So close, and yet so far.
The Browns were toppled at home by the Atlanta Falcons earlier today, 20-10. While the game provided many topics worth discussing, I’m going to focus on only one: the Browns’ defense.
As of the moment I’m writing this post, the Browns are ranked 24th in the league in passing yards allowed (235/game) and 17th in rush yards allowed (108.8/game). However, I regard both yardage and time of possession as dubious means of evaluating performance. The game, after all, is won or lost based on only one factor: points.
In that regard, the teams’ performance has been surprisingly—maybe even shockingly—competent. Through 5 games, the Browns have given up a total of 97 points. That’s an average of 19.4 points per game.
However, the trick here is that the DEFENSE has not actually given up 97 points. Today, Delhomme threw an INT returned for a touchdown. Against the Chiefs, Seneca Wallace threw an INT returned for a touchdown. In week one, Delhomme threw an INT that was returned to the Browns’ 3 yard line by Tampa Bay. Technically the last of these should count against the defense, but it’s really hard for me to blame Golden Axe’s crew or schemes for surrendering 7 points at the end of a half from the 3 when the Browns’ offense—who should’ve never left the field with time left on the clock—was responsible for putting them in that situation.
If we discount the two pick-6s, the defense has given up only 83 points through 5 games, or 16.6 points per. If you give them a break for the Tampa INT/TD like I’m suggesting, that drops the points surrendered to 76 on the season, or 15.2 per. (Yes, I’m packaging the extra points in with the TDs.)
By comparison, the Ravens’ defense has allowed 72 points per game to date. The Steelers have allowed 50 points per game, but through only 4 games since this week is their bye. That means the Ravens’ D is allowing an average of 14.4 points per game, and the Steelers’ D is allowing 12.5 points per game.
Obviously, both of those numbers are better than even the friendly projections I’m using for the Browns’ defense. And I also haven’t seen every snap of both of those teams’ seasons, so I haven’t revoked points allowed for them in situations similar to what I’m doing for Cleveland. This means the gap between their two defenses and the Browns’ may in fact be wider than I’m suggesting. But even if that’s the case, it’s still really difficult for me to bag on a defense allowing less than 17 points per game—and that’s if I still penalize the Browns for giving up that 3-yard TD to Tampa.
Unfortunately, the down side here is that the Browns’ defense isn’t yet good enough to win games for the team. Despite the relatively scant number of points they’ve allowed, the limiting factor is that the defense creates relatively few turnovers and even fewer points. Through five games, they’ve forced 9 turnovers, or less than 2 per game. But the bigger issue is that they have scored 0 points off of those turnovers.
By comparison, the Steelers have forced 16 turnovers through only 4 games, or 4 per game. True, they’ve only scored one TD off of those TOs, but forcing that quantity of turnovers still puts the opposing offense into a huge trench by limiting their opportunities to score.
On the bright side, though, the Browns have actually created more total TOs than Baltimore, whose much swooned-over defense has manufactured only 6 turnovers through 5 games and scored 0 TD off those opportunities.
There’s no changing the fact that the Browns are now 1-4, or that their offense has been at best mediocre and at worst (with Delhomme at the helm) toxic. But I think it’s only fair to give credit where credit is due, and to recognize that so far there is in fact noticeable improvement in at least one phase of the game.
That said, over the next month the defense will have an opportunity to show how much of their play to date is inherent to their ability and how much has to do with the offensive prowess (or lack thereof) of the teams they’ve played so far. Their next 4 games are against the Steelers (with Roethlisberger back in the fold), Saints, Patriots, and Jets. But at least for the time being, I feel comfortable stating that if they continue to play this well, the defense should at least give the team a puncher’s chance in most or all of those contests. That’s a hell of a lot more than I anticipated I would be able to say at this stage of the season when it began.
-T
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