Browns Give Jets A Master Class On Why Coaching Matters In The NFL
Head Coach Robert Saleh’s stock answer for many of the postgame questions following the Jets’ 37-20 loss in Cleveland on Thursday night was, “I’ve got to figure it out.”
Why did it look like his club was unprepared? Why do they keep committing so many undisciplined penalties? Why did his “championship defense” get gashed for the third straight week?
“I’ve got to figure it out,” Saleh said in some form to all of those queries.
Um, we’re in Week 17, with the season finale in New England ten days away. Saleh might want to get on that.
Never mind. When clueless owner Woody Johnson gave Saleh (and General Manager Joe Douglas) a vote of confidence last week despite Saleh’s third consecutive ten-loss season (and the franchise’s fourth straight under Douglas’ reign), he removed all accountability from his evaluation in the delusionary belief that star quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ Achilles rupture on the fourth snap of the opener versus Buffalo absolved all subsequent incompetencies.
Not that Johnson was paying attention, but Thursday’s affair was a Master Class on how coaching matters in the NFL. One team played with a fourth-string quarterback, a depleted offensive line, and was missing its top wide receiver and running back. The other team was the Jets.
Yes, it was Cleveland, with former Jet Joe Flacco calling signals, who disdained excuses to pulverize the overrated New York defense to the tune of 367 yards in the first half to take a 34-17 lead into the locker room. Flacco became the first QB to throw for more than 300 yards against the Jets in 34 games.
Some of Flacco’s throws were pretty, but given the time he had to survey the field and how open his targets were, I’m not sure the results would have been much different had he swapped jerseys with Jets QB Trevor Siemian.
The area that was most one-sided wasn’t the QB play, but the coaching. We all owe Denver Head Coach Sean Payton an apology, for he was correct in his assessment of Nathaniel Hackett’s capabilities. As Jets Offensive Coordinator, Hackett can’t even get his guys to line up correctly. That’s when they make it out of the huddle with enough time before risking a delay of game penalty or forcing Saleh to burn a precious timeout.
Hackett looked the other way as Jets tackle Mekhi Becton was brutalized by Cleveland’s star edge rusher Myles Garrett for much of the night, rarely scheming any help. After an opening drive touchdown, its first of the season, New York stubbed its toes every subsequent time it got close.
The Jets’ foibles, though, came in all phases, another mark in Saleh’s disfavor. There was a failed fourth-and-inches QB sneak, a blocked field goal, a fumbled kickoff return, and a pick-six (which was at least matched by a fantastic play by Jets edge rusher Jermaine Johnson, who batted a Flacco pass up in the air, grabbed it, and raced 37 yards to the house to cut the Browns’ lead to 27-14 with two minutes remaining in the second quarter).
Of course, three plays after what should have been Johnson’s momentum-changer, Flacco escaped pressure and flipped the ball to running back Jerome Ford, who broke about four tackle attempts on the 50-yard touchdown catch-and-run with 1:25 remaining in the half.
Down by multiple scores thereafter, Saleh nearly broke the account of “Surrender Index 90”, which measures the cowardliness of punting in certain fourth-down situations, TWICE when the Jets moved into Browns territory.
This is what the Jets usually get when they hire defensive coordinators to be their Head Coach. Credit the Browns for going in a different (and correct for the times) direction, with offensive-minded Kevin Stefanski clinching a second playoff berth in four seasons as their HC. The difference between the two clubs’ precision is immense, with Cleveland able to move people around, use play-action as a weapon, and create open spaces for receivers to run into.
New York, meanwhile, committed eight (8!) pre-snap penalties, including a too many men in the huddle, two delays, a failure to cover the tackle, and a false start by a center (Joe Tippmann, for moving his head around before his snap). Jets QBs, and that includes Flacco during his three seasons here, are taught to get the ball out quick and don’t turn it over. No wonder the Jets can’t get out of their own way on offense.
On the other side of the ball, Jets star cornerback Sauce Gardner mentioned that Thursday’s defensive game plan called for him to shadow Browns receiver Amari Cooper around the field, a change in Gang Green’s usual tactics. Only Cooper was declared inactive due to a heel injury 90 minutes prior to the game. So why wasn’t Garnder switched onto the Browns’ next best weapon, tight end David Njoku, who put up 128 receiving yards in the first half mainly by beating linebacker C.J. Mosley?
By the time Saleh and Defensive Coordinator Jeff Ulbrich “figured it out”, the Browns had already taken their proverbial foot off the gas, throwing just seven times in the second half.
Saleh, of course, chose to highlight his defense’s second half performance as some kind of indicator about how he hasn’t lost the locker room. The stunned media then asked why he didn’t seem more upset about not only the loss, but the manner in which it arose.
Saleh replied, “Do you want me to throw the podium on the floor?”
Professionalism aside, it’s what you can say when you have undeserved job security.