Arizona Cardinals @ Cleveland Browns
Final Score: Browns 27, Cardinals 0
Writer: Ryan Radel (@RadelFF on Twitter)
The announcers described the weather conditions as a nearly perfect fall day for football for this matchup on the shores of Lake Erie. After trading Josh Dobbs to the Vikings earlier in the week, the Cardinals looked to rookie signal caller Clayton Tune to lead the offense while Kyler Murray gets back up to speed coming off IR. The Browns finally got to see their $230 million man again in Deshaun Watson who has been battling a shoulder injury all season. The Browns’ top-tier defense lived up to their billing as they shut out the Cardinals in a 27-0 blowout.
Three Up
- Amari Cooper – The touchdown grab may have been lucky, but he had two huge plays on the day outside of that.
- Browns Defense – A shutout is rare these days. This defense has been great and keeps looking that way.
- Deshaun Watson – Wasn’t a “great” game but he played all four quarters, had some nice reads and throws, and even ran it a few times.
Three Down
- Marquise Brown – The defense was tough on him all game but he turned eight targets into… not much. He needs Kyler back ASAP.
- Elijah Moore -The Browns have been trying to get him touches but he hasn’t done much with them. Only two today.
- Cardinals Backfield – If the passing game creates zero threat there is nowhere to run the ball.
Arizona Cardinals
Quarterback
Clayton Tune: 11/20, 58 Yards, 2 Interceptions, 7 Sacks | 5 Carries, 28 Yards, 1 Fumble (Lost)
Going up against the Cleveland Browns defense in your first career start as a rookie is not the best recipe for success. Clayton Tune did his best to hang in there and make throws but the Browns secondary smothered his receivers while the defensive line generated a strong, consistent pass rush. His two interceptions weren’t the best throws but he didn’t have the luxury of time to set his feet and make throws. Tune was forced to escape the pocket regularly to avoid taking sacks. Most of his rushing yards came in garbage time.
Running Back
Keaontay Ingram: 9 Carries, 8 Yards
With a long of 11 yards, Keontay Ingram was shut down on his other eight carries. He was a desperation flex who disappointed fantasy managers who rolled the dice on him.
Tony Jones Jr.: 3 Carries, 2 Yards | 3 Targets, 2 Receptions, 5 Yards
Caught a couple of dump-offs, but offered very little otherwise.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Marquise Brown: 8 Targets, 4 Receptions, 24 Yards
One of the interceptions thrown by Clayton Tune was on an overthrown target to Marquise Brown. Brown was the main concern for the defense and was keyed on every time he ran a route. He had no chance on a couple of his targets and when he did manage to bring in the ball had no space to work with after the catch.
Trey McBride: 5 Targets, 3 Receptions, 22 Yards
Second on the team in targets and also the target of Clayton Tune’s second interception, Trey McBride was the clear second read in the passing game although he wasn’t able to do much with his five targets. After breaking out last week, this was a disappointing performance, but I think it was clear to most that a repeat was going to be difficult with a quarterback change and a much stronger opposing defense.
Rondale Moore: 4 Carries, 3 Yards | 2 Targets, 1 Reception, 5 Yards
The third option in this offense, Rondale Moore wasn’t able to do much of anything, just like the rest of his teammates. The six designed touches were nice, but a stifling Browns defense bottled him up at seemingly every opportunity.
Greg Dortch: 1 Target, 1 Reception, 2 Yards
Zach Pascal: 1 Target
Cleveland Browns
Quarterback
Deshaun Watson: 19/30, 219 Yards, 2 TD | 3 Carries, 22 Yards
After a few wishy-washy injury weeks, Deshaun Watson was declared the starter earlier this week and managed to last the entire game without turning the ball over. He looked eager to get out of the pocket, and those plays resulted in a lot of checkdown throws. He was able to tuck the ball for a few carries and didn’t look afraid of contact, which is a good sign for his shoulder. One of his touchdowns was pure luck off of a deflection, but he was able to throw a few absolute dimes as the game went on.
on a ROPE! can't toss it any better than that 🏹#AZvsCLE on CBS & NFL+ pic.twitter.com/xZEN4yve5U
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) November 5, 2023
Running Back
Jerome Ford: 20 Carries, 44 Yards | 7 Targets, 5 Receptions, 33 Yards
The efficiency on the ground left a lot to be desired for Jerome Ford, but he balanced that out with some great production in the passing game as a recipient of Deshaun Watson dump-off passes. Ford never found a lot of space on the ground but was fed a steady diet of touches throughout the game, and 27 designed opportunities are something any fantasy manager would be excited about. A touchdown would’ve been the cherry on top but 77 scrimmage yards with five catches made for a decent PPR day.
Kareem Hunt: 14 Carries, 38 Yards, TD | 1 Target
Similar to his backfield counterpart Jerome Ford, Kareem Hunt was not able to find much room to run on the ground as the Browns continued to rush the ball between the tackles to grind out the clock. The Browns did utilize Hunt out of a unique formation (see below) to get him in the endzone. Number 53 on the Browns is their backup center, Nick Harris, who has been lining up as an extra lineman/fullback to open up holes for Kareem and Ford.
blocking masterclass 👨🏫#AZvsCLE on CBS & NFL+ pic.twitter.com/rg1aBCaPlQ
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) November 5, 2023
Pierre Strong Jr.: 3 Carries, 9 Yards | 1 Target, 1 Reception
After racking up 82 yards on 11 touches last week, some thought Strong may have carved out a role for himself in a running back committee. However, in a favorable game script with plentiful opportunities for running backs, Strong played a clear third fiddle behind Ford and Hunt.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Amari Cooper: 5 Targets, 5 Receptions, 139 Yards, TD
One of the luckier touchdown grabs we will probably see this season put the first touchdown on the board for Cleveland in the second quarter as a ball bounced off a helmet, over the secondary, and right into the hands of Amari Cooper. Watson found Cooper two other times for massive plays as he kept finding holes in the secondary. As long as he is healthy, Cooper will be the primary option in this passing game.
just how we drew it up 🤷♂️#ARIvsCLE on CBS & NFL+ pic.twitter.com/M4DtPIlzd5
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) November 5, 2023
David Njoku: 6 Targets, 4 Receptions, 26 Yards, TD
It seems like David Njoku‘s role continues to expand as the season progresses, and Deshaun Watson’s return to the field is hardly an impediment. Njoku could’ve had an even bigger day if he was able to break a tackle but was unfortunately dragged down by a single tackler in the open field to stop a huge gain on a dump-off. Deshaun Watson looked his way in the red zone in the third quarter for what resulted in a score to give Njoku a great fantasy finish at a thin position this week.
Chief Slam for 6#AZvsCLE on CBS & NFL+ pic.twitter.com/GTyN6cFUVJ
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) November 5, 2023
Elijah Moore: 2 Targets, 2 Receptions, 14 Yards
After being schemed into the offense to open the season, Elijah Moore took a back seat to the rest of the offense in this matchup. The Browns didn’t need to throw the ball very early in the game and he wasn’t schemed into the run game at all so it was a rather disappointing outing from the former New York Jet.
Jordan Akins: 3 Targets, 1 Reception, 11 Yards
Cedric Tillman: 1 Target, 1 Reception, 3 Yards
Marquise Goodwin: 2 Targets
Goodwin was injured in the third quarter and did not return.
Thanks for reading!
-Ryan