November 5, 2024
Cleveland Browns: 3 keys to victory for week 15

Cleveland Browns: 3 keys to victory for week 15

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The Browns are 4-1 in their last five games, improving their overall record to 6-7 on the year. Standing in their way next is a trip to Arizona to face the struggling Cardinals team led by rookie signal-caller Kyler Murray. Playoffs are still possible as long as the Browns continue to build off of their recent success.

The Arizona Cardinals are a building team, currently in the midst of a six-game losing streak. The Browns, on the other hand, have struggled on the road this season, going just 2-4 with wins against the Jets and Ravens. With that being said, here are three keys to victory against the Cardinals in week 15.

  1. Baker Mayfield must expose weak Cardinals defense

After throwing two interceptions last week, Baker Mayfield has thrown more interceptions (16) than touchdowns (15) this season. The good news is that the Browns face the worst statistical defense in the NFL Sunday afternoon with the Cardinals.

In fact, Arizona allows a league-high in passing yards per game (294.2), completion percentage (71.8) and touchdowns (32) through 14 weeks of the season. This is the week Mayfield must show his best stuff, especially across the country after a sluggish performance last week against the Bengals. Expect Mayfield to bounce back in a strong way in the desert against an exploitable defense.

2. Put additional pressure on Kyler Murray

The Cleveland defensive front is coming off a two-sack performance against the Bengals last week. Despite losing star Myles Garrett, the Browns still rank 11th-best in the league with 37 team sacks. To add to that, Murray is coming off one of his worst performances this season, throwing three interceptions to 194 passing yards while completing 20 passes.

Throwing behind one of the league’s worst offensive lines, Murray hasn’t topped 200 passing yards in three consecutive games. He’s been having a difficult time connecting with his young offensive core as of late, so additional pressure upfront should force Murray to scramble out of the pocket and try to make something happen with his legs.

If Cleveland can create pressure as they have been, it might be another long game for the rookie. Besides, Arizona has allowed a league-high 47 sacks entering week 15.

3. Stop the running game

Not all has been well on the defensive side of the ball in recent weeks as the Browns defense has given up an average of 151 rushing yards the past two weeks. After allowing the Steelers to run for 124 yards in week 13, Joe Mixon followed that up by rushing for 179 yards this past week, a season-high for the Cleveland defense against one of the worst rushing attacks in the league.

The Cardinals use a three-man committee in the backfield, with Kenyan Drake– who appears to be the main back– David Johnson and Chase Edmunds. Not to mention Murray ranks second in the league in quarterback rushing with 448 rushing yards.

Browns defensive coordinator Steve Wilks had this to say about the rookie quarterback adding an extra element in the Arizona rushing attack earlier in the week.

“He is a dual-threat throwing the ball as well as having the ability to escape and make play with his feet, so we have to do a great job of really trying to keep him in the pocket and try to contain him,” Wilks explained. “Not a lot of teams have been able to do that this year, so again; it is going to be a difficult task on my part.”

Taking away the running game and forcing the Cardinals to beat you through the air will be something to watch for, especially with the way the secondary has been playing throughout the second half of the season.

Michael Trivisonno

A 2020 graduate of Cleveland State University, Mike is entering his sixth year covering high school sports throughout Northeast Ohio. To follow up more with his writing, be sure to follow him on Twitter (@MichaelTriv_)

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