3 Takeaways from Browns' Week 9 Win
It's been a wildly up-and-down season for the Cleveland Browns thus far. Coming into Sunday's matchup with the Cincinnati Bengals, it seemed like Cleveland could be reaching for the panic button.
The Browns had just dropped a winnable game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, they were sitting at 4-4, they had just pulled the plug on wideout Odell Beckham Jr., and their vaunted offense had scored 41 points over its last three games.
Then, the Browns went into Cincinnati and rolled the Bengals. They dominated on the ground, produced huge plays on defense and got enough out of the passing game to keep Cincinnati on its heels.
One game isn't going to save Cleveland's season, but it was a reminder that when the 5-4 Browns are close to healthy, they can be scary good. Here's what else we learned during Cleveland's 41-16 win over Cincinnati in Week 9.
When the Defense Is Healthy, It Can Be Great
The Browns defense wasn't at 100 percent Sunday. Linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah remains out, and cornerback Greedy Williams left the game with a shoulder injury. However, starting corners Denzel Ward and Greg Newsome II were both in the lineup as the secondary surged.
It wasn't all about Ward's 99-yard interception return for a touchdown—though that opening-drive play did set the tone. The Browns did a tremendous job of limiting rookie phenom Ja'Marr Chase and baffling quarterback Joe Burrow all afternoon.
Chase finished with just six catches for 49 yards on 13 targets. Burrow was held without a touchdown pass for the first time all season.
Cleveland, meanwhile, notched three takeaways and five sacks while allowing a mere 13 points. Penalties were problematic—the Browns had three offside calls over the first two drives—but the big plays made up for them.
With Cleveland's secondary close to full strength, the Browns were able to attack Burrow with only occasional blitzes. This was a winning formula against Cincinnati and a pleasant development after the Browns had lost three of their previous four games.
Donovan Peoples-Jones Is Loaded with Upside
Running back Nick Chubb remains the Browns' biggest threat on offense. He racked up 137 rushing yards and two touchdowns Sunday and had a phenomenal 70-yard scoring scamper.
However, with Beckham off the team, second-year wideout Donovan Peoples-Jones is quickly becoming Cleveland's biggest receiving threat. He had 101 receiving yards and two touchdowns in Week 6, missed the next two games with a groin injury and then returned on Sunday to provide a massive boost.
Peoples-Jones only caught two passes, but both were huge. One was a 60-yard scoring strike. The other set up Cleveland with a goal-to-go situation.
The 2020 sixth-round pick out of Michigan came into the league with plenty of physical upside but limited proven production—he had just 34 receptions and 438 yards in 2019. He's starting to reach his potential, though, and is providing Cleveland with a dangerous deep threat.
In seven appearances this season, Peoples-Jones only has 15 receptions. However, he's found the end zone three times and is averaging a whopping 20.9 yards per reception.
The Offense Will Be Just Fine Without Odell Beckham Jr.
It's not entirely fair to say that the Browns offense is better without Beckham.
Beckham still possesses game-changing speed and can get open. He may return to being a perennial Pro Bowl talent at his next stop. However, he was never a central piece of Kevin Stefanski's offense, and that's largely by design.
As Fox Sports 1's Emmanuel Acho recently pointed out, top receivers regularly see dips in their production in Stefanski's offenses. Throwing to the open receiver is far more important in his system than feeding any one pass-catcher.
Throwing to the open man is exactly what Baker Mayfield did Sunday. He finished an efficient 14-of-21 for 218 yards and two touchdowns while completing passes to eight different players. He had a season-high passer rating of 132.6.
Jarvis Landry led the team with only three receptions.
The Browns might not have a true No. 1 receiver on their roster with Beckham gone, but they don't need one when the offense operates as it did in Cincinnati. Cleveland might not be better without Beckham, but it has become clear that it isn't worse without him.
We'll see if that remains the case next week at the suddenly surging New England Patriots.