If you stayed for the entirety of the Cleveland Browns trip to the Washington Redskins, you saw that oddest of things. A game where the quality and watchability seemed to get better as the backups got in.
Yes the first half was not one of the purest as flags rained down like a tropical monsoon and the quarterbacks made the kind of decisions that left us all smacking our heads on the table.
It was not pretty.
But there were some notable takeaways beyond a raised finger and we’re going to debut them in a new style. And remember, if you want ALL the grades, snaps and stats then join the thousands who have already signed up for a $26.99 PFF Premium membership.
Cleveland Browns Performances of Note
Johnny Manziel, QB, -4.2
Breakdown: It didn’t go well. In fact it went badly. Read all about it here.
Signature Stat: Completed just 2-of-7 pass attempts on the 10 plays he was pressured. The other three resulted in sacks.
Armonty Bryant, DE, -1.0
Breakdown: Don’t be put off by the grade, there was a lot to be encouraged by here. Bryant, starting for his namesake Desmond, got a sack, batted pass and a near pressure when he beat Tyler Polumbus. He’s up to a +2.8 preseason pass rush grade and could factor into a sub-package rotation
Signature Play: 2:02 in Q2 when he beats Tom Compton inside to record a sack.
Royce Adams, CB, -3.5
Breakdown: A tough night for Adams, who looked like he was rebounding from a sluggish start with some nice back-to-back coverages from 10:59 in the fourth quarter onwards. Unfortunately, he reverted to type and was soon missing a tackle and getting beat for another touchdown.
Signature Stat: Spent 15 snaps in coverage and managed to give up 5-of-8 balls for 105 yards and two touchdowns. That’s 7.5 yards per snap in coverage.
Washington Redskins Performances of Note
Bashaud Breeland, CB, +4.0
Breakdown: This fourth round pick is making a case for playing time now. Made himself known with a fumble recovery but that was a tip of the iceberg as he came up quickly to make a couple of tackles for short gains on passes, dislodged a ball from Anthony Armstrong and then broke on a ball to nearly intercept Johnny Manziel. Very active.
Signature Play: At 8:52 in the third quarter he breaks on a fourth down pass attempt and gets his helmet on the ball to dislodge the pass and end the drive.
Kirk Cousins, QB, -2.8
Breakdown: He’s not helping his trade value is he? There are worse stat lines than 12-of-21 for 145 yards with a pick and touchdown, but it was the manner of the performance. Too many off target throws and one particularly bad throw on a scramble that Jim Leonhard should have picked off.
Signature Stat: When blitzed his grade dropped to a -2.2.
Gabe Miller, OLB, +2.1
Breakdown: Miller hasn’t done a whole lot in his NFL career so you’d think him a longshot to latch on. Well those odds will come down if he continues to make an impression like this. A sack and three hurries saw him top the table with four QB disruptions, while he added some decent work in the run game.
Signature Play: With 19 seconds of the game left he speeds past Reid Fragel to record a pressure on Connor Shaw.
PFF Game Ball
There weren’t many shining stars in this one which made Bashaud Breeland stand out all the more.
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