Packers vs. Browns: Interview with Dawg Pound Daily
Ahead of the Green Bay Packers’ Week 14 matchup with the Cleveland Browns, we spoke to Dawg Pound Daily site expert Thomas Moore.
It’s not been a fun ride for Browns fans over the past few years, but the talented team over at Dawg Pound Daily continue on with their excellent coverage of the team.
To get some insight on the Packers’ Week 14 opponents, I spoke to Browns expert Thomas Moore.
How would you review DeShone Kizer‘s rookie season so far, and can he be the long-term starter?
Moore: It has been an up-and-down season for Kizer, but mostly down. He is wildly inconsistent and inaccurate, which is kind of a problem when you are the starting quarterback. His internal clock, while not as broken as Robert Griffin III’s, still needs some fine tuning.
He is probably not as bad as he has looked this season, but he has also not shown anything that should stop the Browns from selecting a quarterback with the No. 1 overall selection in the 2018 NFL Draft.
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It would also help if Kizer, or whoever winds up being the quarterback, had a better offensive coordinator and head coach than Hue Jackson.
Cleveland has been tough against the run this year. It is No. 6 in the NFL, allowing just 96.9 yards on the ground per game. What has been the key to success?
Moore: Much of it has to do with the play of the defensive front seven, most notably the defensive line.
Defensive tackle Danny Shelton is finally getting his due for his role in defending the run, and rookie Larry Ogunjobi has been stout whenever he has been on the field. Defensive ends Myles Garrett and Emmanuel Ogbah, before he was injured, have also been a force as teams run away from Garrett whenever possible and Ogbah has been there to make them pay for it.
How would you rate Josh Gordon‘s first game back, and what does his return mean for the Browns moving forward?
Moore: We honestly thought that Gordon would never see the field again, so the fact that he was able to do what he did last Sunday against the Chargers was pretty amazing.
As for his long-term future, there is simply no way to know. He says he is clean, but we’ve been down that road before on numerous occasions. At this point the Browns have to literally take it day-by-day with Gordon because you simply cannot trust him until he proves it for more than just a game or two.
Is there a player to look out for that Packers fans might not be familiar with?
Moore: We want to say tight end David Njoku, but we don’t want to tip anyone off to a player that continues to get better each week. So let’s go with Ogunjobi, the team’s third-round selection out of UNC-Charlotte.
Ogunjobi is still learning the game but always seems to be in the middle of things when he is on the field.
Finally, what’s your prediction for the game?
Moore: The Browns are currently a mess, thanks in large part because Hue Jackson is too busy telling everyone that he is not at fault for the team being 0-12 this season and 1-27 since he was named head coach.
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The Browns try hard, which is a credit to the players, but never seem to be able to make that one play that will turn the game in their favor.
The Packers, meanwhile, seem to have something to play for, so let’s go with Green Bay 21, Cleveland 10.