Interview with the Enemy: Cleveland Browns

Today, the New Orleans Saints will go back to action to deal with the Cleveland Browns at Caesars Superdome in Week 9 of the 2026 routine season. To simplify, Chris Pokorny of Dawgs By Nature joins us to sneak peek this weekend’s match.

NJ: How would you assess Todd Monken’s very first season as the Browns ‘head coach? What have been the most significant positives and negatives given that his arrival in Cleveland?

CP: It definitely left to a rocky start after the Browns were burnt out without any responses in Week 1 versus the Jaguars. After that, however, things have actually been better, to the point where he was getting coach of the year acknowledgment( previous to the 2nd blowout loss versus Pittsburgh recently). I would not state he’s a fantastic coach, however he’s gotten some excellent out of Deshaun Watson, which few individuals believed was possible. As a group in basic, and this encompasses protective planner Mike Rutenberg too, the important things I’ve liked the most is that we’ve seen some week-to-week and in-game modifications, which is something the previous training personnel didn’t succeed.

In regards to negatives, there are a couple of things that Monken hasn’t had the ability to find out: how to avoid Watson from getting sacked at a near-record rate, and how to eliminate the high variety of charges. I do not understand if either of those is truly an indictment on Monken, however, specifically given that the offending line has actually dipped into what I would call a reasonable level this season. Cleveland has likewise had the advantage of an ‘simple schedule,’ so I ‘d provide him like a B- up until now in his very first year as a head coach.

NJ: Who are some noteworthy names who will be sidelined for the Browns on Sunday versus the Saints? Exists a specific location in which New Orleans could make use of?

CP: Certainly, it’s appearing like Deshaun Watson will be out as he remains in the concussion procedure. All things thought about, however, Cleveland has actually been fairly healthy this season. The gamer I may take a look at is second-year linebacker Carson Schwesinger. He is the kind of gamer who might be a future All-Pro, and has actually had video games where he lights it up. He likewise has a warrior mindset to where he’ll play through injuries. He’s been handling an ankle injury, and while it didn’t appear to prevent him formerly, recently versus the Steelers, he had a terrible day in protection, grading out as a 30.5 by Pro Football Focus. He had low marks throughout the board,
grading improperly in run defense, taking on, pass rush, and protection.

It’s possible that was an abnormality, which targeting Schwesinger may in fact be an error, offered his general body of work. It’s worth pointing out, offered what occurred last week. If we’re not speaking about injuries, the location the Saints must attempt to check out is the Browns’ run defense. It has actually ended up being a genuine liability recently, with the Titans and Steelers shredding it and the Browns not having any responses. Cleveland’s training personnel spoke about what failed this previous week from a tactical viewpoint versus the run, so we’re intending to see modifications. Cleveland’s pass defense is extremely sound, so the Saints– in spite of their battles on the ground– are far much better fit attempting to capitalize on what’s worked for others recently through the ground video game.

NJ: With Shedeur Sanders in line to begin on Sunday in New Orleans, how positive are you in his capability to run the offense and rally his colleagues?

CP: Deshaun Watson has actually looked method much better this season than he has in previous seasons with the Browns, and his propensity for leading a game-winning drive– he’s done it in all 5 success– can’t be rejected. With that stated, however, he’s still been a below par quarterback in my book due to the fact that things are typically still a bit sluggish to procedure. Sometimes, he appears shy to slip up downfield, which is both a great and bad thing. Most awful of all is the disparity. The majority of weeks, it appears like the offense goes cold for 3 of the video game’s 4 quarters, before discovering a stimulate in among the quarters. There isn’t a constant rhythm. That’s not all on Watson, however I believe a great deal of it is.

My point in discussing all of that is that, in spite of Watson’s 5-3 record, I can’t truly see it being ‘even worse’ for Shedeur Sanders, per se. I imply, Watson hasn’t tossed a goal pass in 3 straight video games. In 2015, we saw a mix of excellent and bad for Sanders, however that likewise came behind a much even worse offending line in my viewpoint. I’m interested to see how Sanders has fun with the Browns’ young weapons this year. Among Sanders’ greatest concerns in the past has actually been backpedaling excessive on 3rd downs to attempt to prevent pressure, and it simply causes a larger sack. He improved at it throughout the routine season in 2015, however due to the fact that it’s been so long because he’s dealt with live video game action, it’s possible that those propensities will approach once again. Back in training school, I believed he flashed some excellent chemistry with novice WR KC Concepcion when they got associates together, which is a plus. In general, I have like a typical level of self-confidence that he’ll run the offense fine. I do not understand about rallying his colleagues. I’m not anticipating a Gardner Minshew minute where he can be found in and leads goal drives left and right, however I’m anticipating him to keep us in the video game a minimum of as much as Watson would have.

NJ: Who is one Browns gamer you believe Saints fans should watch on Sunday– somebody who may not get much nationwide attention however could have a strong efficiency?

CP: I’ll opt for tight end Harold Fannin. After a little lull where he just had 2 catches in 2 video games, he’s had 16 catches for 245 lawns in the last 2 video games. He captures the ball well, and constantly has a propensity for getting an additional couple of lawns after contact, no matter which protector is tackling him. In 7 video games with Sanders in 2015 at quarterback, Fannin had 4 goal receptions and a reasonable quantity of targets week-to-week, so I’m anticipating a few of that connection to continue today.

NJ: According to FanDuel Sportsbookthe Saints (-164) are presently 3.0-point favorites over the Browns (+138) in Sunday’s match; what is your last rating forecast and how do you see the video game playing out?

CP: It appears like the line moved to +3, potentially with the news of Watson remaining in the concussion procedure. This is completion of a three-game roadway stretch for Cleveland, and they’re coming off of a bad loss. In the Browns’ 5 triumphes this season, none of them have actually been by more than 4 points. On paper, I inform myself that Cleveland’s offense will discover some success, because the Saints are enabling almost 28 points per video game. The Browns’ run defense has actually suffered recently, I believe it’ll be a point of focus in the movie space this week, and New Orleans has actually not had a lot of success in that location. If New Orleans remains one-dimensional, Cleveland is difficult to pass the ball on regularly, so I see the capacity for today’s video game being beneficial to the Browns. I’ll opt for the Browns triumphing 20-17.

Thank you once again to Chris Pokorny for joining us to sneak peek today’s match! You can take a look at the rest of his work here