Barnum And Bailey couldn’t dream up of a better freak-show than the Cleveland Browns inept offense which once again stole the show in a 13-12 loss to the (2-7) St Louis Rams.
Fumble on a key punt return by kick returner/wide receiver Joshua Cribbs. Check
Botched snap on a potential game-winning field goal by long snapper Ryan Pontbriand. Check
Missed field goal by kicker Phil Dawson. Check
Four handoffs in the red zone—including a tight-end hand-off by tight end Alex Smith. Check.
Dedicated and loyal fan base at it’s wit’s end in Cleveland. Check.
The newly- minted “Factory Of Sadness” lived up to it’s name in another Browns dis-heartening loss. There are some limits of what NFL fans can tolerate, but being a Cleveland Browns fan requires a immense about of patience along with a cast-iron stomach and heart, but after the Browns latest debacle at home, fans may soon want to start a Occupy Berea protest.
While Cleveland did show some fight and desperation on Sunday, the results were still the same, Browns quarterback Colt McCoy getting sacked and hit often, as the Rams would sack McCoy three times. McCoy would finish the game by going 20-of-27 for 218 yards passing and a QB rating of 97.5
Cleveland would see the once dormant passing game come—briefly—to life highlighted by Browns wide receiver Greg Little’s 52-yard grab in the third quarter. Little would finish with 86 yards receiving on six receptions.
The Browns running game would also show faint signs of life as they were led by running back Chris Ogbannaya’s 90 yards on 19 carries.
Despite signs of hope and a brief flicker of promise shown by Cleveland, this was the 2-7 St Louis Rams and not against a top quality team like the (7-3) Pittsburgh Steelers or (6-2) Baltimore Ravens. When it mattered the most, the Browns sleep-walking offense would show once again that they are on life support.
Make no mistake, both Cleveland and St Louis are young and still in the process of growing and learning, but in the case of the Browns, the bone-headed penalties and mental mistakes are simply inexcusable for a team that was supposed to be “on the rise”
This game also shows once again that rookie head coach Pat Shurmur is not ready to be a NFL head coach as his conservative and predictable play-calling would cost the Browns a very winnable game against a otherwise inferior opponent.
While injuries are part of the game and Cleveland did not have starters Peyton Hillis, Montario Hardesty, Mohamed Massaqoui, Eric Steinbach and most recently T.J. Ward, there is still no excuse for why the Browns only amassed a mere total of 335 yards against a 2-7 team at home.
The Browns would also dominate the time of possession—32:27 to 27:33—and yet only score four field goals. Cleveland has not scored a touchdown in 123 minutes at home, and are the only team in the NFL to not score a touchdown in the first or third quarter.
At 3-6, Cleveland is well below many of it’s own expectations—mainly due to a easy schedule—and running out of “new head coach” “new offensive system” excuses from a patient and loyal fan base that deserves more. Browns fans surely cannot take solace of comfort in the fact that Cleveland is only one game better than the 2-7 Rams half-way thru the season.
In Cleveland, they have now witnessed a team that—literally—cannot seem to find it’s way to the end zone if provided a GPS, a glaringly obvious bad hire in head coach at Shurmur and a ego-maniac in the front office in president Mike Holmgren.
Is Cleveland the victim of it’s own lofty expectations? Is Colt McCoy really the answer at QB?
Only time will tell, and in Cleveland that is one thing in very short supply.
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As a former Clevelander….I’m getting a laugh a minute out of this current season.