Browns’ offensive snap counts, stats, and notes: Week 12 – Cleveland shuts down T.J. Watt

Jameis Winston and Jerry Jeudy also deliver the goods against Pittsburgh.

Below, we analyze the snap counts and stats on offense for the Cleveland Browns’ Week 12 game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

• QB: Despite having two turnovers, Jameis Winston was the Browns’ top-graded player on offense against the Steelers, grading out to an 86.4. And, if I’m not mistaken, that is probably the best quarterback performance for the Browns this season. I criticized Winston for his turnovers against the Chargers, and even though his fumble and interception in the fourth quarter came on back-to-back possessions, the fumble was a result of one lapse from Geron Christian, while the pick was just one that got away. He made some incredible throws in the snow, and that fourth down run was pretty darn heroic. He’s not perfect, but his personality is so damn infectious and you can’t help but be motivated to play for the guy.
• RB: Now we saw why Nick Chubb had a reduced workload against the Saints on Sunday: so that he could have his biggest load of the season a few days later against the Steelers. He had 20 carries, and played two thirds of the game, with two touchdowns on the board. The rep distribution here, and just using two backs, is ideal to what I hope to see the rest of the season.
• WR: Jerry Jeudy was actually tied with Winston with a PFF grade of 86.4. Winston may have delivered the throws, but Jeudy did a great job getting open and hanging on to them in the clutch with snow falling. My criticism of him, of course, came on the one play where he wasn’t touched down and could’ve gone for a touchdown. Miraculously, it actually led to Pittsburgh being screwed and penalized five yards for trying to knock the ball away. Elijah Moore had a couple catches, and Cedric Tillman showed some toughness on his last catch — although it led to him exiting the game with a concussion.
• TE: I thought David Njoku had more catches, but it really was only 1 reception. He dropped a wide open touchdown in the snow, but then on his next target, snagged a ridiculous two-point conversion. Go figure. Jordan Akins and Blake Whiteheart were heroes in their own right, also coming down with some circus catches.
• OL: It’s about time we see a top grade for Wyatt Teller (84.0). This had to be a part of that, pancaking T.J. Watt:

Speaking of Watt, he was a complete non-factor against the Browns, which Jack Conklin has to deserve credit for as well.