Browns vs. Cardinals instant analysis: Defense, Deshaun Watson lead rout of Cardinals

Chris Easterling Akron Beacon Journal

CLEVELAND — The last time Deshaun Watson started a game in Cleveland wasn't just a big moment for the Browns offense. It turned out to be a pretty good day for their defense as well.

That day, back on Sept. 24, Watson threw two touchdown passes and the defense stuffed the Tennessee Titans into a locker in a 24-point win. That same game, though, Watson also suffered a rotator cuff strain in his right shoulder that limited to just 12 total snaps over the next month.

On Sunday, Watson was back under center for the Browns in front of the home fans against the Arizona Cardinals. Turns out, he provided a boost to their defense as well, which got back to its dominant form against the overmatched Cardinals.

Those two combined to help the Browns rebound from a tough loss the week before in Seattle by rolling to a 27-0 win over the one-win Cardinals.

While Watson was able to knock the rust off in just his second start since September, the Browns defense finally came away with the elusive shutout they've sought. It was the first time the Browns (5-3) shut out an opponent since Dec. 16, 2007, when they blanked the Buffalo Bills 8-0 in the midst of a blizzard.

Sunday was a picture-perfect day on the lakefront, with barely a cloud in the sky. Perfect, that is, except for the Cardinals offense, which was held to 58 total yards and turned the ball over three times while giving rookie quarterback Clayton Tune his first start.

Tune was 11-of-20 passing for 58 yards with two interceptions. He was sacked seven times, including three times by tackle Dalvin Tomlinson.

The result was much better for Watson in his return to the field. He was 19-of-30 passing for 219 yards with two touchdowns and a 107.5 passer rating.

Watson, who was pulled with 6:49 remaining for P.J. Walker with the Browns up 27-0, was sacked just once. He ran three times for 22 yards.

Follow along here for updates as the Browns, and their starting quarterback, return home.

Deshaun Watson's deep strike sets up Kareem Hunt touchdown run

Deshaun Watson yet again answered the question about his arm strength when he found Amari Cooper on a 49-yard strike to the Cardinals 3. The next play, Kareem Hunt ran it in for a touchdown and a 27-0 Browns lead with 7:52 remaining in the game.

Arizona Cardinals remain woeful on 3rd, 4th down

The Cardinals did not have a third-down conversion through the first three-plus quarters. They fell to 0-and-8 on third down with 10:47 remaining when Dalvin Tomlinson sacked Clayton Tune at midfield.

The Browns then got the fourth-down stop on the next play to set their offense up at their own 44.

Browns kicker Dustin Hopkins misses from 48 yards

Dustin Hopkins wasn't going to make every single kick. So missing a 48-yard try wide left with 12:08 remaining in a 20-0 game isn't the worst time to do so.

Hopkins is 20-of-23 for the season as he's 2-of-3 Sunday.

End 3rd quarter: Cleveland Browns 20, Arizona Cardinals 0

The Browns were up 20-0 on the Cardinals going into the fourth quarter. They have outgained Arizona 247-43.

Deshaun Watson is 17-of-27 passing for 167 yards with two touchdowns and a 105.0 passer rating.

Sione Takitaki gets into takeaway game for Cleveland Browns defense

The Browns' shutout hopes seemed like they may be on the ropes when Arizona, set up by a Greg Dortch punt return to midfield, had moved to the Cleveland 40. The only problem is, Clayton Tune didn't see linebacker Sione Takitaki as he threw a slant to the left, and Takitaki intercepted the pass at the Browns 24.

It was the third takeaway of the day for the Browns defense.

Shelby Harris strip sack sets up Deshaun Watson TD pass to David Njoku

The Browns second touchdown of the day was a three-phase affair. It started with Corey Bojorquez getting off a great punt that, while it rolled into the end zone for a touchback, was nearly downed.

Still, on first down from the Cardinals 20, Browns defensive tackle Shelby Harris beat his man off the snap and stripped Clayton Tune of the ball. Myles Garrett came in to recover the ball at the Arizona 11.

Three plays later, Deshaun Watson hit a wide-open David Njoku for a 5-yard touchdown. That gave the Browns a 20-0 lead with 7:24 remaining in the third quarter.

Jedrick Wills Jr. carted off with right knee injury

Jedrick Wills Jr. was carted off with 11:08 remaining in the third quarter after he sustained an injury to his right leg around the knee area. They immediately brought out an air cast for his leg, as well as the cart to take him to the locker room.

The injury occurred when Kareem Hunt was falling forward on a 1-yard run and landed on the back of Wills' knee. He almost immediately threw off his helmet.

The play was eerily similar to how the Browns lost right tackle Jack Conklin to a knee injury in the season opener against the Cincinnati Bengals. That happened when Bengals defensive end Trey Hendricksen was blocked into the back of Conklin.

Browns punter Corey Bojorquez once again pins them deep

Corey Bojorquez has been an absolute weapon at times as the Browns punt. One of those came at the end of the Browns opening drive of the third quarter, when he unloaded a 73-yard punt that was downed at the Cardinals 1.

Needless to say, the subsequent drive did not go well for Arizona, who went three-and-out. Not only that, but the Browns nearly sacked Clayton Tune on second down, then almost picked him on third down.

Browns receiver Marquise Goodwin shaken up after pass break-up

Deshaun Watson took a shot deep to Marquise Goodwin on third-and-9 from the Browns 26. The Cardinals' Garrett Williams broke up the pass, but as Goodwin was going to ground, Arizona's Andre Chachere came in from behind and appeared to make contact with the back of his helmet.

Goodwin was clearly shaken up on the play, and needed help from trainers to get to the locker room. He's being evaluated for a concussion.

Jedrick Wills Jr. back on field as 3rd quarter begins, but Dawand Jones hurt

The Browns got the second-half kickoff, which meant the offense was on the field first. That included left tackle Jedrick Wills Jr., who had gone to the locker room late in the first half with a knee injury.

However, right tackle Dawand Jones left the game with what appeared to be a right knee injury. He did walk off the field by himself and into the medical tent, and was back on the field for their second offensive possession of the second half.

Halftime: Dustin Hopkins kicks extends Browns lead to 13-0

The Browns managed to turn the final possession of the half into more points, as Dustin Hopkins kicked a 45-yard field goal as time expired in the half. That made it 13-0 Browns at the break.

Cleveland has outgained Arizona 193-31 in total yards. Deshaun Watson was 11-of-20 passing for 136 yards with a touchdown and a 92.9 passer rating.

Browns left tackle Jedrick Wills Jr. suffers injury to knee late in 1st half

The Browns took a hit to their offensive line late in the first half when left tackle Jedrick Wills Jr. suffered what appeared to be an injury to his left knee.

With less than 1:40 remaining in the first half, Wills went down on a deep incomplete pass by Deshaun Watson. He went to the medical tent briefly before going to the locker room right before halftime.

James Hudson III replaced Wills, whose return is questionable

Deflection off helmet ends up in Browns TD pass to Amari Cooper

This time, the deflection off a defender's helmet paid off for the Browns. Deshaun Watson threw a pass to the right that deflected off of Arizona defensive end Dante Stills helmet, up in the air, and into the hands of Amari Cooper 11 yards away in the end zone for a touchdown.

The score gave the Browns a 10-0 lead with 6:48 left in the second quarter. It was also a reversal of what happened a week ago in Seattle.

Then, a third-and-3 pass by P.J. Walker, filling in for Watson, went off the helmet of the Seahawks' Jamal Adams and into the hands of his teammate Julian Love for an interception with 1:57 remaining. The pick turned into Seattle's go-ahead touchdown with 38 seconds remaining.

Browns QB Deshaun Watson takes a big hit to set up 4th down conversion

The Browns turned the Denzel Ward interception into points. However, before they did so, they needed to convert a fourth-and-1 from the Arizona 40, which they did on a 2-yard Kareem Hunt run.

The play before, Deshaun Watson gained 4 yards on third-and-5. At the end of the run, he took a massive shot from a pair of Cardinals defenders.

Denzel Ward accepts gift from Clayton Tune in form of pick

A bad facemask penalty on Browns defensive tackle Jordan Elliott seemed to give the Cardinals life at their own 40. The next play, rookie Clayton Tune airmailed Marquise Brown and the ball found its way to cornerback Denzel Ward.

Ward made the diving interception at the Arizona 49 with 13:10 remaining in the second quarter. It's his second pick of the season.

Dustin Hopkins gives Browns lead over Cardinals to open 2nd quarter

The Browns couldn't pick up third-and-13, as David Njoku gained just 4 yards on the first play of the second quarter. Dustin Hopkins came on to kick a 30-yard field goal for a 3-0 Cleveland lead with 14:15 left in the quarter.

End 1st quarter: Cleveland Browns 0, Arizona Cardinals 0

The Browns and Cardinals were scoreless after 15 minutes. The Browns, though, had a third-and-13 play to open the second quarter from the Arizona 16.

Deshaun Watson lets it loose finally for big gain

Deshaun Watson answered the initial questions about his arm strength on the first play of the Browns' third possession. He dropped back and fired a deep strike to Amari Cooper, who gained 59 yards on the play.

It was the only deep shot Watson took in the first quarter.

A few boos after fourth-down Deshaun Watson incompletion

The Browns put together a nice little drive on their second possession by going from their onw 44 to the Cardinals 37. However, they found themselves in a fourth-and-4 situation from their and elected to go for it.

The play call led to Deshaun Watson throwing a low pass at the feet of tight end Jordan Akins for an incompletion. The turnover on downs did draw some boos from the fans, but was did not do any damage after another three-and-out for the Browns defense.

Deshaun Watson's first pass: a dump-off to Jerome Ford

Deshaun Watson's first pass didn't come until the Browns' third play, when they were in a third-and-3 from their own 19. After he was pressured out of the pocket to the right, he dumped it off to running back Jerome Ford on a flare-out for a 17-yard gain.

That was one of two passes Watson completed on the opening drive, not counting a completion to Elijah Moore negated by a Jedrick Wills Jr. hold. He was 2-of-4 for 32 yards on the first possession, including a drop by David Njoku.

Deshaun Watson's first home snap starts with double tight end set

The Browns offense started at their own 11 after a Cardinals punt from midfield. So, with 11:53 remaining in the first quarter, Deshaun Watson took the field for the first time at home since September.

Here's the starting group:

QB: Deshaun Watson
RB: Jerome Ford
TE: David Njoku
WR: Amari Cooper
WR: Elijah Moore
WR: Marquise Goodwin
TE: Harrison Bryant
LT: Jedrick Wills Jr.
LG: Joel Bitonio
C: Ethan Pocic
RG: Wyatt Teller
RT: Dawand Jones

Cleveland Browns start game against Arizona Cardinals on defense

The Browns won the toss and deferred their choice to the second half. They started with their top-ranked defense on the field.

The lineup they opened with was this one:

DE: Myles Garrett
DT: Jordan Elliott
DT: Dalvin Tomlinson
DE: Za'Darius Smith
LB: Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah
LB: Anthony Walker Jr.
S: Grant Delpit
Nickel: Cameron Mitchell
CB: Denzel Ward
CB: Martin Emerson Jr.
S: Juan Thornhill

Dorian Thompson-Robinson will serve as QB No. 3 for Cleveland Browns

Deshaun Watson's return to the starting lineup meant that, for the first time this season, the Browns were forced to designate a third quarterback for Sunday's game against the Arizona Cardinals.

Dorian Thompson-Robinson was listed among the Browns' inactive players, but was designated as the No. 3 quarterback. The addition of P.J. Walker to the active roster on Oct. 25 after having spent the previous seven weeks on the practice squad meant the team had to designate one of the three quarterbacks unless they wanted to take one of the active roster spots away from another position.

Thompson-Robinson, per the rule which was reinstituted in the NFL this season, can only be used if Watson and Walker are both knocked out of the game. Once one of those two is medically cleared to return, then Thompson-Robinson would have to be removed from the game.

Watson's backup has already come into play in the midst of a game since he suffered the rotator cuff strain in his right shoulder. Walker had to replace him in the first quarter of his last start, Week 7 at the Indianapolis Colts, after Watson left the game after being knocked down by Dayo Odeyingbo.

Cleveland Browns inactive list solidifies Dawand Jones' status as starter

Also inactive are three players who were ruled out on Friday due to injury: cornerback Greg Newsome II (groin), receiver David Bell (knee) and defensive end Alex Wright (knee). Offensive tackle Leroy Watson, who was signed this past week off the San Francisco 49ers' practice squad to add depth, and rookie defensive tackle Siaki Ika were also inactive.

Leroy Watson being inactive is a strong sign right tackle Dawand Jones' shoulder injury won't keep him from playing. That merely reinforces the notion which became clear on Saturday, when the only practice squad elevation was receiver James Proche II.

How to watch, stream and listen to the Cleveland Browns vs. Arizona Cardinals

TV channel: CBS WOIO-TV (Channel 19).
Stream: Paramount+, Fubo (free trial).
Announcers: Spero Dedes (play-by-play), Adam Archuleta (analyst) and Aditi Kinkhabwala (sideline reporter).

How to listen to the Cleveland Browns vs. Arizona Cardinals on the radio

The Cleveland Browns Radio Network will carry the game, with Paul Keels (play-by-play), Nathan Zegura (analyst) and Je'Rod Cherry (sideline reporter) on the call. Among the affiliates in the Akron-Canton area are WAKR-AM 1590, WONE-FM 97.5, WHBC-AM 1480, WQKT-FM 104.5, WKRK-FM 92.3, WKNR-AM 850 and WNCX-FM 98.5.
The Browns have also started a Spanish-language broadcast, with Rafael “Rafa” Hernández-Brito (play-by-play) and Octavio Sequera (analyst) on the call. Games will be streamed on La Mega Cleveland, as well as heard on WNZN-FM 89.1 in Lorain and WVKO-FM 103.1 in Columbus.

Browns-Cardinals odds, money line, over/under

Provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access Paste BN Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 3 p.m. ET, Saturday.
Moneyline (ML): Browns -660 (bet $660 to win $100) | Cardinals -200 (bet $100 to win $480)
Against the spread: Browns -11.5 (-110) | Cardinals +11.5 (-110)
Over/Under (O/U): 37.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)

Cleveland Browns, Arizona Cardinals injury report

Browns: Cornerback Greg Newsome II (groin), out; receiver David Bell (knee), out; defensive end Alex Wright (knee), out; offensive tackle Dawand Jones (shoulder), out.
Cardinals: Offensive guard Trystan Colon (calf). out; running back Emari Demercado (toe), out; linebacker Krys Barnes (hamstring), questionable; receiver Greg Dortch (ankle), questionable; quarterback Kyler Murray (knee), questionable; defensive lineman Kevin Strong (shoulder), questionable; receiver Michael Wilson (shoulder), questionable

Cleveland Browns, Arizona Cardinals in Week 8

The Browns fell to 4-3 on the season with a 24-20 loss at the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field in Seattle. The Browns led 20-17 with 2:04 remaining when quarterback P.J. Walker threw a third-and-3 pass from his own 41 that bounced off Seahawks safety Jamal Adams' helmet and into the hands of teammate Julian Love for an interception. Seattle would score the go-ahead touchdown when Geno Smith hit Jaxon Smith-Njigba for a 9-yard score with 38 seconds remaining.

The Cardinals fell to 1-7 on the season with a 31-24 loss to the Baltimore Ravens at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. Three Gus Edwards rushing touchdowns and a Lamar Jackson-to-Mark Andrews touchdown pass put Arizona in a 31-15 hole with 2:51 remaining. The Cardinals pulled within seven with 26 seconds remaining, but could not recover the onside kick to give themselves a chance to tie.

Cleveland Browns vs. Chicago/St. Louis/Phoenix/Arizona Cardinals series

Sunday's game will mark the 53rd meeting between the Browns and the Cardinals, which have been located in Chicago, St. Louis and the Greater Phoenix area in that span. The series began in 1950, while the Cardinals were still located in Chicago.

Overall: Browns 33-16-3
In regular season: Browns 33-16-3
In playoffs: N/A
In Cleveland: Browns 15-8-2
In Chicago/St. Louis/Tempe/Glendale: Browns 18-8-1
Streak: Cardinals have won the last five meetings
Last meeting: Cardinals won 37-14 in Cleveland on Oct. 17, 2021

Chris Easterling can be reached at ceasterling@thebeaconjournal.com. Read more about the Browns at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/browns. Follow him on Twitter at @ceasterlingABJ

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