Bryce Young’s third week looked nothing like his first two, and the Browns made sure of it.
Cleveland’s defense swallowed the Panthers quarterback whole in Sunday’s 21-18 win at Huntington Bank Field, getting to Young on 63% of his dropbacks. That was the highest single-game pressure rate by any defense this season, according to Ben Linsey of SumerSports.
Young, who entered the week as the NFL’s passing yardage leader through three games, never found a clean rhythm. He was sacked three times, completed 54% of his passes, and didn’t manage a single scramble yard. Against that kind of heat, there usually isn’t much a quarterback can do.
The Browns didn’t just create pressure in waves - they had five different defenders pile up at least five pressures apiece, a brutal all-around effort that left Carolina with nowhere to turn.
Jared Verse led the charge with six pressures, his most disruptive outing yet even though his first sack as a Brown is still waiting to happen. He added five hurries, two run stuffs and one QB hit, and he’s starting to settle into defensive coordinator Mike Rutenberg’s system.
Mason Graham may have been even more damaging. The second-year interior lineman has been Cleveland’s biggest problem for opposing offenses through three games, and he kept that run rolling against Carolina. Graham now leads the Browns in sacks with four and tackles for loss with six, and he’s tied for third on the team in solo tackles with eight.
Quincy Williams brought speed and chaos from the second level. He has taken some heat in coverage this season, but against the Panthers he was flying into the backfield all afternoon. Williams finished with five pressures, five hurries, one tackle for loss and a team-high six run stuffs.
Isaiah McGuire may have had his breakout moment. With Alex Wright on season-ending injured reserve, the Browns need more from McGuire, and Sunday was his best showing yet: five pressures, three hurries, one sack and two tackles for loss. He also logged a season-high 43 defensive snaps.
Maliek Collins rounded out the five-man pressure club with a strong return to form. After spending most of training camp on the physically unable to perform list, the veteran interior lineman recorded five pressures, three hurries and two QB hits.
His work inside, alongside Graham, was what really broke the game open. Young had edge heat coming from Verse, McGuire, Sam Williams, Derek Barnett and even Mike Hall Jr. at times, but the pressure up the middle made life miserable from start to finish.
In Other News...
Browns Just Sent A Clear Message About Their Crowded QB Room
The Browns are taking a clear line on their quarterback depth chart, and for now it does not include shopping either of their young passers. Even with Deshaun Watson still established as the starter, Cleveland is choosing to keep Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel in house, a sign the team still values having multiple options available behind its top quarterback.
In a league where injuries can turn a room upside down in a hurry, that approach makes sense from a roster-building standpoint. The Browns have watched other teams scramble for help at the position, but they are not treating that market as a reason to move either Sanders or Gabriel, preferring to keep both around as depth while the season takes shape. [Read more 🡒]
Denzel Ward Is Finally Being Used Like Browns Fans Always Wanted
Under new defensive coordinator Mike Rutenberg, Denzel Ward is being deployed the way Browns fans have long wanted, with more freedom to shadow opponents top wideouts instead of staying locked into a more rigid assignment. It has given Clevelands best corner a chance to lean into the part of his game that has always stood out most, and it showed in the Browns 21-18 win, where he drew a major share of the coverage work against Tetairoa McMillan.
McMillan finished with just one catch for 12 yards, another reminder of how disruptive Ward can be when hes allowed to travel with a No. 1 target. He has often been underrated in past seasons, but his coverage ability and pass breakup production have consistently placed him among the leagues best corners, and this new approach only adds to the sense that Cleveland is finally maximizing a key piece of its defense. [Read more 🡒]
Todd Monken May Already Be Changing Something In Cleveland
The Browns got a win over Carolina in Week 3, but it came with plenty of the usual reminders that this offense still has work to do. The home crowd saw a low-output performance and a handful of penalties, while the individual evaluations from the game painted a mixed picture for both rookies and established starters. Even in a victory, the sense around the building is that the margin for error remains thin.
What has drawn attention is the early coaching imprint Todd Monken appears to be leaving on the group. The article points to a possible shift in how Cleveland is being shaped offensively, even as the team turns quickly to the next challenge in Week 4. For a Browns team trying to stabilize its identity, the bigger question may be whether the changes already showing up can hold up once the schedule tightens. [Read more 🡒]