The Browns’ three-game heater is gone, and the timing could hardly be worse.
Cleveland sits at 3-2 after five weeks, and Sunday’s loss to the New York Jets looked like the kind of game a better team just finds a way to finish. Instead, the Browns stacked up mistakes in the rain and let a lesser opponent hang around long enough to steal it. Now comes a divisional date with the Baltimore Ravens, and Todd Monken’s staff has a short week’s worth of hard questions to sort through.
The first one starts in the backfield, where Quinshon Judkins once again didn’t give Cleveland much. The second-year runner carried 14 times against the Jets and turned that into 44 yards, a 3.1-yard average that included a 14-yard burst.
Whether the root problem is blocking, scheme, or both, Judkins is also not helping his own case by repeatedly bouncing into traffic when space is there to be found. With that in mind, a more committee-heavy approach has to be on the table.
The Browns also need to figure out how to better feed Denzel Boston. He drew seven targets, but for much of the first half it felt like Deshaun Watson barely looked his way.
Cleveland didn’t really get Boston involved until it was scrambling for answers. That’s a problem, because Boston is the team’s biggest and most dependable pass catcher.
He has to be more than a splash-play option. The way this offense is built, he should be seeing double-digit targets every week.
There’s also the matter of Jared Verse, whose quiet start kept rolling in New York. He should have drawn a roughing-the-passer flag early, and beyond that, it was a mostly quiet night for the Browns’ young defensive end.
Verse is still contributing in ways that don’t show up in the box score, including in the locker room, but Cleveland didn’t invest in a prized defender just to hope for background impact forever. Production has to come at some point.
And then there’s the biggest immediate headache: replacing KC Concepcion if he can’t go. Concepcion was the latest Browns player to take one of Minkah Fitzpatrick’s dirty hits, and although he said he was OK after exiting with what appeared to be a severe concussion, he still has to get through the league’s protocol before he can return.
There’s no guarantee that happens before Week 6. His absence was obvious.
Isaiah Bond had a drop fest, Jerry Jeudy didn’t do much, and the Browns clearly need someone to step up and keep defenses guessing.
In Other News...
Browns Run Game Trouble Forced A New Backfield Move
The Browns backfield has been in flux, and the latest move shows how quickly depth can become a priority when injuries start stacking up. Cleveland signed running back Audric Estime from the Vikings practice squad to its 53-man roster after Quinshon Judkins was injured, adding another option to a room that has needed reinforcements as the team tries to steady its ground game.
Estime brings prior NFL experience with the Broncos and Saints, which gives Cleveland a veteran presence at a position group that has been asked to absorb a lot lately. For the Browns, the signing is less about splash and more about keeping the rotation functional while they look for cleaner answers in the running game. [Read more 🡒]
Jared Verse Is Creating An Early Browns Trade Debate
The Browns entered this season knowing the Myles Garrett trade would be judged through whatever came back in return, and Jared Verse has been the center of that evaluation from the start. A two-time Pro Bowler and former NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year, Verse has been on the field for every game so far, giving Cleveland the kind of every-down edge presence it wanted to plug into a defense built around disruption.
So far, though, the numbers have left room for debate. Verse has 13 tackles and has held up with moderate run-defense grades, but the sack column is still empty, and that has opened the door for questions about his pass-rushing impact. Behind him, Sam Williams has played fewer snaps yet produced more sacks and tackles, which is exactly the kind of early comparison that can turn a trade return into a talking point the Browns cannot avoid. [Read more 🡒]
Deshaun Watson Suddenly Has Real Pressure On His Browns Job
The Browns loss to the Jets did more than knock Cleveland to 3-2, it turned up the heat on a quarterback situation that had already been under scrutiny. Deshaun Watson spent the afternoon dealing with pressure, poor protection and shaky decision-making, and the result was an eight-sack outing that left the offense sputtering when it needed to steady itself.
Now the schedule only sharpens the conversation, with the Ravens and Titans next on the docket and little margin for more uneven play. Around the roster, the alternatives are already part of the discussion, whether that means leaning on backup Shedeur Sanders or eventually activating Dillon Gabriel if the Browns decide the current setup is no longer sustainable. [Read more 🡒]