Cleveland Browns: Quitting on Running Game Key in Loss vs Ravens

The Cleveland Browns gave up on the run in Week 2, just like Hue Jackson said they wouldn’t do

After bemoaning the fact the Cleveland Browns needed to run the ball more effectively after their loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, head coach Hue Jackson gave up on the run too fast in their loss to the Baltimore Ravens.

The Cleveland Browns scored 20 points in the first quarter against the Ravens. Of course, this came after only scoring 10 the entire game against the Eagles. Their first half success was surely aided by having 105 yards rushing as a team. Despite having a quarterback dealing with a shoulder injury, the Browns would only rush for 40 more yards the rest of the game. Not only did the Browns lose, but Hue Jackson did his second quarterback few favors with his play calling.

However, the first quarter went exactly as the Browns wanted, save a blocked extra point getting taken back. First of all, the Browns scored three touchdowns. This flurry also included the second-longest running play in the history of the franchise with Isaiah Crowell going 85 yards to the house. Moreover, the two other touchdowns came from Browns first round rookie Corey Coleman.

After those three touchdowns in the first 11:26 of the game, Cleveland wouldn’t score another point for the rest of the game. The Ravens would piece together 23 points over the next 49:34 to beat the Browns, 25-20.

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One of the biggest reasons the Browns floundered is the fact they gave up on the running game. After the seven-carry, 105-yard first quarter, the Browns ran the ball 16 times for just 40 yards in the final three quarters. Two of those were carries by Josh McCown, which includes the ill-fated option call. It’s easy to criticize all play-callers after the fact when plays don’t work, but how that was expected to work given the circumstances is dubious at best.

Obviously the run production was skewed by the 85-yard touchdown from Crowell. The other 20 carries from Crowell and Duke Johnson accounted for just 60 yards.

That 85-yard Crowell run is the entire reason for the Browns to keep running the ball. Chip away, keep working and find a hole in the defense to attack in hopes of more success. Unfortunately, the Browns didn’t.

EIGHTY FIVE YARDS.

Wow. Wow. Wow.
👋 @IsaiahCrowell34 #CLEvsBAL https://t.co/IRdgwHQMWE
— NFL (@NFL) September 18, 2016

The most frustrating example of Jackson’s love for the passing game came in the third quarter. Up 20-19 and at their own 20-yard line, McCown started the drive with an incomplete pass to Terrelle Pryor. On second down, the Browns ran a pitch to Crowell going left that went for 15 yards, giving them a first down at the 35.

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McCown then completed a pass to Coleman before it was overturned because Coleman had stepped out of bounds. The Browns then called and threw two more incomplete passes before punting.

Four incomplete passes wrapped around just one run that went for 15 yards before punting is perplexing. On the whole, the Browns had 36 pass plays compared to just 21 carries to running backs.

The Ravens were more determined to stick with their running game, running 26 times even though it only gained 80 yards with a long of 11. The Browns run defense was pretty solid and yet the Ravens refused to stop trying.

They ran more offensive plays in total at 71 to the Browns’ 59. But despite never breaking an explosive play in the running game, they kept running and got more effective as the game progressed. The Browns had carries of 85 and 15 and ran the ball less later in the game. So when they might have worn down the Ravens defense and had better chances of success, they went away from the run.

Sep 18, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Browns running back Isaiah Crowell (34) runs the ball past Baltimore Ravens inside linebacker Zach Orr (54) for a first down during the first quarter at FirstEnergy Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott R. Galvin-USA TODAY Sports /

Beyond the simple production involved, this error in play calling subjected McCown to more punishment. In addition to failures in pass protection that got McCown lit up multiple times, he caused some of his own issues by holding onto the ball too long as he tends to do.

If the Browns kept running the ball, it should have forced the Ravens to be honest to the run and not allow them to tee off as much on McCown. Especially with an injured shoulder on top of the fact that Robert Griffin III went down with a significant shoulder injury the previous week, it stood to reason that the Browns would have done their best to take the air out of the football and keep the Ravens off the field.

For reasons that only Jackson and the Browns’ coaching staff can answer, they kept passing. And not only passing, going with deep drops that forced McCown to hold the ball longer. Most of the quick passes and screens, which could aid in taking pressure off of McCown, happened early in the game.

Partly because they kept ending up behind in down-and-distances, the Browns went to a far more downfield passing game in the second half. Subsequently, that gave the Ravens ample opportunities to hit McCown. Not running the ball and not being successful in passing on early downs created too many situations where they had to pass. Thus allowing the Ravens could pin their ears back and attack an already wounded McCown.

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So much about the Browns in their current iteration is about youth and developing, learning from mistakes and improving with experience. Even though Hue Jackson is a veteran play caller and has been a head coach once before in the NFL, this game had him look just as inexperienced and prone to mistakes as his young roster.

Like his players, Jackson has to learn from this and get better going forward. That way, the Browns can secure victories in these types of games. This particular mistake may contribute to Jackson losing his second quarterback in as many weeks. Fortuitously, that will make the running game all that much more critical this season.

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