Week 1 of the 2020 NFL season is finally in the books. If you are a Cleveland Browns fan it was like every Week 1 of years past, with our beloved Browns getting blown out. The Lamar Jackson-led Ravens dismantled Cleveland to a tune of 38-6 in Kevin Stefanski’s coaching debut.
Studs
Nick Chubb: Kareem Hunt was actually the leading rusher with 13 carries for 72 yards, but Chubb ran with more authority and was clearly robbed of opportunities with only 10 carries for 60 yards. The Browns were never in a position to win this contest, but had Chubb gotten more carries, perhaps the bleeding could have been slowed.
David Njoku: Writing this puts a smile on my face. Njoku has taken over the role of the most polarizing player on the Browns roster with half of the fan base screaming for him to be traded. The fact is Njoku is good and he proved that against Baltimore. Njoku was the second-leading Browns receiver with three receptions for 50 yards and the only touchdown.
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Tavierre Thomas: The first sack of the season goes to none other than defensive back, Tavierre Thomas. He is not an All-Pro caliber player and still had some lapses in this contest, but this is a guy who played three defensive snaps all of last season and was forced to played a lot in the opener. Thomas plays with high energy and demonstrated that this week.
Duds
Austin Seibert: Another controversial player, it feels like some fans are rooting against Seibert due to the franchise using a draft pick on him in 2019. This portion of the fan base is smiling today. Siebert missed an extra point and a 41-yard field goal and Twitter is on fire rooting for his exit.
Odell Beckham Jr.: I saw someone compare Beckham to Greg Little and I couldn’t help but laugh, but that is the perfect summary of what OBJ did on Sunday. The offense went from not including him into the plan to Baker Mayfield forcing every pass in his direction. Although some of that is not his fault, the awful drop on 3rd-and-2 will go down in history.
Baker Mayfield: Mayfield was forcing too many of his passes in the second half to OBJ and they were not wise choices. He looked frantic and inaccurate. Although I think that is fair for Week 1 with a shortened offseason, some fans are not as forgiving. Mayfield finished completing 21 of 39 attempts for 189 yards with only one touchdown and an interception.
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