Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson (4) celebrates his one-yard touchdown run with offensive tackle James Hudson III (66) during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in Jacksonville, Fla.
AP Photo | Phelan M. Ebenhack
CLEVELAND — Deshaun Watson walked off the field following a dreadful home opener two weeks ago with a towel covering his head, looking as if he was trying to hide.
He’s returning a little less embarrassed.
A much better performance last week in an 18-13 win at Jacksonville boosted Watson’s confidence as the Browns (1-1) prepare to host the New York Giants (0-2) on Sunday. Still, Cleveland’s quarterback said there’s plenty of room for improvement.
“We left a lot of opportunities out there on the field overall,” he said. “All of us.”
It’s no different for the Giants, who retreated to their locker room in disgust and disbelief last week after scoring three touchdowns to Washington’s none and still losing 21-18 as the Commanders kicked seven field goals.
In the aftermath, coach Brian Daboll was criticized for not having a second kicker active and available in case Graham Gano, who went into the game nursing a groin injury, got hurt. As luck, or in this case bad luck would have it, Gano injured his hamstring on the opening kickoff.
New York punter Jamie Gillan missed an extra point, and the Giants failed on a pair of 2-point tries, leading to Daboll having to fend off questions about his decision and future.
And it’s only Week 3.
“Everyone realizes our record,” Giants quarterback Daniel Jones said. “I think everybody understands that, but no one’s discouraged.”
Watson’s bounce-back gave the Browns some hope that he’s finally moved past two disappointing seasons.
Showing more decisiveness than in the opener — his first game since shoulder surgery in November — Watson went 22 of 34 for 186 yards and scored on a 1-yard run against the Jaguars. He also made a couple of improvised plays that only a few QBs in the NFL could dare duplicate.
It was a major step forward after Watson was inaccurate and unsteady in the opener against Dallas, a debut dud he attributed to a long layoff and Cleveland’s new offense.
“It’s just Game 2, just more reps and just getting comfortable with the scheme,” Watson said. “That was our first time, all 11 of us together plus the coaching staff together calling the plays and just operating in a live setting.
“So we’re always a little bit more aware of where we wanted to go with the ball and the game plan. So it’s definitely an opportunity for us to improve this week and just try to build on that.”
Back to form
Amari Cooper has been unrecognizable on the field.
Cleveland’s No. 1 receiver in his No. 2 jersey hasn’t looked like himself.
Despite being targeted 17 times by Watson, Cooper has caught just five passes for 27 yards in the first two games. The five-time Pro Bowler has dropped two long passes in key spots — one of them an easy touchdown.
It’s the worst start in a 10-year career for Cooper, who made a surprising admission this week when he said hadn’t been practicing with the same focus. He said that all changed this week.
“Just me knowing my game, knowing myself, just got to go out there and play my brand of football, play to my standard,” said Cooper, who is in his final year under contract. “I haven’t been doing that the past couple of weeks, but I’ve been motivated, so it’s time to get going. I’ll be back.”
One Giant target
New York’s passing game has spent a lot of time in one, ahem, Naber-hood.
Jones has had targets on 65 of his 70 passes, with 25 directed at rookie Malik Nabers.
While maybe not ideal, Jones’ attention to Nabers has been productive as the No. 6 overall pick from LSU has 15 catches for 193 yards and a touchdown. He’s averaging 12.9 yards per grab, ranking him in the top 5 in the league, but he also had a crucial drop in the fourth quarter at Washington.
Jones expects the Browns to do their own focusing on Nabers, and understands he’d better have a Plan B.
“We have to be ready for that and understand that when you have a player like that, and you feature him like that, defenses are going to adjust,” he said.
Mistakes on the lake
The Browns are running afoul.
Cleveland has been called for a league-high 24 penalties after two games, five more than the next closest team.
After being whistled 11 times in the opener, the Browns were called for 13 last week, including three in a span of four plays as their self-inflicted errors pushed them out of field-goal range in the fourth quarter.
“We need to be better in that area,” coach Kevin Stefanski said. “It’s hard to win. We don’t need to make it harder on ourselves.”
Run, run, run
If there has been a weakness in the Giants defense under new coordinator Shane Bowen it’s been against the run. Opponents are averaging 163 yards through two games.
The Commanders rolled up 215 yards with Brian Robinson gaining a career-high 133.
Giants inside linebacker Bobby Okereke said tackling and filling the right gaps were part of the problem. He added some players, himself included, are trying to do too much.
“Talking about me specifically, kind of three quarters doing your job, a quarter trying to do someone else’s job, trying to make a play and that trickles down,” he said. “Everybody just needs to focus on doing their job.”
