The time is running out. The Houston Texans will play without CJ for the second week in a row.
Stroud, but the Cleveland Browns don’t care. They have been without a quarterback for most of the season.
This season, four different quarterbacks have won an unprecedented number of football games.
So they don’t care about the Texans and the ugly state of their concussion protocols.
The Browns won the game the old fashioned way.
They win defensive battles and win games because their opponents do stupid things. If you look at the NFL, most winning teams do that.
They get basic defensive stops and avoid doing anything stupid.
As always, we take a look at the top five players on each team, according to PFF.
Anyone with scores of 80 or higher is usually a Pro Bowler. A player with a score of 70 or higher is usually a clear starter at his position.
Top 5 Cleveland BrownsBY Myles Garrett – 93.5DT Maurice Hurst — 81.0BY Za’Darius Smith — 76.2LB Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah – 74.0DT Shelby Harris – 73.9Not only are five of the Browns’ top five teams on defense, but all four are on defense.
Myles Garrett is the highest rated defensive player in the NFL and could very well be the Defensive Player of the Year.
Individually, these achievements add up to incredible results.
They create a lot of pressure that leads to layoffs, mistakes, and lost sales.
They are clearly the best defense in the NFL.
Top 5 Houston TexansWR Nico Collins – 88.3LB Blake Cashman – 87.8Will Anderson – 80.5CB Derek Stingley – 78.8Jonathan Greenard – 77.7We had Stroud in the top five and none of the top three played here last weekend.
At the time of writing, we’re not 100% sure which of these three is available.
Stingley and Grinard had their best games as Texans last week. If the Texans want to beat the Browns, they’ll have to do it again.
For this to happen, several important changes are required.What will the Browns offense bring to the Texans? The Browns get a lot of criticism for their offense, but they are 12th in the NFL in scoring.
They score points because they make great throws after turnovers and defensive stops.
They rank 17th in total yards, 10th in rushing and 21st in passing. They like to run the ball and don’t care who is behind them.
They try to control the clock and win the field position battle.What will the Browns defense do to the Texans?
The Browns are 12th in points allowed but first in total yards allowed. They give up 400 yards less than any other team, so they have an advantage.
Most of that came in the passing game, where they gave up the fewest yards on first downs.
With Case Keenum a week away from starting, it will be very hard to see the Texans winning through the air.
They’ll hope Devin Singletary can pick up some yards against the NFL’s 11th-best defense. It’s hard to see on paper.
How will the Texas offense affect the Browns? This will be another low scoring event.
The key for the Texas team is a short court or two where they can easily score points.
Range can be limited, so limiting turnovers at the end of the offense is key.
You’d think that would be a strength of Keenum’s game, but he threw the ball decently last week for a couple of possessions.
This cannot be repeated. Winning a battle in a row increases the chances of winning the game.
What will the Texas defense do against the Browns? The Texans offense will be a negative this time, but the Texans defense will make this game a good one.
They rank 6th in the NFL in rushing yards, which is a strength for the Browns.
If the Browns can do what they did with Derrick Henry with a running back, he has a chance to completely shut down the Browns offense.
Joe Flacco has thrown three interceptions, so you can get close to him and throw a questionable ball.
If we can build on last Sunday’s defensive performance, we can win the football game.
