Official Game Day Thread - ARI @ CLE October 17, 2021
Oct 11, 2021 10:52:14 GMT -7
aris, thomas cat, and 1 more like this
Post by End Zone on Oct 11, 2021 10:52:14 GMT -7
The Game Day Thread is open as of 6am, Saturday October 16th. Enjoy!
Update October 16: Everyone welcomes TE Zach Ertz. He cannot play this week at Cleveland but will be available next week when the Houston Texans visit the Arizona Cardinals.
The ARI @ CLE game O/U dropped from 53.5 to 49.5 on October 15th. The O/U may drop more as Cleveland's anticipated WINDY weather conditions (20mph-plus gusts) are factored into play-calling and the betting risks. I assess the O/U is coming down also due to confirmed ARI and CLE injury reports. More Cleveland player information will be released at 4pm ET on October 16. Example: WR Jarvis Landry's availability is uncertain.
CLE is giving up to -3.5 points. NFL.com Game Theory this morning lists Arizona winning outright by the score 26-25. Seems that analysts are shifting numbers, expecting a closer game final score due to injury, pandemic, and weather.
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ARI @ CLE October 17, 2021
Hello and welcome to the Forum’s 6th Arizona Cardinals Game Day Thread (GDT). The 5-0 record looks and feels awesome! Go Red Sea! Go Cardinals! At this exact point in the 2020 season and heading into the Cardinals @ Cowboys 6th game last year, the Cardinals W/L record was a modest 3-2, with two mysterious losses to the Lions and Panthers in prior weeks. At game 6, the Cardinals took care of business at Arlington, TX, improving to 4-2 (BTW, QB Dak Prescott was on IR that game). However, immediately after the Cowboys game, the on-and-off Cardinals bird poop hit the NFL sky fan and the team's fortunes were splattered. Bottom Line: The Cardinals (5-0) inter-conference game at the Browns (3-2) next week does not define the Arizona season. However, another complete team victory over a strong AFC rival will go a long way toward signaling the "NFL royalty" that the Cardinals are a legitimate NFL title contender.
The Cardinals and Browns have been butting heads in the blazing summer sun, rain and mud, and winter snow at Cleveland, Chicago, St. Louis, and Phoenix urban sites since 1950, with the Browns leading the 71-year competition overall: Browns 33 wins, Cardinals 15 wins, and 3 ties between the two teams. The teams have played 2 overtime games, 1985 and 2011, with the Cardinals winning both times. The two teams do not meet often, playing just 6 games since 2000, with the Cardinals last losing to the Browns back in 2003 at Cleveland. The teams last head-to-head game was on December 15, 2019. The Cardinals (4-9-1) easily beat the Browns (6-8) at former State Farm Stadium, 38-24. QBs were Heisman Trophy winners Kyler Murray and Baker Mayfield. RB Kenyan Drake (22 attempts, 137 yards) had 3 short TD runs and Murray (25 attempts, 19 completions, 219 total yards) passed for 1 TD. RB Nick Chubb ran for 1 TD and Baker Mayfield passed for 2 TDs. That day, Arizona piled up 445 yards on offense to Cleveland's 393 yards on offense. The Cardinals last played at Cleveland in 2015, easily mastering the Browns at that game, 34-20.
Browns History. The Browns are not one of the NFL's original teams--so-called plank owners. Nor is the team considered a Championship caliber team every year. To the franchise's credit, the Browns are well represented at the Pro Football Hall of Fame with 17 former Browns enshrined, meaning the fans can reflect on a rich football tradition at Cleveland. By the way, the Browns rank 6th among teams with HOFers. I am not 100% certain, but I think the Browns are the only NFL team named after the team's first coach and co-founder, Paul Brown. Another oddity among the 32 NFL teams, the Browns are the only NFL team with NO LOGO on the helmet. Today, when NFL fans see the burnt orange helmet paint on the color TV, fans know it is the Browns team. The franchise was founded in 1945 and played in the All-American Football conference for 4 years. In 1949, the Browns, 49ers, and Colts joined the NFL as new teams. The Browns enjoyed instant success in the NFL, winning championships in 1949, 1954, 1955, and 1964. Then things went awry within the franchise. A championship drought commenced. While the team made the NFL playoffs 29 times overall in their history, the team never again played for a championship trophy nor made it to a Super Bowl game as the AFC representative. Since those storied early years, the team managed just 3 winning seasons: 2002, 2007, and 2020. Some long-time Browns fans completely bailed out on the franchise, referring to the team as “The Mistake By the Lake." The Browns last made the playoffs in 2020, ending a gut-wrenching 18-year post-season drought. The Browns have a break in team history worth mentioning. In 1996, owner Art Modell moved his team to Baltimore, renaming the team the Ravens. The Browns team was officially "suspended" by the NFL for 3 years while the NFL HQ founded and restocked a new NFL team at Cleveland starting in 1999. That new team resumed rights to the Browns name. A new footnote was added to Browns history on October 10, 2021: The Browns became the first team in NFL history to lose a game despite scoring 40+ points and having no turnovers. Such teams were previously 442–0. Last weekend, the Browns lost to the Chargers, 47-42.
Many playoffs-giddy Browns fans are confident that the team solved key player shortfalls that prevented the team from advancing from the Division playoff round to the AFC match-up in 2020. Browns GM Andrew Berry was busy in the off-season as expected, signing DT Marvin Wilson, CB Troy Hill, and S John Johnson III, and drafting CB Greg Newsome II and LB Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah. However, high confidence is tempered by acknowledgment of the team's history of mistakes, either by the GM throwing money at over-the-hill names, e.g., Beckham?, or key players not living up to team crucial needs on game days. One area of new concern is the Browns Offensive Line. Age and injury are nibbling at the OL's past effectiveness: Center is a potential big weak spot and QB Mayfield cannot excel behind a part-time Center. The WR corps could struggle with WR Jarvis Landry continuing to slip due to intense competition and repeat injury issues. Landry is a force to be reckoned with when healthy and when Mayfield has lateral space and clock time to find his WRs. In 2020, Landry suffered some of his poorest NFL games: overall performance 72 catches, 840 yards, 3 TDs -- and at $14.7M contract cost, he may not be affordable anymore. Lastly is TE Austin Hooper, earning a whopping $8.25M and in 2020 pulling down 46 catches for 435 yards and 4 TDs. Everything must go right for the Browns offense for this team to repeat the playoffs in 2021. The Defense is the backbone of the Browns and the squad did not see a major talent decline or new concern develop during the offseason. The Browns employ a heavy running attack at every contest so far in 2021. The Browns lead the NFL in rushing with over 800 yards after 5 games. RBs Chubb and Hunt lead the Browns running attack. Watch out, Cardinals! Orange Crush Ahead.
Cleveland Browns head coach is Kevin Stefanski since 2020 and he is the 18th Browns HC since team establishment. Stefanski was OC at the Minnesota Vikings from 2018-2019 and prior to signing a 5-year contract as Browns HC. Stefanski had a rough outing at his first HC gig, losing to the Ravens 38-6, and enduring another ugly blowout and the 16th opening season game in a row where the Browns failed to earn a win. The next week, Stefanski redeemed himself, easing the Browns past he AFC North Division rivals Cincinnati Bengals, 35-30. Then on December 6th, Stefanski put the Browns over the hump, securing the team’s first winning season since 2007. Last season, Stefanski earned AP's NFL Coach of the Year honors, PFWA Coach of the Year honors, and Sporting News Coach of the Year honors, all for taking his Browns team to the playoffs for the first time since 2002 (note that the NFL expanded the number of playoff teams from 12 to 14 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and struggling fan interest -- thus opening the door for the Browns to barely make the playoffs last year). Stefanski’s HC 2020 record was 11-5 regular season, 1-1 post-season (the Browns knocked off the Steelers, 48-37, in the WC game despite Stefanski being on COVID-19 protocol and preventing him from coaching), and 12-6 career. Stefanski played DB at U of Pennsylvania 2000-2004, earning Freshman of the Year honors in 2000 and twice selecting as " All-Ivy League." Kevin Stefanski is married to his wife Michelle who together hey have three children, and he is the son of NBA executive Ed Stefanski.
QB Baker Mayfield is a premier NFL QB. He entered the League as a rookie in 2018, and is now in his 4th NFL year. He is 26yo, 6'1", 215lbs, and played DI-level college football for powerhouse University of Oklahoma where he earned the Heisman Trophy. For the 2020 season, his statistics are first-rate: 26 TDs, 8 INTs, 3,563 yards, rating 95.9. He guided the Browns to a 11-6 regular season record and a 1-1 post-season record. His best two 2020 games were against defensive stalwarts, the Ravens and the Titans, where he won 1 and lost 1, and threw for a combined 677 yards and 6 TDs. His worst outing of the year was week #16 versus the struggling Jets, where his Browns were humiliated, 23-16, and Mayfield attempted 53 passes, completed 28 for 285 yards, and had 0 TDs. I noted in Mayfield's 2020 statistics a significant TD dry spell at weeks 8, (9 bye), 10, and 11, where he also had 0 TDs versus the Raiders, Texans, and Eagles -- so, along with the Jets end-of-season stink bomb, Mayfield's performance against these 4 teams was abysmal. Simply put, Mayfield has bad QB days. Since 2018, Mayfield has played in 45 of 46 Browns games, completed 932 of 1506 passing attempts for 11,115 yards and 75 TDs, was intercepted 43 times, and averaged 7.38 yards per pass. He was sacked 91 times for 620 yards lost. He also fumbled the ball 21 times and turned over the ball 9 times. So far in 2021, Mayfield's performance lags many other QBs. Games played: 5. Completions: 97. Attempts: 145. Completion %: 66.9. Yards: 1,240. Avg: 8.6. TDs: 4. INTs: 2. Sacked: 13 times. Fumbles: 1. Rating: 89.8. QBR: 42.8. He rushed 17 times for 67 yards, longest is 12 yards, averaging 3.9 yards per carry, scored 1 TD. ** Mayfield has been playing with a partially torn labrum in his left shoulder, a source confirmed to ESPN on October 7, 2021. Mayfield suffered the injury to the non-throwing shoulder on September 19, while trying to make a tackle against the Houston Texans, and has been wearing a shoulder harness since. For last week's contest, Browns lost at Chargers (4-1), 42-47, Mayfield excelled at QB. 23 completions in 31 attempts (71.9%) for 305 yards and 2 TDs and no INTs. His QB rating was 122.5, or danged good.
Mayfield versus the Cardinals. As noted in above comments, former OU teammates QB Mayfield and QB Murray went head-to-head on December 15, 2019, with Murray out-dueling Mayfield, 38-24. That game was basically over at halftime with the Cardinals ahead 21-10. How did Mayfield do thru 4 quarters against a porous Cardinals Defense and team sputtering along with a 4-9-1 record? Mayfield completed 30 of 43 passes for 247 yards with 2 TDs and 1 INT. That was decent work but not good enough. He also rushed 2 times for 11 yards. His top WR target was WR Beckham Jr with 8 catches for 66 yards. Next was WR Hunt also with 8 catches for 62 yards. WR Landry had 5 catches for 23 yards--basically a no-work day for the $15M man. Mayfield's 2 TDs were caught by TE Seals-Jones, a former Cardinals TE.
QBs. There is really no point in discussing anything more about the Cardinals and Browns past games and former QB efforts. The teams have played only a handful games in the last 20 years and both teams have reworked coaching staffs and player rosters multiple times in just the last 5 years. The current bulletin board is about blank and there is no rivalry to speak of except maybe between a few younger players. Expect the two young QBs to leave it all on the field this weekend, to take big risks, make big plays, and make some errors. Mayfield is a better pocket passer than Murray. Murray is a master scrambler and better on-the-spot innovator. Both QBs possess cannon arms and are capable of pinpoint passing accuracy at 50-plus yards range. Bomb’s away!
Injury Reports. See FLCF’s post. Moderators will post player injury data provided by the Cardinals medical or coaching staff no more than 24 hours prior to the game. It is NFL policy that, “If any player has a significant or noteworthy injury, it must be listed on the practice report, even if he fully participates in practice and the team expects that he will play in the team’s next game. This is especially important for key players whose injuries may be covered extensively by the media.” Moreover, the policy also reads, “The information must be credible, accurate, timely, and specific within the guidelines of the policy, which is of paramount importance to maintaining the integrity of the game.” Teams found in violation of the policy face the risk of being fined or forfeiting Draft picks.
Roster Information. The Cardinals team roster information (updated weekly) can be reviewed at www.ourlads.com/nfldepthcharts/depthchart/ARZ . Roster Rules 2021 (COVID-19): (1) Expansion of practice squads to 16 players, including up to 6 who have more than 2 accrued seasons; (2) The ability to protect up to 4 practice squad players per week from being signed by other teams; (3) Elevation of up to 2 practice squad players to the active roster, without removing any current players, before 4 p.m. ET the day before a game; (4) Elevation of 1 additional practice squad player within 90 minutes before kickoff in the event of a late COVID-19 positive test result; (5) Players placed on injured reserve can return after 3 weeks, rather than 6 weeks as in normal seasons; (6) Removal of the limit for how many players can be activated from injured reserve.
Odds. Per the professionals, the Browns at home are 3.0 point favorites over the Cardinals. The O/U is 49.5 as of October 15, 2021.
Note: At both the Browns and the Cardinals last games, fans witnessed atrocious Officiating and bewildering no-calls. Cardinals TE Williams suffered a devastating below the waist hit to his knee, probably ending his season. No USLC flags flew. DE Jones was flagged for USLC on the sideline following a phantom helmet hit on a lumbering OL in the DE’s pathway. Chargers Defensive players mugged and robbed Browns players. No PI flags flew. Let’s hope the NFL is cleaning up its act (fining or firing is appropriate) behind the scenes week by week. The refereeing problems we saw last week just cannot continue.
Referee Crew Information. Referee assigned to today's game is #51 Carl Cheffers. Carl is familiar with the Cardinals team, having refereed 3 of their games in 2021. His last Cardinals game was LAR @ ARI on January 3, 2021. At that game, his crew awarded 11 penalties total, 5 to the Rams and 6 to the Cardinals, and an oddly equal 38 yards in penalties per team. The teams played disciplined football for the most part, and the Referee crew did not crucify anybody so to speak. Carl has been an official since 2000, and a Referee since 2008. He was controversial in the past. See numerous online articles. His official statistics are available at www.pro-football-reference.com/officials/ChefCa0r.htm . Other officiating information: For 2020, officials have a tough job. Professionals only need apply for work. NFL games averaged 156.4 plays; there were 40,032 total plays; 99.1% of the plays were officiated on the field without Instant Replay Booth involvement; only 364 of the plays were reviewed; the most commonly reviewed plays were pass completion (82), incomplete pass (47), and runner broke the goal line plane (44). See www.footballzebras.com/2021/06/officiating-crews-for-the-2021-season/ .
Weather forecast October 17, 2021. Expect 62F for a high temperature and sunny skies if you are attending the game at Cleveland. The Cleveland Browns FirstEnergy Stadium is outdoors and is almost floating on Lake Erie -- the freshwater lake is that close and the view is awesome from the upper deck seating. The Stadium is also known for lake-effect snowfalls during late-season games, creating lasting memories for the players and fans alike. The month of October is traditionally the transition month, from late summer to early fall conditions, for northern Ohioans. If attending this game in person be prepared for 50s/60s during the daytime and 40s/50s at night. Dress appropriately.
Stadium Information. FirstEnergy Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Cleveland, Ohio, primarily for Cleveland Browns football. The Stadium serves as a venue for other events such as college and high school football, soccer, and concerts. It opened in 1999 as Cleveland Browns Stadium and was renovated in two phases in early 2014 and 2015. The initial seating capacity was listed at 73,200 people, but following the first phase of the renovation project in 2014, was reduced to the current capacity of 67,431. The stadium sits on 31 acres of land between Lake Erie and the Cleveland Memorial Shoreway in the North Coast Harbor area of downtown Cleveland, adjacent to the Great Lakes Science Center and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Cleveland Stadium stood on the site from 1931 to 1996. I first learned about the Stadium when someone called the stadium the "Mistake By The Lake." During some Fall and Winter games, NW winds blow directly across Lake Erie and can cause massive snowfalls in just hours. "The Dawgs" love their Browns and near-Arctic stadium. For more information, see also www.firstenergystadium.com/.
Game Broadcasts. Game will be carried by FOX and 98.7 FM. Kickoff at FirstEnergy Stadium is 1:05 PM MST. Numerous NFL games are scheduled to start at the same time. I will be 100% shocked if the Cardinals game is available outside the immediate Arizona and Cleveland viewing regions.
Next week's game: HOU (1-4) visits ARZ (5-0).
Odds and Ends. R-E-S-P-E-C-T is hard to come by for Cardinals franchise that has not earned a Championship in over 75 years. Most NFL fans from around the country cannot name more than 1 Cardinals player from those many years and maybe can name just 1-2 players from the current team, e.g., Murray and Hopkins, that are frequently on highlight videos. The team's 5-0 record today means nothing or little, even though the Cardinals already this season beat two 2020 playoffs teams and the runner up at the 2019 Super Bowl. The Cardinals’ Sundays game is versus its 3rd 2020 playoff team. Come on, Man! Where is the love? The Cardinals Offense embarrassed the mighty Titans and Rams Defenses several weeks apart--not a fluke. The Cardinals Defense throttled RB Derrick Henry, 2020's top RB, at game 1—maybe a fluke. The Cardinals can win big, small, pretty, and ugly, but they win. Geez, is some R-E-S-P-E-C-T too much to ask? How about a warm congratulations on the 5-0 start from the sports’ world mass marketing know-it-all’s? A nod to the Cardinals' success costs nothing. Really, the cost is nothing. I guarantee you that 31 NFL teams all envy the Cardinals 5-0 start. Many teams respect the Cardinals whole-of-team threat approach and never-die commitment to winning now. However, they may not say so publicly for fear of severe locker room and media blowback, or just looking weak in the face of the threat. Teams that do not respect the Cardinals will eventually find out the hard way that this 2021 team is not the last Cardinals team of yore. Fight's on, everyone! An ugly win counts the same as a pretty win.
Cardinals Football Trivia Q&A. Who was picked by the Saint Louis Cardinals at the 1965 NFL Draft 1st and 2nd Rounds? 1st round, #12, was QB Joe Namath, Alabama, who eventually was voted into the NFL's HOF. 2nd round, #26, was LB Dave Simmons, who played 2 years for the Cardinals, started zero games, and was traded to the Saints in 1967. The Cardinals selected Namath 12th overall in the NFL Draft, while the Jets selected him with the 1st overall draft pick of the upstart AFL. When meeting with executives of the Cardinals, Namath's salary request was $200,000 and a new Lincoln Continental. While initially appalled at Namath's requests, the Cardinals told Namath they would agree to his requests, but only if he would sign before the Orange Bowl, which would have made Namath ineligible to play in the game. Namath toyed with the Cardinals offer only briefly. The day after the Orange Bowl, Namath elected to sign with the Jets, which were under the direction of owner Sonny Werblin, for a salary of $427,000, and double the STL offer over 3 years, a pro football record at the time. The NFL TV market and unequal owner's profit sharing doomed the Cardinals chances to sign Namath at an affordable price. Namath went on to be voted AFL Rookie of the Year after his first season. The following season, Namath smashed the pro QB single season passing record with 4,007 yards. And so, that's how the 1965 draft went down the tubes for the Cardinals.
Browns Football Trivia Q&A. The Cleveland Browns played in 3 AFC Championship games in the 1980s. Who was the QB for those games? QB Bernie Kosar, drafted in 1985, led the Browns. What AFC team beat the Browns in each AFC Championship game? The Denver Broncos embarrassed, beat, and befuddled the Browns at all 3 AFCC games. Former Browns HC Paul Brown is credited with inventing -- What play? The Draw Play. What activity? The Practice Squad. What safety equipment? The Face Mask. The Cleveland Browns drafted QBs 1st in 2012 (Brandon Weeden), 2014 (Johnny Manziel), and 2018 (Baker Mayfield). Who did the Cleveland Browns pick 1st at #15 in 2016? A QB? Nope! WR Corey Coleman was the Cleveland Browns 1st pick in 2016, breaking a long no-WRs picked stretch of annual draftees. However, during the 2016 and 2017 seasons, Coleman suffered a broken hand twice and was unable to play for long stretches of time, eventually landing on IR. After Cleveland's ugly 0-16 season was done, Coleman requested and was traded to the Buffalo Bills for a 7th round draft pick in 2018. Coleman is out of the NFL today, and is a Free Agent as of late summer 2021.
PutMeIn's Bottom Line. I watched much of the Browns at Chargers game on October 10. The Browns moved the ball well against a descent Chargers defense (531 offensive yards earned by the Browns to be exact!), committed no turnovers, and scored 42 points all in a losing effort. That ‘no turnover+40-points+a loss’ turned out to be an NFL record! The Browns employ two of the best RBs in the game--and they are fast and powerful--to set up a robust passing attack led by QB Baker Mayfield. Cleveland has suffered two defeats in 2021, both on the road, to the Chiefs (33-29) and the Chargers (47-42). The Brown beat the teams they are supposed to beat (Texans, Bears, and Vikings). The offense put 142 points on the board and the defense yielded 114. Note: The Browns Defense could not slow down and stop the Chargers Offense in the second half, giving up scores on 5 straight Chargers drives (26 points in the 4th quarter alone!). The Browns roster is sprinkled with marquee names that fans easily recognize: Mayfield, Beckham, Chubb, Landry, Garrett, Clowney, Hunt, to name a few. IMV, the Browns and Cardinals rosters are patched up, yet they should still match up well with plenty good head-to-head contests anticipated on Sunday. Both teams took some bad injury hits last Sunday; new active player rosters are in work for the Sunday contest. Notable Browns dinged include Owusu-Koramoah, Ward, and Greedy. Other key players that could miss the Sunday game include starting RT Conklin (knee), LT Willis (ankle), CB Ward (neck), Williams (shoulder) and S Stewart (hamstring). As I write this BL note, I do not know if DE Clowney (elbow) will be active on Sunday. I do not know if QB Mayfield's right shoulder and a partially torn labrum will affect his readiness and performance. Notable Cardinals dinged include TE Williams and C Hudson. Rumors are flying that QB Murray was treated for an unknown upper body issue while on the sideline during the 49ers game. I like the Cardinals chances at Cleveland on Sunday. The Cardinals fought hard and won at a Division showdown last week, the second Division showdown in as many weeks, proving that the team does not take games off. Cardinals 35, Browns 21. O/U 56.