The Browns just pulled off a wild 3-1 start to their season, snatching a win from the Steelers when safety Grant Delpit picked off Aaron Rodgers’s last-gasp throw on Thursday night. Head Coach Todd Monken has to be feeling good about that record, especially considering how absolutely bonkers it would have sounded just a few weeks ago. Talk about a comeback for this squad.
From “Disaster” to Dominance: Week 1’s Ugly Truth
Man, Week 1 felt like a whole different team out there. Monken’s head coaching debut was a rough one, with the Jaguars completely pummeling his squad. Monken himself later admitted it was a “tough opening game in every phase, other than maybe kickoff return, maybe, other than that,” and even pondered if “disaster is a little bit strong” to describe it. But let’s be real, it sure looked like one at the time. The chatter after that game wasn’t just about the loss, it was about whether they’d bench quarterback Deshaun Watson before their Week 3 home opener. All that noise was fueled by the incessant boos Watson faced from Browns fans during an August preseason game against the Bills. It seemed like everyone had written him off, and honestly, who could blame them after that Week 1 performance?
Watson’s Fourth-Quarter Clutch Drives Are Changing Everything
Turns out, all those words about benching Watson were pretty wasted. Because something flipped. The dude has come out and led game-winning drives in the fourth quarter for three straight weeks now. The entire Browns team has little resemblance to the one that got absolutely blown out in Jacksonville. It’s a total transformation, and it’s pretty wild to see. Monken gave a ton of credit, not just to Watson, but to the whole team. “The guys trusted the process. We got stung a little bit, and our guys responded to that,” he said. And you know what? That kind of grit, that ability to get punched in the mouth and then fight back like that? That’s what separates the contenders from the pretenders early in the season.
This turnaround, especially from a guy who was getting booed out of his own stadium just a month ago, tells you everything you need to know about the mentality of this team. They were down, they looked rough, but they rallied. As the early part of the season keeps rolling, these Browns are suddenly looking like a squad that can shock some folks. You gotta wonder if this early surge is just the beginning for a team that found its swagger after Week 1.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Pro Football Talk.
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