Cleveland head coach Kevin Stefanski has acted like a child at Christmas to start the 2024 NFL regular season.
During the offseason, Stefanski hired offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey to implement a new offensive scheme for the Browns, and the new-look offense has focused on three- and four-receiver sets to showcase quarterback Deshaun Watson’s talents.
Stefanski – who calls plays for the Browns – has seemingly become the child obsessed with the new toy from Santa, forsaking all his other toys for it.
In the process, Stefanski has made his once-balanced offensive attack a decidedly pass-friendly one.
Cleveland has run the ball just 66 times in three games compared to passing on 132 plays, meaning the Browns are running the football on exactly one-third of their plays.
Last week, that percentage was even worse as Cleveland ran just 18 of their total 63 offensive plays, giving Watson ample opportunities to put the ball in his playmakers’ hands instead of handing it off.
The problem with the offense is that neither the playmakers nor Watson have proven capable of executing it successfully this year.
Cleveland is a team searching for an offensive identity that will sustain drives, not one that has proven in three games incapable of doing so.
To beat the Raiders in Week 4, the Browns have to mix in the running attack to take pressure off Watson.
Running backs D’Onta Foreman and Jerome Ford rushed 21 times for 106 yards in the team’s lone win against Jacksonville, giving Cleveland a balanced offensive attack that scored on three consecutive drives to open the game.
In that first half, Cleveland had 16 rushes – or nearly as many as the Browns had in the entire game against the Giants the following week – to score 13 points by halftime.
This week, Stefanski can play the Santa Claus role, gifting fans with a running game – and potentially a win – by utilizing his running back duo to keep Watson from being constantly pressured.
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