Browns should have maximized their possessions after Patrick Mahomes left

I spent much of Monday reviewing the official Browns-Chiefs game book, carefully thinking about how best to criticize the way the Browns handled the game after Kansas City quarterback, Patrick Mahomes, either came out with a concussion.

Browns goaltender Karl Joseph caught a can of corn from Chiefs quarterback Chad Henne in the Cleveland end zone with exactly eight minutes left. Low 19-10 when Patrick Mahomes left and 22-10 at the end of the drive ended by Henne, the Browns had scored a touchdown and reduced the margin to five points, 22-17. Joseph’s interception pushed the swing of the momentum squarely in favor of the Browns.

This is when things are set aside for Cleveland. Through seven games (and despite losing a timeout along the way), the Browns went 12 yards from their 20s to their 32s, scorching three minutes and forty-one seconds of time. Facing fourth and ninth place, the Browns went to Kansas City instead of choosing to go.

The reasoning makes sense. If Mahomes had always played, the Browns certainly should have tried their luck in fourth and ninth places. With Henne, why not throw and play defense?

One reason not to pitch, of course, was that the Browns only had a timeout left, due to an ill-advised replay challenge and the timeout that had to be used to avoid a late foul. of play during what would be Cleveland’s last record. It was Cleveland’s last record because the Chiefs managed to milk the remaining 4:19 to seal the victory.

So the Browns’ fair criticism comes from the inability to move faster after Mahomes makes it to the locker room. Before Mahomes was injured, it made sense to downplay possessions and shorten the game. After Mahomes, the total talent gap narrowed or even disappeared. At this point, the Browns should have done everything faster, in order to increase the number of times both teams have had the ball – because in a Baker Mayfield battle against Chad Henne, the Browns are more likely to score more than points that the Chefs.

Consider the first ride after leaving Mahomes. The Browns used eighteen plays, consuming eight minutes and seventeen clock seconds.

Down 12 by the time this drive started, why not force the problem? Go faster. Run more games. Bring the ball back to the Chiefs and hope for a mistake that could lead to an opening to win the game.

If the Browns had simply shown a greater sense of urgency in their last two tries, the Browns could have made it to Buffalo this weekend.