Three Troubles in the Cleveland Browns 2022 Season

A look at three things that just did not work out for the Cleveland Browns in 2022.

Brandon Little | Jan 12, 2023

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Cleveland Browns

The 2022 Cleveland Browns season is one where they were never able to get going. In games the team should have won, they lost. The New York Jets game comes to mind, as does the Los Angeles Chargers game.

With the Browns finishing 7-10 there is plenty of blame to go around. A lot of it should end up with these three reasons that I'll get into.

The defense

Going into the season many believed that perhaps the defense would be ahead of the offense that was starting a backup quarterback. That was never the case and the Browns' offense was ahead of the defense for much of the season until they eventually synced at times. It was far too late and the season was already lost before the Browns played their best ball.

Defensive lapses caused coverage busts in the defense, and it all resulted in Joe Woods losing his job. Myles Garrett still stood out for the Browns, but there were not many bright spots on the defense.

Jadeveon Clowney and John Johnson III did not have good seasons. The worst of all was the linebacker room which suffered maybe the most injuries you'll see to one unit.

Jacoby Brissett to Deshaun Watson Idea

There was once a plan. Jacoby Brissett would keep the Browns alive until Deshaun Watson arrived, then Watson would reel off five or six wins. Neither of those things happened and the Browns ended up 7-10 as a result.

Brissett gave the team all you could ask for but 4-7 did not get it done. Watson was only able to finish his start of the Browns era of 3-3.

One thing that was a worry with Watson was rust. It was indeed there and the Browns' offense suffered due to his play. More football helped Watson as he began to look better as the season went on.

Cade York

Cleveland's rookie kicker looked lost at times in 2022. He finished 30th in the league in accuracy, converting just 75% of his field goals. York was fine from extra point range by making all but two all season. The LSU product was noted for having a big leg, which he showed off with a game-winning field goal in week 1 against the Carolina Panthers.

Other than that, York struggled to kick at First Energy Stadium, missing badly at times wide. Kicking in the NFL is a very volatile thing unless you're the best of the best. The best thing that Cleveland can do is give York a chance to get his accuracy up to par in the AFC North. A fourth-round pick on a kicker is a heavy investment and it does not look good early.

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Brandon Little is a writer for Sports Illustrated’s Browns Digest website and you can follow him on Twitter @BrandonLittleFB here. You can follow Browns Digest on Twitter here.

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