Browns blown out in frigid Soldier Field to fall to 3-11

Editor's note: Tony Grossi is a Cleveland Browns and NFL analyst for TheLandOnDemand.com and 850 ESPN Cleveland. He has covered the Browns since 1984.

CHICAGO, IL

Instant takeaways from Browns 31-3 loss to the Chicago Bears …

1. Cold reality: The Browns weren’t ready to play and came out colder than the minus-1 wind chill in Soldier Field. They blundered their way to an early 14-0 deficit and never threatened thereafter in losing, 31-3, to first-year head coach Ben Johnson and the playoff-bound Bears. Behind a makeshift offensive line and with no running game, Shedeur Sanders didn’t have a chance. When he tried to spark the offense in the third quarter with a perfectly thrown pass to Jerry Jeudy, it was bobbled and intercepted at the goal line. Playing from behind all game, Sanders was intercepted three times and sacked five times. He was 18 of 34 for 177 yards. Jim Schwartz’s defense allowed over 130 yards and two touchdowns to the running back tandem of D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai and 242 yards passing and two TDs to Caleb Williams. Myles Garrett was credited with 1.5 sacks, giving him 21.5 on the season just one shy of matching the official NFL record of 22.5. The Browns are 3-11 after their third loss in a row and sixth of seven on the road. The Bears are 10-4.

2. A killer: Sanders had something going in the middle of the third quarter. He connected with Isaiah Bond for 47 yards down the middle of the field at the Bears’ 25. Three plays later, Sanders laid in the ball perfectly to Jerry Jeudy down the right sideline. The ball went through Jeudy’s hands, hit him in the chest, and as he struggled to gain control of it cornerback Jaylon Johnson took it away for the interception in the end zone. It was Jeudy's first target of the game. The Browns’ defense sure seemed to quit after that. The Bears moved 80 yards in nine plays. D’Andre Swift’s 17-yard TD run made it 28-3, Bears.

3. Bang, bang: The Bears made two big plays – one on defense, one on offense – in succession to take a 21-3 lead in the third quarter. First, linebacker D’Marco Jackson leaped near the line of scrimmage to tip Sanders’ pass for Harold Fannin and then he intercepted it at the Browns’ 22. On the very next play, Williams rolled to his right and fired across his body for D.J. Moore in the end zone for the touchdown. Somehow the ball eluded Grant Delpit and Tyson Campbell who had Moore surrounded.

4. Unfazed: The cold air didn’t bother Andre Szmyt. The Illinois-bred Browns kicker nailed a 50-yard field goal right down the middle in the third quarter to cut the Browns’ deficit to 14-3. Szmyt is 17 of 19 since missing one field goal in Game 1 and is 4 of 5 from 50 yards or more overall.

5. Rethink that one, coach: The first half ended with Williams limping off the field. The Bears decided to try a trick play on fourth down from the Browns’ 42 with :03 left. With three Browns defenders stationed at the goal line, Williams threw short to Luther Burden, who lateraled to D.J. Moore and the play went nowhere from there. Up front, however, Carson Schwesinger nailed Williams just after he released the ball and Williams’ left ankle got tangled beneath Alex Wright. For the half, Williams was 12 of 18 (with two drops) for 190 yards and a TD to Moore. Williams returned after halftime, but was enable to escape Wright on a fourth-and-3 scramble on his first possession in the second half.

6. Cold beginnings: The Browns lost this game in the first quarter when they allowed a 52-yard kick return and 18-yard punt return to Devin Duvernay. They also committed four penalties, lost a coaches challenge and lost a replay assist ruling that cost them a first down. They had a false start from the 1-yard line on their first play and were penalized for 12 men in the huddle on their second play.

7. Thank you, No. 49: Great field position made things easy for Williams in the first half. Williams conducted two touchdown drives and put the Bears in position for a 35-yard field, which was missed to the right by Cairo Santos. Myles Garrett’s first sack – mostly due to good coverage – resulted in the field-goal try. Otherwise, the only Browns player on defense to show up on time was linebacker Carson Schwesinger, who was credited with nine tackles, including one about 40 yards downfield after a catch-and-run by Luther Burden.

8. Re-set your clocks: The Browns’ offense was late to the party, too. It didn’t gain a first down until about the 4:00 mark left in the first half when Sanders connected with Isaiah Bond on a seam route for 42 yards to the Bears’ 33. But that possession died on Chicago’s second sack. Sanders lost the ball before he hit the ground but the officials ruled forward progress stopped the play before the ball came out.

9. File and forget: The Browns’ offensive numbers in the first half were brutal. One first down, 57 total yards on 18 plays, 1 of 6 on third down. There was no running game to speak of (Quinshon Judkins: 4 carries for 9 yards), and except for the one completion to Bond, Sanders couldn’t overcome his teammates’ lethargy. Sanders was 4 of 10 for 54 yards. 

10. Pre-game notes: All players previously announced as out made up the inactive list. They were: cornerback Denzel Ward, running back Dylan Sampson, guard Zak Zinter, guard Wyatt Teller, offensive tackle Jack Conklin, tight end David Njoku, and defensive tackle Adin Huntington. The injuries left Cornelius Lucas, Jeremiah Byers and Garrett Dellinger as the only backup linemen.