Williams laments taking late timeout

If you were watching the Browns and Broncos play Dec. 15, you might have jumped out of your chair and screamed at the TV, “What is Gregg Williams thinking!?” when a timeout he called on fourth-and-1 with 1:53 remaining and the Browns leading, 17-16, with the ball on the Denver 10, negated an offsides penalty by Denver.

The Browns were already lined up to go for it. Judging by the reaction of left guard Joel Bitonio and others when the timeout wiped out the offsides, in the huddle before the play quarterback Baker Mayfield must have said, “I’m going to use a hard count and draw these guys off. Just don’t move early.”

The strategy worked — except for the timeout.

It would have been one thing if Williams had second thoughts and decided to kick a field goal for a four-point lead, but after the timeout the offense lined up again. A handoff to Nick Chubb lost two yards and the Broncos took over on their 13 with 1:49 to play and no timeouts needing only a field goal to win.

All’s well that ends well because Jabrill Peppers sacked Case Keenum to seal the 17-16 win. So why did Williams call that timeout and go for it anyway?

Williams after the game said he wanted to be aggressive and go for the win. But that explains only why he decided against the field goal. It doesn’t explain the timeout.

“The timeout — I wish that I could have had it (back), but there was a little bit of confusion at that point in time on what play we were going to call,” Williams said Dec. 10 at Browns’ headquarters in Berea. “We were trying to make sure that everything is calm for our guys to line up and do it.”

Williams also wanted to make sure if Chubb did get the first down that he went to the ground rather than try to score. Williams wanted to run out the clock and not give the Broncos a chance to get the ball back. That was also part of the timeout message.

“We needed to impose our will with a young team,” Williams said. “It was a great way for a confidence booster for our team. Now, we have to get better in that situation, and we will continue to get better in those situations on how you win. Take a knee and after the first down the game is over.”

So maybe this clears up the confusion about what Williams was thinking.

DAVID ZALUBOWSKI — ASSOCIATED PRESS Gregg Williams speaks with umpire Clay Martin during the second half against the Broncos on Dec. 15 in Denver.