Jackson to get more involved in offense

Hue Jackson TAMPA — couldn’t watch it any more.

The Browns head coach has watched his offense score only four touchdowns in the last three games.

His team is now 2-4-1 after the 26-23 overtime loss in Tampa, and Jackson is frustrated.

Very, very frustrated. I wondered how long it would be before Jackson would grab back some of the offense from new coordinator Todd Haley. Well, it begins this week. “I have to,” Jackson said. “I want to ... it’s what I know ... I need to be a little more involved.”

I bet Haley will be less than overjoyed when he hears that.

Here’s my problem. I’d like to tell Jackson not to micromanage the offense.

But I have a hard time defending how Haley has been performing in the job.

It’s not all coaching, but there are issues with play-calling. And Haley seems to have a hard time figuring out who are his best play-makers and how to get them the ball.

Jackson has vowed to “jump in head first ... hands ... feet ...”

My guess is Jackson is thinking if he’s going to lose this job, he’s going to do it his way.

The Browns had only three first downs at halftime against the NFL’s worst defense.

That’s right ... THREE!!! It was pathetic. Want good news? The Browns finally scored in the first quarter.

But it was the defense ... a safety thanks to tackle Trevon Conley.

I want to defend Haley, but the Browns offense has scored only six points in the first quarter all season.

That’s six points in seven opening quarters. That’s two field goals. At halftime, the score was 16-2!

Who to trust?

Haley and Jackson have not exactly been singing in harmony since training camp. There were a few minor clashes which appeared in “Hard Knocks.”

The last few weeks, Jackson has been talking about Duke Johnson and Nick Chubb getting the ball more.

That finally happened Sunday after John Dorsey traded starting running back Carlos Hyde to Jacksonville.

That set up Chubb as a starter. The rookie had 80 yards in 18 carries (4.4 yard average). The only real disappointing play was when he failed to score from the 2-yard line in the fourth quarter. But overall, it was a good start for the powerful back from Georgia.

Jackson has spent much of his life calling plays.

Jackson stressed Haley is the play caller, but I wonder if that will change in the future.

Strong willed

Haley was a former head coach in Kansas City.

He spent the previous six years calling plays for the Pittsburgh Steelers. A split with quarterback Ben Roethlisberger led to head coach Mike Tomlin firing Haley.

The Browns quickly hired him.

But now, there are problems.

Baker Mayfield has taken a significant step backward after his blazing first two games — 63 points scored in six quarters.

Since then, the Browns have scored 49 points in the last 12 quarters.

The development of Mayfield is one of the ways the coaching staff will be judged this season.

“I’ll do whatever I need to do,” said Jackson. “I’m the head coach of this football team.”

A few times, Jackson mentioned being the head coach.

And ultimately, the head coach makes these decisions. But you also can be sure Haley won’t simply back down. That’s not his personality.

Jackson’s record fell to 2-10-1 in games decided by three or fewer points in his two-plus seasons with the Browns. This year, it’s 1-3-1.

He is 0-19 in road games with the Browns.

The Browns have a lot to work out, and who runs the offense falls under that heading.

And Jackson’s job will be decided with how that turns out.