Winston’s magic runs out, and Browns’ secondary collapses, in flat 27-10 loss to Chargers

This wasn’t the type of performance the Browns were hoping for as they head into the bye week.

Last week’s victory over the Baltimore Ravens, coupled with the performance by Jameis Winston, gave Cleveland Browns fans hope that the team could continue that momentum heading into the bye week. Standing in the way were the Los Angeles Chargers. Instead of inspiring hope, the Browns came undone in every way imaginable, losing to the Chargers by a score of 27-10. There were also reports during the game that DE Za’Darius smith is about to be traded.

In the first half, the defense inexpliably had two huge breakdowns in the secondary, allowing easy touchdowns despite six sacks from the front seven. In the second half, every time Winston got the ball into Chargers territory, he threw an interception (three of them to be specific). The special teams unit allowed a long punt return and had a field goal blocked. The Chargers remained calm and efficient, while the Browns were back to their flurry of mistakes. Let’s get to the full game recap.

1st Quarter – Browns vs Chargers

Community Chat Thread – 1st Quarter

The Browns kicked off to begin the game, as QB Justin Herbert and the Chargers’ offense took the field. Herbert’s opening play was a 16-yard pass over the middle, but Cleveland’s defense allowed no more as CB Denzel Ward had tight coverage on the Chargers’ 3rd-and-8 pass attempt. The punt unit came out and WR Jaelon Darden made a fair catch back at the 8 yard line, where QB Jameis Winston and the Browns’ offense would take over.

After a 2-yard carry by RB Nick Chubb, Winston whipped a quick strike to WR Cedric Tillman for a first down. A false start by TE David Njoku, followed by a scramble by Winston that went no where, set up a 3rd-and-9 situation for the Browns. Winston tried to get it to WR Elijah Moore, but the pass was a bit low and incomplete, forcing a punt. The Chargers’ return man dodged a tackle and had a big return out to the Browns’ 30-yard line, putting Los Angeles into field goal range right away.

Both teams traded penalties — first the Chargers with a holding penalty, but then Cleveland had a neutral zone infraction, leading up to a 3rd-and-7 attempt by the Chargers. Herbert took a shot as he delivered a first-down pass to rookie WR Ladd McConkey, getting the ball up to the 18 yard line. RB JK Dobbins got the next handoff, but LB Winston Reid blew it up for a loss of 3 yards. On second down, DT Dalvin Tomlinson came right up the middle for a sack on Herbet, setting up a 3rd-and-21. Los Angeles caught the Browns off guard with a completely blown coverage, as WR Joshua Palmer was wide open for a 27-yard touchdown pass to put the Chargers up 7-0.

The Browns’ next drive would begin at the 25 yard line with 6:44 remaining in the first quarter. Winston hit WR Jerry Jeudy along the left side for a 10-yard gain on the first play. After that, Chubb was stopped for no gain and Njoku had a short pass go off his fingertips. On 3rd-and-10, Winston tried to thread a pass to Tillman over the middle, but the Chargers just missed undercutting it and knocked it away. The punt unit came out again, with P Corey Bojorquez getting it coffin cornered out of bounds at the 5 yard line.

The Chargers got some quick breathing room with a 7-yard run up the middle. The next run was stopped for no gain, and on 3rd-and-3, S Grant Delpit tripped up the quick pitch, forcing a punt.

Darden’s return was out to the Browns’ 44 yard line, setting up their best starting field position of the day. Two plays later, on second down, LB Khalil Mack negated that field position by beating RT Jack Conklin immediately and sacking Winston, forcing a 3rd-and-15. Winston’s pass to Jeudy over the middle was caught at first, but then the defender knocked it away for an incomplete pass — although it would have been short of a first down regardless. Bojorquez’ punt was shorter this time, being fair caught at the 22 yard line.

DE Myles Garrett closed out the opening quarter strong, with a sack on first down and third down, forcing a fourth down situation as the clocks hit zero.

2nd Quarter – Browns vs Chargers

Community Chat Thread – 2nd Quarter

The Chargers began the second quarter with a 4th-and-25 from the 5 yard line. Darden made the first man miss on the punt coverage, but still only got the return out to the Browns’ 46 yard line, which is pretty much where the previous drive began. The difference this time is that the drive began positive, as Chubb got the handoff with a 11-yard gain into Los Angeles territory.

A short run by Chubb was followed by a first-down pass to Njoku, down to the Chargers’ 29 yard line. Chubb lost his footing on the next carry, though, for a loss of 2 yards, setting up 2nd-and-12. A quick pass to Jeudy set up a 3rd-and-4, as the Browns went hurry up. That forced Los Angeles to burn their second timeout. After the timeout, Winston guided traffic and then ran for a first down. The Browns inched forward, but the Chargers’ red zone defense continued to play well, including forcing a sack on 3rd-and-10. That brought K Dustin Hopkins in for a 38-yard field goal, which he hit to make it a 7-3 game with 9:30 left in the second quarter.

Garrett got his third sack in four plays on the next snap, a breakout game already after going four games without a sack. A couple plays later, on 3rd-and-6, Herbert found another wide open receiver — WR Quentin Johnson — on the same breakdown as earlier, this time going for a 66-yard touchdown pass. The extra point was missed, but it was still a 13-3 lead for the Chargers.

Winston appeared to get a 19-yard first down completion to Tillman on third down, but Jeudy was flagged for an illegal motion. Then, on 3rd-and-11, Winston was sacked again, leading to another punt as the offensive mistakes continued.

The Chargers’ next drive began at their own 40 yard line, mid-way through the second quarter. Right away, the defense faced a 3rd-and-6. Could they avoid the same breakdown that has been plaguing them on third down? It wasn’t quite a breakdown, but Johnson still caught an open third down pass to get into Cleveland territory, out to the 35 yard line. That was followed by a playaction strike to McConkey. The defense then fell apart more, as Dobbins got the handoff and was untouched for a 16-yard touchdown run, giving the Chargers a 20-3 lead with 3:30 left in the first half.

The Browns desperately needed to score before the half, but went three-and-out — that included Winston dodging a sack on third down, and nearly throwing an interception back to the middle. Instead, they punted heading into the two-minute warning, with another Bojorquez punt going out of bounds at the 4 yard line, and Cleveland having two timeouts.

The Chargers ran it on first down for a gain of 1 yard, and Cleveland burned one of their two timeouts. A short pass gained 2 yards, and the clock stopped because the play went to the sideline. On 3rd-and-7, Palmer beat CB Martin Emerson for 26 yards on the back shoulder throw up the right sideline. Now, the script flipped as the Chargers could push the ball. The ball was out to midfield with a minute to go. The defense at least were able to prevent points from going on the board by getting their sixth sack of the half.

3rd Quarter – Browns vs Chargers

Community Chat Thread – 3rd Quarter

The Browns were set to receive the second half kickoff. Cleveland desperately needed a fast start to try to build momentum. First down wasn’t a good start, as LT Dawand Jones was flagged for a hold as Winston tried to run that way. A quick pass to Tillman then gained 12 yards to set up a 2nd-and-8. A run by RB Jerome Ford set up a 3rd-and-2, and Chubb returned to move the chains on the carry. That was followed by a 21-yard pass to TE Jordan Akins, who found the soft spot in the zone.

A couple plays later, the Browns faced a 3rd-and-4. Winston found Jeudy in the soft spot again, ripping it down to the 15 yard line. The defense jumped offsides to set up a 2nd-and-4 situation, now at the 11 yard line. A pair of runs by Chubb got close, but it was 4th-and-short and Cleveland went for it. A quarterback sneak was stalled at first, but the final push got just enough to move the chains.

On first down, Winston zipped a quick pass to Tillman, who dropped it as a defender delivered a big hit. On second down, Winston tried to hit Jeudy in the back corner, but the underneath defender jumped and tipped and the ball, and another defender intercepted it, ending a long, 8-minute drive with no points, and keeping it a 20-3 game.

The defense forced a three-and-out, making it all-the-more-frustrating that the offense couldn’t put points on the board. Nonetheless, Los Angeles brought out the punt unit, and a bad punt gave Cleveland the ball at their own 47 yard line.

Winston tried to air it or deep on first down for Moore, but it was just beyond his arms. A second down screen pass was knocked away, and then on 3rd-and-10, Winston’s pass was incomplete as he faced pressure from DL Joey Bosa. The field position was wasted on three quick incompletions, so Bojorquez punted it down to the 9 yard line.

The defense was able to force their second straight three-and-out, but time continued to tick down with the deficit not changing. Darden got it out to the Browns’ 43 yard line with under four minutes left in the third quarter. Chubb got the ball to midfield with a 7-yard run, but then it was quickly 3rd-and-3 as Winston was tackled for no gain on a scramble attempt. On third down, Winston found Tillman over the middle for a first down conversion. On the next pass, Winston was picked off as he tried to anticipate Tillman getting to an in cut downfield, dampening Cleveland’s chances all-the-further.

The Browns’ defense forced their third three-and-out and a punt, and Darden had a nice punt return to the 37 yard line with about a minute remaining. This drive began with a 10-yard pass to Jeudy. A short pass to Njoku picked up 5 yards. On 2nd-and-5, Cleveland got a short pass to Moore again for three yards.

4th Quarter – Browns vs Chargers

Community Chat Thread – 4th Quarter

The Browns faced a 4th-and-2 from the Chargers’ 45 yard line to begin the fourth quarter. Cleveland ran a Shotgun handoff to Chubb, and he was tripped up for a loss of a yard. The Browns went for it on 4th-and-3, and Winston threw a swing pass to Chubb behind the line of scrimmage that was stopped easily for a loss of 4 yards and a turnover on downs.

Herbert hit McConkey off of a playaction pass for 20 yards, their first first down of the second half. The defense did generate a stop after that, as Los Angeles came on for a field goal attempt. K Cameron Dicker missed from 44 yards out, keeping it a 17-point game with 11:37 to go in the game.

Winston hit Moore over the middle for a catch-and-run of 17 yards, into Chargers territory again. Two plays later, though, Winston tried to thread another pass up the seam, and the Chargers picked it off for the third time in the half.

The defensive shutout continued in the second half for Cleveland, with Los Angeles running off very little clock as they kept throwing the ball. After another punt, Darden got it to the 22 yard line, where the offense took the field again. A string of completions got the offense into Chargers territory again, now with under seven minutes remaining. With 6:38 left, Hopkins was sent in for a 51-yard field goal attempt. His kick was blocked, with the Chargers recovering behind the line at the Browns’ 46 yard line.

Dobbins broke free for a 34-yard run to put the Chargers in a goal-to-go situation. A few plays later, Dobbins punched it in for a 7-yard touchdown, extending Los Angeles’ lead to 27-3.

With time winding down, Winston was able to throw a touchdown pass to Tillman on a beautiful catch, making it a 27-10 game. Cleveland did not try an onside kick with only 0:44 left.

The Browns now head into the bye week with a 2-7 record, and back to questioning what there is to look forward to for the remainder of the season.

Week 9 Quick Hitters

• The Browns were out-gained in the first half in yards 256-57.
• Cleveland had six first-half sacks, and Los Angles had four first-half sacks.
• QB Jameis Winston: 26-of-46 for 235 yards, 1 TD, 3 INT.
• RB Nick Chubb: 15 carries, 39 yards (2.6 YPC).
• WR Cedric Tillman: 6 catches, 75 yards, 1 TD.
• DE Myles Garrett: 3 sacks