Browns Digest

3 Keys for Browns to Secure Win Against Saints on Christmas Eve

The Cleveland Browns and New Orleans Saints are meeting in Week 16 for the eighteenth time in NFL history. Both teams are on the outside looking in but know their fortunes can change in an instance.

Jeffery Laux

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The New Orleans Saints are visiting the Browns on Christmas Eve for a weather-laden Week 16 matchup. This season, Saints quarterback Andy Dalton has played efficiently while Deshaun Watson is still finding himself with the Browns. These three keys will allow for Browns fans to breathe easy on their Christmas holiday. Lets take a look at the matchup conditions.

As of today, the Saturday afternoon game will feature temperatures below zero and gusting winds that could reach up to 60 miles per hour.

The Saints can keep their playoff hopes alive with a win as they are behind Brady and the Bucs with one win needed in the NFC South

The Browns are trying to stay alive in the race for the 7th playoff spot in the AFC.

Cleveland will need to accomplish these three things to secure their fourth win out of their last five games played.

1. Display physical dominance early, winning the line of scrimmage

The injury-ridden Browns defense will have to play aggressive and dominant football out of the gate.

The fans will bring the energy while the weather alters both teams' passing attacks.

The Saints announced two of their top offensive weapons will be out for the contest. The teams leading pass catcher Chris Olave has been ruled out while Jarvis Landry was placed on injured reserve.

The Browns are also dealing with a prominent player missing this week's matchup.

Myles Garrett will be without his sidekick Jadaveon Clowney, as he was announced out on Thursday with a concussion.

With Defensive Player of the Year still for the taking, Garrett will need to have a big game against an above-average yet injury-riddled offensive line that will be somewhat intact for the first time since Week 9.

Right Guard Cesar Ruiz suffered a Lisfranc injury on the last offensive snap against Atlanta and has been placed on IR.

The Saints will welcome back center Erik McCoy, who has missed the last four games and was placed on injured reserve with a calf injury. He was designated to return this week and has participated in practice all week.

All-Pro Right tackle Ryan Ramczyk has played at a high clip this season and will be hard to get by for an up-and-down pass rush unit that has shown flashes but is still inconsistent at times.

The nine teams that have defeated the Saints this season all have had success when crashing down at the line of scrimmage and halting momentum early with either a turnover or a streak of turnovers on downs.

The Saints tend to catch teams off-guard with a trick play from Taysom Hill at least every other week.

Last week, the Falcons fell victim to a Taysom Hill 68-yard passing touchdown which put the black and gold up 14-0 in the first quarter. Cleveland has to stay on their tippy toes while remaining aggressive against Head Coach Dennis Allen’s Saints.

New Orleans has had twenty-three 25+ yards or more passing plays which rank 21st in the NFL.

Without Olave and Landry, the Browns will have to keep tabs on tight-end Juwan Johnson and superstar Alvin Kamara.

2. Contain Alvin Kamara

Kamara has been a problem since entering the league in 2017 and continues to be a dynamic playmaker for this Saints offensive unit.

Stopping him completely is a tough task, but slowing him down and frustrating the Saints' game plan can take the life out of the offense.

When Kamara gets going on the ground or in the air, the opposing defense is in trouble. 

To halt the 5"10 speedster, opposing teams have run a good bit of cover 2 and cover 6 to address maintaining the flats against an offense with aspirations to always get Kamara hot in the game. 

Sadly for the Browns, Owusu Koramoah would solve this issue in an instant due to his acceleration and athleticism. Without JOK in the mix, the already thin LB/S crew will need Ronnie Harrison II to step up in watching over Kamara.

New Orleans has begun decreasing his screen pass usage in quite a confusing manner. Kamara has totaled 446 yards in the air while also scoring two touchdowns on screen passes earlier this season.

When the 49ers took on the Saints in Week 12, they held Kamara under 50 all-purpose yards. They stumped the Saints at the line and kept Kamara under watch in the passing game which revealed the formula for defeating New Orleans.

Kamara has had an inconsistent season but has caught fire as of late with his recent performance versus Atlanta. He rushed for 91 yards, averaging 4.3 yards per carry.

Over the past four games, the Browns have allowed only 14 points or less to opposing offenses yet they have surrendered 512 rush yards over the span. The defense is ranked 25th for total rush yards given up. With an already thin linebacker corp, the Browns must communicate effectively in the zone-run scheme that Pete Carmichael Jr. and the Saints enjoy dominating teams with.

I expect the Saints will feature a heavy offensive line set as they will try to gain an edge early with Alvin Kamara and David Johnson carrying the load. The Browns must focus their defensive game plan around stopping him early and gashing the scoreline on the Saints.

3. Don't allow Tyrann Mathieu to provide spark

When Mathieu plays hot, the whole Saints' defense gains momentum and looks like a totally different unit. He’s been the most consistent defensive player on the 14th-ranked unit in the league.

The safety ranks second on the team in solo tackles (52) and first on the team in coverage grade (82.8) according to PFF. He also leads his team in interceptions (2) and has seven passes defended which slots him at number two on the Saints.

The Honey Badger has started all fourteen games, accounting for 70 combined tackles and

The defensive backroom gains momentum when their star free-safety lights up a receiver.

Saints rookie Cornerback Alontae Taylor has been sneaky good all of this season. In the 2022 cornerback draft class, Taylor ranks 2nd among his peers in lowest passer rating (63.8) and 1st in longest reception allowed (20) according to PFF.

All-Pro starting Cornerback Marson Lattimore is currently listed as questionable but HC Dennis Allen said that Lattimore is “as close as he’s been” to playing. Lattimore has been out since suffering a lacerated kidney in early October against the Seattle Seahawks. He also is dealing with broken ribs so the Cleveland native will be battling to stay on the field.

Mathieu has had success in the past against the Browns. When playing for the Chiefs, he picked off Baker Mayfield in the AFC divisional playoff game in 2021. He also nabbed a tackle for loss and a pass deflection to help the Chief's secondary contain Baker Mayfield and the Browns’ offense.

The weather will hinder both teams passing attacks so the game will be won in the trenches and at the line of scrimmage. If Nick Chubb can continue his hot performance from last week's win, the Browns will remain in the contest against the Andy Dalton-led Saints.

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Jeffery Laux
JEFFERY LAUX

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