As soon as Tom Brady and the New England Patriots hoisted the Vince Lombardi Trophy for the sixth time and happily skipped on over to Disney World, the clock on the NFL offseason officially started ticking. For the first time in a long time, the Browns are ready to launch.
After having a 100/1 odds to win the Super Bowl a year ago, Cleveland now has a 20/1 chance to be league champions next January. It’s still only the 12th-best odds in the NFL, but it’s enough to have all of Cleveland daydreaming.
Super Bowl LIII between the Patriots and the Rams turned out to be a low-scoring, defense-dominated game. While the young Sean McVay didn’t lead the Rams’ high-flying offense, and there were no heroic overtime drives by Brady, the game offered a few valuable lessons. The Patriots have set the standard, and until Brady or Bill Belichick decide to retire, the Browns should be taking notes.
Protect the Quarterback
The Browns have finally found their franchise quarterback in Baker Mayfield. Now they must do everything in their power to protect him.
The Patriots sure know how to protect theirs. During this year’s playoffs, New England’s offensive line allowed a combined one sack and just seven quarterback hits. According to Pro Football Focus, Brady was pressured on just 15.6 percent of his dropbacks against the Chargers and the Chiefs.
Every other quarterback in the postseason faced twice that amount of pressure. Against the Patriots, Rams quarterback Jared Goff was sacked four times and had difficulty picking up New England’s unpredictable blitzing schemes and zone coverage.
During the first eight games under Hue Jackson, the Browns offensive line allowed their rookie quarterback to get sacked 19 times, tied for most in the league.
As soon as Freddie Kitchens took over the offense, Mayfield found his space in the pocket. He was sacked just five times despite facing elite pass rushers like Von Miller, J.J. Watt and Dee Ford.
Guards Kevin Zeitler and Joel Bitonio can take credit for Mayfield’s improved protection. They finished as the top two pass-blocking guards in the leagues, allowing just 24 quarterback pressures on the season. While left tackle Greg Robinson has earned the praise of general manager John Dorsey, the Browns are still on the lookout to fill the hole that Joe Thomas left when he retired in 2017.
With more game experience and an offseason to practice with the starters, Mayfield is only going to gain confidence; now it’s up to the Browns and new offensive line coach James Campen to keep him feeling dangerous well into the future.
In the kicker, we trust
Until the fourth quarter, the Super Bowl was a game made up solely of field goals. Patriots kicker Stephen Gostkowski missed his first attempt of the game, a 46-yard try.
How did the four-time Pro Bowler respond? He made his next two, one of which came in the closing minutes of the fourth quarter to give New England a two-score lead.
In the NFL, the playoffs belong to elite quarterbacks and reliable kickers. To get to the top, you need a kicker who can bounce back. A kicker who can hit one through a January snowstorm, and who can turn tough fourth-down decisions into easy fourth-down decisions.
The Browns don’t have that yet. In his rookie season, kicker Greg Joseph came in and made 17 of 20 field goal attempts in 14 games. He served as a competent replacement after the Browns waived Zane Gonzalez, but he still has plenty to prove.
The Browns finished dead last in the league in missed extra points and haven’t had a top kicker since the days of Phil Dawson. With veteran kickers available as free agents, and plenty of money to spend this offseason, the Browns should be strategizing on how to pair their young quarterback with a clutch kicker.
Top-tier coaching
After the Rams’ 13-3 loss to New England, McVay put it simply:
“Congratulations to the Patriots. They did a great job. You know, coach [Bill] Belichick did an outstanding job. There really is no other way to put it – I’m pretty numb right now. But definitely, I got outcoached. I didn’t do enough for our football team.”
It wasn’t just McVay who got outcoached – one sideline was playing checkers while the other was playing chess. Brian Flores managed New England’s shifting dynamic schemes to perfection, and McVay’s high-scoring offense had no answers to the different coverages being thrown at them. The Patriots coaching staff didn’t just win the Super Bowl, they won the postseason. They kept up with Kansas City and the arm of Patrick Mahomes, and they routed the Chargers during one of Philip Rivers’ best seasons.
The Browns aren’t the Patriots or the Rams. They haven’t even won a game yet under Kitchens. Until the season starts, nobody truly knows if they have an elite group of coaches.
But what is known is that the Browns finally have elite talent. Every coach on this new staff brings his own experiences and strategies to the table. How they mesh together and handle game planning and adjustments is one of the biggest storylines of next season – and Dorsey will be watching every move.
