As offensive futility marred another loss for the Cleveland Browns, the most recent a 34-10 loss to the Detroit Lions on Sunday, quarterback Joe Flacco's struggles were once again at the center of the defeat.
The 40-year-old passer turned the ball over three times, increasing his season total to eight giveaways. Through four games, the Browns have the NFL's second-lowest scoring offense (14 points per game). However, coach Kevin Stefanski on Sunday declined to place the blame for the problems on offense solely on Flacco.
And on Monday, when asked again if he is sticking with Flacco as the team's starting quarterback for Sunday's Week 5 matchup against the Minnesota Vikings (9:30 a.m. ET, NFL Network), Stefanski sidestepped answering in the affirmative but reiterated the issues don't solely lie with the veteran.
"We have to play better as an offense," he said Monday. "We have to coach better on offense. It's not about one person. There are so many things that we need to do better and obviously quarterback included, but this is not about one person."
Even if the Browns were to make a move to rookie Dillon Gabriel, who has served as the backup through four games, recurring themes including drops and pass protection would need to be improved to help turn around the Browns' offense.
The Browns dropped three passes against the Lions, two of which preceded a major swing in the loss.
Trailing 20-10 early in the fourth quarter, tight end Harold Fannin Jr. and wide receiver Jerry Jeudy dropped back-to-back passes that would have resulted in deep completions. One play after Jeudy's drop on third down, Lions wide receiver Kalif Raymond's 65-yard punt return touchdown put Cleveland in a three-score deficit.
"I got to make that damn play," Jeudy said. "That's a big-time play. I got to catch them s----. I catch them s---- every day in practice."
The Browns' eight drops through four games are second most in the NFL and like Sunday's game against the Lions, many have come in critical moments.
In a Week 1 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, Fannin and Jeudy once again dropped consecutive passes. This time, it led to a turnover on downs in Bengals territory with Cleveland trailing by one point. Later, on the penultimate drive, wide receiver Cedric Tillman dropped a pass that was intercepted in the eventual 17-16 defeat.
"[The drops are] not happening in practice," Stefanski said. "Part of being good in the pass game is having precision. That includes everything and everything you do, and we obviously have to clean that up."
Along the offensive line, the Browns have risen to 10th in run block win rate, but their pass protection has become a liability. Cleveland has used four different starting offensive line combinations in as many games because of offensive tackle injuries. Left tackle Dawand Jones suffered a season-ending lateral collateral ligament tear and hamstring avulsion against the Green Bay Packers in Week 3. Right tackle Jack Conklin has missed the past three games because of an elbow injury.
Backups KT Leveston and Cornelius Lucas have struggled with extended playing time. Leveston and Lucas rank 57th and 61st, respectively, out of 66 qualifying tackles in pass block win rate. Lucas particularly struggled against Lions pass rusher Aidan Hutchinson. The Browns used their tight ends and running backs to chip Hutchinson, but he was frequently left on an island with the backup linemen. According to NFL Next Gen Stats, Hutchinson was matched up with Lucas 17 times, and all were 1-on-1 matchups. Hutchinson had two sacks (one strip-sack) and five pressures when facing Lucas.
The Browns had been scouring the trade market for a veteran tackle and on Monday agreed to terms on a deal for Houston Texans lineman Cam Robinson.
"We own this all together," Stefanski said. "To have success on any side of the ball, you have to play as one and you have to play together. We had too many things that caused us not to have success."
