Cleveland Browns: 5 Lessons learned vs. Titans in Week 1
4. Offensive line concerns persist
The biggest shortcoming of the Cleveland Browns roster coming into the 2019 season was their offensive line. Everyone knew that they would have to be wise in how they designed the offense behind a line that is mediocre at best. On Sunday, Cameron Wake and the Titans pass rush showed that they were ill-equipped to handle their deficiencies on the O-line, especially after losing key players for the game.
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Greg Robinson obviously isn’t going to get ejected from all 16 games this year. However, the team must make strides in both coaching up the offensive line and in terms of scheming around it. On top of that, the team may be wise to pursue any potential trades or pickups that may shake things up and help improve this group. Because in Week 1, the O-line was a serious problem that isn’t going anywhere.
3. Team must mature, beyond the penalty issues
Yes, maturity in terms of accruing penalties is one thing that must be addressed, which we’ve already talked about. Beyond that, though, the Browns really showed their frustration and bits of immaturity in other ways late in the Week 1 loss. They were sloppy on both sides of the ball and appeared to be pressing exceptionally hard to force the issue, which resulted in what amounts to game-ending mistakes.
Cleveland has all of the talent in the world on their roster. This is a team that has the on-paper group that could potentially compete for a Super Bowl. However, no NFL squad is going to just waltz up onto the podium to take the Lombardi Trophy without facing adversity. The Browns clearly need to figure out how to handle those adverse situations with maturity and the ability to overcome situations when the chips are down.