Broncos vs. Browns: Cleveland Grades, Notes and Quotes
The Cleveland Browns squandered a golden opportunity in overtime and lost a heartbreaker to the Denver Broncos, 26-23, at FirstEnergy Stadium in Week 6. The Browns fall to 2-4 overall and 1-2 at home.
Peyton Manning didn’t need an elite arm to recover from three interceptions—including a pick-six to Karlos Dansby, his second interception of the game—he just needed to play within himself. Of course, the Browns didn’t make him pay for his third pick, an overtime floater intended for Demaryius Thomas that Barkevious Mingo snagged out of mid-air and returned for seven yards to the Broncos 39-yard line.
After an outside-zone run by Robert Turbin was blown up for a three-yard loss, Josh McCown took consecutive sacks to knock the Browns way out of field-goal range. Manning thanked the Browns for their offensive ineptitude on Denver's second overtime possession. Without much resistance from Cleveland, Manning and C.J. Anderson moved the Broncos down the field to set up a chip-shot 34-yard field goal by Brandon McManus. He missed his first attempt of the season earlier in the game but nailed the game-winner on his second try after Browns coach Mike Pettine called a timeout while he drilled his first attempt.
But the Browns certainly had their chances, even in regulation, to secure a pivotal upset victory.
Tied at 23 with 53 seconds left in regulation, McCown threw a floater interception of his own with the Browns driving. Peyton Manning looked to have turned that desperate and rushed “gimme” interception into the winning points on a wacky but overturned touchdown completion to Emmanuel Sanders. Sanders wasn’t touched by Tramon Williams, rolled and strolled into the end zone for what would have been the game-winning score. Instead the Broncos punted, and the Browns went into overtime with a home crowd behind them.
They had another chance to put the Broncos away earlier in the fourth quarter, after Manning’s pass fell off Ronnie Hillman’s back shoulder and into Dansby’s arms, where he then tight-roped the sideline and returned the interception 35 yards for a touchdown. Instead of going up by five points, 21-16, with the would-be extra-point attempt, Pettine dialed up a two-point conversion try that would have given the Browns a six-point advantage. Pettine was trying to prevent his team from losing to two field goals, since his defense had been playing well all game. McCown’s pass to Benjamin was incomplete on the try, and Pettine will be second-guessed for that decision because it came back to haunt him.
On the first play from scrimmage, Manning threw a perfect ball into the arms of Sanders and over the head of Tramon Williams, who was draped all over him. Sanders’ momentum helped him run all the way for a go-ahead 75-yard touchdown with just 7:53 to play in the game.
That one point Pettine passed up ended up being the difference in the Browns winning or going to overtime and eventually losing. It’s easy to criticize Pettine’s decision when having the benefit of seeing how the rest of the game unfolded, but it’s still a head-scratcher.
Position Grades for Browns
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| Position | Grade |
| QB | C- |
| RB | C+ |
| WR | C+ |
| TE | A- |
| OL | C- |
| DL | D- |
| LB | C- |
| DB | C- |
| Special Teams | B |
| Coaching | C- |
McCown played well for stretches, but he was uneven and inconsistent overall. He was pressured, mostly by just a four-man Broncos pass rush, and tried scrambling with little success. Both of his interceptions were killers for the Browns. Aqib Talib read his eyes and jumped a curl route by Benjamin to take it back for an uncontested touchdown. That and his floater interception in the waning moments of the fourth quarter will haunt him this week when reviewing the tape.
All three Browns running backs played relatively well, with newcomer Robert Turbin adding a power dimension to the group. Although, he struggled overall as the others have this season, only finishing with 27 yards on 10 carries. The trio did finish with 97 yards, but it took commitment from offensive coordinator John DeFilippo to stick with the run with their meager 3.2 yards-per-carry average.
Outside of Benjamin and one 25-yard reception by Andrew Hawkins, the Browns receiving corps were ghosts again this week as they have been for much of the season. Taylor Gabriel added a five-yard reception. Benjamin continues earning the lion’s share of the targets, increasing his team-high targets to 51 in six games.
There isn’t much to say about Cleveland’s offensive line other than it put up a good effort against an imposing Broncos front seven and even helped the team to get over 100 yards on the ground. Some of those yards were after contact and due to Turbin and Johnson making defenders miss. Pass protection could have been better, but McCown only took four sacks for the game, which is a surprise given how good Denver has been in that area. The offensive line, McCown and DeFilippo need to be better to get the ball out quicker.
Defensively, the Browns weren’t bad for much of the game. Hillman and Anderson did gouge them for 152 yards overall, so their issues haven’t been fixed, even when playing against a team averaging just over 70 yards per game on the ground.
Danny Shelton needs to be singled out for having another bad game. He was a non-factor and was single-blocked out of plays on a number of occasions. Matt Paradis knocked him onto his back on one play.
Not many others from the defense are even worth mentioning. Tramon Williams played a decent game but was beat for the 75-yard touchdown, although there’s not much any player could have done to stop that connection. Pierre Desir had a pass breakup and was overall effective at containing Demaryius Thomas, but he wasn’t able to shut him down, which is to be expected when going up against one of the best quarterback-to-wide receiver combos in the league.
Cleveland’s defense recorded no sacks, but one pressure by Paul Kruger forced an errant throw by Manning that led to a punt. That’s another horrible showing by the team’s pass rush, a group that has looked outmatched and has just three sacks outside of that seven-sack outburst against rookie Marcus Mariota in Week 2.
Dansby had a good bounce-back game after struggling last week. His two interceptions and touchdown were huge contributions for a defense that badly needs big plays to help mitigate the yardage it gives up on a weekly basis.
Special teams weren’t much of a factor, although Lee’s punting continued to be excellent, and Travis Coons hit his 12th-straight field goal. Benjamin had a 20-yard punt return that he almost sprang for a touchdown but ran out of gas and running room along the near sideline.
Coaching will always be criticized in losses and lauded in wins. But there’s a legitimate argument beginning to develop against Pettine’s coaching staff. The team continues to look like a mockery defensively—which was supposed to be his strong point—and has not improved again in close games this season.
His decision to go for two points was the second time his decision-making hurt the team in that situation. Clock management with timeouts also continues to be a concern. Before halftime the coach let the Broncos fool him into believing they were going for it on fourth down; they instead ran the clock down as far as they could and then punted. The Browns went into the half without adding any additional points.
Gary Barnidge Joins Ozzie Newsome
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Gary Barnidge’s two receiving touchdowns tied him with former Browns tight end and Hall of Famer Ozzie Newsome as the only franchise tight ends to record a receiving touchdown in four consecutive games.
Barnidge’s five touchdowns lead the Browns this year. That is also a career high for the 30-year-old tight end. His 413 yards are second on the team only to Travis Benjamin, and also a career high.
McCown has looked to Barnidge as a safety net all season, but the tight end isn’t just catching open passes. He’s getting open, making contested grabs and finding room to run after the catch.
It’s safe to say at this point that Barnidge’s performance so far isn’t an aberration, and he could be on track for even more big things in 2015.
Duke Johnson Left, Then Returned
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Johnson was reportedly evaluated for a head injury in the closing moments of the fourth quarter, the team announced. Pettine said after the game it was a shoulder injury, though. Johnson did return late in the game, however, but wasn't much of a factor because the Browns managed just three offensive plays in the extra period.
His absence in the final minutes of the fourth quarter could have been a difference-maker. Without Johnson, arguably the team's most explosive offensive player alongside Benjamin, the Browns were missing the added element he adds in the short-passing game. That helped the Browns negate the Broncos pass rush at times, and they could have definitely used him in those critical moments.
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McCown Puts Loss on Him
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No one is taking the blame more than the Browns' starting quarterback.
"I walk out of these things putting it all on me and go, ‘Man, if I would have been better, we would have won the game.’ That’s just how I’m wired," McCown said during the postgame press conference.
McCown also said he tried to throw the ball out of bounds on his interception near the end of regulation. That drive could have helped the Browns win before the game ever went to overtime, and McCown accepted blame for spoiling that opportunity.
“Yeah, I was stepping up trying to throw the ball out of bounds and avoid a sack so we could keep moving up to get in field-goal range and win this thing," he said. "I just didn’t get enough on the ball when I threw it."
It's hard to blame McCown for playing the way he did against the Broncos defense. That group has harassed and embarrassed quarterbacks all season. Still, you'd like your quarterback to make a better play in that situation by throwing it away sooner.
It's great that he is taking responsibility, but the best apology would be getting better and helping his teammates with better play next week at St. Louis.
Mike Pettine Thinks His Defense Played Better
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The Browns held the Broncos to just one offensive touchdown. Sanders' 75-yard catch-and-run was a thing of beauty that not many players could have stopped. But don't celebrate that the Browns' defensive performance was "better," as coach Pettine did after the game.
It wasn't good enough to get a win against a Broncos offense that has looked inept this season. In fact, that Sanders touchdown was their first after going 27 consecutive drives without earning six points on offense.
“Defensively, I thought we played better, and it was one of our better efforts," the coach said during the postgame press conference.
That's a baffling statement by the team's head coach. The Browns defense again allowed over 150 yards on the ground, and Manning made it look easy in overtime while positioning his team to beat that "better" defense on its home field.
If the Browns defense played "better" against the Broncos, it's discouraging to think how far they have to go before they're good enough to not lose games.
Unless otherwise noted, all postgame quotes obtained from email press release from Browns communications manager Rob McBurnett.
Mike Hoag is B/R's Cleveland Browns Gameday Correspondent, a member of the Pro Football Writers of America and the managing editor of BrownsBeat.com.
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