Even though the news got grimmer for the Browns on Wednesday, coach Kevin Stefanski's mood was better than the day before. With his positive test for COVID, he might be watching Saturday's game from his rec room. (Cleveland Browns)
Browns have enough bodies to play Raiders on Saturday, but will sweat out another day of testing
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Editor's note: Tony Grossi is a Cleveland Browns analyst for TheLandOnDemand.com and 850 ESPN Cleveland.
Takeaways from the COVID-19 outbreak hitting the Browns …
Things are changing by the day on the COVID front, but at the time of this posting the following players and coaches had tested positive and were unexpected to be available for Saturday’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders:
Offense: Quarterback Baker Mayfield, receiver Jarvis Landry, tight end Austin Hooper, tight end David Njoku, left tackle Jedrick Wills, right guard Wyatt Teller, receiver/returner JoJo Natson (practice squad), and tight end Ross Travis (PS).
Defense: Safety John Johnson, linebacker Anthony Walker, cornerback Troy Hill, defensive tackle Malik McDowell, defensive end Ifeadi Odenigbo.
Coaches: Kevin Stefanski, Ryan Cordell (acting running backs coach).
Stefanski continues to be on the job during the week via virtual sessions, phone calls, text messages and emails. If Stefanski is forced to watch the game from his rec room on Saturday, special teams coordinator Mike Priefer would serve as acting coach and game manager and coordinator Alex Van Pelt would be the offensive play-caller.
The same set-up produced an epic 48-37 victory in the AFC wild card game last season in Pittsburgh – Cleveland’s first road victory in the post-season since 1969.
“I think the guys proved last year that they do not need me,” Stefanski said with a chuckle. “I am here, I am going to support them and I am going to do my job, but if I can’t be out there with them Saturday, they will be ready to go.”
In addition to the COVID casualties, the Browns most likely will be without cornerback Greg Newsome (concussion), running back Kareem Hunt (ankle), and receiver Anthony Schwartz (concussion).
So, although the Browns have been through this drill before, they never played a game last year with this many starters (12) out.
“My advice – as you can probably already guess – is that I am going to focus on my job and what I have to do, which is get the team ready to play Saturday,” Stefanski said. “We may have some guys who are unavailable, so we will get some of their backups ready. That is really where our focus has to go in a situation like this. I understand all of the things going on outside of our building and whatnot, but we have to keep our focus on what we have to do.”
He was made for this
And so, Case Keenum receives his second start in place of Mayfield. Keenum threw for 199 yards and one touchdown in a 17-14 victory over the Denver Broncos on Oct. 21 when Mayfield was shut down because of a second injury to his left shoulder.
That was Keenum’s first victory as a starting quarterback since Oct. 13, 2019 when with the Washington Football Team.
“I have the utmost confidence in Case,” Van Pelt said. “He is really a true pro. We are very lucky to have him. He is a guy who can come in and win one game or a bunch of games for you. He has shown that in the past. Regardless of who he is out there with, we know that the moment will not be too big for him. He has been there before. He will be calm and collected and be a great leader for us if he does play on Saturday.”
Priefer said, "Thank God we have Case Keenum. If you had a real young [backup] quarterback, an inexperienced quarterback, it might be tougher."
Bring it on
Through statements attributed to league spokesmen, the NFL is adamant in not postponing, rescheduling or cancelling the game because of the Browns’ COVID outbreak. Logistically, it is the first half of a Saturday NFL Network doubleheader with New England playing at Indianapolis in the nightcap.
When Stefanski was asked if he would like to see the game postponed, he smiled and said, “I would like to see the Browns play well versus the Raiders.”
Linebacker Malcolm Smith was more emphatic.
“No. I would rather knock the games out to be honest with you,” he said. “We have the game on the schedule this week. Let’s go out, and if we have enough guys to play it, we have to play it. I do not see why waiting or moving it. ‘Oh, maybe it will be better it will be better later.’ Who knows? It could get worse. Let’s play the game.”
Running on fumes
While the offensive line is the position group hit hardest by COVID casualties, special teams might be affected more than offense or defense.
By my count, players lost to the COVID list this week accounted for a combined total of 385 snaps on special teams this year. So there will have to be rampant substitutes squeezed in on Priefer’s six different special teams phases.
“Obviously, anytime if a safety goes down, a linebacker goes down, a defensive end goes down, a running back goes down, a wide receiver or any of that stuff, it is all affected,” Priefer said.
“When I am doing the depth charts, it is typical like having an injury. If a running back gets hurt, D’Ernest Johnson moves up and then backup running back and next running back up becomes a starter or more of a factor on special teams. It is like gameday, but you have a few more days to plan for it. We are going to get everybody ready who needs to get ready, and we should have plenty of guys who are prepared to play the game to help us win.”
The good news is Priefer’s core group of special teamers has not been dinged (yet). The team leaders on special teams snaps are linebacker Elijah Lee (244), receiver Demetric Felton (170), linebacker Sione Taktaki (158), defensive back M.J. Stewart (142), linebacker Mack Wilson (141), cornerback A.J. Green (130), running back D’Ernest Johnson (112), and linebacker Tony Fields (99).
Brownie bits
Before the COVID outbreak, Stefanski was hoping to see progress during the practice week from tight end Harrison Bryant (ankle) and safety Ronnie Harrison (ankle). The team is hoping to have its first practice on Thursday, but if COVID protocols cancel it again, Stefanski believes both players could still be available for Saturday’s game. “Yeah, I do because you watched Ronnie at practice last week. I saw Ronnie work out before the game. I have seen Harrison run. I feel good about where they are progressing, and … you can take them to the game and see them move around before the game. I think those are two very diligent players who I do think could play if that is how it shakes out.” …
With JoJo Natson on COVID, Priefer will have to decided whether to return Felton to punt returner after his two muffs against the Ravens. He said Felton would be “ready,” but also mentioned Donovan Peoples-Jones, Johnson and Ja’Marcus Bradley as possibilities …
Cornerback Greg Newsome and receiver Anthony Schwartz have not cleared concussion protocol …
With Troy Hill and Newsome both unavailable, the job of nickel back probably will be held mostly by Stewart but Woods said other players could cover the slot based on particular defensive packages. He mentioned safety Grant Delpit in particular.
