CLEVELAND, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – If that was the Browns new offense, maybe they should go back to the old one.
Dak Prescott, fresh off a new four-year, $240 million extension before the game, threw for just 179 yards and a touchdown, but it was good enough to outplay Deshaun Watson and the Browns in a 33-17 rout at Huntington Bank Field.
The final score was not nearly indicative of how lopsided Sunday’s loss was for the Browns.
Here’s the top Brownie Bites from a forgettable season lid lifter.
Sum it up – There wasn’t much head coach Kevin Stefanski could or needed to say after that awful kickoff to a season full of expectations. “Really disappointed in our performance,” Stefanski said. “Too sloppy, minus two in the turnover battle, gave up a punt return. Offensively, felt like were behind the chains the vast majority of the game, which is, again, not good enough and not how we need to play in order to win football games.” Myles Garrett started his day hanging with Browns fans, including Cavs guard Donovan Mitchell in the Muni Lot and ended it lamenting an ugly loss. “It’s very disappointing,” Garrett said. “That’s about it. It’s very disappointing. But it’s one game. Don’t want to start the season out like that, but not the first time that a good team has lost the first game and won’t be the last. Just got to increase our attention to detail, our focus and come back better next week.”
Slow start – As expected, the Browns offense came out of the gate slow Sunday. As in one first down in the first half slow. At one point Cleveland went three-and-out six times in seven possessions. That seventh was an interception on second down. “It wasn’t a pretty day for us,” Watson said. “We got to own it as a whole. Especially me as the leader of this team and leader of this offense. Correct those mistakes, get back on the same page and get ready for Jacksonville.” The Browns were outgained 216-54 and they ran 18 fewer plays than Dallas to trail 20-3 at intermission. “Most of it was self-induced,” receiver Amari Cooper, who had just two catches for 16 yards, said referring to the volume of offensive penalties. “Obviously we give credit to the team that we played. Like I said, they're a good team. They made some good plays as well.” The Browns hadn’t looked that inept offensively since going 1-15 and 0-16 in 2016 and 2017. Things got a little better in the second half, then again there was only one way to go – up. Watson capped a 12-play, 75-yard drive with a 6-yard touchdown to Jerry Jeudy that cut the deficit to 27-10 in the third quarter. “Yeah, it felt good,” Jeudy said. “Feel better with a W though.”
Under siege – Watson was under fire and to no one’s surprise he struggled to find rhythm under Dallas’ unrelenting rush.” Yeah, it sucked,” left guard Joel Bitonio said. “We can play up to our expectations. All the credit, the Cowboys that came out and kind of hit us in the face and both sides and we got down. We had to throw the ball a little bit and we didn't protect well enough as a group on the line, but it was disappointing.” It’s been a long time since the Browns offensive line looked so disorganized and inept with illegal procedure and misalignment penalties, but there have been obvious and glaring signs of this throughout training camp and if it continues, it’s going to be a very, very long and painful season. “We’ll look at ways that we can fix that,” Stefanski said. “We don’t practice that way, you can’t play that way because that’s just, again, it’s hard to win in this league. Don’t want to make it harder on yourself.” Watson was sacked six times and Dallas finished with 17 QB hits. “He got hit way too often,” Stefanski said. “We can’t let that happen to him. He fought like crazy, and listen, the football team fought like crazy to the end. But bottom line is, we have to protect our quarterback better than that.” Watson, who did not want to come out of the game according to Stefanski, looked his best with the game already decided in the second half as he finished 24 of 45 for 169 yards with a touchdown and 2 interceptions. “We’re not the type of people that make excuses,” Watson said. “So some people can say that can contribute a lot, you know, my injury, guys missing time. But at the end of the day, once you’re on the field, you just gotta perform, you gotta execute. And, you know, we didn’t do that overall. And yeah, it showed.”
Heavy heart – Watson played with a heavy heart Sunday. “Football is definitely something that you got to take very, very seriously and it’s our job, it’s our career, but you know, there are other things that are bigger than this,” Watson said. “I lost my dad Friday. I lost my brother, my teammate yesterday, Diondre Overton, only 26 years old. So, yeah, I mean, it’s been a long week, and they gave me the opportunity to go back home, but I told them I wanted to be here with my guys…. “it was definitely a lot of, you know, a heavy heart these last couple of days. But again, like, I don’t want to use that as an excuse of why we lost.”
Leg day – Corey Bojorquez punted seven times. One was returned 60 yards for a touchdown by Cowboys returner KaVontae Turpin early in the third quarter that put Dallas up 27-3.
Sack attack – Dalvin Tomlinson, Myles Garrett, Za’Darius Smith recorded sacks in the first half but no one got home in the second.
Communication breakdown – Cowboys receiver Brandin Cooks got behind Juan Thornhill and Greg Newsome II and it resulted in a wide open 21-yard touchdown throw from Prescott to give Dallas a 7-0 lead. “We've just got to communicate, all 11 on the field we've got to all find a way to communicate,” Newsome said.
Big plays for Big D – Dallas’ top two defenders impacted both Watson interceptions. Micah Parsons tipped Watson’s pass at the line, and it fell into the arms of Eric Kendricks. Trevon Diggs picked off Watson after the ball went through the outstretched hands of Elijah Moore in the fourth quarter. Both turnovers only cost the Browns six points.
Injury report – LB Mohamoud Diabate (hip-did not return), TE David Njoku (ankle-did not return), WR Jerry Jeudy (leg-returned), LB Tony Fields II (ankle-did not return), CB Martin Emmerson Jr. (undisclosed)
Inactives – QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson (Third QB), CB Kahlef Hailassie, CB Myles Harden, DE Isaiah McGuire, G Javion Cohen, T Jedrick Wills Jr., T Jack Conklin