Browns taking hits on and off the field about the direction of their offense

The Cleveland Browns offense keeps on taking plenty of hits after hitting another low point in Sunday’s 23-9 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

After Dillon Gabriel was sacked six times and took 16 quarterback hits in his second NFL start, Steelers coach Mike Tomlin wondered on Monday why the Browns and general manager Andrew Berry were so quick to send Joe Flacco to Cincinnati last week and go with the rookie after four games.

“Andrew Berry must be a lot smarter than me or us, because it doesn’t make sense to me to trade a quarterback that you think enough of to make your opening day starter to a division opponent that’s hurting in that area. But that’s just my personal feelings,” Tomlin said.

Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said last Wednesday that the trade took him by surprise, but declined to address Tomlin’s comments.

Frankly, Stefanski has bigger things to worry about.

Even though the Browns were within one score for 2 1/2 quarters, the game plan was very pass-oriented despite moving the ball under a balanced attack one week prior against the Vikings.

Cleveland was starting its fifth different offensive line combination with Cam Robinson at left tackle. Robinson and starting right tackle Jack Conklin were injured during the second half, making Gabriel an easy target for TJ Watt, Nick Herbig and the rest of the Steelers defense to attack.

Despite the compromised offensive line, Stefanski didn’t decide to go with an extra offensive lineman to help out rookie KT Leveston on the right side.

Gabriel had 52 pass attempts, tied for the second most by a Browns rookie since the merger. Even though he completed 29 for 221 yards, Gabriel wasn’t helped by his receivers having drop drops. The third-round pick has thrown mostly short passes in his two starts, and has gone 1 of 5 on throws of 20 air yards or more.

An overwhelmed offensive line, rookie quarterback making his first AFC North start and a game plan that failed to mask the offense’s deficiencies all added up to a season-low nine points and Cleveland not getting into the end zone for the first time this season.

The Browns — 1-5 for the second straight season — have scored 17 points or fewer in 11 straight games, the second-longest NFL offensive drought since 2000. The Arizona Cardinals had a 13-game run in 2000 and ’01.

“Yeah, it’s frustrating,” All-Pro pass rusher Myles Garrett said after the game. “To lose the same way every time, it’s frustrating as hell.”

Stefanski said on Monday that he would continue to call the offensive plays, instead of handing the duties to coordinator Tommy Rees.

“I think for us the focus is on being better as an offense, and that goes into a bunch of different areas. I know I could be better for this football team. I know I can certainly be better for this offense, but our focus is on making sure that we all do our part in getting this thing going,” Stefanski said. “We trust our guys. We just have to all be better.”

What’s working

Andre Szmyt made all three of his field-goal attempts, including a 53-yarder, on what was a difficult playing surface between the hashmarks. The rookie kicker has made nine of his past 10 kicks since a miss in Week 1 against Cincinnati.

What needs help

Run defense. The Browns are giving up an average of 102 yards on the ground in the past three games after having the league’s best run defense through the first three weeks. Opponents are averaging 3.88 yards after contact, the seventh highest in the league since Week 4.

Stock up

TE Harold Fannin Jr. had his second game this season with seven catches along with 81 receiving yards. The third-round pick leads the team with 28 receptions, also the most by a Browns rookie through the first six games.

Stock down

All-Pro DE Myles Garrett, who was hoping to add Aaron Rodgers to his quarterback list, was held without a sack for the third straight week and pressured Rodgers only three times.

Injuries

Stefanski didn’t have updates on OT Jack Conklin (concussion), WR Gage Larvadain (concussion), TE David Njoku (knee), OT Cam Robinson (knee) and DE Joe Tryon-Shoyinka (hip), who were injured in Sunday’s game and did not return.

Key numbers

11: Consecutive road losses, tied for the team’s third-longest skid since the merger. The franchise record is 25 from 2015 through ’18.

15-19: Stefanski’s record against the AFC North, including the playoffs. The Browns are 0-3 this season and have a six-game losing streak in division games.

What’s next

The Browns host the Miami Dolphins next Sunday in a matchup of 1-5 teams. Cleveland has dropped its past two against Miami, including a 20-3 loss in Week 17 last season.

___

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL