Browns-Bills: It Will All Be Decided in the Trenches

The Cleveland Browns will visit Buffalo to take on the disappointing 1-3 Bills this Sunday.

The Bills came into the season with high hopes that they would improve upon three straight 7-9 seasons, especially with the addition of Pro Bowl wide receiver Terrell Owens to match with 1,000-yard receiver Lee Evans. The slow start isn’t exactly what coach Dick Jauron envisioned.

Particularly troubling is the apparent regression of third-year starter Trent Edwards, whose completion percentage has dipped from 65.5% in 2008 to 59.8% thus far. He has thrown 5 touchdown passes with 5 interceptions in the first four games.

It was expected that Owens, Evans, and third receiver Josh Reed would give Edwards all the weapons he needs. The fact that the running game is averaging 4.8 yards per carry makes Edwards play all the more perplexing.

So far this season, the three (Owens, Evans and Reed) have just 29 catches and three touchdowns over the first four games.

Running back Marshawn Lynch, who ran for over 1,000 yards in both of his two seasons in the NFL, is working his way back from a three-game suspension.

He adds one more playmaker to a team that was already getting excellent production from backup RB Fred Jackson.

Jackson has 333 yards on 4.8 yards per carry (plus 18 catches for 160 yards) despite the fact that the last two weeks, the Bills have had to abandon the run while playing from behind.

It has been more than a challenge for the Bills to get the ball into the end zone. The team has yet to record a rushing touchdown, thanks in large part to their offensive line, which can get manhandled near the goal line. They are extremely young and a bit undersized.

Left tackle Demetrius Bell returns to the starting lineup after missing last week’s game with a groin pull. The second-year player is not the prototypical blind-side tackle, weighing in at only slightly over 300 pounds.

The team lost starter Brad Butler for the season. In his place is right tackle Jonathon Scott, who was waived by the Detroit Lions before last season. He is raw and has a difficult time in pass protection.

Rookies start at both guard spots.  Eric Wood (first round) and Andy Levitre (second round) both have shown that they are capable run blockers, but they are having a tough time adjusting to NFL defenses as pass blockers.

The only real veteran across the line is fifth-year center Geoff Hangartner, and even he has not been a full-time starter since his second year in the league with the Carolina Panthers.

The offensive line has already surrendered 16 sacks and there does not appear to be a silver lining on the horizon.

The Bills believed second-year TE Derek Fine made current Brown Robert Royal expendable. But so far, he has had little impact and has been suffering from a severe case of the dropsies.

Although some of the national pundits made the Bills the sexy pick to break out this year because of the multitude of skill player options, the Bills offense will continue to struggle until the offensive line gets up to speed. That may not happen all year.

The Buffalo defense may be even worse. Although the team does run a lot of their offense out of the “no huddle,” that doesn’t quite explain why their time of possession numbers are so awful.

Despite garnering six sacks last week, the Bills defense was pounded into submission by the Miami Dolphin run game. The Dolphins scored 38 points and accumulated 250 yards on the ground.

The week before, the Saints shelved its potent passing attack and instead rushed for 222 yards. New Orleans did not even bother to break out Drew Brees’ arm in the 27-7 win.

DT Marcus Stroud, DE Aaron Schobel, DE Chris Kelsay, and Ryan Denney have a combined nine sacks. While the front four has the ability to get after the quarterback, they are being blistered against the run. DT Kyle Williams has the potential to turn into a real impact player as he gains more consistency.

The linebacking corps is the weakness of the defense (as long as starter Paul Posluszny remains out of the lineup with a broken arm). Second-year player Marcus Buggs has taken over for Posluszny, and he is not yet up to the task.

Kawika Mitchell and Keith Ellison are the starters at outside linebacker. Neither is a game-changer.

There are rumblings that the Bills may experiment with moving Mitchell to inside linebacker and insert rookie Nic Harris into the starting lineup.

Harris was a big hitter at the University of Oklahoma, and at this point the Bills have to make some kind of move to improve a disastrous unit.

Terrence McGee is a solid cornerback, but the Bills are having a tough time finding a compliment on the opposite side. Leodis McKelvin was the starter, but he is on the IR.

The job is Drayton Florence’s for now, but he was on the “burn unit” in Jacksonville last year. Look for the Browns to test Florence early and often.

Safeties Donte Whitner (a Cleveland Glenville graduate) and Bryan Scott are the strength of the defense. Both are as capable in run support as they are as ball-hawks. Whitner in particular is having a sensational year.

Both punter Brian Moorman and kicker Rian Lindell are solid. But Browns kick returner Joshua Cribbs has to be licking his chops when he watches the film of the Bills poor coverage units.

The Browns may be a team in transition, but they may just have the line play to pull this game out. The word is that Jamal Lewis is a go this week.

He and/or Jerome Harrison must have big games to keep the pressure off what is now a very inexperienced receiving corps.

The good news is that the Bills front seven cannot seem to stop the run even when teams are telling them its coming.

This is a good game to break in some of the young receivers because Buffalo only has one decent cornerback. But in order for the Browns passing game to be successful this weak, THEY MUST RUN THE FOOTBALL!

It will be an interesting chess match when the Bills have the football. The Bills have the firepower at wideout and running back to play with anybody.

However, if the Browns are able to shut down the Buffalo run attack, the front seven (especially Shawn Rogers and Kamerion Wimbley) have the ability to make life miserable for Trent Edwards.

Controlling the line of scrimmage on early downs will be the key to the game for both teams.

I look for the Browns to build on the momentum they gained from last week’s performance, and finally get a win against a team that has really taken on a lot of injuries for so early in the season.

Final Prediction:  Cleveland Browns 20 – Buffalo Bills 17