cle23

Prevent defense is designed to trade time on the clock for yardage by preventing big pkays. You obviously don't want them to score but with a 28 point lead if you can milk 5-7 minutes off the clock and they end up scoring that's a net gain. The ticket is the offense having to continue to milk the clock and hopefully at least score field goals as well. It seems nobody is taking into account either that Cleveland was missing its head coach and had a brand new offensive play caller for this game. The offense did struggle in the third quarter but very rarely do teams stay hot on offense for an entire game. Cleveland is by no means a perfect team. Their offense has the potential to be very very good especially with the running game. The defense has a lot of room for improvement but already has cornerstone pieces with Garrett and Ward. They were also missing an early second round safety and their number to corner for the entire season. They also installed completely new offensive and defensive systems in a season with no off season. the team struggled the first half of the Year while learning the system on the fly, but look at the differences towards the end of the year especially on offense.

Because they played prevent defense for the entire second half. Most teams would in that situation. Like I said in a previous post, I think it's stupid when teams do that. Keep playing the way you were playing to get where you were. But a vast majority of teams with a 28-point lead will soften up and trade yards for time off the clock.

If it was Buffalo playing that way it would have been Buffalo "making plays and forcing turnovers." Cleveland obviously needs to improve on defense mostly, but they were opportunistic with turnovers all year. It was a two score game late because like most other teams up that big they played a lot more prevent defense. I think it's stupid that teams do that but it's the nature of the game.

Obviously. The first play touchdown was kind of a fluke play. The interceptions, the long touchdown pass to Landry, and Chubb and Hunt running all over them weren't flukes by any means.

A Pitt implosion? You're kidding, right? I guess going up 35-7 in the first half had nothing to do with Cleveland.

Vernon tore his achilles in week 17. He won't be back. He's solid, but not coming off that injury.

Cleveland? Opposite Garrett, with an up and coming young team. I think Cleveland is just as high as Tennessee. Probably a little behind KC and Buffalo but still right there.

You do realize Allen lost to Watson in the playoffs just last year, right? A game Buffalo lead 16-0 in the 3rd quarter. At this point in time I take Allen over Watson if I had to choose one or the other. But let's stop pretending like Watson isn't a great quarterback.

Unseated a 7-9 team with hot garbage at QB. I honestly have no clue how they even ended up at 7-9. McDermott is a great coach. Imagine, the Browns were planning to hire him instead of Hue Jackson until Haslam stepped in. As I said, McDermott was fully deserving of the award. If he would have won it I would have completely understood. But it's amazing seeing people act like Stefanski did an "ok" job this year. He completely changed the team and the culture. In one year. Without any offseason at all.

Because last year the talent didn't matter. Cleveland went from 6-10 to 11-5. Ended a 18 year playoff drought and won a playoff game. The talent from last year to this year didn't change much. Only thing that changed was the coach. Add in that Stefanski did all that without an offseason and without a preseason as a first time head coach. Mcdermott is a great coach, and he would have deserved it too, but he has had his system in place for 4 years now makes this offseason situation a lot easier to manage.

On Goff.

You can't deny interviews when it's a promotion.

So I say "a bunch" and you require 4 sources. You say "almost universally" and think 1 is fine. Makes sense.

Cleveland beat Tennessee too. You also left out where Indianapolis got blown out by Tennessee two weeks later. How about how they gave Jacksonville their only win of the year? The Packers win is obviously impressive. Well done. Doesn't mean they're a "great" team. Good, solid playoff team.

You said universally considered better yet gave 1 example. Define "universally." I'll post some links I found later but I'm on a phone right now. Once I have access to a PC I will do that.

Universally, huh? Cleveland beat Indy pretty easily early in the year. Cleveland was the higher playoff seed. Football Outsiders is 1 metric. A bunch of power rankings and such had Cleveland ahead.

I love how because Buffalo best Indy that Indy is magically better then Cleveland. Except they aren't. That, and the fact that KC and GB only played 1 game in the playoffs, and given how the seeding works they HAD to pay the lowest team remaining.

The league does send in Drs. They aren't team Drs who make the determination. Reid has nothing to do with it.

If you release a player, you can't get comp picks for them.

I'm not saying it'll happen, but Pittsburgh is 1-4 in the last 5 games and they aren't unbeatable. Run the ball, control the clock, and you have a chance.

Tannehill has been very good too. Henry is the focal point but the offense is pretty solid all the way around.

To be fair, nothing Kitchens did last year worked out too well.

The dude was playing with receivers who had never played in a game before. Not just one, all of them. They had to do a walk-through in the parking garage Sunday morning because they didn't know they were losing the receivers till Saturday afternoon. Mayfield definitely didn't play well but he didn't have anything to work with either. I was more disappointed in the run game.

Chubb is a FA after next season.

The Browns also played three weeks in a row in very bad wind or rain which limited passing for both teams. They averaged like 145 yards a game for three games in a row. Also take into account that Buffalo has been running the same offensive system for 3-year straight in Cleveland has been running four systems in three years. It takes a while to get comfortable in a system and really open up what you're trying to do. And Cleveland leads the league in rushing. The total offenses are 11 yards a game difference.