Winless Cleveland Browns meet favourites AFC North rivals Baltimore Ravens – NFL Preview
The Baltimore Ravens are brimming with confidence over recent win versus tougher rivals the New England Patriots as they host the struggling Cleveland Browns at M&T Bank stadium this Thursday night (September 27) with the latter heading into the game with
an intriguing question: when they will register first victory of the season?
There is no comparison between the players at each position in the two sides because the Browns’ majority of players are young, as a matter of fact rookies, while the Ravens’ line is studded with veteran stars from quarterback Joe Flacco, safety Ed Reed
to players at almost all other positions.
The Browns have as many as 15 first-year pro players who have exposure to the professional league of what they gained in the preseason and first three games of the regular season. Their offence leader Brandon Weeden is as new to the pro conditions as receiver
Greg Little and others.
Also, Brandon is still mistake-prone and has so far not been able to give a match-winning performance while former starter Colt McCoy has already proven to be time-and-again tested and failed leader.
So Browns second-year coach Pat Shurmur does not have much choice in front of him as far as consolidating strength of the squad is concerned and with so many rookies in the side he also cannot do much about their training and grooming than to accept the
situation as it arises.
It is just beginning of career for many players and with only three games played yet there is no possibility for the coach to groom them overnight. As a matter of fact, there are no genuine or serious efforts by any of Browns coaches towards this end so
far.
For example, Brandon has been struggling to overcome some of minor issues or mistakes which with a little help from coaches can be avoided but the player is helping himself out on the self-help basis.
While the Browns are through some of the worst times of their history, the Ravens are in an ideal situation. They have one of the best crops of players in the league, who have experience, passion and energy, and have proven their credentials as stars at
many occasions. The team is leading the American Football Conference (AFC) North division, while the winless Browns are at its bottom.
It is going to be a daunting task for the Browns to stop quarterback Joe Flacco, who recently said he has been enjoying the high tempo on offence and has proven true to the claim in the initial two games.
There is no other apparent scenario to see the Browns beating the Ravens, and the former can only hope for a miracle to make it happen.
Tags: