The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Thomas says Kizer is on the right path
If you want to believe Joe Thomas — and who doesn’t? — rookie quarterback DeShone Kizer might have turned a corner in the second half of the Browns’ loss to the Colts last week.
The Browns trailed Indianapolis, 28-7, in the second quarter, scored one touchdown with 27 seconds left in the second quarter and added two more in the fourth quarter but still fell short, 31-28.
The translation of a moral victory is always another loss. But as the 0-3 Browns get ready for the 0-3 Bengals on Oct. 1 at FirstEnergy Stadium, Thomas, now in his 11th season, is seeing progress.
“We’re getting closer,” he said. “We still have a ways to go. But that’s why we come out here and practice every day. We’ve made some nice progress. I thought our quarterback had his best game last week, and I hope that he can continue that progress and give us a chance to be the offense that we can be.”
Normally, Thomas adds the disclaimer he isn’t a quarterback coach whenever he talks about quarterbacks. But he couldn’t help noticing Kizer was sacked only once last week after being sacked seven times in the opener with the Steelers and twice by the Ravens. Kizer still threw three interceptions against the Colts.
Although one was in desperation on the final play of the game, he is far from a finished product.
“I saw the way he was throwing in rhythm,” Thomas said. “He was making quick, decisive decisions with the football. He wasn’t taking as many sacks. I think that’s huge progress.
“We had 61 called passes last week out of 78 plays, which is a huge number of throws. You could see as the second half moved on, he was getting confidence in understanding the route concepts, understanding the coverages, knowing where the ball needs to go on time. To me it seemed like a really big step for him.”
Kizer’s 22 completions in 47 attempts don’t reflect Thomas’ praise. But eight passes were dropped. Another week working with the Browns young receivers
should improve that. Or maybe not.
“We know that in order for us to be successful, there’s going to have to be a lot of chemistry,” Kizer said. “There is going to have to be a great understanding of timing.
“Completing balls is difficult in this league. In order to do so, it’s what we work on Monday through Saturday that allows us to be successful on Sunday so we have been right back in the lab working as hard as
we can to make sure that we have a better outing (against the Bengals).”
The biggest boost for the Browns as they try to win for the first time this season — and just the third time in the last 31 games — is the possible return of defensive end Myles Garrett.
Garrett, the first pick of the 2017 draft, hasn’t played a down in the regular season because of a sprained ankle suffered in practice four days before the season opener against the Steelers. Garrett resumed practicing on Sept. 28 and is listed as questionable for the game with the Bengals.
“Nobody in the National Football League is 100 percent healthy when they play — nobody,” Browns defensive coordinator Gregg Williams said. “Coaches, whether it’s me being mentally unhealthy or physically, so when he’s ready to cut it loose and there are no setbacks, he’ll be fine and we’ll use him in a lot of different ways.”
Garrett’s status could come down to a decision made in pregame warmups.