Week 1 Quick Reads: Manziel flashes some of that missing magic
Well, there is some good news for Cleveland Browns fans following Sunday's 31-10 loss to the New York Jets.
Johnny Manziel is the least of your worries.
Not that Manziel provided the great quarterbacking Cleveland has lacked since the glory days of Bernie Kosar in the 1980s. But, like during his brief preseason work, at least there were signs of Manziel having regained some of the magic from his decorated college career at Texas A&M.
As for the rest of his team, the Browns pulled an all-too-familiar disappearing act while losing an NFL-record 11th consecutive season-opener.
Manziel, who sat out the final two weeks of the preseason because of tendinitis in his right (throwing) shoulder, was forced into action after starter Josh McCown unsuccessfully tried to channel his inner John Elway. Warned during the preseason by Browns coaches to try and avoid unnecessary risks, McCown threw caution to the wind when charging toward the goal line on a second-quarter scramble. McCown was spun like a helicopter when hit by two Jets defenders, resulting in a concussion and lost fumble.
Enter Manziel, who hit wide receiver Travis Benjamin for a 54-yard touchdown on his second throw. Manziel later helped put Cleveland in position for a field goal that gave the Browns a 10-7 lead late in the second quarter.
Manziel needs to build on those positive moments and learn from the mistakes he made in the second half that helped lead to Cleveland's unraveling. As evidenced by his two fumbles on sack-and-strips, Manziel must get a better feel for the pass rush and protecting the football while under pressure. Manziel also will end up on the injured list himself if he doesn't better protect himself when rushing the football. Manziel took a hellacious hit by Jets cornerback Buster Skrine when sliding too late at the end of a third-quarter scamper.
Manziel, though, actually provided some hope for a franchise that has plenty of other issues.
Manziel is surrounded by one of the NFL's worst wide receiving corps. The running game needs time to get into gear behind rookie Duke Johnson.
The defense has problems, too. The Browns could have used cornerback Justin Gilbert's services while getting picked apart by Jets quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick (!!!), but the maturity issues of Cleveland's other 2014 first-round draft pick continued when he was declared inactive following a road-rage incident last Friday. A run defense that ranked last in the NFL last season surrendered 153 yards and two touchdowns to New York's combination of Chris Ivory and Bilal Powell.
And the Browns overall did themselves in with 12 penalties for 109 yards as well as two other fumbles besides Manziel's, including Jets wide receiver Brandon Marshall ripping the football out of Browns safety Tashaun Gipson's arms after an interception to let New York keep possession and ultimately score.
The first week of the season often doesn't reflect how well a team will fare overall. Three of the four teams in last season's conference championship games (New England, Indianapolis and Green Bay) all lost their openers in 2014.
But for a team that isn't realistically a Super Bowl contender, the Browns must keep an eye on the future. That means making Manziel the starter beginning with next Sunday's game against Tennessee to see exactly what they have -- an upgraded version of Johnny Football who can succeed in the NFL or another draft mistake that will require Cleveland to address the position yet again in the 2016 offseason.
Here's what else went down around the NFL on Sunday:
Miami 17, Washington 10: CBS did its best to stir the pot with regular sideline camera shots of Robert Griffin III after both good and bad plays by his replacement at quarterback. There was more of the latter as Kirk Cousins failed to cement his starting spot and quash yet another Redskins quarterback controversy. Washington was blanked in the second half with Cousins throwing his second interception of the game midway through the fourth quarter inside Dolphins territory. Washington’s passing game suffered an earlier blow when wide receiver DeSean Jackson injured his hamstring in the first quarter and didn’t return. The debut of Ndamukong Suh didn’t instantly remedy Miami’s ongoing woes stopping the run. Washington’s Alfred Morris gouged the Dolphins for 121 yards on 25 carries.
Green Bay 31, Chicago 23: The Bears benefitted from the element of surprise under first-year head coach John Fox. Green Bay usually spends a day during the preseason focused specifically on its Week 1 opponent, but Packers head coach Mike McCarthy told FOXSports.com that wasn’t the case this year because there wasn’t “a whole lot of information” about the schemes Chicago would be deploying. The Bears controlled the clock for 18:20 of the first half and rushed for 130 yards until Green Bay successfully adjusted and quarterback Jay Cutler imploded as usual with a costly fourth-quarter interception. Cutler now has a 1-12 career starting record against the Packers.
Carolina 20, Jacksonville 9: Jaguars second-year quarterback Blake Bortles made noticeable strides in the preseason, but such progress wasn’t evident against the Panthers. Bortles threw the fifth pick-six of his young NFL career when Carolina cornerback Josh Norman jumped a route and returned his interception 30 yards for a third-quarter touchdown. Those are the types of plays that have Norman, who declined a Panthers contract extension during the preseason, in line for a major payday.
Buffalo 27, Indianapolis 14: One is the league’s most celebrated young quarterback. The other still hasn’t officially made an NFL start at the position. Yet it was Buffalo’s Tyrod Taylor who was the superior passer (and runner) in Sunday’s matchup. Taylor, who opened the game lined up at wide receiver with Matt Cassel under center in a gimmick formation, was turnover-free during an efficient 14-of-19, 195-yard aerial effort. Luck threw two interceptions and was consistently harassed by Buffalo’s pass rush. Luck got little support from a running game that saw newcomer Frank Gore gain only 31 yards on eight carries. Another major concern: Wide receiver T.Y. Hilton left the game with a left knee injury.
Kansas City 27, Houston 20: The last time I can remember a team making a performance-based quarterback change during a season opener came in 2004 when Miami head coach Dave Wannstedt benched Jay Fiedler in favor of A.J. Feeley at halftime. That Dolphins squad went 4-12, which could be the direction Houston is headed if Brian Hoyer or replacement Ryan Mallett fails to spark the passing game. Houston’s offensive line didn’t help matters by surrendering five sacks. The Chiefs survived Texans defensive end J.J. Watt (nine tackles, two sacks) to take a 27-9 lead into halftime.
St. Louis 34, Seattle 31: Seahawks offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell must feel cursed. After being lambasted for his ill-fated decision to pass in the final seconds of Super Bowl XLIX, Bevell was unsuccessful again with another play call in a crucial short-yardage situation. The Rams stuffed running back Marshawn Lynch on fourth-and-1 in overtime to win. Seattle’s offensive concerns don’t end there. Wilson was sacked six times, which stemmed from a dominating performance by the Rams’ all-star defensive line and Seattle’s on-going offensive line woes. Seahawks strong safety Kam Chancellor, who missed the game and subsequent $268,000 payday in a contract holdout, had his position strengthened when replacement Dion Bailey surrendered the game-tying touchdown in the fourth quarter.
Denver 19, Baltimore 13: The Ravens have long been known for having a better defense than offense. That very well may be the case in Denver this season. It was obvious Sunday that the Broncos have plenty of kinks to work out in a new offensive system and quarterback Peyton Manning has seen better days. But Denver already is prospering under new defensive coordinator Wade Phillips. The Ravens were limited to just 173 net yards. Broncos safety Darian Stewart sealed the win with an end-zone interception in the game’s final moments.
Tennessee 42, Tampa Bay 14: Disparate performances of rookie quarterbacks Marcus Mariota and Jameis Winston will generate the biggest headlines but an equally significant story is how poorly Tampa Bay’s defense continues to play entering Lovie Smith’s second season as head coach. Mariota sliced apart the Bucs for 175 yards and four touchdowns in the first half alone on 10-of-13 passing. Mariota was lifted after three quarters with a perfect quarterback rating of 158.3. As for Winston, his fortunes can only go up. Winston had his first NFL pass intercepted and returned for a touchdown. It didn’t get much better Sunday as Winston continued to look overmatched like in the preseason, especially playing behind a young offensive line.
Cincinnati 33, Oakland 13: Jack Del Rio’s Raiders head coaching debut couldn’t have gone much worse. Starting quarterback David Carr was knocked out of the game with a hand injury, safety Charles Woodson injured his shoulder and the defense had no answers for Bengals tight end Tyler Eifert (nine catches for 104 yards and two touchdowns). Cincinnati’s offensive performance was especially sweet for coordinator Hue Jackson, who returned to Oakland-Alameda County Stadium for the first time since being fired as the Raiders’ head coach following the 2011 season.
San Diego 33, Detroit 28: They won’t be saying Ndamukong Who? in Detroit after this loss. The Lions surrendered 30 consecutive points in squandering a 21-3 lead. The pass defense was shredded by Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers (35 of 42 passing for 404 yards and two touchdowns) and wide receiver Keenan Allen (15 catches for 166 yards). Just as disconcerting, FOX Sports analyst Tony Siragusa called out the Lions for a lack of leadership and communication among defensive players as San Diego was driving for the game-clinching touchdown late in the fourth quarter. Is a two-catch, 39-yard outing another sign that Detroit’s Calvin Johnson is no longer an “elite” wide receiver?
Arizona 31, New Orleans 19: Why one of the NFL’s most innovative offensive minds (Saints head coach Sean Payton) with a future Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback (Drew Brees) would instead lean on his shaky defense in a critical situation will be second-guessed after the decision backfired. Trailing by five points with two timeouts and 1:58 remaining, Payton opted to punt on fourth-and-6 from the Saints' 7-yard line rather than go for it. Oops. Cardinals rookie running back David Johnson quickly turned a screen pass into a 55-yard touchdown to ice a game that Arizona trailed, 14-3, early in the second quarter. Johnson’s emergence comes at a fortuitous time with starting running back Andre Ellington suffering what could be a serious knee injury in the fourth quarter.
