Untimely, Critical Turnovers Lead To Cleveland's Demise In Seattle

Cleveland battled hard against the Seahawks, but one too many mistakes turned out to be the difference in the Browns 24-20 loss.

Regardless of what you see on X and what you hear on talk radio in the morning, Kevin Stefanski called a really good game on Sunday. 

There are always plays that you want to have back as a play caller and decisions that you would make differently, but when watching the tape from Sunday, you will find that there were three plays that made the difference.

On the Browns' second drive of the game, trailing 7-0, Cleveland moved the ball to Seattle's 48-yard line. They came out in an empty formation and the Seahawks showed blitz. That blitz came from the left side and Jordyn Brooks took a shot at PJ Walker's blind side, forcing a fumble that was recovered and returned to the Cleveland 41 yard line. 

Oct 29, 2023; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Seahawks linebacker Darrell Taylor (52) sacks Cleveland Browns quarterback PJ Walker (10) during the second half at Lumen Field / Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-USA TODAY Sports

Six plays later, that turnover led to a touchdown and the Browns were quickly down 14-0. 

A blowout appeared imminent. 

The next game-changing play was even more of a back-breaker. With 11:35 to go in the second quarter, the Browns had a 3rd and 2 in the red zone at the 20 yard line. Walker dropped back and had David Njoku running open on a crossing route. He was late on his decision and his pass sailed high, right into the waiting arms of Riq Woolen for an interception. This directly took three points off the board for Cleveland, maybe more.

The one that will stay in the minds of Cleveland fans all year long though came two seconds before the two-minute warning. Instead of running the ball to try and secure the victory, the Browns decided to try and give their pass catchers a chance to make a play. P.J. Walker made his decision pre-snap to go to Amari Cooper and nothing was going to change that. There were two targets open on the back side of the play that almost certainly would have brought about a different result. 

He caught the snap and went to try and rip one to a triple-covered Cooper. The ball hit off Jamaal Adams' helmet and pinballed into the waiting arms of Julian Love. Five plays later, the Seahawks crossed the goal line, took a four-point lead and secured the victory.

In the end, P.J. Walker's three turnovers cost the Browns 17 points. In a game that they lost by four points, simply not turning the football over would have given them the opportunity to win the football game.