For Pete's Sake - Browns Lose in Lambeau
In this week's episode of For Pete's Sake, Nicole Chatham and I discuss the second heartbreaking loss in a row for the Cleveland Browns. The scene may have been Lambeau Field and the opponent the Green Bay Packers, but the defeat came at the hands of the Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield with a consequential impact by terrible officiating.
Despite the result, both Nicole and I found plenty to enjoy about this game, which is what made the ending so infuriating. The defense, despite missing a number of players, endured and once again competed.
Davante Adams dominated, wasn't ever stopped by the Browns, but he's the only player that was all that good for the Packers. Aaron Rodgers had 88 yards passing to anyone else.
M.J. Stewart, Ifeadi Odenigbo, Joe Jackson and Sione Takitaki were players that were able to contribute for a Browns defense that never quits.
Offensively, Nick Chubb returned to superstar form and if not for fatigue, potentially impacted COVID-19, he might have carried the Browns to the victory almost by himself. He led the team in rushing and receiving.
Center Nick Harris was impressive against one of the best nose tackles in the league in Kenny Clark. I weigh in with some reservations about proclaiming him a starter after this game game, but his future looks bright.
The gameplan was fantastic and head coach Kevin Stefanski had the Packers off balance, consistently putting the offense in position to move the ball.
We do get into the four interceptions for Baker Mayfield and what went wrong with all of them. The context of missing a week and a half of practice is important, but it doesn't excuse the miscues.
Last but certainly not least, we go off on the officiating. Nicole takes on the notion of not allowing the game to be put in the hands of officials, asking the question how many points does a team have to overcome to account for bad officiating.
I acknowledge the challenge of officiating while lamenting that the NFL doesn't take meaningful action to help them. Whether it's a sky judge or whatever, a league that has over $10 billion in revenue has the power to make meaningful improvements that don't slow the game down and simply allow their product to be less than it should be.
A game that was important to the NFL, a featured matchup was setting up to be a great ending whether the Browns come back and score a touchdown to win it or Aaron Rodgers gets the opportunity for a game winning drive of his own. Instead, the final egregious call of a game full of them provides an unsatisfying ending, cheats the player the gave so much for a chance to win and the fans that tuned in on Christmas.
READ MORE: M.J. Stewart Epitomizes Attitude Teams Want in Players
