Browns defense well aware of Ravens QB’s favorite target, Andrews
BEREA — The Browns played in Baltimore two season ago on a Sunday night. Ten times in that game, Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson targeted tight end Mark Andrews.
Four times, the passes ended up in the hands of Andrews.
That included what proved to be a huge touchdown in a 16-10 Baltimore win.
Four times, though, those passes ended up in the hands of Browns defenders for interceptions. One of those four passes ended up in the hands of safety Grant Delpit.
“Ah, OK,” Delpit said
“Yeah, I forgot about that.”
A little more than a month ago, the Ravens came to Cleveland to play the Browns. Jackson targeted Andrews five times in that game, and all five found the hands of the big tight end.
The worst news of all is that two of those five passes found the end zone, including an impressive catch in the back right corner to give Baltimore a 21-3 halftime lead.
On the play, Andrews pulled in a perfectly placed pass from Jackson, despite cornerback Denzel Ward having perfect position.
Then again, that’s exactly the way it seems to go when Andrews sees the Browns.
He goes from being one of the best tight ends of this generation to being one of the best tight ends of all time.
“He’s a good tight end, man,” Delpit said this week as the Browns prepare to face the Ravens on Sunday in Baltimore. “You can’t take it away from him. He’s very comfortable in their offense. He finds some open spaces in zone coverage. So you always got to be aware of where he’s at. That’s one of [Jackson’s] favorite target.”
Since his second season in the league in 2019, Andrew is behind only the Kansas this week.
City Chiefs’ Travis Kelce in almost every major category for tight ends. He’s caught 343 career passes for 4,238 yards and 37 touchdowns, with 229 catches picking up first downs for the Ravens.
When it’s the Browns on the other side, though, Andrews might as well be Kelce.
He has 48 catches on 72 targets for 621 yards and nine touchdowns in 11 career games against Cleveland.
When it has been Jackson throwing him the ball against the Browns, Andrews has been extra special with 33 catches for 459 yards and eight touchdowns.
Then again, Jackson and Andrews have been pretty special against most teams, especially this season. Andrews has 41 catches for a team-high 477 yards on 55 targets this season, and has accounted for six of Jackson’s nine touchdown passes.
In the mind of the man putting together a plan to slow down both Jackson and Andrews on Sunday, he also is the perfect tight end for the quarterback. Jackson lives to keep plays alive by scrambling, and Andrew gets himself open when a play breaks down.
“He’s really good at uncovering when the quarterback’s scrambling,” Browns defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz said. “The quarterback has confidence in him, and they seem to really have some sort of mental telepathy. They always seem to be moving in the same direction when the quarterback scrambles.
“So he’s a big target, he’s got really good hands, and he’s just really instinctive to try to break open and make himself friendly to the quarterback.”
And, in the process, quite unfriendly to the Browns.