Guys like him and Los Angeles’ Aaron Donald gobble up runners with relative ease and never take plays off. Watt’s going to be hell-bent to hit someone as he’s become more than disgruntled with his time in Houston. There’s every chance in the world that he’s playing for a new team come the summer of 2021 and if that’s the case, that means every game from here on out is a tryout of sorts.
Watt is still dangerous despite his injury history, and if it wasn’t for the fact he was playing on arguably the worst all-around defense in the NFL, he may have much better numbers. Instead, Watt is getting doubled, if not tripled team in Houston’s 3-4 defense. Already playing as a defensive end in a 3-4 is hard enough, but doing it when there is no other pass-rushing threat? That’s why you see Watt struggling so much. Had Cleveland made a run for him, whoa, that would have been huge.
Contain DeShaun Watson
They have no true number one receiver, and no real rushing game. Their offensive line is in shambles and the team generally has no talent around him, but that doesn’t mean that DeShaun Watson isn’t still crazy dangerous.
Watson is coming into the game with some nice numbers, all things considered. He’s completed 68.6% of his passes while throwing for 2,736, 17 touchdowns, and five interceptions. He’s not going to the Pro Bowl at this rate but he’s having a nice little season regardless. He’s not rushing the ball as he used to, down nearly 14 yards-per-game since his rookie season; his career-high. He only has one touchdown through eight games, while he had seven in all of last year. The opportunities to make plays haven’t been there.
Does that mean they won’t be there when they come to Cleveland? No, it does not. Watson can always break loose and gash a defense if they fail to contain it. While guys like Myles Garrett are known for their sacks, Garrett and the Browns should re-think that strategy for Sunday’s game. The Browns will need a “spy” to cover Watson, ideally, you’d want a linebacker who can maybe keep up with him, but since the Browns linebackers aren’t even good enough to light a fake campfire, you’re not going to ask them to watch contain on Watson.
Instead, the Browns should consider having Garrett be the guy who keeps tabs, that means however having him stay at the line of scrimmage from time to time in order to keep Watson from getting past the line of scrimmage.
Or just blits all 11 guys at once and have them feed on Watson. Either or.
Let the offense rip
While some will cite Odell Beckham’s season-ending injury and Jarvis Landry’s downplay as reasons to disagree with the following statement, don’t doubt it; the Browns offense is back to full strength. The Browns will have to start tight end Austin Hooper, starting right guard Wyatt Teller, and franchise running back Nick Chubb back on Sunday. The running game has been maligned for the last four weeks but business is expected to pick up.
Not just that, the Texans can’t stop the rushing attack at all. They’ve been gashed for 160+ yards in five of the eight games they’ve played. In the two games this year they didn’t allow 100 yards rushing, one was against Jacksonville, so that was obvious, the other was against Green Bay. Green Bay didn’t struggle to move the ball against Houston, they just didn’t to get creative. They were up 28-10 to start the 4th quarter. The game was in hand.
With everyone relevant back to full health, and Baker Mayfield itching to prove he’s worth that fifth-year option, the Browns will be properly motivated to hack and slash their way through the defense. Expect big things from the Browns offense and truly awful things from the Texans defense.