AFC Game Of The Week
Cleveland Browns at Los Angeles Chargers
Browns: They could easily be one of the undefeated teams remaining if they don’t drop the ball in Kansas City in week one. In the last two weeks, their defense has stepped up big time. We can’t forget about the embarrassment from them to the Chicago Bears when they made life miserable for Justin Fields and last week in Minnesota against the Vikings, they came to the rescue once again. In the Browns last two games, they’ve outscored their opponents by a score of 43-14. Now, I have one problem with Cleveland. They’re beginning to jump away from their identity to me. I was so happy when they hired Kevin Stefanski because he bought not only discipline, but an identity to the team, something they haven’t had in years. The Browns are at their best when they’re running the football. They have a top five running back in Nick Chubb, a nice second running back in Kareem Hunt and one of the best offensive lines in football. Now that Odell is back on the field, I feel they’re trying to force him the ball a little too much. I’m a firm believer in sticking with what’s hot. Baker Mayfield shouldn’t be throwing the ball more than 30 times a game. Anything over that number is a recipe for disaster. The Browns are similar to the Rams offense back when they had Jared Goff. When they would run the football, it would open up the passing game. This is exactly what Cleveland must do to incorporate more balance into their offense. They’ll keep it moving with a trip to California on Sunday.
Chargers: I was high on this coming into the year and so far, they haven’t disappointed me. I understand it’s early and all, but I like what I’m seeing from them. This offense has weapons that are tough for many defenses to match with them. Mike Williams is a tall possession receiver as is Keenan Allen who’s one of the best route runners in the league. I raved about one young quarterback the other day in Joe Burrow. Now, it’s time to give praise to another in Justin Herbert. When I watch this kid, he never looks phased by anything. To be so young, he has so much poise and early on in his career, he’s become a quiet leader and this team goes as far as he takes them. The offense isn’t necessarily high flying, but they do enough to make plays and come away with six points. When Brandon Staley was hired as the next head coach of the Chargers, I was more than excited for this defense. Last year, he was the defensive coordinator of the Rams and look how good they were under his leadership. Now, he’s bringing that to this Chargers defense. They play with great team speed and most importantly, they stick to their philosophy. Look at what they did to the Chiefs a few weeks ago. They were able to get pressure on Patrick Mahomes with just a four man rush and play coverage which means drop everyone back and don’t allow them to get those big plays over the top. In other words, keep it all underneath and make them earn it. They’re back home for a big game Sunday.
Browns X-Factor: Jadeveon Clowney– I like what he’s showing me so far. When they signed him, I remember saying they didn’t need him to be the guy. Be a contributing factor and the results will come. Just imagine being a head coach and worrying about Myles Garrett and coming up with a game plan to neutralize him that you have to worry about another force on the defensive line in Jadeveon Clowney. He doesn’t always get to the quarterback, but he can apply pressure consistently which still impacts the passer.
Chargers X-Factor: Mike Williams– Justin has the luxury of having two possession guys to throw too. Keenan is one who spends each week making secondary guys look silly with his route running. Then, you have Mike Williams on the other side who’s the number two option. Mike is more than that possession guy because he can play small. If you play off of him too much, he can run the hitch route and sit in the zone and he’s getting the ball. When running routes down the field, he’s a physical guy that can separate himself from coverage.
Final Thoughts: Who saw this as being one of the games of the week? This will be the first meeting between Baker Mayfield and Justin Herbert. The matchup to watch in this game is the Browns defensive line against the Chargers offensive line. Cleveland will do all they can to get a pass rush on Herbert. It’s key for the Chargers up front to keep Justin clean and if that happens, he’ll make plays against the Browns defense. I need to see Cleveland get back to their identity. Running the football and that will make life much easier for Baker. It opens the passing lanes. Baker also can’t force the ball against this opportunistic defense. He does that, they will pay for it. This is an active Chargers defense that loves getting the takeaways.
Prediction: Chargers 28, Browns 21
