After watching the Cardinals for three hours, my question is, why would anybody in Arizona buy a ticket to see that team play?
The Browns obliterated the worst team in the NFL, 27-0, in every way imaginable in Deshaun Watson’s first full game since they crushed the Titans, 27-3, on Sept. 24. Next week, they have to play one of the best teams in the league when they travel to Baltimore to face the Ravens on Nov. 12.
Players and head coach Kevin Stefanski always talk about “flushing” the game just played after 48 hours and turning the attention to the next one. The Browns really have to adhere to that policy in the days ahead.
“We won 27-0, but there’s a lot of stuff we can improve on, especially on offense,” left guard Joel Bitonio said. “We’re going to look at the film, get after it, and get ready for Baltimore because we know they’re going to be a big challenge as their place.”
The Ravens are 7-2 in the AFC North. The Browns and Steelers are 5-3. The Bengals were 4-3 heading into their “Sunday Night Football” game with Buffalo on Nov. 5 in Cincinnati.
The contest Nov. 5 against the 1-7 (now 1-8) Cardinals at Cleveland Browns Stadium could have been a trap game, but the Browns did not let that happen.
Dalvin Tomlinson plans on celebrating his three-sack game (officially 2.5 sacks) with a big steak dinner. #Browns pic.twitter.com/uuA7SwOgTD
— Jeff Schudel (@jsproinsider) November 5, 2023
Cardinals rookie quarterback Clayton Tune was making his first NFL start. Perhaps the fifth-round draft pick from the University of Houston wishes he had chosen a different profession after being mauled by the Browns’ rabid Dawg defense.
The Browns sacked Tune seven times and forced three turnovers — an interception by Denzel Ward, an interception by Sione Takitaki and a fumble recovery by Myles Garrett after a strip sack by defensive tackle Shelby Harris.
Deshaun Watson says he isn’t 100 percent yet, but he certainly looked good after a slow start against the Cardinals on Sunday. He was 19 of 30 for 219 yards and two touchdowns. 107.5 passer rating pic.twitter.com/20upTlbbxf
— Jeff Schudel (@jsproinsider) November 5, 2023
Three sacks belonged to Dalvin Tomlinson, the jolly defensive tackle signed in free agency to improve the run defense. Tomlinson had 0.5 sacks in the first seven games.
“I’ve got bad news for you,” Stefanski said in his post-game news conference. “They just took a sack away from him. He got two and a half.”
“He played relentlessly,” Stefanski continued. “Came off the football, was aggressive. And then when you’re rushing the passer, when you get a bunch of guys that are relentless to the football, sometimes just beating your guy is going to find your way to the quarterback.”
The shutout was the first for the defense since the Browns beat the Bills, 8-0, in a blizzard in Cleveland on Dec. 16, 2008. The Cardinals netted 58 yards on 48 snaps. The 58 yards allowed were the third-fewest in team history. The Bears were held to 47 yards on Sept. 26, 2021, and the Steelers were held to 53 yards on Sept. 10, 1989.
Blanking the Cardinals required a sterling effort by every player, but the performance did come against a pathetic Arizona offense that was minus its top three rushers.
“We haven’t been playing up to the standard that we’ve set on defense,” Garrett said. “We took the challenge that (defensive coordinator Jim) Schwartz set for us, and we played with our hair on fire. Guys really responded and happy they did to the level in which they did.”
“Like (Steelers coach) Mike Tomlin said, ‘We won’t apologize for winning,’ ” safety Grant Delpit said.
No asterisk needs to be placed next to Watson’s statistics — 19 of 30 for 219 yards, two touchdowns, no interceptions and 22 yards rushing on three carries.
True, he will face a much stingier defense in Baltimore. The Ravens crushed Seattle, 37-3, on Nov. 5 and held the Seahawks to a scant 1-of-12 on third down. But Watson was on target with deep throws to Amari Cooper, and he made smart decisions by dumping the ball off to Jerome Ford when his other receivers were covered.
Watson started slowly, causing concern his right shoulder was still a hindrance. A strained right rotator cuff kept him sidelined for most of the four previous games. But as the game progressed, so did Watson.
”This is what I’ve been preparing and training very hard to get back to,” Watson said. “Just to get out there and play free and be able to be very close to myself and just go out there and compete and have fun with my teammates, and that’s what today brought.”
Watson missed the game with the Ravens on Oct. 1 and the game with the 49ers on Oct. 15 because of his shoulder injury. He tried to play against the Colts on Oct. 22, but was lifted before the first quarter ended and three days later said, “I wasn’t ready.”
Watson played well against the Titans (27 of 33, 289 yards, two touchdowns). Six weeks later, in his first complete game since the injury, he played well again.
The Browns will need Watson, and the defense, at their best in Baltimore to prove they didn’t dominate the Cardinals just because they were a much inferior opponent.
Browns at Ravens
When: 1 p.m., Nov. 12
Where: M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore
Records: Browns 5-3, Ravens 7-2
TV: WJW; Radio: WKRK-FM 92.3, WNCX-FM 98.5, WKNR-AM 850
