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Cleveland Browns: Team is beaten and bruised
Photo
Cleveland Browns quarterback Colt McCoy lies on the field after he was sacked by the Baltimore Ravens in the fourth quarter of an Sunday’s game in Cleveland. The Browns lost the game 24-10 and will have a short turnaround before traveling to Pittsburgh to face the Steelers on Thursday.
Associated Press
BEREA
Quarterback Colt McCoy used the handrail as he gingerly walked down the steps Monday, the lingering result of a weekend encounter with Baltimore’s merciless defense.
McCoy’s right knee is sprained.
The Browns, on the other hand, appear broken.
One day after being flattened by the Ravens, who rushed for 290 yards in a 24-10 thumping of Cleveland that wasn’t nearly that close, the Browns (4-8) began assessing the extensive damage from a defeat at the hands one of the AFC North’s co-leaders.
There’s little time for review. The Pittsburgh Steelers, undoubtedly smelling brown and orange blood in the water, are next — on Thursday.
“It’s quick,” Browns coach Pat Shurmur said of the short turnaround.
Sadly, it won’t be painless.
“It’s going to be real tough,” cornerback Sheldon Brown said. “Both are physical football teams and you know they’re going to have a physical presence throughout the contest.”
Shurmur did not sugar coat Sunday’s rout, which dropped the Browns to 3-18 inside their division the past three years and prompted wide receiver Josh Cribbs to conclude that there’s “a big gap” in talent between Cleveland and the North’s top teams. That may have already been evident, but the drubbing may have left a collective mark on the Browns’ organization and fans.
The Browns couldn’t stop the run, and they couldn’t run it themselves. They dropped five more passes, increasing their league-leading total to 35. And, they once again had a special teams breakdown as Baltimore’s Lardarius Webb returned a punt 68 yards for a TD in the fourth quarter.
Still, Shurmur insisted he believes his young team is growing, and he’s determined to help them develop.
“It’s just like everything you do, you just keep plugging ahead, and this thing will turn when we least expect it,” he said.
There’s a chance the Browns may have to face the Steelers without McCoy, who was injured in the first quarter of Sunday’s game.
McCoy was backpedaling to throw a screen pass when he was hit low by Ravens defensive end Arthur Rhodes. McCoy fell awkwardly, and for a moment, appeared to be in bad shape. He limped to the sideline but only missed one play before coming back and finishing the game.
Shurmur said McCoy does not have any structural damage and believes he will be able to play against the Steelers.
“He’s probably just sore,” Shurmur said.
And he has every right to be mad at a few of his teammates.
McCoy, who is 0-7 in games against division opponents, isn’t getting much help from his receivers. They can’t hang on to the ball, and the biggest offender is rookie wide receiver Greg Little, who has had six drops in the past two weeks and 11 this season.