The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Underdog role fuels team in playoffs
Even though a week ago the Browns made the Steelers look old and bad, many question team legitimacy.
It has been a week since the Browns made the Pittsburgh Steelers look old and bad, and still many people don’t believe the guys in orange helmets are legitimate.
The Browns get another chance to prove their worth at 3:10 p.m. Jan. 17 when they play the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs in an AFC divisional playoff game at Arrowhead Stadium.
Las Vegas has made the Browns a 10-point underdog.
“That’s just one game,” Browns defensive end Myles Garrett said Jan. 15 on Zoom when asked about the 48-37 wild-card win over the Steelers. “It takes more than one outing. We have to keep proving it, not only to them, but to ourselves. We have to make it routine, like the Patriots dynasty.
“Those guys just assumed they were winning every time they looked at the schedule. We have to get that same kind of mentality here.”
The Chiefs finished the regular season with the best record in the NFL at 14-2.
But a closer look at how they got there reveals the perception of them steamrolling every team in their path is a little more reputation than fact.
The Chiefs were 7-1 halfway through the season. They won those seven games by an average of 15.6 points, and that includes a 23-20 squeaker over the Chargers the second week of the season.
The second half of the season also produced a 7-1 record. The Chiefs were 7-0 from Nov. 8 to Dec. 27, but those games were won by two, four, three, six, six, three and three points before losing the final to the Chargers when Coach Andy Reid rested quarterback Patrick Mahomes and other starters.
If the playoff game follows a similar pattern it would seem whichever team has the ball last would be in position to win. It would also indicate Vegas made a mistake making the Browns 10-point dogs.
“We’re just trying to win it any which way we can,” Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said. “If it’s by one point, that’s great, and if it’s by a bunch of points, that’s great, too. We want to see how this game unfolds, but both teams are looking to do anything it takes to get that win.”
The Chiefs were slow starters during that stretch of narrow victories. They were held scoreless in the first quarter twice, scored one field goal in the first period of two other games and one touchdown in the first quarter two other times. The only time they scored more than a touchdown in the first 15 minutes was when they scored 17 points in the first quarter of a 2724 win over Tampa Bay.
The Browns made NFL history when they scored 28 points in the first quarter of their playoff game with the Steelers on the strength of three takeaways by the defense. They can’t be expected to duplicate that in Kansas City, but getting an early lead and then controlling the clock in the fourth quarter by handing off to Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt would be a formula for success.
“It’s a fine line, but the bottom line is we just need to be us,” offensive coordinator
Alex Van Pelt said. “Our best drives are the ones where we possess the ball, take them on long drives, convert on third and fourth down and end up in the end zone.
“That’s something that we’ve done pretty consistently throughout the year. Ultimately, it will be important to chew some clock and then score points.”
The longer the Browns offense is on the field, the longer Mahomes, he of 38 touchdown passes and only six interceptions, is off it.
Reporters wouldn’t be doing their jobs properly if during Zoom calls in the buildup to the game they didn’t ask Browns defensive players what it will be like to face Mahomes, the 2019 NFL MVP and reigning Super Bowl MVP. Mahomes drew praise from Garrett, cornerback Denzel Ward and others.
“The guy is great with his feet and he’s great throwing off of the run,” Garrett said. “He can make plays in any part of the field, so we have to be prepared for that. Don’t jump for those ball fakes. If you take your shot at him, make it clean and try to take the ball away from him.
“He’s kind of regarded as the face of the league right now. I want him to be able to go home when he has his kid or kids and tell them that he went against Myles Garrett. It isn’t just me vs. him. It’s the Browns vs. the Chiefs. But, individually, I like to leave an impression on everybody I go against.”
Garrett finished the season with 12 sacks, but he had only three his last eight games — in part because he was recovering from COVID-19 in two games early in December and in part because he was constantly double-teamed.
“I’m due,” he said. “Absolutely. This should be the game to do it.”