CLEVELAND — Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield was frustrated with the way the pre-bye week schedule ended, and he was even more so following Sunday’s 27-13 loss to the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.
As has become a trend, the Browns committed more turnovers than they forced (three to none), were penalized 13 times for 85 lost yards, allowed the Patriots to have six trips inside the red zone and were just three of 12 on third-down opportunities, all of which added up to the double-digit setback, Cleveland’s third straight.
“They’re going to take advantage of stuff like that,” Mayfield said. “That’s just what kind of team they are. I said it earlier in the week. They’re in the right place at the right time because they’re a sound defense. They play with each other, and they capitalize on mistakes.
“We’ve pointed out the problem. Now, it’s about executing on Sundays.”
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Here is a breakdown of Mayfield’s first road start of the 2019 regular season.
What Mayfield did?
Mayfield completed 20 of his 31 attempts (64.5 percent) for 194 yards and one touchdown against one interception. Mayfield’s longest throw went for a 31-yard gain and he was sacked five times for 43 lost yards by New England’s aggressive defense.
Mayfield posted a 79.2 quarterback rating in the loss to the Patriots.
“I had my eyes in the right spots,” Mayfield said.
“I felt we were prepared for their blitz package, and they got to where we had shown we had protected it up and didn’t have a problem with it, so they started showing it and backing out of it. I feel like we did a good job of reacting and protecting up stuff that normally, they capitalize on.”
Analysis
Mayfield’s interception was not so much his issue as it was the play-call at that particular time and the inability to block up front.
After losing a pair of fumbles on Nick Chubb runs and down by 10 points, the Browns faced a first-and-10 from their own 21-yard line when Mayfield threw an underhanded shovel pass to wide receiver Jarvis Landry, who was crossing the formation from left to right.
However, Patriots defensive lineman Lawrence Guy blew up the play when he went unblocked, knocked Landry out of the way and corralled the interception.
“Guy made a good play,” Mayfield said. “We’re not expecting him to be there, obviously. A little misdirection. Just pitching it to Jarvis. I’d like to say that I’d be able to hold on to it, but it’s a quick exchange that we practiced, and Guy made a good play.”
What’s next?
The Browns will get back after it at practice throughout the week before another cross-country trip to play the Denver Broncos at altitude in Colorado on Sunday. Currently, the Broncos are 2-6 and in fourth place in the AFC West Division.
What are they saying?
At 2-5, the Browns are in third place in the AFC North, but Mayfield is not pushing any panic buttons, not with nine games remaining on the schedule.
“I still think we can turn it around,” Mayfield said. “We have another AFC opponent in the Broncos, a road game, and then, five division games after that. There’s some good teams. We play the Bills as well at home, so there’s some good competition, some very important games, division games, but we’re not going to get ahead of ourselves.
“I’m not going to lie to you and say that ‘if we win all of our division games, we’re going to be fine.’ We have to take care of business against the Broncos.
“We have to show up. All the talk, it doesn’t matter until you go out there and prove it on Sundays. The week of practice is great, but unless you take it out there on Sundays, it still doesn’t matter.”