Last Sunday’s Browns/Jets game was either the cleanest game all season or the one with the most laid-back officiating. In either case, it was encouraging that the Browns bucked recent trends and had their fewest penalties of the season, with just four flags for 29 yards against them. Still, it was the 12th of 13 games in which the Browns were penalized more or essentially the same as their opponents.
Cleveland remains in the league’s top three in terms of penalties and penalty yardage. To take a closer look at the situation, I’ve tallied every flag thrown at the Browns this year, including those declined or offset by opponents’ fouls. Here’s a bit of the raw data.
Browns penalties through 13 games …
… by quarter
- 1st: 29
- 2nd: 34
- 3rd: 22
- 4th: 27
- OT: 1
…by unit
- defense: 40
- offense: 52
- special teams: 21 (KO return — 8; KO — 3; punt return — 1; punt — 9).
…by player
- Winslow — 10
- Anderson — 8
- Jones, Bodden — 6
- Thomas, R. Smith — 5
- Tucker, L. Williams — 4
- Cribbs, Edwards, Pool, E. Wright, Peek, Steinbach, McKinney, Shaffer, Dinkins, Wimbley — 3
- nine players — 2
- eleven players — 1
- Notable players with none: J. Wright, Vickers, Kelley, Roye.
…by type
- 24: false start (2006 total: 9)
- 16: encroachment/offsides (2006 total: 4)
- 13: personal foul (e.g. major face mask, roughing passer, unnecessary roughness)
- 9: illegal formation/shift
- 8: offensive holding/illegal block
- 8: defensive pass interference
- 7: defensive holding/illegal contact
- 6: holding/illegal block on kick/punt returns
- 6: delay of game
- 3: intentional grounding
- 3: offensive pass interference
- 3: ineligible man downfield
- 2: taunting/unsportsmanlike conduct
…by location
- away: 9.4 penalties per game
- home: 7.8 penalties per game
…by yardage
- 57.3 yards/game — official assessments against Browns
- 38.7 yards/game — official assessments against opponents
- 73.4 yards/game — “impact” yards against Browns (considers outcomes nullified by penalties).
- 42.9 yards/game — official assessments against Browns in 2006.
