VS. BENGALS NOTES
Thee’s a lot to say. But the main thing is this: why are we not running the ball more, especially on 3rd and short or 4th and short? Why, why, why? The o-line looked pretty good today, and Droughns was tough. All the pieces where in place. Instead Dilfer was out there trying to carry the offense, which will never ever work.
Other stuff: refs, Frisman, Heiden, defense, pass rush, linebackers, William Green, anouncers. More later, or tomorrow.
The rest of the post..
I’ll admit it: I was disgusted watching this game unfold. That’s why I waited to write about it. Cause the sky was falling yesterday. Today, I’m not so concerned. Reasons for optimism:
1. First off, this was a reasonably close game. In fact, were it not for a couple bad breaks/unlucky calls it would have been tight to the very finish.
2. On one hand the defense sucked. But think about Crennel’s New England units, how they play and how they came together. With that end-state in mind it puts the maddenly soft coverage played by the Browns yesterday into a more flattering perspective. It tears up my insides to watch, but the fact is we will play soft zone coverage a lot this season. What will be the key is the play of the linebackers and getting some sort of pass rush. We need that badly. A few guys had a few promising moments in that regard, but we are lacking in personell. Welcome to Bend-But-Don’t-Break’ville.
3. The offensive line looked good. The offensive line looked good. It’s true. The offensive line looked good.
4. The Bengals looked like a good ballclub. I could be wrong, but Chad Johnson looks like a complete beast, Rudi Johnson was running well, and Palmer was very sharp for much of the game. And their defense has some legitimate playmakers now. At the end of the season we won’t be that upset having lost this game.
5. The offense had some good moments. The running game was good. It looked like there could be an effective attack in their somewhere if we can keep Dilfer in control.
6. Things feel bleak now with Indy and GB coming up. But I’ll say it now: The Browns will win in Lambeau in two weeks. (Keep in mind this prediction actually make the odds of the Browns getting pasted _more likely_.)
A few thoughts on individual people
* Dilfer: He is not a guy who can commandeer a pass-first offense. He’s not bad, he’s got a strong arm, but he’s not an accurate enough passer. In fact, in the third quarter I was ready to bring in Frye. But settle down. We don’t want a miracle from Dilfer. I don’t know why he was throwing the ball so often, but that has to change ASAP. And hell, if Dilfer could get the ball accurately to RBs on swing passes and short routes we’d be saying he had a nice game.
* Offensive playcalling: WHY DID WE NOT RUN THE BALL? This is easily the most dissappointing and disturbing aspect of the game. The offensive line was, to my eyes, having a nice game. Droughns appeared to be dialed up and running well. In short, we had a running game. But somehow the Browns ran passing plays in 3rd and 4th and short. Why> All that was necessary was for the coaches to call the plays and Dilfer to not change it. Was the playcall to pass? Was Dilfer forced to audible? To that I’d like to hear an answer.
* The secondary: it wasn’t very pretty. But I can’t fault the soft zone coverage either. That’s what Crennel likes to run. And it is undeniable an effective component of a good defense. Trouble is we weren’t getting to Palmer very often and when there is no pressure it’s easy to carve up soft coverage. We either need a pass rush or the Browns have to play more man coverage and risk getting beat deep more often. I’m willing to give the secondary a pass even though they gave up a couple drives where Palmer and C Johnson looked like they were playing catch. I move also add that I thought most members of the scondary played pretty well. Crocker looked sharp. Russell looked very good, aggressive. Bodden is a decent backup. It will nice to get Baxter on the field, but as a whole I don’t see reason for panic here.
* LB: You know, it could have been pretty ugly here. But in general this unit played unspectacular, which is better than I had feared. Still, Rudi Johnson got his yards and there was little pressure on Palmer for most of the day. In that sense, this unit didn’t help the team win and I think they could be singled out as the most culpable unit. Thompson had some nice moments as a pass rusher but not remarkable. Lang didn’t look bad. Stewart was aggressive. Davis was around the ball a lot like he should be. But something is missing here. All you had to do was compare the Browns LBs with Bengals rookie Odell Thurman to make you wish the Browns had perhaps drafted him instead of Pool in the second round.
* DL: Not good. Not bad. I couldn’t tell who was at NT most of the game but was they were playing better than in the preseason. It’s faint praise I know. But if this unit plays this way all year we won’t be _that_ bad off.
* Droughns: The clear starter. It’s not even close. The guy runs exactly the way I envision a running back running.
* Will Green: Aside from a good block Frisman’s long TD catch and run, Green did little. He looked exactly as he did in 2004 running the ball. That is, he wasn’t quite sure where to run. He’d be better off running with his eyes closed. I am serious. :chuckles:
* Antonio Bryant: Some nice, aggressive catches. I like the guy. He doesn’t have the body control of a guy like Chad Johnson but not many people do. Don’t know what he did in the second half though.
* Frisman Jackson: What a game! And I think we just found our new star tight end. It was nice to see him finally do it in a game. More please!
* Braylon Edwards: a few catches, not bad. He looked strong. Not a bad start. I’m looking forward to occasional contributions and regular improvement. He was an occasional contributor and that’s good for now.
* Special Teams: I never did figure out who had that illegal block, but it sucked. A game changer.
* The Refs: We had some big calls go against us. Two were notably tough to swallow. The biggest was the "hands to the face" call on Mickens (?) across the field from the INT and run back for a TD. A bad, lame call and another game changer. The other was the interference in the end zone that assured a Bengals TD. That was kind of weak but the way the Bengals were moving the ball it may not have mattered so much.
* Dawson: He made his kicks like we’ve grown accustomed to.
* Heiden: Favorite player on the team?
Misc notes:
* Anthony Henry: 12 tackles, five passes defensed, one interception. In a victory. I will miss him. The tackles are surprising. The rest doesn’t. He’s a good player.
* David Carr looked miserable. The BUF defense is good but c’mon. How the heck is Chris Palmer still an offensive coordinator?
* Pasquarelli reports that the Browns "will" give Frye a few starts at some point this season.
* Shame on you if you are aren’t totally jacked about the Indians. They are THE MOST ENTERTAINING TEAM IN BASEBALL this year. With the Browns season that lay ahead, wouldn’t it be sweet to see them in the playoffs? C’mon, let’s take 2 of 3 from Oakland and do it...
cut it out,.... You guys just confirmed what I already know, I am the smartest guy alive" 