Cleveland Browns: 3 Big takeaways from loss vs. Chiefs in Week 9
By Randy Gurzi
The offensive play-calling was improved
It seemed like after each and every game in the first eight weeks, the Cleveland Browns play calling on offense was an issue. Sure, Hue Jackson thinks it’s because he gave up play calling, but let’s get real ‚— it was an issue when he was calling it on 2016-2017.
More from NFL Spin Zone
- Dallas Cowboys made the trade everyone else should have made
- Pittsburgh Steelers rookie sleeper everyone should be talking about
- Anthony Richardson putting jaw-dropping talent on display immediately
- Denver Broncos’ stud wide receiver might be out for a while
- Washington Commanders: Three takeaways from win over Ravens
The issue boiled down to one thing — they were trying to cram a square peg into a round hole. Let’s not look at Hue in the past, but Haley this season is a perfect example. He was running slow developing plays that relied on his receivers running double routes and getting deep. The problem, his receivers couldn’t run these routes and the line can’t hold up for long.
Newly appointed Freddie Kitchens seemed to understand this. He may be new to play calling, but he was getting the ball out quicker. Quarterback Baker Mayfield still took too many hits, but it didn’t feel as brutal as when Haley was trying his style of play calling.
They didn’t win, but the offense had a nice feel to it. They spread the ball around to eight different receivers and had targets to two others. Rather than going for the kill shot and getting his quarterback killed, Kitchens was trying to get the ball in the playmaker’s hands and let Mayfield play a point guard role. This was all nice to see.