An awful lot of things went wrong for the Cleveland Browns defense against the Patriots Sunday.
Tackling was at a premium, with tons of yards after contact accounting for a big rushing day for New England.
And third-down stops were rarer than a Nick Chubb smile.
But at least one player in the middle of things has an opinion that might not have been obvious on the field.
#Browns Myles Garrett:
"We have to go back to the drawing board, and see how we can get better. See how we can scheme better, see how we can make adjustments on the fly. We never had a chance just because we didn't make any adjustments on the sideline or when we had time to."
— Camryn Justice (@camijustice) November 14, 2021
In his postgame interview, defensive leader Myles Garrett said the following:
“We have to go back to the drawing board, and see how we can get better. See how we can scheme better, see how we can make adjustments on the fly. We never had a chance just because we didn’t make any adjustments on the sideline or when we had time to.”
The first part of his statement was innocuous enough.
The Browns surrendered 45 unanswered points and were held to just 217 total yards of offense.
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) November 14, 2021
Everybody who watched knows the Browns need to do some thinking about how they play defense.
But the second part seemed to call out the coaching staff’s lack of in-game adjustments.
Frustration surely played a role, but anyone who watched the game will be hard-pressed to argue Garrett’s point.
Second Half Looked Like The First Half
Patriots quarterback Mac Jones has had some difficult games this season.
But it was obvious from the start, this would not be another one of them.
He drove his offense down the field hitting all 6 of his opening drive passes to tie the game at 7.
Of course, the first drive is often choreographed, and things could get better later.
Except it didn’t, and it was obvious the Browns could do nothing to slow the rookie down.
"We have to do a good job as coaches, of identifying things that we can correct."
📼: https://t.co/U3JGrMOHyk pic.twitter.com/IiRtVmnm9I
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) November 14, 2021
Hats off to the quarterback, but there is a formula for rattling rookies.
And even though Garrett had an early sack, the 4-man rush failed to hurry the passer very often.
After last week’s big blitz day by slot corner Troy Hill, it seemed reasonable to expect something similar.
Even if it wasn’t in the original game plan, surely the Browns would come out more aggressive in the second half.
Cleveland stopped the Patriots’ first second-half drive, but it proved to be a fleeting victory.
Do Garrett’s Words Indicate a Problem in Berea?
Earlier this season, a pair of players alluded to the defense lacking trust in each other.
But others mentioned communication issues as exacerbating that matter.
Garrett’s quote Sunday is the first negative comment about coaching since then.
But you don’t need to be in the locker room to think there is an issue somewhere.
Cleveland has played several solid defensive games, yielding under 13 points per game in their 5 victories.
Garrett on making in-game adjustments.
📼: https://t.co/XImqqeiWf7 pic.twitter.com/PjUxbwTT5G
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) November 14, 2021
In five losses, they allowed 33 points per game, a total held down by the 15-10 loss to the Steelers.
Garrett seems to indicate when the going gets tough, there are no answers coming from the sideline.
If the pregame plan doesn’t work, so be it.
New England had 3 touchdown drives of over 90 yards, the first time a Bill Belichick has ever done that.
Garrett and his teammates needed to change the plan, but it doesn’t sound like they were given any options.
NEXT: 3 Things We Learned In Browns' Loss Against Patriots
