CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Browns are on the hunt for a victory, and they are going to have to deal with some thin air while looking for that elusive win.
For the second straight week, the Browns are taking the show on the road and this Week 9 matchup will be played at altitude as they are set to square off against the Denver Broncos at Empower Field in Denver, Colorado this afternoon.
“Looking forward to the opportunity of going and playing Denver out in Denver,” Browns coach Freddie Kitchens said earlier in the week. “Three of their games have come down to last-second field goals. They are a good football team.
“They are solid on both sides of the ball. They will be starting a good, solid, young quarterback. They have a good receiver in (Courtland) Sutton and a couple of guys in the backfield that can make plays. We have our work cut out for us offensively, defensively and special teams. They are top 10 in the league in several categories on defense and on special teams.”
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Here are three things to watch for in today’s game against the Broncos.
Broncos QB situation
Broncos coach Vic Fangio announced Monday afternoon that starting quarterback Joe Flacco “won’t play this week” because of a neck injury, meaning Denver will turn to third-year professional Brandon Allen, who has never taken a regular-season snap in the National Football League.
In 42 career games over his four seasons at Arkansas, Allen completed 583 of his 1,016 attempts (57.4 percent) for 7,463 yards and 64 touchdowns against 26 attempts.
Allen guided the Razorbacks to an 8-5 record during his senior season (2015) and 7-6 mark as a junior (2014), both of which were good enough to earn Arkansas postseason bowl invitations.
“It is a challenge,” Browns defensive coordinator Steve Wilks said. “I think you have to go back and really look at the preseason tape, which we have. I coached against him in Jacksonville in 2017. I think he does some great things, Allen does. Very smart. You can tell he does a good job at protecting the ball.
“He does not hold onto the ball. He gets rid of the ball. Very athletic out in space. He can buy time with his feet and very accurate with the ball, as well. I still think their approach is going to be -- because they have two dynamic running backs -- they are going to try to run the football and create the play action off of it.”
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Motivated Odell
First-year Browns receiver Odell Beckham Jr. leads the team with 34 receptions, which he has converted into 488 yards and one touchdown, an 89-yard score against the New York Jets in Cleveland’s 23-3 road win in Week 2.
And Beckham Jr. is ready to do more on game days, starting today.
“I’m going to jump in the fire with him,” Beckham Jr. said of quarterback Baker Mayfield. “I’ll be the first one. Some of these losses are on me. I need to be in the right place at the right time. I need to do better, and that’s what I plan to do for the rest of the season.”
Sense of urgency
At 2-5 and on a three-game losing streak, the Browns find themselves in third place in the AFC North Division, three games in back of the front-running Baltimore Ravens, and are looking for a much-needed win, something the players have seen already on the practice field.
According to left guard Joel Bitonio, effort has not been a problem at practice.
“I feel like there’s a focus around here, there’s an urgency that we’ve got to make something happen,” Bitonio said. “It’s one of those things where everybody here, we’re grown men, we’re this, we’re that, but there’s something to be said in meetings if you’re taking the right notes, if you’re prepared, because everybody goes out there and plays hard.
“There is an urgency about it. I think every week, it's been a little more urgent. You see a loss in the loss column, and you want to make a move, but we've talked about it enough. We've said everything that needs to be said. It's either we're going to do it and be successful this season or not and we're going to lose games.”