The Cleveland Browns did a lot of things wrong in Week 1 as they fell to the New York Jets. The quarterback play was bad. The defense could not hold and the run game was non-existent. The position has been an area of debate for the Browns for most of the offseason, causing the team to test the waters on bringing in Ray Rice. They ended up acquiring for Robert Turbin who is not healthy with an ankle injury. With Isaiah Crowell and Duke Johnson struggling, is another addition needed?
The Browns are trying to remain confident in the group they have at the position. Crowell is expected to be the bell cow running back while Johnson plays a Darren Sproles-type role for the team. However, in Week 1 that resulted in 42 combined yards while both Josh McCown and Johnny Manziel out ran the running backs. While some of the blame can be placed on the offensive line, head coach Mike Pettine says it is also on the running backs to improve.
"We need to break more tackles," Pettine said, via Cleveland.com. "We can't be one and done with our backs. It's going to be rare where (there's a) block and there's a gaping hole and you're running untouched for a while. We're going to have to make some guys miss and we're going to have to break some tackles. That needs to be a point of emphasis."
The Browns are hoping that Turbin can help after a successful stint in Seattle, but he has yet to be seen on the field thanks to an ankle injury. It is unknown exactly when he will be healthy which could cause the Browns to bring in someone else. The free agent market is loaded with talent. According to the Cleveland Plain Dealer, the Browns have already looked at Montee Ball. Bryce Brown was just released from the Buffalo Bills. Both running backs would be upgrades to what Cleveland has on the roster and the team would be wise to take a second glance.
According to Pettine, Manziel is preparing to be the starter following a McCown concussion. The quarterback will need a good run game if he is going to excel. The Browns are hopeful that McCown's recovery is quick because once he is healthy he will resume the starting job.
"If we have our starting quarterback in the protocol - it's an ideal situation that Josh would be back at the end of the week-- but we have to plan otherwise that he won't be available at least early for practice. We'll see how it plays out. Johnny early in the week will get the starting quarterback reps. We'll just see how that goes," Pettine said.
