BEREA, Ohio — If you've watched a Browns game this season, you've probably found yourself frustrated with the lackluster performance from the defense, and at times offense and special teams as well. The team has harped on needing to correct their mistakes, be it miscommunication or fundamentals like tackling, but in each game, problems continue to arise.
Why is that? It has felt like a lack of heart, and the team confessed that to be true on Wednesday.
Safety John Johnson III, one of the Browns' veteran leaders who has had struggles of his own on the field this season, owned up to players on the team leaving work at the door when they leave and not putting enough extra effort into their preparation.
"It's a commitment thing. When practice is over and our day is done, you can't just run out of the building and forget about your job," Johnson said. "I think we need everyone in this building to really be 100% in on the task at hand and right now I think we're at a place where that's not the case."
Perhaps it's the fact that the Browns have a very young team and there are guys who haven't matured into taking production off the field. Cleveland has the youngest team with an average age of 25.
"There are young players of course so you're trying to teach them how to be a pro and until you teach them, there are some guys that don't know," head coach Kevin Stefanski said. "I think the guys do a good job of pouring everything they have into these weeks and we fill up their day. We fill it up, whether it's meetings or walkthroughs and practice and lifting and rehab and those types of things. But there's also an element of this job that you do stay committed to it outside of this building."
Many of the players are in their first few years in the NFL and aren't too far removed from their college days. Linebacker Jacob Phillips sees how that could play into the lackadaisical attitude, but won't let that be an excuse for his team.
"When you’re in college you’ve got football and you’ve got school and you have other activities. That’s the reason we get paid in the NFL. That’s the reason we’re not amateurs, we’re professionals. You’ve got to sometimes take your work home so the next day you can be best prepared," Phillips said.
Before the Browns' latest loss to the New England Patriots, defensive coordinator Joe Woods said he understood the struggles his unit was having but believed that his players have all bought in to his plan for them. That may be the case, but the next step is getting them motivated to not let work stop after they leave the practice fields.
A healthy work-life balance is important for everyone, and players deserve the right to take time for themselves. At the same time, the nature of the NFL doesn't allow for much time away from the game during the season. It's what makes it so competitive and part of the reason the salary for the position of an NFL player is so high.
So, how do you get a young team on board? For Phillips, it's a group effort, and one he believes will be more prominent soon.
"That’s something we all have to do. I think it’s a shared responsibility. I don’t think it’s just on one person to do it. I feel like that’s what we’re starting to become more aware of and I think that’s going to happen more," Phillips said.
Johnson shared similar sentiments and added that it's up to the leaders on the team (including himself but also involving his teammates and coaches) to make change happen sooner rather than later.
The Browns have a leadership group that helps create solutions to these issues. The Browns have never needed that group to step up more. Because if they don't, this season—with two divisional opponents slated next on the schedule—may quickly spiral out of control and slip out of their grasp.
"Whatever we've got do to get as many guys, if not everyone, in on the same page I think that's what it is. Because that's the only way things are going to change," Johnson said. "We've got to find ways, however that may be, the leaders on this team need to get together and figure it out, but got to change something."
And Stefanski seems to be taking that to heart.
"I've talked to John and I've talked to the leadership group and talked to a lot of the young players and you do want these guys to take their jobs seriously. This is a job at the end of the day and you've got to spend time with it when you're in the building and you've got to spend time away from the building," Stefanski said.
Camryn Justice is a reporter at News 5 Cleveland. Follow her on Twitter @camijustice.
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