The Cleveland Browns will hit the field on Sunday against the New York Jets refreshed and raring to go after enjoying their bye week.
At least everyone hopes that is the plan, as the Browns did not leave
anyone feeling good in their final game before the break, a frustrating loss to the New England Patriots that felt over in the second quarter.
As for the Jets, they picked up their first win of the season last week against the Cincinnati Bengals, and in the process became the third team in four tries to take down the Bengals since Joe Flacco took over the starting quarterback role in Cincinnati.
This is a game of two teams angling for draft position as they continue a decades-long quest to find a franchise quarterback, so it might be an afternoon where the first team to reach double digits on the scoreboard ends up the winner.
On Thursday, Cleveland’s coordinators held their weekly meeting with the media, and here are the key takeaways from what they had to say about the upcoming game against the Jets.
Defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz
Rookie linebacker Carson Schwesinger is dealing with a high-ankle sprain and is likely going to miss some time. How will the defense adjust to his absence, according to Schwartz?
“We have some experienced players there. Mohamoud (Diabate) got a lot of starting experience last year. Devin Bush has played in there. You know, Bake (Jerome Baker) has played in there, you know, so we have a lot of different ways that we can go with it, and you know, we’ll practice that way and just see where it lands. But yeah, Carson means a lot to us, not just from his play – but also his communication and, you know, things like that.”
New York quarterback Justin Fields is not a threat in the passing game – 30th in QBR and three games with less than 50 passing yards – but can make plays as a runner. How can Cleveland’s defense adjust to the threat of Fields running the ball?
“It’s like defending an extra blocker; you have to account for the quarterback. Fields has tremendous speed, size, and they call quarterback runs, sweeps, draws, and options like zone reads or RPOs. It’s like playing a triple-option; you have to cover the dive, quarterback, and pitch. It requires assignment football and a full-team effort to defend it.
“We’ve seen other teams that do it, so we have a good plan to be able to handle it. But sometimes a plan is a little bit easier in theory than in execution. You know, it’s one thing to say, yeah, you have the quarterback on this, but another thing, when you have a guy that’s the athlete that Justin Fields is and the speed that he has. So, it’s going to take a good team effort to defend that stuff.”
Offensive coordinator Tommy Rees
Head coach Kevin Stefanski made the decision this week to turn over the play calling on offense to Rees, who called plays at Notre Dame and Alabama. This will be the first time for Rees calling plays at the NFL level, so are there any concerns?
“Look, you learn every time you call plays. I started calling plays in the last game of the 2019 season. I called them in big games, games people didn’t watch, everywhere in between. I worked for two head coaches who are pretty intense on game day, so you learn to block out noise, some friendly fire. You get into a groove, a comfort level. So much is about learning your own team, your own quarterback. I’ve been able to sit with Dylan, be with the offense, I know what helps him click, and I have a good feel for our personnel.
“That’s important when calling games. You get into a rhythm during the game: what from the plan works, what needs adjustment, what they’re doing to try to take things away. Then you build counters. Every time you call a game, you learn. The NFL part, I’ve been in this position the last couple of years and have seen it firsthand, so I don’t have much concern there.”
Cleveland’s wide receivers have been bad through the first eight games of the season. But, NFL teams still need to utilize them, so how can the Browns address the problem?
“We got to put the receivers in the right spots, we got to ask them to do the right things, we got to make sure that we’re giving them the looks during the week. You know, certainly they did some things there to take some looks away but getting him to progress and feel confident in those things. And again, all that work is done throughout the week, and then when a team’s doing something that’s gonna take it away, you got to have counters and answers for that.”
Special teams coordinator Bubba Ventrone
The special teams unit has struggled at times this season. From rookie kicker Andre Szmyt’s early misses to injuries forcing changes in the return game. What can the unit do to improve the rest of the season?
“Yeah, we started slow, just a couple mishaps early. I felt like we got back on track about midway through the first half of the year. Definitely missed some opportunities in the return game, both on KR (kick return) and punt return. So, emphasis on that moving forward with also priority in coverage. That’s always going to be a huge thing for us.”
Sticking with Szmyt, who missed two kicks in Week 1 against the Bengals, Ventrone likes how the rookie has most calmed down the kicking situation since then:
“Early in the season, you know, first time out there, obviously missed a couple kicks against Cincinnati, which were critical, but then got back on track. He had a miss at Detroit on a deep kick. Missed a kick at New England, which would have been a big one, but I feel like he’s been really consistent in his practice reps. I feel like he’s in a good spot, you know, moving forward.”
The Browns and the Jets kick off on Sunday at 1 p.m. from MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. Stay tuned to Dawgs By Nature for coverage throughout the weekend and all day on Sunday.
