Amari Cooper, for one, is delighted at what he’s seen from Joe Flacco
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Editor's note: Tony Grossi is a Cleveland Browns analyst for TheLandOnDemand.com and 850 ESPN Cleveland. He has covered the Browns since 1984.
Takeaways from Browns practice and interviews …
Joe Flacco’s made a big impression this week on his new team preparing on the UCLA practice field to make his first start for the Browns Sunday against the Rams. It's not official but highly likely.Flacco's legendary arm strength, at age 38, has been an inspiration.
“He’s an elite arm, there’s no question,” said offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt. “If you put it on a scale of one to five, I’d say he’s a five. His ball flight, his velocity on the ball at every level of the field, is very impressive. Guys got excited. He threw some balls against the scout team last week, and guys in the back were kind of fired up.”
Joe Flacco's arm strength has invigorated the Browns' receivers and entire team this week in Los Angeles. (Cleveland Browns)
None more so than Amari Cooper.
Nobody on the offense has been more adversely affected by the Browns’ quarterback carousel this season than Cooper.
In five games with Deshaun Watson at quarterback, Cooper averaged 5.6 catches for 96 yards. His only two touchdowns came on passes from Watson.
In three games with P.J. Walker at quarterback, Cooper averaged 4.0 catches for 73 yards.
In three games with Dorian Thompson-Robinson at quarterback, Cooper has 7 catches on 20 targets for 66 yards total.
Cooper suffered bruised ribs in the Denver game when he was blasted by Broncos safety P.J. Locke while reaching for an off-the-mark DTR pass. He returned to practice Thursday on a limited basis and is expected to play Sunday. To say Cooper has been invigorated by the presence of Flacco would be an understatement.
“He looks good,” Cooper said. “He throws a very pretty ball. I don’t know if it’s intentional or what, but when he drops back and he lets it go, the whole motion is like poetry in motion. It looks good.”
It’s been tough sledding for Cooper without Watson. He had a 108-yard receiving game with Walker at QB and another one of 89 yards with him. The remaining four games without Watson has seen Cooper stymied with 22-, 16-, 34- and 16-yard games.
He’s excited about the possibility of connecting with Flacco for some explosive plays.
“Yeah, of course,” Cooper said. “That’s what the game is about, making explosive plays and getting good field position so that we can score points.”
He also welcomes the 15 years’ NFL experience Flacco brings to the offense.
“Yeah, it’s utterly important,” he said. “Most of the game is played up here [above the shoulders]. And when you’ve been playing a game for almost 20 years, you have so much knowledge. That knowledge is power and it just makes things easier out there. So the game is going to be very slow to him, 100 percent. It’s just better.”
Accuracy, not arm strength
Flacco’s not worried about his arm strength.
“Listen, my arm feels good,” he said. “I think I did a decent job of keeping it in shape. I think no matter what, when you come back here and you have a little bit of nerves, and because of those nerves you’re pushing a little bit extra hard and you want to leave a good first impression, you always press a little bit.
“I’m just trying to make the throws. I’m trying to make the throws with touch, make the throws that I need to put in there. I’m trying to put them in there. I’m worried about being on time, in rhythm and those things more than I am about how strong the ball is getting.”
Jeckyll and Hyde defense
The numbers don’t lie: Jim Schwartz’s defense is an entirely different entity on the road; merely pedestrian.
At home, the Browns allow 10.1 points per game; on the road, 26.8.
It yields 175.6 total yards per game at home; 334.6 on the road.
It gives up 92.1 rushing yards per game at home; 122.4 on the road.
Opponents convert only 20 percent of third downs at home (13 of 65); 33 percent on the road (25 of 75).
The only thing the Browns’ defense does better on the road is produce turnovers. It has 12 takeaways in five road games; four in six home games.
Schwartz’s take: “Yeah, really not 100 percent sure. I mean, obviously the home crowd helps us. It helps our pass rush. We feed off of the excitement from the crowd. I think we provide energy both ways. We provide them some energy, they provide us some energy.
“I think the biggest thing on the road is … we’ve had chances to take games under control, and we’ve just missed those opportunities. "So we’re trying to play our best every single game, regardless of home or away. But it is something that’s on our radar and something that we do need to perform better on the road.”
Brownie bits
Defensive end Myles Garrett (shoulder) was a DNP again, but he continued to work on his own. Schwartz said: “He’s going to work really hard to get back, and we’ll be prepared for everything and then everything in between. So we’ll be prepared. If he’s not able to make it, we’ll be prepared. If he’s able to go and play every single snap in the game, we’ll be prepared. If he just has a certain role in the game, he feels a tremendous amount of responsibility to be on the field. He’s wired that way. He wants to be out there. And I know this. If there’s any chance that he can, he’ll be productive once he is.” …
Cornerback Denzel Ward (shoulder) also was a DNP again. Prospects of Ward playing don’t seem as good. I asked Schwartz if he might consider matching M.J. Emerson against Cooper Kupp, the Rams’ best receiver rather than staying in his usual right-left positioning with his cornerbacks. In Denver, Greg Newsome had trouble covering Courtland Sutton. Schwartz said it’s difficult to match a cornerback against the same receiver anymore because of all the pre-snap motion offenses run. “You know, whether Denzel’s in there or not, we have confidence in our corners. Our corners, particularly Greg, he knows he didn’t play his best game against Denver, and he has a lot of pride as a player, and I would expect him to bounce back well in this game.”
