Myriad issues in another Browns' loss
Winning on the road in the NFL is never easy.
Cleveland faced a great opportunity against the injury-plagued San Diego Chargers.
Yet, a lack of discipline, conservative play calling and a failure to pressure Phillip Rivers behind an offensive line missing three starters played a role in a 30-27 loss for the 1-3 Browns.
Penalties, especially against the defense, haunted the Browns all afternoon. They had 12 penalties with five leading to first downs for the Chargers, but the most critical nullified a missed field goal by the Chargers at the end of the game. That miss would have led to overtime, however, a kicker with a second chance rarely misses.
It allowed San Diego to walk away victorious, thanks to another Cleveland miscue.
For a coaching staff built on defense, that unit continues to struggle with a lack of discipline. There's enough veterans on that side of the ball where those mistakes should be minimal, but they keep happening. They always seem to come at the most inopportune times. There is nothing more maddening to a fan than stupid mistakes. Yet, it seems to be ingrained in the Browns since they returned to the league in 1999.
But, the other free yardage allowed several Chargers' drives to continue and aided them in building a 27-19 lead.
While San Diego was busy scoring touchdowns, the Browns continued to settle for field goals. With a chance to take a touchdown lead in the third quarter, Josh McCown threw a pair of swing passes to lose yardage from the San Diego 10, which led to a Travis Coons field goal.
The Chargers came right back with a touchdown, including a huge pass play to Danny Woodhead on an all-out blitz.
McCown was sacked on a second down to stall another pivotal drive, leading to another field goal which cut the lead to 20-19. But, Rivers hit another huge play against another blitz on the ensuing drive to help extend the Chargers' lead to 27-19.
Though the Browns showed some gusto on the final offensive drive when they had to score a touchdown. They left points on the board earlier, and that won't get it done home or away.
The most frustrating part is the defense's inability to pressure any quarterback. Rivers is known for his quick release and was ready to go, but the Browns failed to take advantage of the offensive line's injuries. That is simply unacceptable in the NFL, especially when the coaching staff knew ahead time the Chargers would be without three starters.
The Browns managed to do it, and a banged-up secondary allowed Rivers to throw for 358 yards on 23-of-38 passing with three touchdowns and no interceptions.
The Chargers were down to three receivers at one point, but the Browns continued to led them get open. When the quarterback has all day to scan the field, they should and usually do have success.
There is no shame losing on the road to the Chargers with a veteran quarterback like Rivers. But, the door was open and the Browns failed to walk through.
Right now, Cleveland seems like a mess with no identity on either side of the ball. It's a story that has come very repetitive by the lake.
What are the answers? Does anyone even have an idea of how to change it? It's a tiring story line for a fan base just waiting for something to cheer for.
bhannahs@zanesvilletimesrecorder.com
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Twitter: @brandonhannahs