3 Takeaways from Browns' Week 5 Loss vs. Chargers
A new week brought yet another heartbreaking loss for Cleveland Browns fans. Cleveland could easily be 5-0, but they fell to 2-3 with a 30-28 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday.
The Browns have now lost games by one, three and two points.
With the Baltimore Ravens picking up a big divisional win over the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday night, Cleveland is in danger of falling behind in the AFC North race. Rarely this season have the Browns looked like a team that can advance beyond the wild-card round.
Sunday's loss has the potential to send the Browns into a spiral that keeps them far away from the playoffs. Cleveland had two chances late in the fourth quarter that could have led to a victory but blew them both. It is quickly becoming a team that just seems to find ways to lose, and at some point, that sentiment may creep into the Browns players' minds.
What went wrong for Cleveland in Week 5? What did we learn? Here are our three biggest takeaways from Sunday's loss to Los Angeles.
Defensive Coordinator Joe Woods Needs to Be on the Hot Seat
The Browns offense and special teams botched chances to take late-fourth-quarter leads, and we'll get to that. However, we have to start by discussing the putrid defensive performance we saw on Sunday.
Cleveland surrendered a ludicrous 238 rushing yards and 7.8 yards per carry, 465 total yards and 30 points. While the Chargers converted only three of 12 third- or fourth-down attempts, they picked up 26 yards and punted only once.
What's frustrating is that there has been at least one defensive breakdown in each of Cleveland's losses. In Week 2, the Browns allowed the New York Jets to rip off 14 points in the final two minutes. Against the Atlanta Falcons last week, the defense allowed a run and a pass of 42 yards each in the fourth quarter. On Sunday, Cleveland surrendered a 71-yard run to Austin Ekeler.
A blown coverage and easy Carolina Panthers touchdown nearly cost the Browns in Week 1.
Much of the blame has to rest on defensive coordinator Joe Woods. The defense has talented players like Denzel Ward, Greg Newsome II, Myles Garrett and Jadeveon Clowney. However, Woods can't seem to get his team to play consistently well against the run or the pass, and his scheme has led to obvious communication problems—suggesting that either the scheme is too complicated or just not good.
To help aid the defense, the Browns traded for Falcons linebacker Deion Jones on Sunday, according to NFL Media's Ian Rapoport.
Adding Jones isn't going to fix all of the defensive woes. Cleveland needs to take a long, hard look at whether replacing Woods will, because there's too much talent on the roster for the Browns defense to melt down this consistently.
Offensively, Cleveland Needs to Stick with What It Does Best
Last week, we discussed how head coach Kevin Stefanski's decision not to lean on the run more cost Cleveland a tight game. This was the case again on Sunday, as a Browns team that averaged 6.9 yards per carry ran 31 times and passed 34.
This strategy loomed large with just over four minutes remaining in regulation. The Browns had a 1st-and-10 at the Chargers' 12-yard line, down two points. After Nick Chubb was stuffed for a three-yard loss, it was two straight passes by quarterback Jacoby Brissett. The first fell incomplete. The second—which came on a play during which Brissett had a huge running late available—he threw an interception in the back of the end zone.
Stefanski should have called at least one more run during that series. He also should have emphasized to Brissett, who averaged 10.7 yards per carry on three scrambles—to take off if a safe throw wasn't available.
This is an offense that goes through Chubb, Kareem Hunt and the ground game. Stefanski needs to trust that plan in key situations.
And while we're on the topic, let's talk about Stefanski's decision to go for it on 4th-and-1 from the Cleveland 34 in the third quarter. The decision was questionable, the decision to not call a Brissett sneak was even more so.
Brissett, who converted 20 of 21 3rd- or 4th-and-1 opportunities before joining Cleveland, has a knack for short yardage. He didn't get the ball in this instance, Hunt was stuffed for a four-yard loss, and L.A. turned the poor decision into three points.
The Browns know what they do well. They need to stick with it or else close games will continue to become losses.
Cade York Simply Isn't a Clutch Kicker Yet
The Browns had a second opportunity to win after stopping the Chargers on fourth down and getting the ball back with just over a minute remaining. Cleveland picked up one first down and put rookie kicker Cade York in position for a game-winning 54-yard attempt. It went wide-right.
"I hit it hard, hit it strong. I just missed it," York said, per Chris Esterling of the Akron Beacon Journal.
A tough kick? Sure. However, this was York's second miss of the game—he badly missed a 45-yarder just before the half. In a two-point loss, that's big.
York has now missed a kick in three of his five NFL outings, though these were his first two missed field goals. The Browns have lost two of those games with York's misses making the difference (a missed extra point in the loss to New York). The rookie showed a glimpse of promise when he nailed a 58-yard game-winner in Week 1. However, an elite kicker like divisional foe Justin Tucker, York is not.
Cleveland used a fourth-round pick on the LSU product to bring reliability to a position that hasn't been dependable since the Phil Dawson days. The Browns aren't getting it, at least not yet. For now, they need to find a way to not leave games up to their rookie kicker.