Replacing a defensive coordinator is usually a slow process. New schemes take time to install, players need time to learn new responsibilities, and early results often lag behind what came before. That is especially true when the previous coordinator built one of the best units in the league. The Browns are not following that script.
Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com compared this year’s defense to the units Jim Schwartz led in Cleveland, and the results are incredible.
“The Browns are No. 2 in the NFL with 19 sacks behind only the Lions at 20. Mike Rutenberg’s defense is equal to Jim Schwartz’s over the previous three seasons in many key categories, and significantly better in red zone defense (43.8% conversion rate to 63.4%). At 3.1 sacks per game, the Browns are on pace for 54 — one ahead of last season when they finished third. Rutenberg’s Falcons were second last season with 57,” Cabot wrote.
The sack numbers are the most surprising part. Last season’s total of 53 came with Myles Garrett on the roster during a record-setting year. This year’s group is on pace to top it without him, and without a single player carrying the load.
That balance has been the key. Mason Graham, Maliek Collins and Isaiah McGuire each have at least 3 sacks, and the rest of the production has come from all over the defense. Opponents can no longer slide their protection toward one player and feel safe.
The red zone improvement may matter even more. Holding opponents to touchdowns on less than half of their trips inside the 20 has been the difference in a season where all 4 wins came by 4 points or fewer. The New York Jets and Baltimore Ravens scored 1 touchdown on 4 red zone trips over the last 2 weeks.
Mike Rutenberg’s track record suggests this is no accident. His Atlanta Falcons defense ranked 2nd in the league with 57 sacks last season, and he has brought that same pressure-heavy approach to Cleveland while playing more man coverage than any team in the NFL.
The supporting numbers are just as strong. The Browns allow 20.3 points per game, a top-10 mark, and have gone 51 straight games without allowing a 300-yard passer.
The challenge is keeping this pace while banged up. Graham has missed the last 2 games, Mike Hall Jr. has been sidelined and Grant Delpit is dealing with a concussion. If those players return in time for the stretch run, a defense already ranked among the league’s best could get even better.
The Browns host the Tennessee Titans on Sunday, then head to Pittsburgh. If Rutenberg’s unit keeps pressuring quarterbacks and stiffening in the red zone, Cleveland has the type of defense that can carry a team into January.
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