To.
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) September 29, 2019
The.
House.@NickChubb21, everybody. pic.twitter.com/RCeJGdSsaX
We are not a quarter of the way through the NFL season! We would be, but the NFL decided to give the Jets and 49ers the week off. The NetworksUnited aims to be an inclusive outlet, so quarter mark material is out next week.
As for this week! I have to look at the Cleveland Browns, *leaders* of the AFC North through four weeks after taking it right to the Baltimore Ravens. Cleveland wasted our damn time in Week 3 with their suspect playcalling. But in Week 4, they saw a Baltimore Ravens defensive line that was missing NT Brandon Williams, and Cleveland RB Nick Chubb bashed them for 165 rushing yards and a career-high 3 TD. The Ravens had never allowed those numbers to a player in the same game 1, and it gave the Browns a 40-25 win that has them leading the division as we enter the month of October.
When it comes to running the ball, teams are doing it less than ever. Last season, teams attempted only 25.9 runs per game leaguewide. That mark set an all-time low – but through four weeks, that same number is down to 25.2 attempts per game. Teams averaged 4.4 yards per run in 2018; that number is down to 4.3 in the early going of 2019.
That said, Chubb is one of 14 players with at least 250 rushing yards so far this season. Doing the math, that is a 1,000-yard rushing pace. Only nine players hit that mark in 2018, and only nine hit it in 2017 too. Chubb has more than 150 total yards more than either Cleveland WR Jarvis Landry or WR Odell Beckham Jr. Chubb has 497 yards from scrimmage – the most by a Browns player through the first four games of the season since the schedule expanded to 16 games in 1978.
The Browns have a special option in Chubb. On a team with questionable pass protection, Cleveland head coach Freddie Kitchens should prioritize his RB.
TEAMS OF THE WEEK:
NE, CLE, JAX, KCNYG, CHI, NO, SEA
TOP PERFORMERS:
PHI offensive line (QB Carson Wentz)TEN pass rush (OLB Harold Landry)
CLE run offense (RB Nick Chubb)
NE special teams (CB J.C. Jackson)
KC offensive line (QB Patrick Mahomes)
CAR pass defense (CB Ross Cockrell)
OAK run offense (RB Josh Jacobs)
LAC pass offense (RB Austin Ekeler)
NYG pass defense (SS Jabrill Peppers)
SEA pass offense (TE Will Dissly)
TB offensive line (QB Jameis Winston)
CHI pass defense (CB Prince Amukamara)
JAX run offense (RB Leonard Fournette)
NO run defense (DT Malcom Brown)
PIT pass offense (RB James Conner)
Looking ahead to Week 5
Open Dates – Miami, Detroit:
The Dolphins have scored 26 points this season. None of them have come after halftime. No team has allowed more rushing yards or scores this season, and no team since at least 1940 has had a worse four-game start than Miami. On the flipside, the Lions are 2-1-1, but could easily be 4-0. Of course, the Green Bay Packers started 2-1-1 last season, and you know that led nowhere. Detroit’s passing game has been very good to start the season, but rookie TE TJ Hockenson is out indefinitely with a concussion.
Rams at Seattle: The Rams are 3-1, but there are several things that look off in the early part of the season. Getting lit up by Tampa Bay QB Jameis Winston spotlights a pass rush that hasn’t been bad, but hasn’t been special either. Los Angeles also hasn’t gotten a 20-touch game out of RB Todd Gurley yet; the Rams were 8-1 when Gurley got 20+ touches last season. And more of QB Jared Goff has not been a good thing, as he has as many INTs as TDs (6) through four games. The Seahawks have been notorious for starting slow and failing to stop Los Angeles DL Aaron Donald – if they can get TE Will Dissly involved early, then they may secure a huge home win.
Bears at Raiders: This game is in London, robbing us of a chance to see Chicago OLB Khalil Mack return to the Black Hole and pummel the Oakland offensive line in front of the appropriate audience. Alas, this game is going to be closer than the paper suggests, with low-ceiling backup Chicago QB Chase Daniel hoping to game manage effectively. Oakland has had success handing the ball to rookie RB Josh Jacobs, but the Bears are built to stop the run and generally do mean things to offensive lines. Mack and the Chicago defense cannot afford a let down with Daniel replacing the injured QB Mitchell Trubisky (non-throwing shoulder).
Packers at Dallas: Green Bay’s defense looked quite fraudulent last Thursday against the Eagles, getting dominated in every way possible at the line of scrimmage. The Cowboys defended very well in New Orleans, but they couldn’t run the ball at all. Something’s got to give! Green Bay has a logistical advantage, and Dallas won’t have LT Tyron Smith in the lineup. But Green Bay’s pass rush won’t matter if they can’t stop the run, and RB Ezekiel Elliott has only been held under 80 rushing yards in consecutive games twice.
Colts at Kansas City: This is a rematch of the 2018 AFC Divisional that saw the Chiefs use speed creatively to run all over the Colts. Well, the Colts have been worse against the run this season, most recently letting Raiders WR Trevor Davis run away from them. Kansas City QB Patrick Mahomes is picking defenses apart, as he’s already over 1500 passing yards with a 10:0 TD-INT ratio. Indianapolis DE Denico Autry is the only Colt with more than 1.0 sacks, so he’ll be a key part of whether or not there will be an upset at Arrowhead Stadium.
Browns at San Francisco: I went deep on how the Browns need to commit to the run. Well, I mentioned a week ago how the 49ers are back to defending the run like a playoff team. I’ll just say it again: Something’s gotta give!