Tag: B.J. Goodson

Andrew Sendejo, B.J. Goodson out for Steelers game due to COVID-19

The Browns will be without two defensive starters in Week 17

There are nine players on the Cleveland Browns reserve/COVID-19 list, but only two of those players have tested positive for the virus. As a result, those two players will miss the Week 17 regular-season finale against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Unfortunately, the players are both defensive starters. Linebacker B.J. Goodson was the first Browns player to test positive in the latest wave. He also missed the Week 16 loss to the Jets. Safety Andrew Sendejo is also out for Week 17 due to a positive test.

Players who test positive must be sidelined for a minimum of 10 days. Goodson tested positive last Friday, while Sendejo tested positive on Tuesday. Both would be able to return for any postseason games, provided they are healthy enough to play.

All of the other players could clear COVID-19 protocols before Sunday and play against Pittsburgh.

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Browns place B.J. Goodson on the reserve/ COVID-19 list, activate Jedrick Wills

Goodson is the team’s leading tackler

The Cleveland Browns will get a big boost on their offensive line tomorrow while also losing a key starter on defense.

The Browns have placed starting linebacker B.J. Goodson on the reserve/COVID-19 list, according to a report from NFL Network. Earlier today, the team announced the facility was closed and the team’s flight to New York was delayed for contact tracing following the positive test.

Although the defense will lose Goodson, the Browns get back starting left tackle Jedrick Wills Jr., who was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list on Thursday morning.

Goodson has started all 14 games for the Browns this season and accounted for a career-high 91 tackles. The defensive signal-caller has also accounted for a pair of interceptions and two tackles for loss.

Wills has started every game at left tackle during his rookie season campaign.

In an additional move, the Browns elevated center Javon Patterson from the practice squad as a COVID-19 replacement. Patterson is a second-year player out of Ole Miss and was signed to the practice squad on Nov. 10.

The Browns are set to kick-off tomorrow against the Jets at MetLife Stadium at 1 p.m.

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B.J. Goodson on playing Giants: ‘Cool head, not heart’

Cleveland Browns LB B.J. Goodson promises to play the New York Giants, his former team, with a cool head and hot heart.

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A Sunday night tilt between the New York Giants and Cleveland Browns will be considered a revenge game for many — Freddie Kitchens, Olivier Vernon, Jabrill Peppers and Kevin Zeitler come to mind.

While those four names are the most-discussed, there are several other cross-connections between these two teams, including linebacker B.J. Goodson, who played for the Giants from 2016 until 2019 when he was traded to the Green Bay Packers.

It won’t be the first time that Goodson has played the Giants or returned to MetLife Stadium. He recorded two tackles in a December win over New York last season as a member of the Packers, but that doesn’t the emotions are lacking.

Goodson still feels a certain way about the team that drafted in the fourth round and later discarded him, but promises to maintain a cool head come Sunday night.

“Cold head, hot heart. That is not really my motive. My motive is to just make sure my guys’ mind is right going into this event and just giving us the best chance to come out with the victory,” Goodson told reporters this week.

“At this time of the season, everyone is fighting. Every game or every next game is the biggest game, only because it is the next game. That is kind of how we look at it. We are just trying to go 1-0 this week.”

The veteran linebacker also knows he must mind his Ps and Qs against this Giants team because under first-year head coach Joe Judge, they’re a scrappy bunch.

“They fight. They fight. They are fighting to make the playoffs. They are a fighting bunch,” Goodson said. “Obviously from being there, I understand that and know a lot of that offensive personnel as far as who they are, but they are fighting for something, too.”

The Giants’ fight may be lacking a bit in Week 15 without cornerback James Bradberry (COVID-19 list) and the likely absence of quarterback Daniel Jones (hamstring/ankle), which Goodson acknowledges takes an element away from New York’s offense.

“As far as their offense, they are able to do just a pinch more with Daniel, but they are who they are as far as what they do. That is what we are looking forward to,” Goodson said. “If he is hurt or whatever the case may be, they obviously are not going to take the risk at running him like that if he does play or f they do, it will be more so situational. We will take into consideration.”

Ultimately, Goodson would love nothing more than the damage his former team’s playoff chances while also boosting his current team’s playoff chances with a win on Sunday night. And he’ll attempt to do that with a cool head and a hot heart.

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Giants vs. Browns: A revenge game for many

A Week 15 matchup between the New York Giants and Cleveland Browns will be a revenge game for many — probably more than you realize.

The New York Giants will be entertaining some old friends when the Cleveland Browns come to MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey this Sunday night.

Additionally, the Browns are going to see some familiar faces on the other side of the ball as well.

In fact, there are quite a few cross-connections here in Week 15.

Report card: Grading each Browns position group after third quarter of season

Updated report card on where each position group is at through the first 12 games

The Cleveland Browns have a 9-3 record after the first three quarters of the season. Kevin Stefanski has guided his Browns to the top seeding in the AFC Wild Card race and the team is steaming towards its first postseason berth in almost two decades.

Now it’s time to close on the goals. Put up the four fingers and focus on finishing the season strong. But before the Browns finish, here’s an updated report card on where each position group is at through the first 12 games.

Grading the Browns position by position at the bye week

Tackling emerges as a problem for the Browns defense

Cleveland’s tackling was among the many lowlights from the Week 6 loss to the Steelers

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Not much went well for the Cleveland Browns in Week 6. Baker Mayfield played poorly, the offensive line got dominated, the defensive line lost too many battles and the secondary had coverage lapses. But there was one thing I noted from the All-22 review of the game that shouldn’t have been such an issue.

In poring over the game film from the 38-7 spanking in Pittsburgh, there were plenty of negatives. Defensive tackling stood out as something that can be improved regardless of the degree of difficulty of the opponent.

Cleveland’s tackling, while generally not terrible, hasn’t been great all year. It was especially bad in Pittsburgh. The secondary in particular had major issues, with a Denzel Ward whiff here, a Sheldrick Redwine flub there, an Andrew Sendejo gaffe seemingly everywhere.

I counted 13 missed tackling opportunities in the game. Pro Football Focus credited the Browns defense with just eight, but one of their criteria for a missed tackle is actually touching the player with the ball. They tagged Sendejo with three misses, but I noted two other plays where he should have made the tackle but didn’t physically make contact because of a poor angle or getting juked out of his shoes.

There are some bright spots. Veteran LB B.J. Goodson has nicely filled Joe Schobert’s old role of run-defense cleanup man and he’s more reliable at ending the play than Schobert ever was. Goodson was the best Browns defender in Pittsburgh. Malcolm Smith has been effective at quickly closing on receivers on short pass routes, though he had a miss on that in Pittsburgh too.

It was the worst tackling performance on the season. PFF has generally liked the Browns tackling on the year; Cleveland ranks 9th in their tackling metrics through Week 6. The Browns cannot afford to start sliding down a slope here.

It’s tough to improve tackling form during the season with the limited practices and limits on contact in those practices. One thing I’d like to see defensive coordinator Joe Woods emphasize is the concept of following the initial hit with a wrap. It’s something the DBs in particular do not do well. They’ll hit — often hard — but fail to wrap up the ball carrier or just assume the big hit will end the play. That strategy failed badly against James Conner and the Steelers and will fail against Joe Mixon and the Bengals on Sunday, too.

Browns players quick to put one bad loss behind them

The Browns are trying to compartmentalize the bad loss in Pittsburgh

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Several somber Cleveland Browns players faced the media following Sunday’s humiliating 38-7 loss in Pittsburgh. To a man, they all reiterated the same basic theme:

The loss in Pittsburgh was bad, but it’s just one game.

It was a theme touched upon in one form or another by every Browns player who took to Zoom press conferences after the game.

From left guard Joel Bitonio,

“We have a long season. This counts as one. It is not the way we wanted to play.”

Wide receiver Jarvis Landry elaborated a little deeper,

“We will need to continue to adjust. In a season like this, you have to find ways to adjust. A lot of times, what is working you continue with it until it is not working. Then you find ways to make it better or adjust. That is just the phase we are in right now. We all have to go back, look at the film, be critical of ourselves and take this on the chin and move onto the next one. It is still a long season. There are still a lot of games left.”

Linebacker B.J. Goodson offered this, pinpointing the chance to play the Steelers again later this year,

“It is not just a game, but it is a game, and it was a hard-fought game. We did not come out with the victory today, but it is a long season. Like I said, we get a chance to play these guys again, and I am looking forward to it.”

Defensive end Myles Garrett had a similar take to Goodson,

“It is one game. We will see them again and then you will be able to measure how we stack up against either of them. Until then, just leave it as it is. They had our number. We have a gameplan, we adjust, come back and we will be at full strength by then.”

Finally, quarterback Baker Mayfield had this to say when asked about the Browns 4-2 record, but with the two defeats blowout losses to division rivals Pittsburgh and Baltimore,

“Not discouraging. No matter the score, it only counts for one. The good thing is we play both those teams again and we can learn and get better. It is onto the Bengals now and we have to continue to get better.”

The Browns play at Cincinnati in Week 7.

Browns injury update: Myles Garrett, B.J. Goodson return to practice, Greedy Williams remains out

Browns injury update: Myles Garrett, B.J. Goodson return to practice, Greedy Williams among several still out

The daily chronicling of the comings and goings from the Cleveland Browns injury list remains an engrossing task even with training camp almost over. Tuesday’s edition of the Browns injury update thankfully features two players returning and no new additions to the list.

Myles Garrett (wrist) and B.J. Goodson (personal) returned to the practice field in Berea on Tuesday afternoon. Garrett made his first appearance since Saturday. He missed Sunday’s enhanced practice session at FirstEnergy Stadium for what head coach Kevin Stefanski termed “precautionary reasons”. No. 95 was visible going through drills in the portion of practice open to the media,

Goodson also missed a couple of days for personal reasons.

Several players remain out, most notably starting CB Greedy Williams. The second-year CB continues to sit with his shoulder injury. Starting center JC Tretter is still rehabbing from his knee procedure. He’s joined by OL Chris Hubbard (ankle), LB Mack Wilson (knee), CB M.J. Stewart (knee) and CB Kevin Johnson (liver). Rookie safety Grant Delpit is on injured reserve with his torn Achilles tendon.

Myles Garrett among several Browns missing Sunday’s practice in FirstEnergy Stadium

Garrett was one of 8 Browns sitting out Sunday’s practice

The Cleveland Browns took to FirstEnergy Stadium for Sunday’s practice session. With just two weeks until the Browns travel to Baltimore for the season opener, it was the first time for many of the players to get into their locker rooms and feel the grass at the home of the Browns,

As is the case with the Browns training camp of 2020, several players missed out on the on-field practice and instead only worked with trainers or stayed idle altogether. The injuries remain an issue for Cleveland.

Myles Garrett is the most notable name sitting out Sunday’s session. The defensive end was given the day off by head coach Kevin Stefanski with a minor wrist injury. Stefanski labeled it nothing more than precautionary, but it’s the second separate ailment that has held Garrett out of camp in the last two weeks.

Other Browns on the active roster who did not practice Sunday:

  • CB Kevin Johnson (liver)
  • LB B.J. Goodson (personal)
  • C JC Tretter (knee)
  • CB M.J. Stewart (hamstring)
  • CB Greedy Williams (shoulder)
  • OT Chris Hubbard (ankle)
  • LB Mack Wilson (knee)

The Browns are off on Monday.

Browns LB coach Jason Tarver impressed with B.J. Goodson’s coverage skills

Goodson is the most experienced LB on the Browns roster

B.J. Goodson is the greybeard of the Cleveland Browns linebacking corps despite being just 27 years old and registering a modest 160 total tackles over his first four seasons. It’s a sign of the greenhorn status of the LB position in Cleveland.

In his first week of practice with the Browns, Goodson is offering promise that he can be more than just a veteran rudder for the precocious young LB corps. With Mack Wilson sidelined with a knee injury, Goodson has stepped up as the team’s top coverage LB.

Browns LB coach Jason Tarver has been impressed with Goodson’s work in coverage. He talked about it in his Zoom session with reporters prior to Friday’s session in Berea.

After noting that Goodson is in on all the LB packages, Tarver cited an example of his work in coverage.

“B.J. did a great job on one of those packages on an option route in the red zone where our new tight end (Austin Hooper) ran a route where he could either go underneath or go vertical and B.J. stayed in perfect position.

He’s done a great job of working his body through the offseason to where he can do that. I know B.J. was excited about the opportunity here because we want players to feel like they are limitless.”

Goodson was signed as a free agent after nondescript stints with the Giants (2016-2018) and Packers, where he played over 50 percent of the snaps in just three games in 2019. He appears poised for a much more significant role in Joe Woods’ defense in Cleveland in 2020. As Tarver noted, he’s been in on every package so far.

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