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The Cleveland Browns defense took exception to the Los Angeles Chargers going for a late fourth-down conversion on Sunday.
With the Charger up 30-28 late, Chargers head coach Brandon Staley decided to roll the dice on a 4th-and-short from their own 46-yard line. Quarterback Justin Herbert’s pass was broken up by Browns cornerback Martin Emerson, giving the Browns a prime opportunity to win the game on a field goal.
However, the game-winning kick from Cade York sailed wide and the Chargers were able to survive the decision from Staley.
While the Browns defense stepped up, defensive end Myles Garrett took the move from Staley as an insult.
“I expect him to go for it, but it is still disrespectful towards us. I know he has an offense that was doing well all day and he expects them to get the first down, but to us, that is telling us that he is trying to take advantage of us and we don’t take that very kindly. It is disrespectful to both sides of the ball,” Garrett said after the game. “At the end of the day, we got the stop, but we have to get the win.”
The Chargers piled up 465 yards against the Browns, including 238 on the ground. It was the second consecutive week that the Cleveland unit gave up more than 200 rushing yards.
Staley Gives Browns Credit For Defense on Fourth Down
It was a very risky decision by Staley, who has made some questionable calls in his career. The second-year head coach said he wanted to finish the game on their terms, with the ability to run out the clock with a first down.
“I just wanted to finish the game with the ball. I felt like we liked the play and we liked the matchup,” Staley explained after the game. “We knew what coverage they were going to be in. We wanted to finish the game on our terms on third down. We felt like we had a good run up against that defense. We had a pass solution. They defended it well.”
Staley did mention that he liked the matchup with Emerson on 6-foot-4 wide receiver Mike Williams, who had 10 catches for 134 yards in the matchup. Emerson was playing a larger role. for the Browns with Pro Bowl cornerback Denzel Ward out with a concussion.
“We liked it,” Staley reiterated of the matchup.
It wasn’t just the Browns who were upset about the decision. Chargers receiver Keenan Allen — who did not play due to injury — questioned the move on social media.
“WTF are we doing?” Allen tweeted.
Browns Searching For Answers After Another Game Slips Away
The Browns fell to 2-3 with the loss to the Chargers, a record that could be much different if not for the fourth-quarter struggles. The Browns’ three losses have come by a combined six points and the team just hasn’t put together a full 60-minute effort. Missed field goals, defensive lapses and turnovers have all played a role.
“It is very frustrating. We have talked about it, and everybody sees it. These games are close. You have to play 60-minute football,” Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski said. “You have to come from behind. You have to put teams away. We haven’t done it and didn’t do it today. Again, credit to them. They did what they needed to do to get a victory, and certainly, we have to look inward and fix some things.”
The Browns are now dealing with an injury to their top cornerback Denzel Ward, who exited the game against the Chargers with a concussion. Cleveland did get their two starting defensive ends back in Jadeveon Clowney and Myles Garrett but neither recorded a sack against the Chargers.
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