The Cleveland Browns have a pass rush problem, but they don’t have an offensive problem.
The passing game has thrived in a very special way lately, and we’re going to take a closer look at it.
But the imbalance begins with the difficulty of running the football. The Browns have struggled during Joe Flacco’s starts.
In Weeks 13-16, he rushed for 252 yards on 99 carries. 2.5 yards per attempt is nearly the lowest total yards in the NFL.
They are also 31st in the league in yards before contact (.46) and have the most rushing yards on minus or zero yards (33.3%).
When you combine these performance issues with the lack of explosive execution and what the offense uses to make up for negative or zero attempts, you end up with an offense that hurts the unit more than it helps.
That could simply be due to a lack of cohesion on the offensive line, as the unit has had to deal with several pieces coming in and out of the lineup in recent weeks.
Bitonio is right. Often a block may be missing here and there, causing the entire device to fail.
The backup quality is there and it shows that he can’t get to the secondary or catch the run like he should.
The Jets enter Cleveland tonight having given up the ninth most yards in the league this year, but those numbers can be deceiving.
They rank 11th in yards per attempt, 6th in EPA and 9th in rushing defense.
Teams don’t want to throw them unless forced to, so the rushing volume is higher than usual as the Jets face their second-fastest rushing effort all season.
Again, this will not be an easy task for a running offense.Bitonio said the good thing for the Browns is, “We think Joe Flacco and those guys are ready to step up when we need them.”
They had to pass through many places. Flacco’s four touchdowns come on more than 40 pass attempts per game and have a play-action element to them.
You might think that a bad rushing attack doesn’t help open up play-action opportunities, but the old analytics adage that you don’t need a successful running game to open up passing plays has been fully vindicated.
Since Flacco became the starter in Week 13, the Browns have had a top-five offense in the game.
They went 37-of-56 for 698 yards (most attempts in the NFL). That’s also the largest margin in the NFL, as the next closest team had 393 yards.
They connected for six touchdowns and had explosive plays (20 yards) on 22.8 percent of those catches.
They do it both through the center and through the cannons. The guns added to the crime because they were explosive when used with pocket moves.
The offense leads the NFL in EPA from the shotgun using play-action (.85, .70 from SF 2) and is 15-17 for 274 yards and a touchdown.
The Browns will need some of their offense tonight to gain momentum and score against a brutal Jets defense.
They are third in the NFL in total points scored behind the Browns and Ravens. Both of his defenses have the feel of low-scoring slugfests that frustrate opposing offenses.
The hope here is that Kevin Stefanski and company can summon some play-action wrinkles that wreak havoc on the Jets opening windows down the field.
It will be a tough task, but if they can do it, a playoff spot will be their reward.Big test tonight. Let’s see how they do it.
