Cleveland Browns AFC Wildcard Pregame Report vs Houston Texans January 13 2024
The Browns and Texans get the NFL's Super Wild Card Weekend started with the four vs. five seed in a game that has the makings of being one of the best of the first round. 38 year old Joe Flacco against 22 year old CJ Stroud and all the storylines that follow. We get you set for the Playoffs! Browns vs Texans pregame show on Browns Digest!
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00:00 (upbeat music)
00:02 - Can you believe it Cleveland?
00:11 Finally, we are ready for playoff football
00:13 and the road starts in Houston, Texas.
00:16 Welcome to the AFC wild card.
00:19 This is our Browns pregame report here on Browns Digest.
00:22 Brennan Gulick and Anthony Meglin with you
00:23 as we have been all season long
00:25 getting ready for Cleveland Browns football.
00:27 And it's a big one.
00:28 This team is back in Houston for the second time
00:30 in less than a month.
00:32 If anything could turn out the way it did
00:34 the last time they were down here,
00:35 I think we'd have a whole bunch of pretty happy Browns fans
00:38 back in Cleveland and frankly around the country
00:40 and in this building,
00:41 because I'm telling you as I traveled here,
00:43 there are so many Browns fans
00:44 that have made the trip down to Houston.
00:47 It's gonna feel like maybe a more neutral site game
00:50 than a true road game.
00:51 It's gonna be a lot of fun.
00:52 - I mean, I cannot believe the energy that's even back home.
00:55 Like this morning was crazy just around town
00:58 at the grocery store, at the gym.
00:59 I mean, I've been barking at everybody as we've gone
01:01 you know, up and down the room where you go, man.
01:04 We were talking at the gym.
01:05 Nobody had their headphones on.
01:06 Everyone was just talking Browns football.
01:08 I mean, it's so awesome.
01:10 The city's ready for this.
01:12 This team's ready for this.
01:13 And this is a great opportunity for the Browns
01:15 to just kick off Super Wildcard weekend
01:17 and really make a statement to the whole NFL
01:20 who's gonna be watching this game today.
01:21 - And how cool is it that, you know,
01:23 that you go all the way back to week two
01:25 and you think about the adversity this team faced
01:27 with Nick Chubb going down for the season.
01:29 And we're kind of conditioned to feel like
01:33 here we go again, right?
01:34 It's let's just watch another season
01:36 because this is gonna go nowhere.
01:38 And then all the injuries at quarterback,
01:40 you know, here you go.
01:41 We get to an NFL playoff game
01:43 without your starting quarterback, running back
01:45 or two offensive tackles that were with you
01:47 at the beginning of the season.
01:49 It's a pretty remarkable journey that this team has been on.
01:52 And, you know, they've earned their way here for sure.
01:54 They're the five seed.
01:56 The conversation may be for a different time
01:58 on whether or not they should be the five seed
01:59 or if they should restructure the playoff format.
02:02 But, you know, the reality is this team is ready
02:04 for this stage.
02:06 They've got the right veteran leadership.
02:09 They've got young guys making good plays.
02:11 I think they're primed for a big run.
02:13 - You know, and you watch a lot of playoff games.
02:16 We haven't got to watch them as Browns fans for a long time.
02:18 But when you watch these playoff games,
02:20 like there's gonna be stuff that happens during the game.
02:22 There's gonna be some adversity at the Browns face.
02:24 They're gonna get hot in times.
02:25 And it's gonna be kind of this up and down thing.
02:26 But, you know, I go back to a couple of weeks ago
02:28 after the Jacksonville game in the locker room,
02:30 Joe Flacco made a comment.
02:32 He got the game going.
02:33 (crowd cheering)
02:36 About the team and how they are battle tested
02:40 in a lot of different ways.
02:41 And it's really proven out over games,
02:44 but it'll prove out today when, you know,
02:47 stuff may not go their way the whole time,
02:49 but it'll give them the ability to fight back
02:51 and be in it, you know, when the chips are down
02:54 and they have that veteran leadership
02:55 with Flacco and the rest of these guys.
02:58 - All right, we're gonna try to power through
02:59 some of the background noise because it's pregame
03:02 and that means everybody's rehearsing
03:03 and trying to get ready for a big day here in Houston.
03:07 While they're playing some of the music,
03:08 I'll let you carry it for a second.
03:09 What are you most interested to watch today
03:12 when the Browns have the football?
03:13 - Yeah, when Cleveland's got the ball, you know,
03:15 we go back three weeks ago to Christmas Eve.
03:17 It was the Amari Cooper show, right?
03:19 It was Joe Flacco to Amari Cooper,
03:21 265 yards, 11 catches, spectacular catches, timely catches.
03:25 If you're Houston, you're taking Amari Cooper away.
03:27 So for Cleveland, the response is,
03:29 where's that chess piece gonna go for you?
03:32 Who's going to step up today?
03:33 And that's what I'm most excited for.
03:35 Is it gonna be Elijah Moore?
03:36 Is this an Elijah Moore day where,
03:38 think back to that Thursday night game,
03:39 before his scary injury,
03:41 him and Joe Flacco were kind of getting on a roll.
03:43 They had threw a touchdown pass to each other,
03:45 had 61-ish yards through the air
03:47 and they were kind of starting to roll.
03:48 So is this a big Elijah Moore day?
03:50 Is this another big David Njoku day?
03:53 Could be both, right?
03:54 And then with Cedric Tillman out,
03:55 you know, who's going to step up?
03:56 How's the offense going to change?
03:57 Is it Harrison Bryan that kind of steps into that role
04:00 as that big blocking type, huge catch type guy?
04:03 So I'm really looking forward to seeing
04:06 where the Browns offense goes without Amari Cooper.
04:09 Yes, Cooper's going to have a ton of catches,
04:11 but if you're Houston, you cannot let number two
04:13 do what he did to you like he did last time.
04:16 - Yeah, but even at that, I mean,
04:17 how much can you really completely shut a guy down?
04:21 I mean, that's the crux of the conversation here, right?
04:25 As you think about the lead up to this game,
04:28 a lot of it is around, hey,
04:30 how is it going to be different for Houston
04:32 trying to defend Amari Cooper?
04:34 I don't know that you can just change
04:35 your whole defensive scheme,
04:36 but some of it were big, deep shots, right?
04:38 I mean, the Browns opened with a long pass play
04:40 to start the game.
04:42 So, you know, I don't expect Cooper
04:43 to threaten that record again today,
04:46 but I do expect him to have some success.
04:49 - No question, you definitely could.
04:50 And he's good enough that we've seen it a bunch of times.
04:53 Think back to Arizona,
04:54 think back a couple of times during the year,
04:56 even at a Houston game, you put two guys on him,
04:58 that doesn't mean you're going to stop him, right?
05:00 He's good enough to still get open.
05:02 He's got the best hand,
05:03 some of the best hands in the league.
05:04 So as long as Flacco's ripping it today
05:06 and number two's in that area,
05:08 you got to feel confident he's going to come down with it.
05:10 So while he may not reset that record
05:12 like he did a couple of weeks ago,
05:13 I still can see him having a handful of catches
05:15 and still have a nice day.
05:17 - And, you know, you mentioned David Njoku,
05:20 he has been like instant chemistry with Joe Flacco
05:24 from the time they started, you know,
05:25 a couple of months ago now.
05:27 And frankly, as much as Amari Cooper found a ton of success
05:31 when he was here, you know, a few weeks ago,
05:34 I do feel that David Njoku, a lot of times,
05:37 is the best option for Flacco.
05:39 Some of that's because of the way that Flacco's so good
05:41 in the play action game, some of it's scheme,
05:44 but I anticipate David Njoku having a big day today.
05:46 That doesn't necessarily mean statistically,
05:49 maybe he does, but I think he's going to have
05:51 a huge impact on this game.
05:52 - And I love the story of David Njoku.
05:54 Like his impact on the game is so much more
05:57 than catching the football.
05:59 Like if he's got the opportunity to make impacts
06:01 in the run game, he's going to.
06:02 If he's going to have his chances in the pass game,
06:04 he's such a freaky athlete.
06:05 And it's been so fun to watch his progression this year,
06:08 where it was early on, had a couple of drops early,
06:11 we weren't real sure about it.
06:12 And then boom, he just took this team over
06:15 and became a true leader on this team.
06:16 So you're excited about what the Chief's going to do
06:20 today and make a huge impact,
06:21 both when they're running the football
06:23 and when the Browns are throwing it around.
06:25 - All right, how about the other side of the ball?
06:26 Because the real story of this Browns team this year,
06:30 while everybody around the country wants to talk quarterback,
06:33 it was Deshaun Watson, now Joe Flacco,
06:35 and I get all of that.
06:37 The heart and soul of this team
06:39 is on the defensive side of the ball.
06:41 And it's because they played such good defense
06:43 that it's taken pressure off of the offense
06:46 as it's tried to find its footing
06:48 with so many players in and out.
06:50 That's not to say that the defense
06:51 hasn't had a few challenges along the way
06:52 with some injuries.
06:53 This group is probably about as healthy
06:58 as they've been in a little while.
06:59 I know Grant Elpin's still not available today.
07:02 We have not gotten a pregame injury report,
07:04 but the indications from somebody like Ian Rappaport
07:08 are that Denzel Ward is probably gonna be okay
07:11 and probably play today.
07:13 Waiting to find out official words from the team on that.
07:15 But I've seen a lot of numbers
07:18 that have been really interesting lately.
07:20 When Denzel Ward is on the field,
07:22 it is a complete game changer
07:25 for the way the Browns play defense,
07:26 especially in man coverage.
07:28 They are astronomically better
07:31 when he's on the field in man coverage than when he's not.
07:33 Now, I don't know what that would mean
07:35 if Denzel's not at full health and he's on the field,
07:38 but hopefully we're gonna see him out there and play well.
07:41 - Yeah, the thing about Denzel Ward
07:42 and what makes him so special
07:44 is his ability to just lock down his side of the field.
07:47 Remember back years ago,
07:49 Revis Island was the whole thing.
07:51 He's got that similar feel to him where,
07:53 hey, if Denzel Ward's out there,
07:55 you don't really throw it to that side of the field.
07:57 And that's gonna be a big factor in today's game.
07:59 CJ Stroud has been incredible this year.
08:02 He's gonna be the rookie of the year.
08:04 He was in the MVP conversation early on before his injury.
08:07 But if there's one thing that he struggles with,
08:10 it's throwing against man-to-man coverage.
08:11 And what the Browns are gonna do today
08:13 and what they've done all year is come out and say,
08:16 our three cornerbacks are better
08:17 than anybody you put on that side of the football.
08:19 We're gonna man you up all game long.
08:21 You may get one or two,
08:22 but I'm gonna force you to be accurate
08:24 from 4.30 p.m. to 8.30 whenever that game's over.
08:28 You have to be on it every single throw.
08:30 And that is something that CJ Stroud struggles with.
08:32 He's the 27th ranked quarterback against man coverage,
08:35 and the Browns have the best man coverage team
08:37 in all of the NFL.
08:38 So you're excited to see that matchup
08:40 and a healthy Denzel.
08:42 And we know a decent Denzel of 20
08:44 would go a long way for the Browns defense to shut them down.
08:47 - And look, I think,
08:49 when you see a lot of those kinds of stats,
08:51 and they're great numbers
08:52 and they're reflective of impressive effort,
08:55 there is a reality that those numbers are bolstered
09:00 by what you don't see in the secondary.
09:03 It's the pressure that you can generate on the quarterback
09:06 because of your defensive line.
09:08 And the Browns, I think the biggest change they've had
09:10 across the board the whole season,
09:12 if you take Flacco out of the mix for just a moment,
09:14 because I still think Deshaun Watson's
09:16 a capable quarterback.
09:17 I think it's what they did at the defensive line
09:21 in the off season that altered the trajectory of this team.
09:25 It fixed so many more things beyond just defensive line.
09:29 And yes, Myles Garrett's playing
09:31 like an MVP caliber player for sure.
09:34 Certainly a defensive player of the year,
09:36 I think likelihood at this point.
09:38 The additions of Dalvin Tomlinson in the middle,
09:42 the increased health and frankly,
09:45 better productivity from guys like Jordan Elliott,
09:47 Shelby Harris has had a really good year.
09:49 Obviously Zedaria Smith has been really important.
09:52 When those guys play really well,
09:54 all of a sudden now your secondary
09:56 doesn't have to cover quite as long
09:58 and those numbers look better
09:59 and everybody else feels better about their production.
10:01 - It's such a connected defense
10:03 and that's the best part about it
10:04 is that when it's clicking, everyone's playing well.
10:06 And like you said, it starts up front.
10:08 Look out for Zedaria Smith today,
10:10 because what we've seen and what we're gonna see today
10:12 is Myles Garrett versus Laramie Tunsell,
10:14 which is an all time matchup.
10:16 Both of those are good and Tunsell's frankly,
10:18 he's one of the guys who has had some success
10:22 against Myles Garrett.
10:23 So that's gonna be an awesome matchup to watch.
10:25 But on the other side of things,
10:26 Zedaria Smith had two sacks a couple of weeks ago,
10:29 which was fantastic.
10:30 Alex Wright has been awesome the past couple of weeks.
10:33 He can be someone who starts rotating in
10:35 and playing pretty well.
10:36 So there's a bunch of guys,
10:38 as Elijah Moore looks like behind you walking around,
10:41 but a bunch of guys have the opportunity to make big plays
10:46 and to have things start to happen.
10:48 And it starts up front when they can do that.
10:50 And one of the things too with CJ Stroud
10:52 is that he is going to hold onto the football for a while.
10:55 He's one of the guys who holds onto it the most
10:58 over three seconds, snap to throw in the year.
11:01 So they're gonna have opportunities to get back there
11:03 and kind of make his day tough.
11:06 They're gonna need to, 'cause he's an elite thrower
11:08 and it'll start up front
11:09 if they can generate some pressure there.
11:11 - Look, so many people have seen the stats by now, right?
11:13 I mean, this is a Browns defense
11:15 that leads the NFL in several categories.
11:17 Fewest first downs allowed, fewest yards allowed.
11:20 In fact, they've allowed the fewest yards
11:21 in quite a long time.
11:23 I think only like 241 yards allowed per game.
11:27 They don't give up a ton of shot plays.
11:29 Every once in a while, you'll see one happen,
11:31 but not super regularly.
11:33 And it's easy to scheme for a team early in a game,
11:36 but once you start seeing the adjustments from both sides,
11:40 second, third quarter is really about,
11:41 hey, one-on-one, who's better?
11:44 Who's gonna go out and actually make a play?
11:46 And I think Cleveland feels really good about their guys
11:49 in man-on-man situations.
11:52 I'm gonna beat this block
11:53 or I'm gonna beat this defensive back
11:55 or whatever it might be.
11:56 This is a Houston team that's taken good steps forward
11:59 this year for sure, especially where they were a year ago
12:01 at the number two pick in the draft.
12:03 But I think Cleveland really likes its health
12:06 and its talent today.
12:07 - And I would also add to that, in this game specifically,
12:10 like the big play threat is with Nico Collins.
12:12 And it's like, it's almost like a,
12:14 it's a feast or famine kind of feel to it,
12:16 where it's like, hey, they either hit a home run
12:18 to Nico Collins or they go three and out and pump the ball.
12:20 You know, it's got that kind of feel to it.
12:22 And when you know that and understand it
12:24 and have guys who can guard all over the field,
12:27 you can help to Nico Collins.
12:29 You can put Denzel Ward or MJ Emerson,
12:30 whoever's gonna be matching up a little bit better on them,
12:32 and then allow, make John Mechie beat you,
12:35 make the tight ends beat you,
12:36 make the running backs try to beat you.
12:37 Because if you stop Nico Collins,
12:39 I think you have a really good chance, you know,
12:41 to kind of shut down the Houston offense
12:43 and eliminate that big play from the equation today.
12:47 - We're getting very close to kickoff, 430 Eastern, 330 Central.
12:51 The first NFL playoff of the game of the year
12:54 is in Houston, Texas at NRG Stadium,
12:56 where I know a lot of Browns fans are also Buckeye fans.
12:59 Considering what happened in this building on Monday night,
13:02 I think everybody, you know, the Ohio State fan hood
13:04 is trying to exercise some demons today
13:06 from this building as well,
13:08 and flush the bad taste in their mouth earlier this week.
13:10 We'll see if the Browns can get it done.
13:12 Any, oh, not quite ready.
13:16 No, I was gonna ask you for a pregame prediction.
13:20 You pulled the trigger a little too early there, Andy.
13:22 Do you have a prediction here how it's gonna go today?
13:26 - I do, I feel very good
13:28 about what the Browns are gonna do today.
13:30 You know, I think that because, like I mentioned,
13:32 that Texans offense is very, in my opinion,
13:35 it feels one-dimensional, where it's that big play,
13:37 kind of big hitter stuff.
13:40 You know, it feels like if Cleveland can shut that down,
13:43 and really, today's gonna be a big day
13:45 on the offensive side of the ball, just to take care of it.
13:47 You know, if things aren't clicking early,
13:49 like, just don't turn that thing over
13:51 because as this game progresses, you know,
13:53 you just wanna stay in it,
13:54 make sure you're in it the whole time.
13:56 And then if you're not turning that thing over,
13:58 like we haven't done all year long,
13:59 you're gonna have a really good chance to do it.
14:01 So I'm excited about it.
14:02 I think the Browns offense will, if it doesn't start early,
14:05 it's gonna find its stride,
14:07 and they're gonna play pretty well today.
14:08 I got my prediction, I believe, on our post today
14:12 was about 38 to 24 Browns,
14:14 and I think it's gonna be a fun one.
14:16 - So basically, like, the same kind of output
14:18 we saw here a couple weeks ago.
14:19 That's good, you're strong with that?
14:21 - Yeah, I'm rolling with it.
14:22 I may have been really excited,
14:24 maybe just watched the hype video or something
14:26 when I made that prediction,
14:27 but I'm still gonna ride with it.
14:31 - I appreciate the honesty.
14:32 I think it's gonna be a little bit lower scoring
14:35 than what we saw a couple of weeks ago.
14:37 I still think the Browns are gonna win the game, though,
14:39 by roughly a touchdown, I said 27-21.
14:42 CJ Straus, really good.
14:45 He's gonna make a couple of good plays
14:47 somewhere along the way in this game
14:48 that I think are gonna take the wind
14:49 out of Cleveland's sails a little bit.
14:52 But ultimately, I like the Browns
14:54 pretty much in all three phases today.
14:57 Wish Dustin Hopkins was kicking,
14:59 but Riley Patterson's been fine here
15:02 since he came aboard,
15:03 so I'm not particularly concerned about that.
15:06 I'm glad Corey Bohorquez came back last week
15:08 because I really wanted to see him get out there
15:10 and get some reps live game action before the playoffs,
15:13 so that was huge.
15:14 You know, I don't know if it's just blind faith or what,
15:18 but I'm trusting in Joe Flacco.
15:20 This is a guy that understands this stage
15:23 and he's not gonna be rattled if he turns it over.
15:26 The Browns have turned it over a lot this year.
15:29 They've also forced a lot of turnovers,
15:31 and so I feel like this game could have
15:33 these emotional up and down swings,
15:36 and I think the Browns are about as prepared
15:38 as anybody to handle that.
15:39 So I think it's gonna be a tighter game
15:41 than what we saw the last time around,
15:43 especially because CJ Straus is a difference maker
15:46 and a legit, right now, probably top seven NFL quarterback.
15:49 Despite being a rookie, he's ready for a stage like this,
15:52 but I do think the Browns are ultimately
15:54 gonna get it done, so looking forward to seeing
15:56 how this thing all plays out.
15:58 - Yeah, he's awesome.
15:59 It's gonna be fun to watch that battle,
16:00 their offense versus our defense,
16:02 is gonna be one that obviously everyone's watching,
16:04 but it's gonna have a magnified glass on it.
16:06 I will add before we go,
16:08 Riley Patterson, who's kicking today,
16:11 just rewind about 365 days ago,
16:13 he did hit the game winner for the Jaguars last year
16:16 over the Charger, so he has playoff experience.
16:19 He's great in the domes.
16:21 I don't know the exact numbers,
16:22 but he's upper 90s in the percentages
16:25 for kicking in the domes,
16:27 so you gotta feel good about him
16:29 with some playoff experience from last year.
16:31 So don't fret, we're gonna be okay, I think,
16:32 in the kicking game, hopefully, knock on wood,
16:34 but yeah, excited about it.
16:36 - Fourth playoff game for the Cleveland Browns
16:38 since they returned in 1999,
16:40 the third time they've made the playoffs.
16:42 Hoping for a deeper run than what they had
16:44 a couple of years ago in 2020.
16:46 We've got you covered wire to wire,
16:47 not just today, but all playoff run long.
16:50 We certainly hope that's gonna go for several more weeks.
16:53 In the meantime, for Anthony Meglin, I'm Brendan Gulick.
16:56 Join us again, Browns Digest on our YouTube channel,
16:58 also on brownsdigest.com.
17:00 We'll look forward to talking to you post-game
17:02 as we break down what happened in the AFC Wild Cards,
17:04 the Cleveland Browns,
17:06 with Houston Texans coming up shortly.
17:07 (faintly speaking)
17:10 [BLANK_AUDIO]