Did you think the Falcons Were Beating Cleveland? Joke’s on You
CLEVELAND—The Cleveland Browns dismantled the Atlanta Falcons 28-16 on Sunday at FirstEnergy Stadium. Browns rookies Baker Mayfield and Nick Chubb combined for 445 yards and 5 touchdowns. The loss drops Atlanta to 4-5, dwindling their playoff chances even further.
The Browns are usually the butt of NFL fans’ jokes, but Falcons fans should never jump in on the fun. Atlanta has only defeated Cleveland three times in 15 matchups. Four of those losses took place in this century (2002, 2006, 2014, 2018).
No matter if the Browns are halfway decent or completely awful, they consistently find ways to defeat the Falcons. On Sunday, they leaned on their rookies.
Mayfield went 12/12 in the first half, finding the open man no matter the coverage. In the second half, he looked like a veteran by controlling the clock and keeping Atlanta’s offense on the sideline. He finished the game with 216 yards and 3 touchdowns, with only 3 incompletions.
Chubb showed everyone why he should be the primary back, using his patient running style to rush for nearly 200 yards, including a franchise record 92-yard touchdown. He also hauled in a touchdown catch.
Props also go to the Cleveland defense, which held the Falcons to 16 points. They also caused three turnovers and held the Falcons to 5/14 on third down.
There’s no defending how the Falcons played on Sunday. Dropped passes, missed assignments and un-MVP-like play from Matt Ryan cost them this crucial game.
But, apparently, that’s what happens when the Falcons play the Browns. Why? There’s no concrete answer. Nonetheless, Falcons fans have no room to make fun of Cleveland. Yes, they went 0-16, but they’re 15-3 against the Falcons and 2-1 in Matt Ryan’s era.
They aren’t scheduled to meet again until 2022. However, that’ll take place in Atlanta.
As for next week, the Falcons return home to play the Dallas Cowboys.
By: David Schiele
