CLEVELAND — It is not every day that a former Louisiana State University athlete has something nice to say about the football program at the University of Alabama, but that is exactly what Cleveland Browns wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. did after Wednesday’s practice.
When asked what makes this week’s opponent, the New England Patriots, so consistent in an ever-changing NFL landscape, Beckham Jr. compared the vaunted AFC stalwart to the Alabama Crimson Tide.
“I feel like it’s been this way for a long time,” Beckham Jr. said. “They have a system. Unfortunately, it reminds me of Alabama in a sense that they have a system, they have guys who are coming in. They have guys who are wearing the same number from the past. They have the same style:
“They have fast linebackers coming off the edge, good corners and they just play as a team.”
The combination of coach Bill Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady has been responsible for nine Super Bowl appearances, six of which were wins, and 16 AFC East Division championships, including 10 straight coming into 2019.
In order to topple the Patriots in their stadium, the Browns know they can ill afford the kinds of issues that plagued them in their four losses this season.
“For as long as I can remember, this has been the team to beat,” Beckham Jr. said. “It’s been the team that everybody has their eyes on because they’re the best and Belichick has just done a phenomenal job over there in running it and getting the team exactly how he wants them, so you’re going to have to bring you’re A-plus game.
“You can’t beat them by making mistakes. They don’t make many mistakes. They have few penalties. They play perfect.”
Now in his 20th NFL season, Brady continues to be the standard bearer by which all other quarterbacks are judged.
Over 276 regular-season games, Brady has completed 6,184 of his 9,648 attempts (64.1 percent) for 72,506 yards and 528 touchdowns against 175 interceptions. Additionally, Brady has rushed for 1,006 yards with 22 scores.
Brady has led the Patriots to 244 victories in those 276 starts and his six Super Bowl titles are one of the dozens of NFL records he holds.
“Tom Brady is the G.O.A.T.,” Beckham Jr. said in reference to Brady being the “Greatest Of All Time.” “I know we’ve done some goat cloning, and I think there’s something going on. He’s not human that he’s playing the way he’s still playing.
“He’s mentally prepared every single game, decisive decisions. He knows how to manage a game. He plays offense and defense with the way that he plays. He’s very smart. He’s the best to ever do it. I don’t think anybody can really argue it. He’s just the greatest, and I definitely want some of the water that he’s drinking.”
Defensive end Myles Garrett added, “(Brady) knows the game as well as anybody in the league. As his physical abilities slowly decline, his I.Q. is still growing. He’s able to supplement what he can’t do with his arm, but he can still do most things on the field.”