Cleveland Browns vs. Pittsburgh Steelers: Full Report Card Grades for Cleveland
It was a tale of two halves for the Cleveland Browns in Pittsburgh Sunday afternoon. The orange helmets lost a heartbreaker to the rival Pittsburgh Steelers on a 41-yard field goal as time expired.
Pittsburgh now has 11 straight home wins over Cleveland, and quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is 18-1 in his career against the Browns.
"#Browns now 1-15 in season openers since '99.
— Tom Withers (@twithersAP) September 7, 2014"
The Browns missed the memo that the game started at 1 p.m. as they were dominated on both sides of the ball for the entire first half.
Cleveland mustered just 101 yards of total offense, while the defense allowed 364 total yards to the Black and Yellow during the first 30 minutes
Head coach Mike Pettine must have given the motivational speech of a lifetime before the third quarter because his Browns came out a team possessed.
The running game especially stepped up for the Orange and Brown, which was surprising, considering that starting running back Ben Tate went down with a knee injury. The rookie combination of Terrance West and Isaiah Crowell ended up leading Cleveland to 183 yards on the ground.
Sloppy tackling and penalties for the defense in the first half and the special teams units throughout were the main factors in why the Browns fell short in the end.
"Browns have set NFL record for longest losing streak in season openers (10 straight)-- surpassing mark shared w/ 1968-76 Eagles (ELIAS)
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) September 7, 2014"
Let's get out the red marker and give some game grades.
Quarterback
1 of 10
Brian Hoyer was inaccurate and indecisive in the first half. He was efficient and crisp on scoring drives in the final two quarters.
In the end, Hoyer went three-and-out on what turned out to be Cleveland's last offensive series with under two minutes to play. His counterpart, Ben Roethlisberger, marched down the field to set up a field goal as time expired to lock in the victory for Pittsburgh.
Hoyer's improved play in the third frame took away the need for coach Pettine to insert Johnny Manziel for an offensive spark. The Ohio native lives to start another day.
At the end of the day, No. 6 posted respectable numbers. The veteran went 19-of-31 for 230 yards and a touchdown with a 94.8 QB rating.
Consider that Hoyer was without starting running back Ben Tate and star tight end Jordan Cameron for the majority of the afternoon. Not bad.
Grade: B-
Running Back
2 of 10
When starting running back Ben Tate left the game with a knee injury, he had 41 yards, a yards-per-carry average of 6.8 and a long of 25. The ground game was average at best at the time, and handing the ball off moving forward looked unpromising.
Maybe it was a motivational halftime speech or the change in personnel in the backfield, but the running backs were the story for the final two quarters.
Rookies Terrance West and Isaiah Crowell dominated as both averaged over six yards per carry. West hit the 100-yard rushing mark, and Crowell got into the end zone twice.
Kyle Shanahan's zone-blocking scheme has never looked better.
ESPN Cleveland's Tony Grossi commented:
"Crowell was a revelation in the comeback.
Playing because Ben Tate was out with a knee injury, Crowell scored the first touchdown of the season on a 3-yard run and then the second with a 15-yarder comparable to a cement mixer accelerating downhill.
"
Depending on the seriousness of Tate's injury, the Browns coaching staff could have some interesting decisions to make when it comes to playing time in the home opener next Sunday:
"#Browns HC Mike Pettine said we're in wait and see mode on how serious injuries are to RB Ben Tate (knee) and TE Jordan Cameron (shoulder).
— Nate Ulrich (@NateUlrichABJ) September 7, 2014"
Grade: A
Wide Receiver and Tight End
3 of 10
Free-agent slot receiver Andrew Hawkins came as advertised and then some as the Browns fell short in their season opener.
The 5'7" speedster caught eight of his 10 targets for 87 yards, which was six more receptions than any other Cleveland pass-catcher Sunday.
Hawkins showed fantastic hands and quick acceleration in a performance that will surely make him a favorite of Brian Hoyer moving forward.
Undrafted rookie Taylor Gabriel was the disappointment of the wide receiver group, as he had only two receptions on six opportunities.
Top outside threat Miles Austin was seldom looked to as he hauled in a pair of passes with a long of 17 yards.
Browns fans have their fingers crossed that the shoulder injury suffered by Pro Bowl tight end Jordan Cameron is not a serious one. Cameron had hurt his shoulder as well during training camp.
"#Browns HC Mike Pettine said we're in wait and see mode on how serious injuries are to RB Ben Tate (knee) and TE Jordan Cameron (shoulder).
— Nate Ulrich (@NateUlrichABJ) September 7, 2014"
Before leaving the game, Cameron collected two catches for 47 yards. One came in the first quarter where he stumbled after the reception. If Cameron had stayed upright, he would have tasted the end zone. No. 84 could have had a couple more catches, but Hoyer was low on those throws.
Grade: C+
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Offensive Line
4 of 10
The offensive line struggled in the first half (as did the entire team) and stood tall over the final two quarters.
Joel Bitonio had his "welcome to the NFL" moment early in the game as he was beat clean, which allowed for quarterback Brian Hoyer to get sacked.
Full credit goes to this line for stepping up in the second half and really executing the zone-blocking scheme for the run game. Especially the right side.
Joe Thomas and Alex Mack were their usual steady selves, but the job Mitchell Schwartz and John Greco did to open lanes for Terrance West and Isaiah Crowell was phenomenal.
West ran for 100 yards and Crowell rolled into the endzone for a pair of touchdowns. They also gave Hoyer enough time in the pocket to orchestrate Cleveland's comeback.
A good effort overall from a unit that is considered a team strength.
Grade: B
Defensive Line
5 of 10
The defensive line plugged away and eventually cracked Pittsburgh's solid group of offensive linemen. Using a rotation of Phil Taylor, Billy Winn, Armonty Bryant and Ahtyba Rubin, the Browns big men let the running game beat them early on.
Le'Veon Bell as a man possessed in the first half as he cut through to the second level with ease and eventually ended up with 109 rushing yards.
However, the crew kept at it and their constant pressure created space for Cleveland's linebackers to break into the backfield.
Special credit goes to the ferociousness of Armonty Bryant. The sophomore was relentless all afternoon in all aspects of disrupting the Steelers offense. Only two tackles show up on the box score, but Bryant was a much larger factor in the battle.
Grade: B-
Linebacker
6 of 10
The day belonged to Paul Kruger out of Cleveland's linebacker corps. He looked every bit the high-profile free-agent signing that he was two offseasons ago in Sunday's opener. Kruger was a man possessed as he amassed two sacks, two tackles for loss and five total tackles.
Fellow pass-rusher Jabaal Sheard got off to a slow start but turned it up as the day progressed. Sheard collected a sack, one tackle for loss and three combined tackles. The veteran LB was moving all over the field and looked comfortable doing it.
The inside linebackers were a mixed bag.
On the one hand, Karlos Dansby snagged an interception, deflected two passes and contributed six tackles. He was not great in run defense, as Steelers running back Le'Veon Bell zipped past him on a couple of occasions.
Rookie Christian Kirksey got his first NFL sack during the opening half and held up well overall. Like most of the defense, he struggled against the pass in quarters one and two. Kirksey did improve in coverage as the matchup progressed.
Last year's first-round pick Barkevious Mingo had four tackles but didn't have much penetration through the offensive line. He was out of position at times, missed some tackles and wasn't overly impressive in any one area.
Grade: C+
Secondary
7 of 10
This was an absolutely wretched day for the secondary, and that is bad news for a club that kept 12 bodies in the defensive backfield on the 53-man roster.
Rookie Justin Gilbert was picked apart by Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, while Pro Bowl corner Joe Haden continued his career-long struggle against Antonio Brown.
"#Steelers Antonio Brown 5/116 1 TD over Haden today.
— Mary Kay Cabot (@MaryKayCabot) September 7, 2014"
Sloppy tackling was one of the main reasons for Pittsburgh being able to rack up 363 passing yards.
Cornerbacks and safeties alike were inconsistent at best as screen passes turned into massive gains. When receivers and running backs barreled past the front seven, they were still able to collect chunks of yards through ineffective tackling and poor positioning.
Buster Skrine was the best of the bunch as far as coverage went, but he missed some game time following a big hit. Luckily he did return, however, because his absence was definitely felt.
"Press box announcement: #Browns CB Buster Skrine has knee contusion. His return is probable.
— Nate Ulrich (@NateUlrichABJ) September 7, 2014"
Five different Pittsburgh receivers had three or more catches, four of which collected 38 yards or more through the air.
A ton of work needs to be done with this secondary to get ready for Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints next Sunday.
Grade: F
Special Teams
8 of 10
Travis Benjamin made his triumphant regular-season return from an ACL injury suffered last year.
His teammates did "Rabbit" no favors in clearing running lanes, but the speedster was ineffective on four kick returns and just a single punt return. Benjamin averaged 21.3 yards per return and had a long of 28. Hardly the game-breaking results Browns fans saw in 2013.
Cleveland's kick and punt returns were a strength last season and need to be again on a team void of many playmaking stars.
The coverage units were even worse.
Poor tackling efforts resulted in a big punt return by Antonio Brown of 36 yards in the first half and allowed the Steelers to get good field position in general running back punts.
Brown's big runback was overshadowed by a dastardly jumping karate kick to the head of punter Spencer Lanning.
"Ask and you shall receive @LD10 -Karate kick by #Steelers Brown on #Browns punter Lanning https://t.co/OYmq7f2HAL
— Andy McNamara (@AndyMc81) September 7, 2014"
The Browns also got caught on a fake punt that resulted in a 26-yard gain. Pittsburgh went three-and-out on the next series, but Cleveland's coverage unit looked woefully unprepared on the fake.
Grade: F
Coaching
9 of 10
The question is whether the coaching staff is simply a victim of the talent around it.
Can they really be held that responsible on offense when their top receiver on Sunday in Andrew Hawkins stands 5'7"?
Head coach Mike Pettine must have been a part of one heck of motivational halftime speech because the Browns came out for the third quarter as a completely different looking team.
"#Browns HC Mike Pettine said D in first half was unacceptable by our standards. Called it a comedy of errors.
— Nate Ulrich (@NateUlrichABJ) September 7, 2014"
Offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan rode the hot hands of his running backs Terrance West and Isaiah Crowell to second-half success.
However, Cleveland's final drive of the game had play calls that resulted in short screen passes that went nowhere. The run disappeared at a time when it was needed most.
The first 30 minutes on the defensive side of the ball were atrocious. Pettine is known as being creative and aggressive on defense, but nothing was working. Blame for sloppy tackling and players out of position has to at least in part fall on the coaches.
Pettine was able to ramp up the pass rush and get to Ben Roethlisberger as the afternoon wore on. Four sacks on Big Ben and largely shutting down Le'Veon Bell in the final two quarters is no small feat.
In the end, Roethlisberger was still able to march down the field with under a minute left to set up the winning field goal. Pettine was outcoached and overmatched by Pittsburgh's sideline general Mike Tomlin.
Grade: C
Final Grades
10 of 10
When it's all said and done the Browns made it exciting in the second half but got their usual result in Pittsburgh. A loss.
Quarterback: B-
Running Back: A
Wide Receiver and Tight End: C+
Offensive Line: B
Defensive Line: B-
Linebacker: C+
Secondary: F
Special Teams: F
Coaching: C
Final Grade: C
"#Browns HC Mike Pettine said this is a pass-fail league and we failed. Told players that. Proud of resolve but no moral victories in league.
— Nate Ulrich (@NateUlrichABJ) September 7, 2014"
The Browns move on to face New Orleans back in Cleveland for their home opener next Sunday.
Note: All stats courtesy of ESPN.com.
Andy McNamara is an international sports broadcaster and journalist.
Follow Andy on Twitter @AndyMc81
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