Compared to league, Browns offense better than initially thought in Week 1

The story of Week 1 for the Cleveland Browns was just how dominant the defense was. DEs Myles Garrett and Za’Darius Smith were a powerful duo but the entire defensive line and the secondary controlled the game and kept the Cincinnati Bengals stymied all day long.

When discussing the Browns offense, concerns about QB Deshaun Watson were the primary topic. While RB Nick Chubb looked like his same elite self, Watson’s stat line (and some of his passes) were pedestrian: 16 of 29 for 154 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception (on a tipped ball).

Watson did have a few well-placed throws and added 45 yards on five carries including a rushing touchdown.

Looking at Cleveland’s DVOA, the defense was ranked second overall for Week 1 and the team, overall, was the third-best in the league. The Browns offense ended up 10th best at 12.9%. DVOA is a data metric that measures how a team performs throughout a game compared to the league average.

DVOA wasn’t the only sign that the offense played well:

In many ways, Cleveland’s offense was big plays and Chubb (who made some of the big plays). That helped keep the offense on the field and gave the defense even more time to relax. The Browns were top 10 in at least getting one first down on drives with just 21% going 3-and-out while Cincinnati was the worst:

Along with Chubb, the offensive line gets a lot of credit in pass protection despite some obvious pressures:

It was far from perfect in Week 1 but Cleveland’s offense put up 350 total net yards in a strange weather game that made Joe Burrow look like a QB that should be cut soon.

It must get better for the Browns passing game with Watson but the team is so talented and Kevin Stefanski is able to scheme up plays in a way that it didn’t matter in Week 1 as they were still productive.

Are you surprised all the numbers point to a good offensive game from the Browns compared to the rest of the NFL? Share your thoughts below in the comment section