The Cleveland Browns (1-1) host the New York Giants (0-2) in Week 3.
Here are three matchups that will ultimately decide the game.
Deshaun Watson vs Giants secondary
While Browns Quarterback Deshaun Watson didn’t have a monstrous game vs the Jaguars last week, he did improve compared to his Week 1 debut. His 64.7% completion percentage was more than 11 points higher, his average yards per completion was a whole yard and a half more, and he had zero turnovers compared to the three he had in week 1.
This week he faces a favorable matchup vs the New York Giants. The Giants’ starting cornerback Nick McCloud missed last week’s game with a knee injury and his backup, Cor’Dale Flott currently is tied for the worst NFL passer rating of any defensive back in the league with 158.3.
The rest of their starters in the defense back room have a passer rating of 104 or worse. Overall, while New York allows the fourth lowest touchdown percentage in the red zone, 25%, they are tied for the seventh most allowed net yards gained per pass attempt. Like every single game up to this point, the offensive success is on Watson’s shoulders. At least this week the matchup is in Watson’s favor.
Browns interior OL vs New York Giants defensive tackles
It’s a new NFL season and the saying “games are won in the trenches” still reigns true. Like Watson, the Browns offensive line had a much better outing vs the Jaguars going from allowing six sacks to two. Pro football focus stated that in Week 2, the Browns offensive line ranked at the top half of the league for win rate in both pass blocking and run blocking.
This week Center Ethan Pocic and Guards Joel Bitonio and Wyatt Teller have a tall order ahead of them facing a talented defensive tackle group. On one side is two-time Second-Team All-Pro Dexter Lawrence, who is currently fourth among all NFL DTs in QB pressures (10th) and tied for second on his team with one sack. On the other side is 10th-year veteran Rakeem Nunez-Roches. While Nunez-Roches isn’t a household name, he is no slouch either.
He currently has the 7th most run stops of any DT (4), meaning a tackle that constitutes a failure for opposing offenses. This matchup will certainly be one to watch, as Pocic is currently leading all interior linemen in pressures allowed (10) with Bitonio tied for second with eight.
Browns vs themselves
Usually, when we think of matchups, we think of players vs their opponents, but ironically enough the greatest opponent the Browns have faced this season is themselves, especially with penalties.
Currently, Cleveland leads the league with 24 penalties and it hasn’t been something they have been able to overcome. You can see the ripple effect this causes with the team, as they are currently 31st in the league, converting third downs at 13.8%. A huge reason is that the average distance to go on third downs is 9.9 yards. Now you could blame that on success on early downs but even their average distance on first down is an alarming 10.57 yards.
What makes these penalties so frustrating is the fact that they are not from in-the-moment mistakes like a holding call or personal fouls, as 14 of those 24 penalties occurred before the snap. False starts, illegal shifts, and illegal formations are consistently putting this offense behind the sticks.
Between a new offense being implemented and a majority of the starters not getting snaps in the preseason, these mistakes were bound to happen, but they need to be cleaned up as constantly facing third and longs will make it difficult to sustain drives and possess the ball.
In the end, the keys to this game are simple: do not let the Giant’s defensive tackles take over, take advantage of a struggling secondary, and limit the penalties. All three of these objectives are doable as this is a very winnable game, especially since the Browns play notoriously better at home. Getting a win this weekend would help build momentum before a three-game stretch on the road.
