Starting off the 2019 season with two losses in the first three games has sapped the hype from the Cleveland Browns. It’s also taken a toll on the team’s placement in NFL power rankings.
At USA TODAY, the Browns fell from 17th to 21st. That’s still one better than the Pittsburgh Steelers, though Cleveland’s AFC North foe is winless at 0-3.
Touchdown Wire dropped the Browns to 22nd after the dismal offensive showing on Sunday night. The struggles of both Baker Mayfield and Freddie Kitchens weigh heavily on the downfall,
Right now, it’s a two-way race to last place when discussing what has regressed more from 2018: Mayfield’s performances, or Kitchens’ play-calling and route concepts.
ESPN placed the Browns at No. 20. Their theme of the week was, “what did we get wrong” about each team in the preseason. For Cleveland, they went with the obvious,
“Despite the star power, the Browns have sputtered through three games. There have been flashes. But the inability to consistently sustain drives is a big reason why Cleveland is 1-2.”
The sentiment is the same at NFL.com, where the Browns slid six spots to No. 21. Their prevailing reason is summed up nicely in the concluding sentence,
“The Browns need a common-sense check.”
