The defense of the Cleveland Browns has been overhauled this offseason, and they get their first test in Week 1 against the Cincinnati Bengals.
Cincinnati comes to town with a high-powered offense, led by Joe Burrow, that is capable of scoring points on anyone. Burrow has two of the best wide receivers in the game to throw to in Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, and it will be up to the Browns defense to disrupt that rhythm before it gets started.
Spearheading that effort? Myles Garrett.
Cleveland has gone out to add some quality help alongside Garrett. Za’Darius Smith, Ogbo Okoronkwo, and Dalvin Tomlinson will be the complementary players on the Browns’ defensive front, which will be tasked with creating pressure and getting the Bengals offense out of sync. This group should be much better than last year’s version. Jadeveon Clowney, Taven Bryan, and the rotation at defensive tackle were not simply not good enough last year. The hope is that this new group can succeed where the last group failed.
- Feed has no items.
Coverage tendency and type of pressure
Due to Cleveland’s new defensive coordinator, Jim Schwartz, being an established name in the game, Cincinnati knows what they will be facing on Sunday. The Bengals will have man-beaters built into their game plan to take advantage of over-aggressive blitz packages and Schwartz’s man-coverage-heavy scheme. The Browns must plan the way they create pressure very carefully. It is not about sending the house but rather finding a way to create pressure while adequately covering the receivers in their routes. If too many players are required, it will lead to pass-catchers running wide-open without a defender in sight.
There is also the fact that Joe Burrow is coming off a calf injury. Burrow will play in Week 1, but calf injuries can linger for long periods. The Browns must force him off his spot and not let him become too comfortable in the pocket. If not, Burrow could have his way against a defense still getting used to their new scheme.
Speaking of that, there may be a few coverage lapses on Sunday. This was something that the Browns struggled with fairly often last year, leading to public finger-pointing. Considering the new scheme being installed, this is something likely to pop up fairly often early in the year. It should not be a cause for concern if it happens at the beginning of the year. However, if it continues later into the year again, that is when alarms should go off.
For now, the Browns are looking to continue their dominance of Burrow and the Bengals. Burrow has won just once against Cleveland, coming last December in Cincinnati. Cleveland is yet to lose to a Burrow-led Bengals team at home.