4 Thoughts on Cleveland Browns Snoozefest Win Over Lions
The all-around ugly game between the Cleveland Browns and the Detroit Lions was one that sparked many questions that effect the rest of the season.
It was not pretty, but the Cleveland Browns got the job done in a lackluster 13-10 win over the winless Detroit Lions. The return of Nick Chubb was much needed, as was the elite play of Denzel Ward.
Now with a record of 6-5, the Browns are still very much in the playoff hunt with six games to go. As this game comes to a close and the Browns now prepare for the Baltimore Ravens, what thoughts did this win spark?
No excuse for Jamie Gillan to have a roster spot
What are we doing here? Jamie Gillan has been among the league's worst punters for two years running now and still finds himself on the roster. He is third from the bottom in average yards per punt and seventh from the bottom in net yards.
Gillan was at it again against the Lions. Punting five times yesterday, Gillan failed to hit even 40 yards on four of those punts. On a compressed field, Gillan cannot pin opposing teams deep in their own territory. A 28-yard punt getting to the opposite 19-yard line is inexcusable.
He isn't giving his gunners a chance to get down the field and pin punts deep and is just not cutting it. For playing the most expendable position on the field, and doing so poorly, Gillan still has a lock on his job.
That has to change. It's inexcusable.
What to do with Baker Mayfield
This is getting ugly. Between his piling injuries and his subpar play on the field, there are no good answers with Baker Mayfield. And now with the heart of their schedule with four divisional games and then the Packers and Raiders on top of that.
The time to give Mayfield a game off was this past week against the Lions. That time has come and gone. The best the Browns can do is get Mayfield through this primetime game against the Ravens and give him the bye week to heal up.
There is no turning back now. We will see what this team and what this quarterback continues to be made of. Fair or not. The season is not lost, the season is slipping. Can this team and this staff get it together for a late playoff push?
Someone check on John Johnson III
Where did 2020 John Johnson III go?
Arguably one of the best safeties in the NFL a year ago with spectacular tape, Johnson III has regressed sharply since joining the Browns. There was a stretch where it looked like Johnson had settled in, but he has just been bad more often than not for Joe Woods and his defense.
Can this be blamed on playing out of position and further off the ball than he is used to playing? Perhaps. But for a Pro Bowl caliber player he is doing some of the little things poorly as well. Poor angles in pursuit, poor tackling. These are not things you'd expect from Johnson.
He still has about $13 million in guaranteed money left on his contract after this year, so he is not easy to part with. There are avenues to explore, but the optics aren't great one way or the other. It's time for Johnson to figure it out, and perhaps for Woods and the Browns to consider playing him where he is comfortable.
Whatever they are doing now clearly isn't working.
NFL season is weird and next week will be telling
The Browns have not looked pretty over the past few weeks, but the good news is that the AFC looks to still be wide open. The Buffalo Bills have lost to the Jacksonville Jaguars and Indianapolis Colts, the Tennessee Titans lost to the Houston Texans, and the Browns still have a lot of game left in the AFC North.
Currently, the Browns sit 10th in the AFC, three spots out of the last wildcard spot. However, the rest of the teams in front of them are all 6-4, putting the Browns just a half of a game out of the five seed. This is good and bad news as it will be a tight race until the end, but they are still far from out of this race.
However, the next three weeks will be quite telling as the Browns face the the Baltimore Ravens twice with a bye week in between. Even with just two more losses, the Browns will sit with 10 wins on the season and be in Jeopardy of a playoff spot.
Win, and win convincingly.
READ MORE: Browns Season Frustrating Enough Without Contrived Tripe
