During his standard Monday Zoom call with reporters, Browns coach Kevin Stefanski was asked if he’s sticking with defensive coordinator Joe Woods and special teams coach Mike Priefer out of loyalty or if he thinks they’re doing a good job.
Stefanski went the non-answer route.
“My focus really is on this week and what we can do this week to find a win,” Stefanski said. “I understand frustration. I get it. I own it. I own all of it. We have to share it as players, coaches, staff, all that.”
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The Browns are 3-7, and there’s certainly plenty of disappointment to be shared. They can’t stop the run, their special teams units remain atrocious and the same problems with communication breakdowns and ill-timed offensive misses seem to pop up in most games. As for making in-season changes on the coaching staff and specifically as high up as changing one of the coordinator spots, it’s not as simple as some frustrated fans make it out to be.
No one really expected Stefanski to actually answer that question, though it’s at least a bit notable that he didn’t say he believes Woods or Priefer are doing a good job. They aren’t. Maybe Stefanski thinks the 2022 Browns are just sunk, and outside of the impending quarterback change that’s coming next week with Deshaun Watson’s suspension expiring, that major change wouldn’t alter the course of the season. Maybe Stefanski has a belief that Watson’s six games will be the only games that anyone really remembers and will make up the bulk of the evaluation. Maybe he doesn’t have a good alternative; only one defensive assistant, linebackers coach Jason Tarver, has prior NFL defensive coordinator experience.
Or maybe Stefanski worries that making a change at defensive coordinator would put more onus and/or spotlight on him and his own failures as head coach. Stefanski doesn’t like to give real answers to many questions he gets from reporters, but he’s right when he says the team’s failings in any area ultimately fall on the head coach. This is the third year of the Browns having the same head coach, same general manager, same coordinators and same position coaches, and that kind of continuity is supposed to help produce a better roster and a cleaner overall operation.
This was always going to be an awkward and disjointed season as the Browns chose to make the Watson trade and knew that their $230 million quarterback would be unavailable for at least part of the season. But the Browns brought back what they thought was a good roster and a good coaching staff, and they thought their run game and defense would be enough to at least keep things afloat. They drafted a new kicker. They traded for a new No. 1 wide receiver. They were at least penciled in to have returning starters in no fewer than 17 positions and no rookies would be forced into significant roles.
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The Browns had the makings of a good team, but they are not a good team. And when they came out of their early November bye week completely unprepared to keep up with the Dolphins, it had to set off alarms internally and externally. That failure really falls on Stefanski, and the parts of it that fall on his staff fall on Stefanski, too.
Two men atop the organization, general manager Andrew Berry and chief strategy officer Paul DePodesta, might worry that an in-season coaching staff change would shine a brighter spotlight on their failures and misevaluations with the roster. The defense can’t get stops. The defensive tackles routinely get pushed past the linebackers on run plays. The Browns have forced eight turnovers all season, tied for 28th in the league. The special teams continue to falter, and though the offense has been too good for the Browns to be 3-7, it’s developed a habit of hitting a wall over the middle quarters after hot starts.
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First thoughts: Why Browns' familiar loss to Bills makes it fair to question everything
What adjustments have the Browns made? They traded for another small linebacker who’s since been benched. They benched safety Grant Delpit for one play in Miami for a team disciplinary issue. They ran the same quarterback sneak on consecutive plays in Detroit last weekend against the Bills, who took possession after the Browns lost yardage on both sneaks. This is an organization that’s failed, spectacularly, and by making no significant changes to the depth chart, coaching staff or overall operation, it’s one that is saying it’s going to get it right. The Browns being 7-13 in their last 20 games and not having won consecutive games since the first month of last season makes it hard to believe that it’s actually going to get it right.
Outside of defensive tackle, the Browns have basically the same defense that played well over the final six games of last season and brought lots of hope to this year. Did it bring false hope internally or skew the evaluations of the talent on hand? Did something change with the scheme or responsibilities that is leading to so many large running lanes for opponents and so many communication breakdowns on the back end? Or are the Browns just that bad up front that almost any opponent can simply use the run game to pick up big yardage — then eventually use that to open up other things?
We’re not getting a lot of answers. Berry, speaking to reporters earlier this month, strongly endorsed Stefanski and said he expected better from the defense. Again, there’s a lot of failure to be shared. On that, Stefanski is right.
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If Stefanski doesn’t start getting a lot of other things right, it will become even harder to believe that he’s the right guy for the job and that this group, as currently constructed, can make the Browns a championship contender. Because right now, even if Watson plays at an extremely high level, there are still multiple questions about almost every other position group and this regime’s ability to find the right players.
Let’s go position-by-position with snap counts from the Bills game. We changed the order this week just because every week is starting to feel the same…
Linebacker
Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah (62), Sione Takitaki (58), Tony Fields II (26), Deion Jones (8)
There wasn’t a change in results, but there was a change in game plan as Takitaki moved to middle linebacker in the base defense and Fields was first up on the outside with that base defense. Both Takitaki and Owusu-Koramoah were active as the Browns had some defensive success early, but the Bills didn’t punt over the final 40-plus minutes.
On the defensive side, all small victories are welcome. Owusu-Koramoah playing 95 percent of the defensive snaps and five special teams snaps after a two-game absence says he’s healthy and ready for the rest of the season. The Browns still have too many small linebackers and not enough impactful linebackers; Jones basically falling out of the rotation is not exactly an endorsement of the emergency experiment the Browns took on when they traded for Jones on a Sunday night in early October.
Offensive line
Jedrick Wills Jr. (75), Joel Bitonio (75), Wyatt Teller (75), Hjalte Frodholdt (73), Jack Conklin (60), James Hudson (15), Chris Hubbard (8), Ethan Pocic (2)
Pocic suffered a knee injury on the first play. He tried to stay in, but he left after the second play and will be out for at least four games after the Browns placed him on injured reserve Tuesday. That makes Froholdt the Browns’ center for the immediate future and potentially the rest of the season as Michael Dunn was placed on injured reserve ahead of the game against the Bills. Froholdt played some center in training camp and the preseason, but Dunn had been the backup center on the depth chart since Nick Harris was lost for the season in the preseason opener and Pocic took over. Browns also signed veteran journeyman center Greg Mancz this week, who was with the Texans during the first four seasons of Watson’s career.
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For the second straight game, the Browns got some push early and had some run-game success, but they weren’t able to sustain it. Penalties and some first-down run failures contributed to the Browns putting themselves in too many must-pass situations, and a talented Bills front consistently beat the Browns’ offensive line in the second half. Froholdt understandably struggled at times, and Teller was beaten badly on the first of the Browns’ consecutive quarterback sneak failures at a key moment in the third quarter.
Conklin left in the fourth quarter after getting stepped on, but both Conklin and Stefanski said they expect Conklin to be OK. Hubbard made his season debut in the extra tackle/tight end role that Dunn had been playing for most of the season.
These final seven games are important for an offensive line that still has good pieces but doesn’t nearly look to be as strong — in the present or over the long term — as it did at the start of the season. Conklin and Pocic are free agents after the season, and the Browns next spring have to make a decision on a fully-guaranteed fifth-year option for Wills.
Wide receiver
Donovan Peoples-Jones (74), Amari Cooper (63), David Bell (48), Anthony Schwartz (8), Michael Woods II (7)
Cooper scored the game’s first touchdown and officially had eight catches for 113 yards on 12 targets; he also drew a holding call. Peoples-Jones continued to use his big frame to create space and make difficult catches. The Browns basically have a two-man wide receiver group at this point, but those two are playing well.
Bell has been the clear No. 3 wide receiver for weeks now, but Woods did get some playing time early in the game as the Browns shuffled through various personnel groupings. Woods is a big and athletic player who’s also playing more frequently on special teams, and it’s fair to say he’s trying to earn more time after he had some impressive moments in training camp but missed significant time due to injury.
Schwartz only played in the final minutes. I keep thinking back to August and how Stefanski scoffed at the notion that the Browns would even consider cutting Schwartz.
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Secondary
John Johnson III (65), Grant Delpit (65), Martin Emerson (59), Denzel Ward (54), A.J. Green (37), Greedy Williams (16), Ronnie Harrison (6)
The Browns had to make a last-minute game plan adjustment after Greg Newsome II suffered a concussion during practice Friday. That made Green the primary slot cornerback and gave Green his most extensive action since late last season. The big miss for the secondary was losing Stefon Diggs on the touchdown just before halftime when there was a clear communication breakdown, but overall the group wasn’t terrible against one of the league’s most dangerous passing games.
As was the case in Baltimore in late October, one third down play seemed to revive the opposing offense as Dawson Knox was open by several yards, then picked up a first down before Delpit could get him down in the second quarter. Pro Football Focus had Josh Allen completing 6-of-8 passes for 63 yards when targeting Emerson in the game.
PFF ranks Johnson as No. 69 and Delpit as No. 71 among 92 safeties leaguewide who have played at least 20 percent of their team’s snaps in total defensive grade. Harrison is 90th, but he’s played 151 snaps and both Johnson and Delpit have each played more than 600.
Defensive line
Myles Garrett (49), Taven Bryan (43), Jordan Elliott (43), Jadeveon Clowney (43), Alex Wright (34), Ben Stille (28), Tommy Togiai (11), Chase Winovich (9)
Another awful day for the run defense started with the Browns’ defensive tackles getting pushed off the ball once the Bills committed to the run. That Stille played 28 snaps just five days after being signed off the Dolphins’ practice squad says a lot about the state of the position.
Garrett was credited by PFF with three of the Browns’ 15 pressures on Allen; Garrett had one sack and one hurry. Clowney had a team-high two quarterback hurries and also drew a holding call. The Browns would probably like to see more progress and activity than they’ve seen from Wright, who over his last three games has not recorded a quarterback pressure and has 1.5 tackles. With Winovich back from injured reserve, rookie Isaiah Thomas was inactive.
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PFF grades 138 defensive tackles leaguewide as having played at least 20 percent of their team’s snaps for the season. Of those 138, Togai’s total PFF defensive grade ranks No. 136 and Elliott’s is No. 134. Perrion Winfrey is No. 113, and Bryan is No. 108. Winfrey has been inactive the last three games but missed this one after an illness kept him out of practice all week.
Quarterback
Jacoby Brissett (75)
Brissett was especially sharp in the first half, then threw two more touchdown passes in the final minutes as the Browns tried to rally. Brissett getting stopped on consecutive sneaks in the third quarter with the Browns down just six was a pivotal sequence and one Stefanski would like back, even if he won’t admit it. A fumbled exchange stopped another promising drive in the second quarter as the Browns squandered another opportunity to extend their lead.
Brissett finished 28-of-41 for 324 yards, becoming the first Browns’ quarterback to throw for 300-plus yards in a game since Week 5 of last year. Brissett makes his final start this week before Watson is reinstated ahead of the Browns’ Dec. 4 game in Houston. Brissett has played well enough that he figures to be in demand in the free-agent market next March for teams looking for an experienced bridge quarterback. He hasn’t been perfect, but he’s been better than most anybody outside the Browns’ building thought he would be. The Browns are getting better quarterback play than they got last season but are going to miss the playoffs again.
Tight end
Harrison Bryant (55), David Njoku (28), Pharaoh Brown (11)
The group collectively gets a failing grade after both Bryant and Brown dropped passes that would have been touchdowns early in the second quarter. The Browns got Njoku involved in his return from a high ankle sprain, and Bryant ended up catching four of his seven targets for 41 yards. Njoku was on a bit of a pitch count due to his injury, but he looked fast and healthy before and during his sideline leap of a would-be tackler in the third quarter. Overall, it’s been a positive year for Njoku and an up-and-down year for Bryant. Brown is on the team for his blocking, and the next step for Njoku and Bryant will be to continue to prove themselves as consistently reliable when Watson throws to them.
Running back
Nick Chubb (41), Kareem Hunt (32)
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Chubb’s nine first-quarter touches tied the most he’s had in any quarter this season. But starting with a too-cute wildcat play to start the second quarter, the Bills made it tough on Chubb, who finished the day with 19 rush yards on 14 carries. Chubb caught three passes for 48 yards. Hunt got seven touches totaling 54 yards and looked good in extending some second-half plays. It’s going to be a big December for Hunt, who’s a free agent after the season and might get more drawn-up chances in the pass game once Watson starts playing quarterback. D’Ernest Johnson and Jerome Ford played only on special teams.
Special teams
Cade York got a field goal blocked for the third time this season. The Browns also gave up a 28-yard punt return in the first quarter that led to a Bills field goal; the Bills had points almost 10 game minutes before they recorded a first down. The special teams units continue to struggle and are a part of the Browns’ ongoing failures in sustaining momentum and winning the big situations. Fields and Jordan Kunaszyk played the most special teams snaps with 26 apiece.
(Photo: Sam Navarro / USA Today)
