Let’s first say the Browns victory over the Saints was a great win. The type of game the Browns of the last decade would have lost. Tom Brady driving for the winning touchdown. A goofy call by the refs at the wrong time. Jerome Bettis breaking free on thirddown for a big gain. Those are the things that usually happen to the Browns during crunch time. But not this time.
Let’s
first talk about why the Browns won. The most over riding thing is the depth of
the team. This team won missing some big guns on offense, no Josh Gordon, no
Ben Tate, no Cameron Jordon. Yet rookies like Isaiah Crowell and Terrence West,
along with veterans like Mike Austin, really stepped up. As I said last week,
it is amazing how talented this team is with all the changes in the front
office the last five years. The next reason they won was for the second game in
a row they were able to run the ball. Credit the above named running backs as
well as the offensive line. When
you run the ball it opens all phases of the offense. The third reason they won
was the defense. For most of the game they dominated, highlighted by Tayshaun
Gipson’s 62-yard interception for a touchdown. And, finally, let’s give credit
when credit is due, Brian Hoyer did some nice things, especially during the
final drive.
Not
to take away from the celebration of a big one, but the Browns almost lost a
game they could have won very easily.
They couldn’t put the Saints away in the first half, allowing a
touchdown right before intermission that put the Saints back in the game. An uncharacteristic
missed extra point haunted the team, allowing the Saints to take a one-point
lead in the second half. And, most importantly for the second game in a row,
the Browns had no downfield passing attack. Part of that is not having a home
run weapon like Josh Gordon in the line up, part of that is not having a
quarterback with a big arm. This is going to start haunting this team very
soon. I love Brian Hoyer and the things he can do, and he showed a lot of those
skills yesterday, but you can’t win championships in the NFL without attacking the
whole field and the Browns just can’t do that with their current quarterbacks.
Speaking
of quarterbacks, it was a good thing to play Johnny Manziel just enough to
worry defensive coordinators. You can bet this week during practice the Ravens
will spend time on defending against the things Manziel does well, scrambling
out of the pocket and passing on the run, as well as running some sort of
spread option. This will take time away from working against the things the
Browns offense does well when Brian Hoyer is in there, like the no huddle
offense, the short play action passing game, and, of course, the running game.
The
most promising thing about the game to me, for the second week in a row, is the
Browns were not out talented. Even with the guys the Browns were missing on
offense, the Saints, who are everyone’s pick to make the playoffs, did not have
more talent on the field. Jimmy Graham was the best player in the game, but
after that the talent was at least equal, maybe even leaning to the Browns.
Let’s get another home win against
the Ravens, get to the bye week, and get everyone healthy. Who knows where the
season could take us then?
The
media, especially the television and radio stations, love to go to the Muny Lot
before games to showcase all the tailgating going on. I am often surprised how
little attention all the tailgaters attract on the West Side of the stadium,
especially down in the Flats. In the Muny Lot you are out in the open, exposed
to the elements, and not close to any bars and restaurants. In the Flats on the
west side you have bridges and trees for cover if the weather goes bad, close
to some great places like the Flat Iron and the joints up In the Warehouse
District if the weather really gets unbearable, and you have your choice of walking
to the game or take the Lakefront rapid line, which drops you off either at the
west end of the stadium or by the Rock Hall.
The
first home game of the year we always spend with the Becka Brothers and friends
in one of the lots between the Flat Iron Café and the Settlers Landing train
station. Our tailgate featured barbeque steak and chicken, corn on the cob, and
home mad jambalaya. It was a tasty bill of fare with a lot of great people and
old and new friends. The weather was terrific, and it was a great way to start
out what turned out to be a fantastic day.
Food was the theme at the tailgates
that surrounded ours, as fans cooked treats like alligator, lobster tails, deep
fried turkeys, and every type of sausage and bratwurst imaginable. And lets
just say there were a variety of complimentary cocktails too.
Let us hope there are more Sundays
to come like we had for the first home game.
One
final note…Like many sports fans, I catch bits and pieces of the many shows
that are on ESPN, whether it is
SportsCenter or Mike and Mike in the
Morning. All I heard last week is everyone on the network criticizing the
NFL in how it has handled the Ray Rice situation and other incidences involving
domestic violence. No one at ESPN has the right to say anything about something
as serious as domestic violence as long as they employ Ray Lewis. If there is
something worse than domestic violence it could be street violence, especially
when it leads to murder. We all know the story, in 20XX during Super Bowl week
in Atlanta Lewis was involved in the murder of two young men from Akron. He was
arrested and plea-bargained, with the help of NFL lawyers, to a charge of
obstructing the investigation. He later settled out of court with the family of
the victims to avoid a civil suite. When you plea bargain that means you were
guilty of something, and you don’t settle out of court for millions of dollars
to avoid a civil suite when you are innocent. Ray Lewis should never have been allowed back in the NFL,
and he should not be working for ESPN. And until that changes, ESPN has no
credibility to comment on the Ray Rice situation, or any other domestic
violence incidences that involves athletes or former athletes.
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