With the exception of a massive performance from Myles Garrett, the Browns’ win Sunday against the Colts was far from a banner day for the defense.
Cleveland surrendered a season-high 38 points and narrowly won on a last-minute touchdown drive capped by a Kareem Hunt goal-line run. They were fortunate to steal a win after they allowed five touchdowns and surrendered 456 total yards to the Colts, which were both season-high totals by a significant margin.
Despite the rough game, it’s not time to temper high expectations about the defense. Not after their elite start to the season.
But there were certainly some weak spots the Colts exposed, and ESPN’s Dan Orlovsky — a former Colts QB — broke down a few of those areas in a quick review Tuesday morning.
Prior to Week 7, the Browns had allowed just 1,002 total yards (200.4 yards allowed per game), which was the lowest mark by a defense in six games in over 50 years.
Impressive? Absolutely. Sustainable? Probably not — and that’s OK.
Regression had to have been expected, and not every game was going to go the way it did for the Browns against an explosive 49ers offense in Week 5 or when it held the Bengals and Titans to three points each in Weeks 1 and 3, respectively.
Even though they struggled Sunday, the Browns still own league-best marks in total offensive yards allowed (243) and best passing defense (149.2 yards allowed per game). They're also seventh against the run and 10th in points allowed per game.
The defense has to rebound on the road in Week 8 against the Seahawks, who boast the 15th-best offense in the league. With continued concerns over the health of Deshaun Watson’s throwing shoulder, the Browns still need their defense to play at an elite level to supplement the uncertainty of the explosiveness of the offense.
They can get back to that by correcting the areas Orlovsky noticed on tape.
More must-reads: