Rival Report: Browns offer little resistance to Ravens in 24-10 loss
The Cleveland Browns were still trying to recover from a loss in their season opener to the Pittsburgh Steelers when they took the field on Sunday against yet another AFC North opponent in the Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens had blanked the Cincinnati Bengals in Week One but had questions entering Week Two as to how their offense would perform. The result was a mixed bag of results from both teams.
Kizer’s baptism by fire
Rookie quarterback DeShone Kizer, who had a decent outing against the Steelers despite being sacked seven times, was thrown back into the fire against the Ravens. The reality is that Kizer’s grooming on a team that went 1-15 in 2016 is going to test the resilience of his teammates, coaches, and fans. While Kizer has been on-point in preparation and has reportedly had an upbeat attitude about his situation, he lacks experience and that will take time.
Against a stingy, quick and firey Ravens defense, Kizer was sacked twice; one sack resulting in a stripped ball. He completed just 15-of-31 passes for 182 yards and threw three interceptions. Midway through the second quarter, he was forced off of the field allegedly due to a migraine but returned in the middle of the third quarter.
(Deshone) was fine … He’s our starting quarterback. He deserved to be out there playing … He’ll grow from this. – Coach H. Jackson
When he left the field, Hue Jackson threw Kevin Hogan into the game. Hogan wasn’t impressive, either, completing just five-of-11 passes for 118 yards and a touchdown, and he sailed one ball right into the hands of the Ravens just before the end of the first half of the game. Hogan looked more comfortable than Kizer, making quick decisions, but like his counterpart, there were just not enough targets or effort shown by his teammates on offense to make the Browns look anything more than a bottom-of-the-league team.
Baltimore defense continues to dominate
Sunday was a show for the Ravens defense, putting together five forced turnovers for the second-straight week. An opportunistic group, the Ravens’ ten total turnovers have included eight interceptions. In the game against the Browns, Lardarius Webb, Eric Weddle, Brandon Carr and Tyus Bowser all grabbed a pick; Bowser, Patrick Onwuasor, and Terrell Suggs recording sacks. C.J. Mosley led the team with ten total tackles (two assisted).
Go ahead and watch that @tbowser23 interception again. pic.twitter.com/h6cyrAGImJ
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) September 17, 2017
The Ravens have created a nightmare defense, but they have yet to be truly tested by a top-tier team in the league. It’s hard not to grade the quality of the competition when evaluating this unit. There is no doubt that they are prepared to be difference-makers in any game and have the personnel to harry their opponents, however.
Defense struggling, mistakes telling for Browns
Cleveland’s defense isn’t offering much help to their ailing offense, struggling to shut down opponents. The number of mistakes made by this team is disheartening as well. In two weeks, the Browns have had zero answers in preventing the deep pass attack and they’ve been picked apart.
Christian Kirksey and James Burgess were able to earn a sack apiece on Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco, but as a unit the defense allowed Flacco to complete 25-of-34 passes for 217 yards and two touchdowns.
We didn’t play well today. Point blank. Period. Offense, defense, special teams … We’ve got to clean up our play and get better. – C. Kirksey
Jason McCourty grabbed an interception of his own in creating the only turnover for the Browns.
Joe Flacco goes deep …. INTERCEPTED by Jason McCourty! https://t.co/ZQHRRLfJuf
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) September 17, 2017
The deployment of rookie Jabrill Peppers into the deep secondary is a strategy Jackson told the media is mean to discourage opponents. “This is something we truly believe discourages teams from trying to throw the ball over our head,” Jackson said. He claimed that opponents have not thrown towards Peppers and credited defensive coordinator Gregg Williams with the plan. Peppers has nine tackles in two games, but his being in the game has not discouraged opponents from testing the defensive backfield and exploiting it in other ways.
What seriously hurt the Browns outside of a lack of playmaking was penalties. They committed 11 total penalties for a very costly 65 yards. That only counted the penalties that were accepted by the Ravens. Time management wasn’t on par, either.
‘Buck’ Allen emerging at last for Ravens
As a rookie in 2015, Javorius ‘Buck’ Allen started just six games before the running back corps was decimated by injuries. He hardly saw the field last season. On Sunday, the Ravens – who’ve been trying to commit to the run game more – Allen carried the ball with confidence, breaking tackles and getting much-needed first downs. On the day, Allen carried the ball 66 yards on 14 carries. A key 37-yard run set up a last-second touchdown play just ahead of halftime.
With Danny Woodhead out due to injury, Allen is emerging at just the right time for the Ravens offense. On top of his carries, Allen added five receptions for 35 yards and a touchdown.
I’ll tell you, and ‘Buck’ will laugh about this, but this is exactly what I expected from him when we drafted him … Now, he has to keep it going, but he’s making plays for us. – Coach J. Harbaugh
Ravens final HB snap count: Javorius Allen 43, Terrance West 16, Alex Collins 8. Out of 68
— Nathan Jahnke (@PFF_NateJahnke) September 17, 2017
Joe Thomas goes over 10,000 snap-count mark
Browns offensive lineman Joe Thomas is one of the bright lights in an otherwise dim offense and on Sunday the long-time veteran surpassed the 10,000 snaps mark. Thomas reached out on social media to thank family, fans, teammates and even his college and high school for the support he has received. Humble to a fault, Thomas continues to put it all out there for his team.
I feel like a guy who's just always wanted to be there for my teammates, and I blink my eyes and 10k snaps has gone by.
— Joe Thomas (@joethomas73) September 17, 2017
Never missed a game.
Never missed a snap.Congratulations on this incredible achievement, @joethomas73! pic.twitter.com/GQ1ieKTzyl
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) September 17, 2017
