Cleveland Browns: 11 wins – 6 losses, second in the AFC North, fifth in the AFC
The Browns are back! After two negative seasons, ended much faster than expected, Cleveland is rediscovering the joys of decisive matches. Severely affected by injuries and particularly in key positions, the Browns continued to find solutions to continue their march towards the playoffs.
How did they get there?
After a checkered start to the season, the Browns seemed to find their rhythm at the beginning of November, notably with a victory in Baltimore. A dynamic which seems to break two days after the meeting. The franchise announces that the season of its starting quarterback, Deshaun Watson, is over.
Dorian Thompson-Robinson is sent onto the field and the alternation of victory/defeat resumes for Cleveland. Victim of a concussion, the one who replaced Watson is in turn sent to the infirmary. Joe Flacco becomes a starter and changes the destiny of the Browns' season. Despite a first defeat against the Rams, the former Ravens led his team to 4 consecutive successes which guaranteed Cleveland a place in the playoffs.
The key player: Joe Flacco (QB)
What's going on with Joe Flacco? Fired from Baltimore in 2019 because he was judged at the end of the cycle, the veteran proved the Ravens right given his performances with the Broncos and the Jets. We imagined he was done, but the 38-year-old quarterback showed that he still has something under the hood.
Five games played, 4 won, with an average of 323.2 passing yards per game and a total of 13 touchdowns, the veteran has revitalized the Browns offense. Under his leadership, Cleveland remains in two games with more than 35 points.
Already strong in the regular season, Flacco has also already proven that he can catch fire in the playoffs. Sure, it was 11 years ago, but back then, the veteran had been perfect in guiding the Ravens to the title. 4 games, 1,140 yards, 11 touchdowns and no interceptions, Joe Flacco was unplayable.
Everything is obviously not perfect. In the 5 games played this year, Flacco has always conceded at least one interception per game, for a total of 8. For the moment, this type of error has had no consequences, but in the playoffs, it could be crippling.
Why are they going to go through with it?
The Browns are in the most competitive division in the league. Despite all the glitches that impacted their season, they finished the year with 11 victories. They notably beat the 49ers and the Ravens, the two best teams in each conference.
It is often said that defenses win championships. And that of the Browns is formidable. With an average of 270 yards conceded per game, Cleveland's defense is the one that concedes the least amount of ground in the league. With 18 interceptions and 10 fumbles, the Browns are one of the teams that force the most turnovers. The Ohio franchise also has, with 49 sacks over the season, the sixth best squad.
Finally, as explained in the previous paragraph, the Browns are guided by a quarterback who knows how to win a ring.
Why won't they go?
If Flacco and the aerial game work well, it is much more complicated on the ground. Jerome Ford, the franchise's best runner, finished the season with 813 yards and 4 touchdowns. Today, the Browns offense appears to be one-sided. It could quickly seem without solution in a day without its quarterback.
Yes, the defense forces a lot of turnovers, but the offense concedes the most in the NFL. With 23 interceptions and 14 fumbles, the Browns will have to pay much more attention to the ball if they want to go far.
Certainly, the defense is the one which concedes the fewest yards, but it is far from being the one which takes the fewest points. With more than 21 points taken per game, the Browns are only thirteenth in this exercise.
The playoffs are long. Each team gives its all and you often have to draw on the depths of your squad to get to the end. The problem for Cleveland is that they have already tapped into their reserves for a long time. The Ohio franchise could well end up paying for the very large number of injured players on its roster.
Injured players
11. This is the number of players currently on the injured list: Deshaun Watson (QB), Nick Chubb (RB), Jakeem Grant (WR), Jedrick Willis Jr (LT), Dawson Deaton (LG) , Jack Conklin (RT), Dawand Jones (RT), Maurice Hurst II (DT), Anthony Walker Jr (LB), Grant Delpit (SS) and Rodney McLeod (FS).
In addition to these long-term absences, we can also add eight players who missed the Bengals on the last day of the regular season: Amari Cooper (WR), Marquise Goodwin (WR), Michael Woods II (WR), Drew Forbes ( RG), Myles Garrett (DE), Juan Thornhill (FS), Greg Newsome II (CB) and Mike Ford (CB).
It is very likely that these players were left to rest given that the match against the Bengals was without stakes. But if they have been reported injured, it is because they are still diminished and this will have to be taken into account in the coming weeks.
Prognosis
For its first round, Cleveland will have to go to Texas to challenge Houston. A team that the Browns already swept home for Christmas. Cleveland will therefore leave with a psychological advantage over its opponent. Please note, this last clash was played without CJ Stroud.
In the event of a victory, and if the logic is respected in the other matches, the Browns will go to Baltimore to challenge the winner of their division. And here again, Cleveland won in mid-November, by manhandling Lamar Jackson.
With an iron defense and a Joe Flacco in good shape, the Cleveland Browns could well be the surprise team of these playoffs.
