CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Browns have not lacked for focus in preparation for today’s game against the Denver Broncos at Empower Field in Denver, not with how the much-anticipated 2019 regular season started.
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.
“I feel like there’s a focus around here, there’s an urgency that we’ve got to make something happen,” Browns left guard Joel 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.”
According to Bitonio, effort has not been the problem on game days, but execution sure has.
Through just seven games, the Browns have collected 70 enforced penalties for 591 lost yards. The Browns have averaged 10 penalties per game, which started with 18 infractions in the season-opening loss to the Tennessee Titans.
Currently, the Browns are on pace to commit 160 penalties, which would be nearing record territory for fouls within a given season.
“It’s not a thing of like, ‘Are we playing hard enough? Are we going hard enough? Are we doing the right things on the field?’” Bitonio said. “But it’s how you prepare through the week and are guys taking the right notes, are guys focused in meetings, are guys reviewing the practice enough, are they watching enough film on their own? Those are the things that we have to continue to have to uptick to make sure we’re ready to go because you never know what you’re going to get in a game.
“You don’t want a surprise, what they’re going to bring, but I have seen improvement and I think guys are buying in, I think there’s an urgency here and eventually we’ve got to start winning some games. That’s the goal of this team, we’ve got to win this week and go 1-0.”
In Wednesday’s practice, the Browns “got back to basics,” according to running back Nick Chubb, and that included taking a lap around the field for a false start penalty or any other infraction, which is something the team did during training camp.
The expectation is that such discipline will result in higher levels of focus from the players and better execution on game days.
“You want to put the best guys you have on the field and if you’re not doing the right things, like I said, from the film to taking notes to practice to gameday, then there’s consequences for that,” Bitonio said. “You’ve got to try and play the guys and if you’re not doing the right thing, then there’s changes that happen.”