Running the ball to be focus vs. Jaguars

The weather forecast for the 1 p.m. kickoff Nov. 19 at FirstEnergy Stadium calls for rain, 38 degrees, muddy fields and muddy uniforms — the kind Jim Brown, Leroy Kelly and Kevin Mack wore while dragging defenders in the fourth quarter when the Browns were good.

The Jaguars statistically have the best pass rush in the NFL, so even though wide receiver Corey Coleman is back after missing seven games with a broken hand, the 0-9 Browns are convinced the best way to break this dreadful losing streak is to hand the ball to Isaiah Crowell and Duke Johnson.

“Every year at this time, you try to crank it up because it’s harder to throw the football in cold weather,” Browns running game coordinator Kirby Wilson said. “We also understand that you don’t want an opposing good quarterback getting repeated looks at your defense. It all plays hand in hand.

“We like to try to have more minutes with the football than our opponents, so the possession time is very important. To keep the football, you have to execute on third downs to get more downs, which means you have to run the ball efficiently on first and second down as well. You would like to be a dominant team throughout the season but especially once late November/December hits.”

The Jaguars want to run the ball, too, for three reasons — the weather, Leonard Fournette and Blake Bortles, not necessarily in that order.

Fournette, the rookie from LSU picked fourth overall in the 2017 draft, has 629 yards rushing and six ground touchdowns.

Jaguars coach Doug Marrone would much rather put the ball in Fournette’s hands than ask Bortles to win the game.

Bortles is ranked 19th among 22 AFC quarterbacks in fourth-quarter passing (Some teams, such as the Browns with DeShone Kizer and Kevin Hogan, have two quarterbacks ranked). Kizer is ranked 22nd, but he has the excuse of being a rookie. Bortles has thrown only one of his 11 touchdown passes in the fourth quarter.

“On paper, we don’t (match up well with the Browns),” Marrone said on a conference call. “Defensively, they give you a lot of problems. Obviously, one of the best run defenses. Obviously, we try to run the football. That’s going to be a very difficult matchup for us.”

The Browns got some good news Nov. 17 as they wrapped up a week of practice. Shon Coleman, cleared of concussion protocol, was listed as questionable after being limited in practice. He has the tough assignment when the Browns don’t run the ball of protecting Kizer from left end Calais Campbell, who leads the Jaguars with 11 sacks.

“It just means we have our unit,” Coach Hue Jackson said. “We still have to stop what they do. You want to have all your best guys out there playing. It’s still a tall challenge. It’s a good football team coming in here. We are looking forward to it.”

The Jaguars have won three straight games. They won three games all of 2016.