The Cleveland Browns have suffered their second loss in three games, this time at the hands of the New York Giants. The Browns had a collective effort that did not have much juice after the opening kickoff and offensive drive.
The offensive production was very flat after Deshaun Watson’s opening touchdown pass. Most of this was thanks to the New York Giants pass rush that was caused by the poor effort by the Cleveland offensive line. It was hard to judge anything from play calling to play production due to the lack of time allowed for the play to develop. Without an offensive line, it will be hard to see that change.
Cleveland’s defensive performance was not much better. Daniel Jones was very sharp and didn’t give the Browns many opportunities to take the ball away, and Cleveland didn’t create any either. The team had no luck stopping Devin Singletary either as he had a difference-making performance. Despite a poor performance, the defense still finds motivation to repeat their 2023 season behind their leader Myles Garrett.
Here are the position grades from Sunday’s matchup against the New York Giants:
Quarterback: C
It was a rollercoaster ride for Deshaun Watson on Sunday as he just couldn’t seem to find a rhythm. After their first drive of a one-play passing touchdown to Amari Cooper, it seemed as if the Browns were going to dominate the day. Unfortunately, that’s where most of Watson and the offense’s success stopped.
The Browns quarterback once again failed to reach two hundred passing yards but managed to collect two passing touchdowns in the performance. Watson’s throws were on point for the most part and he has had plenty of worse performances for the Browns where they have won. The two lost fumbles had the biggest impact on Deshaun Watson’s grade, despite the decent passing day he provided. We’ll see how long the confidence in Watson continues if he struggles against the Las Vegas Raiders.
Running backs: C-
Jerome Ford and D’Onta Foreman were difficult to grade in this contest. The offensive line had one of their worst performances in recent memory and left little to no opportunities for the Browns backs. Along with that, the Browns’ running backs had found the team passing the ball in most of the game and decimated their ability to make an impact.
The running game was nonexistent in most of this contest for a variety of reasons. But Kevin Stefanski will have to find a way to develop yards on the ground if he wants the offense to have any success moving forward. The first thing they will need to do to help Ford & Foreman is to fix the offensive line as quickly as they can.
Wide Receivers and Tight Ends: B
One of the only silver linings about the Browns’ performance on Sunday was the return of Pro Bowl wide receiver Amari Cooper. Deshaun Watson found him for a touchdown on the first play of the day on offense. It was a sight for sore eyes as fans have confusingly watched Amari drop multiple passes in big moments throughout the first couple of weeks. His day was arguably the best of any Browns player.
Among the other Browns receivers, it was not their best day. Elijah Moore had a very quiet day with his three targets, and Jerry Jeudy had his least impressive game so far this year. One player who had a solid performance was Browns second-year tight-end Jordan Akins. He started on Sunday for the injured David Njoku, who is expected to be back at practice this week.
Offensive Line: F
It’s hard to begin on how poor the offensive line’s performance was not only yesterday but all three weeks of the season. The team has now given up the most sacks of the season and took the lead in this category after they allowed eight today. Starting right tackle Dawand Jones had a surprisingly bad performance as well and contributed to the sack total. It was extremely difficult for Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson or any of Cleveland’s running backs to have positive production with the defensive rush being so dominant.
One benefit of the doubt numerous injuries have piled up for first-year offensive line coach Andy Dickerson. He’s had his hands full dealing with injuries from starting offensive tackles Jedrick Wills and Jack Conklin and now has to worry about Wyatt Teller’s knee. Two other offensive tackles also went down at one point for the Browns on Sunday. They will have to figure out the offensive line situation immediately, and many are wondering what the answer might be.
Defensive Line: B
The defensive line was not the root of the problem in Sunday’s loss, but they were not enough to force any game-changing decisions. Daniel Jones felt the pressure of the Browns defensive line with nine quarterback hits and two sacks and was able to overcome it all. Along with his impressive performance, Devin Singletary did a solid job of finding holes in the defensive line.
With Myles Garrett’s injuries getting worse and worse over each week, fans have every right to be concerned. The team can only hope that Myles can shake off his injury and continue to show his toughness as his teammates try to do more to help him and the team. If Myles is to miss time, they’ll have to do more than help.
Linebackers: B+
Both Browns starting linebackers continue to impress each week with their tackle total and presence on the field. Jeremiah Owusu-Koromoah and Jordan Hicks were the team’s second and third-leading tacklers in this contest. They also each added a tackle for loss and a quarterback hit on Daniel Jones. They both have had very good starts to the 2024 season despite the underperformance of the defense as a whole.
The biggest impact on the linebacker’s grade was the pass coverage. While New York was impressive on Sunday, the Browns defense is expected to easily stop both the run and pass against the Giants. Almost every Browns linebacker was disappointing in the pass coverage on Sunday. They will need to help turn it around if they are to stay competitive during these regular season games.
Defensive Backs: D
After a very successful day in Jacksonville, the Browns secondary failed to build off this momentum at home in week three. The Giants are considered to have a less talented wide receiver room than Jacksonville but had no problem in finding holes in the Browns’ secondary. Martin Emerson started the game guarding Giants first round draft pick Malik Nabers and had all sorts of issues covering him. That was just the beginning of the problems for the Browns.
Daniel Jones was very sharp with his passes and did a fantastic job of being smart with the football. The Browns gave him plenty of opportunities to make plays and he did. Against a quarterback like Jones, allowing him to pass that well will make it difficult to win in the NFL. Grant Delpit was the bright spot as he led the team with ten total tackles in the game.
