Like everyone else, Myles Garrett would have liked to have seen the Browns run the ball more in their latest loss in Pittsburgh. (Cleveland Browns)
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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.
Four downs on Browns (1-5) v. Miami Dolphins (1-5)
First down: Loser go home?
Both coaches are under fire while trying to salvage their season from spiraling out of control. The Dolphins have lost two in a row following their only win over the winless Jets. The Browns have lost three in a row while extending a streak to 11 straight games of scoring under 20 points. While neither team owner has commented publicly on the future of his coach, it is widely assumed that Mike McDaniel or Kevin Stefanski could be the second coach to lose his job this season after Tennessee fired Brian Callahan. Maybe no action will be taken on the losing coach on Monday. But the loser of this game surely will inherit the hottest seat going forward. “I know in my chair that I’m currently sitting in, you can’t listen to that stuff,” Stefanski said on Wednesday. Most teams wait for the bye week to make an in-season coaching change. Stefanski has one more game (at New England) before the Browns’ bye; McDaniel has four.
Second down: Potentially ugly day.
Dillon Gabriel’s first game at home could turn out to be an ugly day on a couple of fronts. Forecasts – which can always change – call for a 90% chance of steady rain with wind gusts up to 35 mph. The native Hawaiian has played in challenging weather conditions during his six-year college career. But it’s not an ideal scenario in which to make his NFL home debut. “You gotta spin it in the wind. Dillon does that pretty well,” said offensive coordinator Tommy Rees. “Throws a pretty tight ball. Obviously, you got to play on time. Some balls that maybe get away with late, but if you’re playing on time, playing on rhythm, hopefully you’re pretty efficient still. And then there’s probably some things, if the wind’s really blowing, and you’re going into it, maybe you’re waiting until the field flips, but try not to focus too much on the exterior factors there.” Running the ball more than throwing seems to be the order of the day, especially considering the Dolphins’ 32nd-ranked defense against the run. But you know how that goes. The other ugly scenario involves an angry fan base fed up with offensive ineptitude and the pent-up anticipation of finally seeing Shedeur Sanders on the field. The last time Gabriel played in Huntington Bank Field, he executed a textbook 2-minute drive against the Rams in the last preseason game while Sanders staggered through five sacks in four possessions. It seems like an eternity ago. To his credit, Gabriel is not fazed by the prospect of the home crowd turning on him, the offense, or the head coach. “You know, it’ll be a lot of fun to start at home and [I’m] excited to be back here,” he said.
Third down: What’s up with 95?
Protected by a $160 million contract extension that precludes a trade because of salary cap constraints until 2027 – and only if he waives his no-trade clause – Myles Garrett has been more outspoken and critical than ever before. And he’s taken to referring himself in the third person. On Friday, Garrett was asked about the offensive gameplan in Pittsburgh that called for Gabriel to drop back to pass 58 times against the Steelers’ defense. “I would have liked to see us stick to the run a little bit, especially with a dynamic playmaker like Quinshon [Judkins], hell, even Dylan [Sampson],” Garrett said. “Both of them getting the ball, both of them have different styles, but effective runners in their own right. So, would like to see it, but they saw differently.” Garrett was asked to respond to criticism that he hasn’t exactly held up his side of the bargain with no sacks and one quarterback hit over the last three games. “I don’t concern myself with the comments of people who don’t play or don’t watch the game enough to understand what’s going on or what they do to try to stop or neutralize me,” he said. “Stuff like that doesn’t really cross my radar. At the end of the day, offense’s sole game plan for the most part is how to stop 95. We have to do something to change that, make adjustments to get me matchups just like other edge rushers around the league, so I can have the same kind of effect because I feel like I’m that kind of player.”
Fourth down: Red zone mismatch.
The Dolphins are not as lethal offensively as in the past under McDaniel, but they are dangerous in the red zone, which happens to be a very ominous weakness of the Browns’ defense. The Dolphins have scored touchdowns on 12 of 16 possessions in the red zone (20-yard line and in). That 75% touchdown percentage is second in the league to Philadelphia’s 87.5% (14 of 16). Tua Tagovailoa has the top passer rating in the NFL in the red zone. He is 20 of 27 with nine touchdowns and no interceptions for a 123.0 passer rating. Meanwhile, Jim Schwartz’s defense is dead last in red zone defense, yielding 12 touchdowns in 15 possessions inside the 20. “We just got to keep grinding it, we got to play physical down there, we got to take the run away and get back on the right side of that, because having a chance to hold them the field goals or force long field goals is paramount to keeping the score down, and that’s what we’re trying to do.”
The pick: Dolphins 17, Browns 10.
My record: 2-4.