The Cleveland Browns suffered a brutal loss to begin the 2024 NFL season. In every single aspect of the game, the Browns looked bad. That performance resulted in a rough 33-17 loss.
Up next, Cleveland will hit the road to take on Trevor Lawrence and the Jacksonville Jaguars. It’s not a “must-win” game at this stage of the season, but the Browns need to show up.
Starting off the season 0-2 would be a very depressing thing that would be difficult to bounce back from mentally.
Ahead of their matchup against the Jaguars, Cleveland is being urged to make one major change.
Bleacher Report has revealed that the Browns need to “play to Deshaun Watson’s strengths” this week.
“Watson’s ability to throw deep appears to be compromised because of a string of injuries in recent years. The quarterback failed to complete a single throw beyond 10 yards in the first half and finished the game with just 169 yards and one touchdown with two interceptions on a 53.3 percent completion rate. The Browns won’t have an easy time winning without the deep ball in their arsenal, but adjusting the offense to focus on runs and the passes Watson can still make should at least move the chains a bit more reliably while avoiding costly turnovers.”
Watson has very clearly struggled to throw the football deep. As mentioned, he struggled mightily on throws beyond 10 yards in the season opener.
Obviously, that’s not ideal for how the Cleveland offense has been built. Both Amari Cooper and Jerry Jeudy thrive making plays down the field. However, the Browns will need to deploy an offense that Watson can actually run at a decent level.
Jerome Ford and Pierre Strong Jr. didn’t help much on the ground in Week 1. They totaled 14 carries for 54 yards and a touchdown. Watson racked up 39 yards on the ground himself.
They will need the running game to step up against Jacksonville. Nick Chubb’s absence is clearly being felt in a big way.
Even though it’s a major inconvenience and a very serious issue, the Browns may need to change their offensive game plan. If Watson truly can’t throw the ball down the field, Cleveland can’t afford to keep trying to force the deep ball.
Hopefully, the offense will run much smoother this week. If it doesn’t, it might be time for the Browns to consider giving Jameis Winston a chance.
