Talking Browns O-Line struggles, previewing Ravens game & more - Sports4CLE 12/15/22

[Music] [Applause] [Music] good Thursday afternoon to you four o'clock time for sports for Cle thanks for joining us hope you're having a great day uh Brown's getting ready for a Saturday afternoon matchup against the Baltimore Ravens five and eight on the year some news out of Berea David Bell unlikely to go listed as questionable toe and thumb injuries has been working dealing with a toe injury for a while we found out today um so he didn't practice everyone else is uh available they did say Amari Cooper is kind of working through his hip situation and it'll be determining it'll be determined by how he feels on Saturday game day j-ok with that injury Reggie Ragland will be active as well the guy that they signed off the Raiders practice squad last week let's welcome in Quincy carrier Untitled unfiltered Brown's coverage uh Quincy how big of a concern is the linebacking core as it is currently constituted against the Baltimore Ravens I mean at least Lamar not playing but oh boy you know it is uh it is I mean like four of the Browns linebackers that came into the season with or on injured reserving out for the season four four Anthony Walker seems like he played on this team two years ago it was this season he was the starting Mike linebacker for this team um so you know not only are you down to another experience linebacker not only is it down to I mean well who's left out there Tony Fields Jordan K and um Reggie Ragland who just signed here two weeks ago so that's gonna be a tall task to ax especially when you're going up against Mark Andrews and one of the and Ravens like to move the ball like to create a lot of uh a lot of distraction when it comes to where they getting get the ball off to and uh and it's just gonna be difficult this week when you don't have your experience linebackers in and then on top of that you don't even have your starting Lineback it's just a it's a rough deal yeah think about it so the starting linebacker's depth chart when it was released was j-o-k Jacob Phillips and um Anthony Walker and Sione takitaki so all your entire starting linebacking core uh from the first first step chart is gone um Kevin stefansky talked about the Ravens offense and uh kind of attack in the middle of the field that's what they do it's a huge challenge when you're facing this offense and they do they do work that middle of the field Mary Kay but they really do work you horizontally as well they'll when they stretch some of their runs and and the quarterback gets involved in particular you really do have to defend all 53 and a third of that field uh but as you mentioned uh the tight ends are featured prominently in their past game they have multiple tight ends that are really really good football players so it does stress uh your linebackers stresses your safeties uh to be really assignment sound in the Run game and and good in coverage yeah that we didn't even get into the tight ends Mark Andrews and and uh the like um that's another problem for this defense yeah Mark Andrews it's been interesting though if you look at his numbers of recently teams have been able to key in on him right because the big problem with the Ravens is name me their wide receivers right they got DeMarcus Robinson and djax yes yes the one who played with Michael Vick in Donovan McNabb that djax like that is their issue right they have four wide receivers on a roster um and it's still difficult for you to name all of them with Duvernay they just it's not a good group that they have there so you might be able to save yourself with some solid defensive line play and it's a really good secondary play and I expect the Browns to just say hey we're just gonna go out here and nickel and just live with the result because we don't think bass is gonna change anything this week um let's talk a little bit to other side of the ball what has happened to the browns offensive line do you think um with the offensive line I think what's been going on with it is is twofold one I think Wyatt Taylor is hurt and it's really affecting his play um yody is in there he's a clear downgrade from Ethan Kosik which is fair because yodi's not even a center at this point also teams are keying in on how Nick Chubb runs the ball so there's an adjustment that needs to be made there and I feel like you just played some really good defensive lines as of late um the Bengals look DJ reader is one of the best defensive tackles in all the football and some of the problems you had last week weren't necessarily your offensive line stinks but DJ reader's just really good right so it's a combination of things it's not as simple as just this one player needs to come back there is a group of problems here that need to be solved and some of these problems aren't problems that they can control like DJ reader who was the whole problem on Sunday yeah without question he was uh they couldn't block him um miles Garrett a unique perspective on the Browns and their playoff chances as they sit right now you know I know our chances are arguably zero to make the playoffs either so I heard a snap that uh our chances to make the playoffs right now greater than the chances the Jets had to win with two minutes left in the game so we have a chance and as long as that's there I'm I'm gonna do all I can now our team my teammates are going to do all we can to secure a win you know one at a time and they'll see where we are at the end of the day in the season all right I'll go with it I'll buy it if that's what you need to do go with it whatever gets you the next week right that's all it is right is get you to the next one and then carry you over to the next one right because if the playoffs get taken out all right well it's about ruining somebody's season that's what being a professional is about I think I was listening to a podcast with Amari Cooper he did months ago um where he was talking about how to not fall into that pit of you got your contract and being complacent and his agent was like well it's about the next one now like that's just what being a professional is Right Whatever Gets You Through This Week gets you through this week and then next week you gotta find something else because you got to get to the next one right um and that's going to be how they're gonna have to find motivation you know the obvious motivation isn't there to make the playoffs and win the Super Bowl and all of that and when that runs out you gotta get a little bit creative but that's why they are professionals because they are able to do that all right let's head to the voicemail of Truth and reason for the first time today hi this is Glenn from leiburia I heard a quote from highly respected Cleveland media person that the Browns need to draft smarter football players I don't think that Wonderlic scores is football sports a natural instinct you need to be born with or is it something that can be coached or maybe some combination of the two what's your opinion or on the comment thanks I respect admire the patients you have with those of us who call I try to listen to your show every day bye as always appreciate all the voicemails um I think football instincts or football instincts I didn't hear the comment um but you know penalties those kind of there are some things that kind of you scratch your head with with this group but I don't know if it's Quincy Knox you're you're not playing well and you're trying to do more than you're capable of doing and then you you make another it Cascades when it's not going well yeah very little of what happens on a football field is due because of the football players not smart enough to be out there that's these are by the time you get to the NFL you have to think about this these are people who have Smart three four years at graduate level programs basically um playing you know playing high level Prep football like there they know more football coming out of college than than almost anybody ever um so any football player in the NFL is a football smart player um you know these are guys who basically have their doctorates in football so you know I don't think that's the problem I think the players on the team are plenty smart there's been nothing to indicate that um you know you just when you're trying to make plays when you're not when you're not being put in a good position to succeed when you don't trust what you're being told from your higher ups you're going to make decisions on your own and when a bunch of people are making decisions on their own nobody's making a good decision right so it's more about that than it is about you know Finding specifically smart football players because you can have an ivy you know you can have a Harvard's football team out there I bet they're the smartest team um in college football it's Harvard or Yale one of the Ivy League schools it's a reason why they not beating Alabama right you know what I mean and am with you I think there are specifically on the defensive side of the ball I think the Browns coaching staff are asking some of these guys to do things that aren't their strengths and that's that's a struggle if you're a player well it goes down to trust too right I just don't think they trust what they're being asked to do I mean they don't trust that everybody else is going to perform their job we've all been in those situations where you have to do a job a group project or whatever it is and if you don't trust that everybody's going to do their job that thing becomes miserable that's why everybody hates group projects right because you only trust one person to do their job it's usually you right and you feel like you have to worry about everybody else if you can't trust everybody to do their job then everybody feels like they have to do everybody else's job and nobody does anybody's job at that point you know it's really just as simple as that right that's why probably a new voice is needed in that defensive room because it's gotten to that point with the defense and once you get to that point you typically need new leadership glitzy carrier from Untitled unfiltered rounds coverage and I'm going to step aside to Quick timeout other side of the break we head back to the voicemail with truth and reason three reasons why the Browns are still struggling with the Sean Watson back sports for Clea we'll be right back stay with us [Music] come back to go forward back to learning new things back to pursuing Your Dreams try C has flexible learning options to fit your life and every year more than one thousand local companies provide Tri-C students with real world learning the right education can boost your lifetime earning Power by hundreds of thousands of dollars start now with a college education you can afford try C where Futures begin foreign the Ohio Lottery Partners in education program recognizes role model students and teachers from across Ohio nominations can now be done completely online to nominate a deserving teacher or student go to ohiolottery.com in the about section find Partners in education there you will find links to the nomination forms students kindergarten through 12th grade can be academic All-Stars teachers can be honored as a teacher of the month the Ohio Lottery Partners in education where stars shine the Greater Cleveland sports Hall of Fame celebrates the star athletes and notable sports figures who were born or have made their home in Greater Cleveland it tells the story of discipline commitment perseverance sportsmanship and excellence in achievement it encourages and inspires those who believe in sport and its direct impact on the well-being of our community go to clevelandsportshall.com or follow us on Twitter at gcle sports Hof for more details thank you [Music] [Applause] we continue talking browns with Quincy carrier Untitled unfiltered Brown's coverage let's head back to the voicemail of Truth and reason hey Dave Frank from Cleveland you need to backtrack on some of your uh earlier shows before DeSean Watson was eligible to play how eulogy Bush and maybe this offense is going to open up and blah blah blah now it's going to take another year I don't know number two is the fansky doesn't know how to utilize his talent I mean if you're getting his doghouse you're buried under the jail it seems like to me I mean Kareem Hunt's going to have his fresh satellite for some team next year he hardly even uses the guy he's approving commodity come on man all right Dave good great show as always but just venting a little bit brother love the show bye as always appreciate all the voicemails Quincy that's um that's a valid point I did say that now wait wait I discounted the whole rust thing I I kind of blew that off and and uh it's real so yeah I'm I I'm not gonna lie I it's gonna take longer for him and for Kevin stefanski to integrate him than I initially thought that's a very valid point I I've said that I mean that's that's a fair point right that it's going to take a little bit longer that the Hope was that Watson could come in here be his old self in all of that but he hasn't really been that far from what his expectation is going to be eventually going forward like I felt like the Cincinnati game was like a a slightly below average regular DeShaun Watson game he kind of looks like he's just in a new system that he could be fine going forward within the next few weeks here or there my thing about the utilizers talent thing is like every time Kareem hunt in there y'all complain to Nick chub not well yeah yeah I I still want to see what I mean like what do y'all want us to do what do y'all wanted to do every time Kareem puts in here I get tweets from y'all right about how Nick Chubbs not on the field why are we taking Nick Chubb off the field why is Kareem and now Kareem Hunt's not getting enough touches have we seen this team try to run the football the last six weeks I just I I'm just saying yeah utilize Talent is a crazy thing to say with Jacoby percent still has a top 10 qbr in the NFL right now like yeah they just feel like the art I feel like the evidence is actually leaning in the other direction with it if you want to say the other stuff about the defense and maybe the play calling there's some very valid arguments to make there but like not utilizing his talent Donovan people's Jones might have a thousand yards he was a six round pick you know what I want to see more of it you know I when I look at it and my reaction was yeah okay um I thought it would be more explosive I thought in joku uh I want to see in joku in the scene there there are so many things that I know that DeShaun Watson did with the Texans from going back and looking at it that we haven't we've just scratched the surface and you know I guess the way I looked at it is it was kind of ridiculous of me to think a guy wasn't going to have played in 700 games he was going to come out and look it looked like he did the last time he played so I I'm taking that more on me yeah well I feel like what we more underestimate it is it's going to be blamed on Russ it just seems like the new offense thing like that's really what we didn't anticipate is that this is a new offense and we should have because Jacoby rissette struggled in this offense for like a couple of days weeks before he really got going so yeah the new offense thing that's going to take I don't think it's going to take the whole six games for him to look comfortable enough in the offense for you to see where it's going to go but you know I think these first two games the first game especially he was just trying to get through it right like he just it was very clear that he was um uncomfortable playing football that day because yeah he hadn't done it in a while that was fair but last week didn't look like he was uncomfortable just like okay he just needs to the he just needs more reps in his offense and he'll be fine eventually yeah which is why I'm ultimately optimistic about it um and yeah you know if they go finishes season off four and two I am more than happy with that given the circumstances that this season started in yeah the other thing I would say is he diagnoses he it it's you can tell he's not comfortable yet because he doesn't he's not processing it as quickly as he did um when he was in Houston when he was in Houston the the last two seasons that he played you could just see it was like not the ball's out and there it is and he's you can still will see him kind of he's not comfortable quite yet and that was the other thing that that is pretty clear all right this is kind of interesting so uh dog pound daily three reasons Browns are still struggling even with DeSean Watson uh number three rust number two struggles at key positions um and you see they they go in there Conklin um hasn't been as great as he has Wills has been inconsistent so they're kind of getting at that offensive line and they're going to ask the offensive line to do some slightly different things but the number one reason and this isn't a surprise Sean Watson can't play defense um the defense has struggled all season and um I they've played better against the Bengals you know you you should you should be able uh to beat the Bengals when you hold them to that's not points but especially in the first half right yeah um they played really well in the first half it just the points for whatever reason what they had that missed opportunity where they went for it on four for one and that's a play call for the ages that will be that will be yelled at for at least the whole off-season right like you know um but there was that whole debacle there and then you know they just kept getting behind the sticks they couldn't get success running the football um you know and they kept getting behind the sticks running the football when you get behind the sticks it becomes harder to throw and those kind of things are the normal things that throw Rhythm throw offense off Rhythm but when he was in plus situations where he was able to get ahead of the sticks I felt like Watson was fine in those situations when you were asking to convert like third and 20s and your defense offense was getting like holding after holding yeah of course he's not going to be successful there but nobody's going to be successful in that situation and the other thing you saw you saw some of the dynamic off platform stuff particularly the one where he's getting tackled and he throws it to dpj those those are plays that he makes he makes those he'll make two or three of those um a game and it is hugely deflating to defense when a quarterback does something like that even the scrambles for first like he had a first down on a third and ten just on the scramble um you know those are the things that are going to extend drives they're going to create more points in the long run again once again once it gets more comfortable getting in the flow of the offense and then he's also able to do the DeSean stuff out of rhythm I think they'll be a great offense all right Kevin stefanski talked about um how much of the evolution and growth um he's seen with Watson in this offense and what we have seen I mean you do have to game plan for the team you're playing but you also can't do everything you can't uh put in every play that desean's run you know there is a part of it that you have to uh slowly but surely progress into some different ways that you you want to tweak your offense I think there's things that we've adjusted to what we're doing that are very subtle but are that are good for us and then there's other plays that are maybe new that we're all just getting you know good reps on in practice and getting good game reps on Museum eventually being more like Lamar Jackson and running I think it really depends on on the defense you're playing some teams don't give you those opportunities and how they defend some of the runs but I don't or we don't have a number of runs that he has to have in the game or or those type of things it's really based on the game that we're playing so Quincy two things what do you think Kevin stefansky can do to kind of help get Watson going and then what do you think the offensive ceiling is what do you think the floor is with DeSean Watson well the ceiling's always going to be determined on what he has is around him but he's going to always the average is gonna go up right you're going to always be around at least like a 12 to 8 offense with this combination I think um what can Kevin do to make sure that DeSean is in a position to be successful um you know that's that's up to the interpersonal relationship between these two how well are they figuring out what the Sean sees in certain coverages versus what the play requires that he sees how well are they melding these things um knowing what DeSean likes in certain situations and making sure that you're calling that right it's with a quarterback as good as him it's not going to be as simple as throw some screens and get them some easy completions early going you know that's that that's obvious you can do that stuff with them but with the Sean it's like okay if you get into these situations what does he like what concepts does he really like within his offense and get a grasp for it and that's why learning a new offense is less about learning back I feel like we think like learning a new offense sometimes is just like reading the Playbook it's it's a lot less about reading the Playbook and just like experiencing The Playbook and then figuring out okay this is what I like here this is why I like it I like this concept because it can I can see this better here what what how many steps in this drop do I need to get to right working on him with those things that's going to be what Kevin can do to make him better Quincy carrier from Untitled unfiltered bronze coverage and I get a subside Tech QuickTime out uh we'll head back to the voicemail of Truth and reason talk some defense here from Miles Garrett sports for CLA we'll be right back stay with us come back to go forward back to learning new things back to pursuing Your Dreams try C has flexible learning options to fit your life and every year more than one thousand local companies provide Tri-C students with real world learning the right education can boost your lifetime earning Power by hundreds of thousands of dollars start now with a college education you can afford try C where Futures begin [Music] the Ohio Lottery Partners in education program recognizes role model students and teachers from across Ohio nominations can now be done completely online to nominate a deserving teacher or student go to ohiolottery.com in the about section find Partners in education there you will find links to the nomination forms students kindergarten through 12th grade can be academic All-Stars teachers can be honored as a teacher of the month the Ohio Lottery Partners in education where stars shine the Greater Cleveland sports Hall of Fame celebrates the star athletes and notable sports figures who were born or have made their home in Greater Cleveland it tells the story of discipline commitment perseverance sportsmanship and excellence in achievement it encouraged and inspires those who believe in sport and its direct impact on the well-being of our community go to clevelandsportshall.com or follow us on Twitter at gcle sports Hof for more details thank you [Music] we continue talking browns with Quincy carrier from Untitled and unfiltered rounds coverage let's head back to the voicemail of Truth and reason yeah hi this is Ron from Cleveland love your show I just wanted to call in and see what you guys think of this trade I think could happen it looks like miles Garrett is totally upset with the Cleveland Browns he sits on the bench by himself he seems frustrated so to me it wouldn't seem unlikely for him to demand a release here pretty soon so with that in mind what do you guys think about the Browns possibly trading miles Garrett even though he's great and everybody will say I'm crazy for saying this but maybe get two first rounders a second round and a third round maybe not that much I'm not sure how his Market thing will be in I know the other team that would pick him up would have a huge amount of money to pay him but seeing us how he is one of the best defensive ends in the league possibly the best I don't know so uh that's just kind of something I wanted to put out there after our general manager he gave away all the picks for uh DeShaun Watson this might be a way to retrieve some of them and who knows you could get lucky in the draft just tell me what you think about it thanks a lot love the Browns go the Browns woof as always appreciate all the voicemails you know Quincy I I don't think Miles Garrett is upset with the Browns I think he's upset because the Browns aren't doing well so I I don't think he's looking to get out of here um even if he was I wouldn't trade him I'm not trading them um but you know he's a good trade miles Garrett he don't trade miles Gary people's people see him sitting there and it's not that he's uh he's upset that he thinks this team should be doing better it doesn't mean he's ready to get doesn't mean he's ready to hop on a bus and leave it means I don't like not playing well I don't like when our team doesn't win that's what he's invested right right he just invested I I just we we do this in sports a lot where we do a lot of body language policing and it's just very unhelpful um and for whatever reason I noticed this with Browns fans we seem to be addicted to finding a reason why a really good player wants to leave the Browns and like request the trade like we got to keep the good players that we have right now right and Miles Garrett's Beyond a good player he's a generationally good player um two first round picks for Miles Garrett is just absurdly low um you know I mean like if you're gonna trade miles you should get the max which is at least three um and you might say that that price is absurd but I promise you you don't trade miles gear unless somebody's willing to pray and absurd price this is not somebody you're gonna give a reasonable deal on you don't just trade model scare right like you don't trade ball scare for sale or this no no you just you don't trade miles care yup I'm with you until you have to you don't and you don't have to so you're not gonna he signed a contract here guys he wants to be here yeah the the other other side of it is they're they're thinking they're Super Bowl contenders starting next year that's why you go out and you do what you do so you don't give away the corner they didn't trade three first round picks to to win later right and you know what I mean by by trading him away and getting first round picks or picks of any kind you're resetting that clock um and you don't want to do that and now we're going to wait till the Sean Watson's 30 to make the run like it's yeah come on now we gotta go now all right uh this from Jake Trotter among Edge rushers mile Garrett miles Garrett leads the NFL in pass rush win rate 28.7 he's also been double teamed more often at uh better than 31 percent than any Edge rusher so so what do they what they're saying is the other teams are dedicating more resources to stopping him and he is still beating them more often than anybody else that's what that in English that's what that tells you tells you my Healthcare it's the best defensive player in football right now yeah again mind you he's doing this with some of the worst help in football really like it's incredible if he were on a better team we'd be talking about this like it's LeBron in 2006 like oh my goodness dude he's he is incredible but yeah yeah miles has been really really good one of the best players is why I'm so incredulous about anybody you just don't when you have one of the best players in football and you're trying to win within the next few years and that player is Young you got to keep that guy like there's no trading him like you can there's not enough first round picks in the world for me to trade him yep I'm with you Kevin stefansky and Miles Garrett today both talked about him kind of being in the running and in the conversation of being defensive player of the year yeah I think really since we've been here and when you're you know a player of miles's stature you're going to get a lot of attention you know teams go into it and they want to chip them with tight ends they want to slide the center to them so that the guard can get out to help him so uh he has to fight through double teams he gets the attention because of of his history just like a lot of guys a lot of the Premier rushers and that can't slow you down he plays a lot of snaps for us too he plays uh you know doesn't come off the field very often so he's he's playing at a high level and we need him to play at a high level to play good defense I like to think that I'm I'm gonna think of it and uh you know there's four games left and there's no reason why I can't be at the top of the exact leaderboard so I'm going to keep on continuing to play at a high level a high effort and get the most for these guys and you know at the end of the day whatever said and done you know I gave my gave my offer for my guys and again Quincy because the Browns have not had the season as a team collectively that in some instances will work a little bit against them you know if if it's relatively even between a guy that's on a really good team and a guy that's on a not so good team that Defensive Player of the Year usually goes you know the tiebreakers how your team's going yeah and you're that like you're just basic stats right like the advanced numbers and everything else that we could look at be like eight miles might be the best defense player in all the football that's not what the people who vote on that award really look like look at right Unfortunately they look at sacks they look at tfls they look at uh traditional numbers and traditionally he's not having the craziest season right I mean it's crazy we could kind of hand wave a 12 sack in like with four games left like it's like oh yeah it's not a crazy season for anybody like you know that's just kind of what miles is does it's like oh 12 sacks um so what it's it's not like the crazy statisticals he's not like leading the league in sacks or anything like that so it's gonna be hard for him to get it but in a um I bet he's gonna be he's gonna be the king of you know Pro Football Focus all all pro team list and and um APR Pro list and all that yeah I would agree all right let's head back to the voicemail of Truth and reason you know it's kind of like obvious that Kevin will let go of Joe wood next season and whoever he hires has to let's put everything all together in one single season because looking at the 2023 schedule it is not going to be easy we are facing the NFC West so the 49ers Seahawks Rams and the Cardinals will be back on our schedule we need to put everything together defensively because if not those teams will run on us like that as always appreciate all of uh the voicemails in in Quincy it's way too early to to start looking at the schedule um and thinking what the NFC West is going to be like uh the defense imagine escaping one Baker Mayfield return game just to have another one on the schedule next year could you imagine could you imagine I don't want to the defense has to get better it's got to be better it's got to be different and it's got to be better there's no reason it should be this bad no there's no good excuse for it so if it's if it continues next year then like you know like the defense look no matter who Kevin hires next year the truth is that the defense has to be better right like if it's gonna be chill woods again which I would no but the defense has to be better because if that defense stinks again then like there's no defending Kevin out of this right like you had an opportunity to fix this and you continue to let it be broken or did not do enough to fix the problem like the defense cannot be as bad as it is right now next year or else everybody's gone yeah absolutely Quincy carrier and I are going to step aside take one more time out other side of the break uh we'll head back to the voicemail of Truth and reason and take a look at a disturbing stat sports for CLA will be right back stay with us the Ohio Lottery Partners in education program recognizes role model students and teachers from across Ohio nominations can now be done completely online to nominate a deserving teacher or student go to ohiolottery.com in the about section find Partners in education there you will find links to the nomination forms students kindergarten through 12th grade can be academic All-Stars teachers can be honored as a teacher of the month the Ohio Lottery Partners in education where stars shine the Greater Cleveland sports Hall of Fame celebrates the star athletes and notable sports figures who were born or have made their home in Greater Cleveland it tells the story of discipline commitment perseverance sportsmanship and excellence in achievement it encourages and inspires those who believe in sport and its direct impact on the well-being of our community go to clevelandsportshall.com or follow us on Twitter at gcle sports Hof for more details good [Music] we continue talking browns with Quincy carrier let's head back to the voicemail of Truth and reason hey this is Rico I just got done listening to Watson's press conference a reporter has said what was part of this of his decision coming here and obviously we all know that the 230 million dollars was a huge huge part of him coming here well he also said the roster and his belief in this organization that he can win a Super Bowl here I truly hope that Andrew Barry will reward him other than financially with the players and the coaches to get the elusive Super Bowl trophy I want Watson to never regret his decision coming here I know that the money will help him ease his decision the players play the game to get titles and I really do hope that rgm can make the necessary moves whether that be players or coaches to provide him with the necessary tools to achieve that incredible accomplishment of winning Cleveland a Super Bowl title thanks as always appreciate all the voicemails Quincy I this roster is better than a five and eight team that's uh that's part of the problem there's some mismatches now you can't go light defensive tackles and light linebackers um and not expect somebody to run the ball down your throat that's that's the biggest problem there are others well I don't even think the problem was like the weight of the players as much as it was the players itself right like you could have had players at the similar height and size if they were better you did last year and you were fine um you know I just think they underestimated that you know Jordan Elliott was not good I don't know what went into the evaluation with Tommy Tokyo about what they saw in year one and what they felt like they saw in year two but I felt like it was obvious in year one and I felt like with Jordan Elliott it was pretty obvious now he did a whole weight transformation I could see how they bought into that but to go into this season with those two being relied on as heavily as they have and those two to flop as hard as they did it's tough it's tough yeah it's gonna take the team yep that is uh that is big x mark um on the front office the the it didn't work um and you can probably throw Jacob Phillips somewhat in that mix as well um all right this is concerning uh most big plays allowed during the 2022 season uh Texans number one 62 Russia's 35 pass plays 97 overall this is Russia's of 10 or more yards passes of 20 more Giants are second at 56 Seahawks 44 Packers 46 Browns 47 Rush 36 pass 83 overall so fifth worst um that's not a list you want to be on ain't stopped the road can't stop the big plays I mean you feel kind of hopeless right you know you stop the run then you let a big play happen uh penalties I bet we're up there in penalties too you know Drive extending penalties we got to be close up there especially after this last game um you know just the defense I I find it difficult to find new ways to stay that this defense is just not good but they just aren't good yeah I mean we're we're hitting all the metrics we're finding all of them um oh yeah they all say the same thing right they suck number we've got it in a number of different languages for you one of them's uh sure to to click with you uh Kevin svansky talked about this Ravens defense and how good it has been they can play multiple Personnel groupings they can play five on the line of scrimmage or and even front four down front they can pressure they can play zone they can play man they really do a little bit of everything and to keep you off balance and then I think they have very versatile football players uh 54 Bowser the young number 14 Hamilton I mean these are guys that they can line up in different positions uh which really makes identification very important for the offense we've talked about the depth that they have on defense and does that really show up to you or I guess do you agree and then how does that show up oh yeah I agree I mean they have depth at rushers you know you can see multiple they can wave different guys in there guys that are fresh uh certainly from The Edge Rush standpoint and Quincy it's that defense has been playing well they went out and they got roquan Smith and that helped yeah yeah I mean their defense is playing well in some areas and in other areas they've been kind of struggling right Marcus Peters and that secondary hasn't really been is shut down as they want to be also keep in mind that that offense for the Ravens has been struggling mightily All Season up and down performances really um either they have these flashes of Brilliance uh but most of the time they're they're really not at that level so you know it's going to be interesting interesting to see which Baltimore team comes to play this week but most certainly it it seems like this defense is gonna oppose a threat against the Run game so you know we're going to see what Watson has this week you know if he's ready to go if we're going to be talking about a bounce back performance or are we going to be talking about a rough performance from him because he wasn't ready to play and be leaned on yet all right before we let you go one last thing miles Garrett was asked about all of the fire Joe Woods chatter that's been going on through social media and here's what he had to say I only hear that chatter when y'all tell it to me I don't know I don't go out and look for it and it usually doesn't find my phone so you know I I don't get much of a uh a commentary in here for for a fire drill Woods or you know new DC no all that doesn't mean anything to me no we're we we are what we are he's our DC and at the end of the day we're on the field executing his calls whether it's a perfect call or not I don't believe in perfect calls we have to go out there and execute whatever he calls and make him right you know could there could there be better calls for for situations of course but he's not perfect neither are we so we have to be able to go out there and make the most out of it and perform at a high level and Quincy he's not wrong but somebody you can't fire all how many ever Defenders there are so the guy that usually goes is the guy that is coordinating the defense yep I mean that's basically it um you know miles kind of like he's just basically saying like he's got to do his job basically like it doesn't matter who is in charge of him he's just got to be in charge of doing his own job and that's how he has to go about it as a player Long View looking at this from 10 000 feet above obviously it seems like a change is recommended yeah I would agree wholeheartedly um Quincy has always great stuff appreciate the time and the Insight thanks very much no problem thank you Dave Quincy Kerry make sure you check him out Untitled unfiltered Browns coverage really good stuff uh we're gonna step aside take a quick time out we get the Baltimore perspective of things Spencer Schultz from the Baltimore Beatdown podcast straight ahead on Sports for sale e stay with us [Music] come back to go forward back to learning new things back to pursuing Your Dreams try C has flexible learning options to fit your life and every year more than 1 000 local companies provide Tri-C students with real world learning the right education can boost your lifetime earning Power by hundreds of thousands of dollars start now with a college education you can afford try C where Futures begin [Music] the Ohio Lottery Partners in education program 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experially has been one of the greatest experiences of my life it's made me who I am today join us we'll build a new future together [Music] we turn our attention to the Ravens coming into town to play the Browns Saturday 4 30 kickoff Lamar Jackson will be a a no-go for this one Adam schefter Ravens have ruled out Lamar Jackson for Saturday's game Tyler Huntley though has cleared concussion protocol off the injury report and good to go let's welcome in Spencer Schultz host of the Baltimore Beatdown podcast Spencer appreciate you joining us um what do you expect to see from Tyler Brown's fans know Tyler Huntley pretty well from uh from last year we we've had a number of people that wanted them to try to sign him in the off season it's like yeah that's not going to work what have you seen from Tyler Huntley um this year when he's played well Tyler Huntley is a mobile quarterback in the tune of Lamar Jackson Anthony Brown the Ravens third string quarterback who came in against Pittsburgh also is so the Ravens feel that they can still run their full plethora of option runs Gap runs boots everything of the sort with Huntley Huntley has struggled and I think a major reason why he wasn't drafted coming out of Utah was because he has a really slow looping release over top and he has compacted that a little bit but really not a super accurate downfield thrower I think he's only attempted four total throw excuse me 12 total throws of 25 plus air yards across over 200 dropbacks in parts of this season and last season for the Ravens so super limited Depot thrower has only completed two deep passes throughout his 200s drop back so someone who likes to really hit the top of his drop back and try and fire the ball underneath the Ravens use some spread Concepts in the pass game really try to extend the field horizontally so that they can allow him to hit the top of his drop back and then really try and fit a ball in he has a really violent release it looks like he's throwing the ball a thousand miles an hour but he really isn't his release looks like more powerful than It ultimately is so hunley's a really good backup for what the Ravens do he allows them to continue running the ball he can make some throws here and there he's athletic enough to go pick up one or two first downs with his legs and make some plays so Huntley is a nice backup for the Ravens but I wouldn't quite consider him the level of backup that a guy like Jacoby Brissette has been for the Browns uh when you look at this offense what does it need to do what does it need to improve on to be even more successful you know we'll get into in a minute but you've won six or last seven I know and there's been you guys have been hit by injuries as much as anybody what is this offense um doing well to get wins right Dave and the tough part of the injuries that the Ravens sustained last year was that it's ultimately not Madden football it's not a video game guys are still dealing with the repercussions Ronnie Stanley has been in and out of the lineup JK Dobbins has been and out of the lineup Gus AdWords Lamar Jackson now at this point so Mark Andrews has also been banged up throughout this season so Ravens have truly been a next man up offense it's the first time since 2020 that Gus Edwards and JK Dobbins and Ronnie Stanley have been on the football field at the same time the Ravens are running the ball really really well when Ronnie Stanley's in the lineup they have gone for at least 146 yards in every game that Ronnie Stanley has finished since he came back against the Cincinnati Bengals in October so the Ravens need to keep doing that running the football Rashad Bateman was a major major devastating loss for what this offense looks to accomplish they had one guy on their entire roster that they felt comfortable isolating and sticking to one side forcing man coverage or forcing a safety to kind of split the difference and asking to go win and Rashad Bateman produced two touchdowns over 50 yards in his first two weeks and then in week three he makes a game-winning play against the New England Patriots on a long completion runs up the sideline or allows the Ravens to score and Ice the game then he sustains a foot injury in week four against the bills he's out so the Ravens pass game has been awful they have not had their backs until just last week we saw how that went for them they've struggled in the red zone so continuing to pound the ball they've also struggled to kind of philosophically when they're in the Red Zone they kind of bunch everything really tight have super tight alignments but then attack vertically after flooding the middle of the field with the defense so I think they need to do a better job hey if we're gonna go tight we need to attack the perimeter when the back line is against us and hey if we want to attack the middle of the field maybe we should spread things out when the field is condensed in the Red Zone I think those are major keys and for the Ravens to just keep pounding the ball and a major key is the injury God just letting them stay somewhat healthy especially with their offensive line and running backs um you guys went out and traded for a a really good linebacker roquan Smith what has he meant to that defense in the time that he's played there he communicates like someone that's been there for a really long time and you see all the clips that the Ravens put out they do ravens wired a 25 minute little hard knock series that they put out basically every week it's a little more team propaganda than maybe HBO would get into but the ability to go play nickel and have two really athletic linebackers while providing more coverage Defenders more safeties Kyle Hamilton's been playing Nikola but having five DBS on the field and being able to go play too high a little bit more and stop the run has been the major addition uh statistically for what the Ravens have done they were able to go play a light box and then have two really rangy sideline to sideline linebackers their defensive front has done a great job keeping those guys clean and then it's just kind of consistency there the Ravens are able to kind of line up and have a key major Personnel Group with Kyle Hamilton playing in the slot on third down roquan Smith on the field they rotate what they're doing up front in terms of rushing the passer but it's kind of the same five six guys taking most of those snaps so I think it's allowed them to feel like they can get into a rhythm and then he is one of the best probably a top five top three coverage linebacker in football we see him go make a play and pick off Mitch trubisky in the Red Zone last week he's a dynamic Blitzer so it's kind of like just adding a second Patrick Queen in some ways that can make so many plays athletically and is a mobile guy on the back end so he's been a super Dynamic player and the Ravens have been the second best rushing defense in football since trading for Smith they've played some decent rushing offenses they haven't really gone against any of the juggernauts Brown's a very good rushing offense even though they struggled last week so I think it's going to be a key test for them and having two guys that can go match a Nick Chubb to some degree athletically is a major key for this game so the the Ravens have won six of their last seven that lone loss was by a single point to the Jaguars on a crazy ending to that how are they doing that how are they able to win we mentioned how banged up they are um Lamar Jackson has been in and out during that how are they finding a way to win what has been consistent or what has enabled them to win six of their last seven well they're not turning the football over offensively they're generating turnovers defensively they've been able to get three plus sacks in I believe seven of their last eight games something like that the Ravens have struggled to actually manufacture sacks they loved under Wink Martindale to generate pressure and Mike McDonald scheme there's more eyes on the football like I said they're playing lighter boxes so teams are having to and quarterbacks are having to hold the ball a little bit longer so that's been a major key you know they're winning the turnover battle they're running the ball effectively especially when Ronnie Stanley's in the lineup and then go make a couple plays in the past game here and there and on top of it they've got Justin Tucker so they've simplified their philosophy we really are seeing them Barrel into what they wanted to be they want to be a run heavy team that has good backs even though Edwards and Dobbins it's hard to say either of them look remotely like they did in 2020 but they're still effective in smart Runners they're able to go generate turnovers and then they have Justin Tucker who allows them to play a little bit different style of game in The Fringe Zone okay outside of the Red Zone when they're in that 50 you know 45 to 50 to 55 Yard range they can dial up some things knowing they're in scoring range so confidently still so they're trying to minimize the possessions that other teams have we saw the Steelers last week only get nine possessions total the Ravens obviously had 10 which was the second lowest of the week only to the Steelers so they're reducing the amount of possessions hoping to turn the football over score a touchdown or two and kick a couple field goals and ask you to go into a defense that has guys like roquan Smith Patrick Queen Marcus Williams Kyle Hamilton and some pretty you know loose Edge rushers right now a deep rotation so it's hard to beat them up their spine they've got Marlon Humphrey on the outside so we're just seeing them buy into their own Supply buy into their own philosophy more than they really have since 2020 or 20 or 19. Spencer Schultz from the Baltimore Beatdown podcast tonight I'm going to take one more time out the other side of the break talk a little bit more about Lamar Jackson find out what the Ravens think about DeSean Watson sports for sale I'll be right back stay with us [Music] the Ohio Lottery Partners in education program recognizes role model students and teachers from across Ohio nominations can now be done completely online to nominate a deserving teacher or student go to ohiolottery.com in the about section find Partners in education there you will find links to the nomination forms students kindergarten through 12th grade can be academic All-Stars teachers can be honored as a teacher of the month the Ohio Lottery Partners in education where stars shine the Greater Cleveland sports Hall of Fame celebrates the star athletes and notable sports figures who were born or have made their home in Greater Cleveland it tells the story of discipline commitment perseverance sportsmanship and excellence in achievement it encourages and inspires those who believe in sport and its direct impact on the well-being of our community go to clevelandsportshall.com or follow us on Twitter at gcle sports Hof for more details thank you [Music] Browns and Ravens getting ready to do battle Saturday afternoon for 31st Energy stadium we're talking with Spencer Schultz host of the Baltimore Beatdown podcast Spencer Lamar Jackson hasn't signed that extension yet to the new deal if you will um what do you think happens with him and the Ravens how did how did this how does this play out do you think it feels very difficult to say at this point it felt like it was going to get done ahead of the season the Rumblings in Baltimore are that the Ravens did exceed Kyler Murray's deal and Russell Wilson's deal and there was going to be upwards of a 200 million dollar contract well Mark Jackson put a deadline on it he said I don't want to be doing these discussions during the season and apparently the clock actually did run out on sorting out the guarantees that Lamar Jackson would have wanted so it appears that they are still negotiating they are still at that point but it doesn't feel quite as certain that we see Lamar Jackson sign that long-term deal or Inc that long-term deal for the future I think everything's kind of on the table in ways right now I don't think it would be shocking to see him not play for the Ravens next year the franchise tag obviously in play a tag and trade obviously in play but the teams are still the team is still negotiating with Jackson and he just hasn't really had a wealth of weapons around him which I think kind of allows them to examine him in a vacuum as a player in many ways they know the person he's been with the Ravens for half a decade now but when he doesn't have Rashad Bateman when his offensive line is shuffling Ronnie Stanley now when he doesn't have his running backs he has still dragged them to a pretty good record and he did the same thing last season so if they are able to get some stability some injury luck and provide him with another threat outside of Bateman and Andrews and God forbid they stay healthy I think that the Ravens would be in a good spot and able to go make a real Super Bowl run where it feels like they're kind of handcuffed this season after Bateman's injury um he because of the way he plays because he runs the football in the open field he gets banged up a lot is that at all a concern or is that just kind of the way you you deal with a quarterback that's that plays the way he does I think we see him do a really great job protecting himself as a runner it has been I think three injuries that he's sustained in game excuse me four injuries he sustained in games one of them he hurt himself flipping into the end zone celebrating another one was Jeremiah wusu koromoa last year knocking him out of the Browns game grabbing his ankle and uh twisting his ankle a little bit which was as a passer we see him get hurt in the pocket getting hit by uh Denver Broncos Edge rusher and then we saw him sustain an injury in 2019 against the Buffalo Bills when Matt Milano hit him dead in his waist as he was throwing a 61-yard touchdown to Hayden Hurst so I actually think he does a remarkable job protecting himself as a runner but has gotten banged up in the pocket this year he put on some weight a little bit to try and deal with some of the injury and wear and tear and uh you know banging and bruising that it takes to be an NFL athlete that does carry the football but again you see him run out of bounds you see him give himself up you see him do a quick give up so often and he does it in such tight quarters I actually think it's one of the greatest skills that he possesses his spatial awareness and ability to protect himself so it's been a little fluke he hasn't really sustained a major injury you knock on wood for that but I think the Ravens kind of like what he's done and like the system that they have in place for him and you know is he going to be as fast as he is now and when he's 35 years old no probably not he'll sustain hamstring injuries and things of that nature but for the the next three five seven years it looks like Lamar Jackson will be able to keep on running through all right um what have you heard from the Ravens Defenders about DeSean Watson and what they think of him and where he might be um as you get ready to play on Saturday yeah the Ravens have seen DeShaun Watson a couple times at this point they're not unfamiliar with him and what Mike McDonald's comments were were was that he really adds a different element in the Run game because of his ability to pull the ball a little bit more than Jacoby said the Ravens think the world of Jacoby Brissette uh he played them really well they've had some tough battles with him in the past as well so they think Super highly of him uh he again played so well in their earlier matchup this season so they think it expands the Browns run game they think that Watson can extend after the play a little bit more and you know it's it's just not super realistic to expect Watson to be off for you know two seasons come back jump in halfway you know well past halfway through the season and just be firing on all cylinders so I think they do he does have a little bit of rust but they respect his ability to make big plays in the way that he opens up things in the the gun Run game for the Browns um before I let you go some keys if if tell me if if this is if the Ravens are doing this they're in pretty good shape if uh if this is happening it could be uh it could be a longer afternoon for the Ravens if the Ravens win it's because they get pressure and actually sack DeSean Watson if the Browns win it is because they don't turn the football over play a clean sheet and generate three to five big plays through the air in the intermediate pass game and a little deeper um what about the Ravens ability to run the football Browns defense has struggled in the Run um not as much the last couple weeks but they've been gashed by teams running the football with Jeremiah Owusu core Mo out that task grows a little taller as well the Ravens are going to run the football they have ran the football really well against the Browns I think the Browns know that to a degree so it's really them preventing explosive gains as well as not letting the red the Ravens get inside the 20 and then bully their way from the 15 to 12 into the end zone so I think hunkering down in the red zone is Major key forcing the Ravens to throw the ball in the tight quarters where they don't have to respect the Deep threat as much Spencer Schultz Baltimore Beatdown podcast great stuff thank you so much for joining us Spencer appreciate it thank you so much Dave happy holidays have a wonderful rest of your day uh you too and again thanks so much for joining us uh Spencer Schultz from the Baltimore Beatdown podcast tell us about the Ravens uh they've been banged up have won six of their last seven and they'll be here Saturday against the Browns at 4 30. that's gonna do it for this edition of sports for Cle we will see you back here tomorrow at four o'clock have a great night everybody see you tomorrow at 4 on Sports for sale [Music] foreign