Seattle Seahawks Enemy Overview: 'Aggressive,' Old School Browns Provide Litmus Test
In order to compete for NFC West and Super Bowl titles, coach Pete Carroll understands the Seattle Seahawks must prove themselves against top-tier opponents during the regular season. Such a litmus test for his team awaits in the form of the surprising Cleveland Browns coming to Lumen Field in Week 8.
Despite dealing with significant injuries on offense, including losing star running back Nick Chubb for the season to a knee injury and starting quarterback Deshaun Watson missing multiple games with a shoulder issue, the Browns have managed to open the season with a 4-2 record. Most notably, they have beaten several quality teams, including knocking the 49ers from the ranks of the undefeated with a 19-17 home upset in Week 6.
"We’ve got a big matchup coming up. Excited about it because these guys are so good," Carroll told reporters on Wednesday. "What a great matchup for us and it’s the kind of matchup that you’ve got to have if you’re going to do anything with the season, you have to play teams that are like this. We’ll look forward to seeing the Browns come and see if we can get ready for another big day at Lumen, so we’re looking forward to all of that."
Driving Cleveland's on-field success, a throwback approach built around a dominant ground game and superb defense anchored by superstar pass rusher Myles Garrett has helped offset injury issues. Coach Kevin Stefanski's squad currently ranks second in rushing yardage even without Chubb and first in defensive yardage allowed, including being the only team in the NFL that has yet to surrender 1,000 passing yards this season.
With Watson still ailing and already ruled out for this weekend, the Browns will once again turn to backup P.J. Walker under center. After leading game-winning drives in back-to-back weeks against the 49ers and Colts, he will make his second start in three games and unlike a week ago, he will have the benefit of a full week's worth of practices in preparation.
“He wins. [He] won the 49er game and hung in this game against Indy, all the way to the very end to come up with enough plays to get the win and they scored 39 points in the game too," Carroll said of Walker. "Those are two big wins for him. He’s coming in with confidence, I’m sure. He’s an active, mobile guy that can make things happen. Similar in style to Deshaun."
With both teams looking to extend active win streaks, early jockeying for playoff position will be on the line as the Seahawks battle the Browns. Here’s a closer look at Seattle's Week 8 opponent, including series history, additions/departures, a deep dive into scheme, and Carroll's evaluation of a talented Cleveland team.
Series History
20th regular season meeting. Dating back to when both franchises were in the AFC, the Seahawks have dominated the all-time series, winning 13 out of 19 previous games and only losing two games in a row once. Seattle has won both prior matchups at Lumen Field, including most recently beating Cleveland 30-13 in 2015.
What's New?
Departures: In terms of high-profile defections, the Browns didn't lose many key players from last year's team. After making public comments about his displeasure for how the team was using him, defensive end Jadeveon Clowney was sent home and didn't play in the season finale, making it clear he wouldn't be back with the franchise for a second season. He eventually signed with the Ravens, staying in the AFC North. On offense, after starting in place of a suspended Watson early last season, veteran quarterback Jacoby Brissett left to join the Commanders in free agency to back up Sam Howell.
Pete Carroll (left) and Geno Smith
Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports
Additions: Adding an explosive target to complement Amari Cooper on the outside for Watson, the Browns traded a second-round pick to the Jets for speedy receiver Elijah Moore in March. During free agency, the team primarily attacked the defensive side of the ball, investing a four-year, $57 million contract in massive defensive tackle Dalvin Tomlinson to anchor the middle of their front line and signing former Texans pass rusher Ogbonnia Okoronkwo. In the secondary, they upgraded at safety by signing Juan Thornhill away from the Chiefs on a multi-year deal. After training camp started, they also added veteran defensive tackle Shelby Harris, formerly of the Seahawks, on a one-year deal.
Without a first or second-round pick due to the Watson trade with Houston, Cleveland didn't make a selection in April until picking receiver Cedric Tillman in the third round. Fourth-round pick Dawand Jones has started five out of six games thus far, emerging as a day three standout at right tackle for a draft class lacking contributors early in the season.
Injury Report
Along with Watson being sidelined by a rotator cuff strain, running back Jerome Ford has a high ankle sprain that likely will force him to sit out for at least one game. Veteran running back Kareem Hunt has a thigh injury that he battled through last weekend and his status remains up in the air, while linebacker Sione Takitaki missed Wednesday's practice with a hamstring injury.
Inside The Scheme
Running a prototypical West coast-style pro offense, the Browns rank 28th in the NFL using shotgun on just 47.5 percent of snaps according to Sumer Sports. Personnel-wise, Stefanski leans heavily on 11 personnel with three receivers, a tight end, and a running back on the field at a 64 percent clip, the sixth-highest percentage in the NFL. But not surprisingly given their heavy emphasis on the run game, the Browns also use a ton of 13 personnel with three tight ends on the field, deploying the personnel grouping 11 percent of the time on first down.
Schematically, per Pro Football Focus charting, Cleveland has ran a bit more gap than zone concepts, calling plays such as power, counter, and dives at a 53 percent rate compared to 46 percent for zone runs. According to Pro Football Reference, looking to take advantage of their ground attack, the team has dialed up 47 play action passes, tied for sixth-most in the league. Results off those play fakes have been underwhelming, however, with Watson, Walker, and rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson averaging just 5.68 yards per play action attempt.
On the defensive side of the ball, few coordinators excel at mixing and matching coverages with pressure schemes better than Jim Schwartz. With Garrett and ZaDarius Smith terrorizing quarterbacks off the edge, the Browns have had plenty of success with four-man rushes, but they still dial up blitzes at the ninth-highest rate in the NFL at 31.3 percent. As Carroll pointed out, they love to send linebackers Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah and Anthony Walker to turn up the heat on quarterbacks.
“They’re really aggressive," Carroll remarked. "We’ve been around Jim Schwartz for a long time, his scheme and style and the nature that he coaches into these guys. Very aggressive upfront on the attack, the focus is the front four, but their backers are really aggressive as well. There’s a whole philosophy that we recognize because we’ve seen Jim for years.”
While Schwartz enjoys finding creative ways to deploy additional pass rushers, he can be tough to find tendencies for from a coverage perspective. Entering Week 7, per PFF charting, the Browns had relied a bit more on middle of field closed coverages, dialing up Cover 3 on 37 percent of defensive snaps and Cover 1 with man underneath on 21 percent of snaps. But Cleveland has also ran Cover 2 and Cover 4/Quarters coverages nearly 30 percent of the time while mixing in a sprinkle of Cover 6 at seven percent.
Just like a few weeks ago against the Bengals, quarterback Geno Smith and the Seahawks offense will have to be ready to adapt early on Sunday due to the multiplicity of the Browns' scheme and Schwartz play calling ability.
