For those of us who remember when the Browns couldn’t convert any short-yardage runs — even resorting to a double-handoff reverse from the Pittsburgh goal line a few years back — it sure seems like this team is vastly improved in this crucial area.
And even though the defense remains very sketchy, one of its redeeming features has been its recent ability to stuff short-yardage plays.
To get a better sense of this, I tallied every play this season for which there was one yard to go for a first down or touchdown, excluding punts and field goal tries. Here’s what I found:
- Through ten games, the Browns offense has converted 26 of 40 (65%), while the defense has prevented the first down or TD 15 of 37 times (41%). So overall, the Browns are winning slightly when there’s one yard to go.
- In these cases, the Browns run the ball 79% of the time, and they succeed slightly more often when they do (68% conversion rate rushing to 63% passing).
- Browns’ opponents run the ball 75% of the time with a yard to go, and they too convert more often with runs (63%) than passes (56%).
- Here’s how the Browns’ ball carriers have fared: Vickers 7-for-9; Lewis 6-for-12; Anderson 4-for-4; Wright 3-for-4; Harrison 1-for-2.
- That fullback quick-hitter usually works, though it’s never been called with goal to go. The big tailback, though, is just a 50-50 prospect to gain a needed yard.
- Anderson’s first two runs were scoring bootlegs. The latest two, on Sunday, were the first QB sneaks we’ve seen from the Browns all year.
- The defense started the season very weak, allowing conversions over half the time in each of the first six games. Since Miami converted 8-for-8, though, the Browns have stopped yard-to-go plays 10 of 12 times over the past four games.
- The effort at Baltimore was near perfect: stops in both chances on defense, and a season-high six conversions in seven attempts by the offense. That follows an 0-for-2 offensive conversion rate at Pittsburgh, the only game in which the Browns have failed to convert at least twice from a yard out.
- Teams may be more disciplined these days when the play is in close quarters. Of the 77 instances recorded, there were only three penalties: a false start by the Browns (Steinbach), offensive holding (Gallery, OAK), and pass interference (Scott, BAL). The days of the hard count and the encroachment call may have gone the way of Astroturf, barefoot kickers, and Stickum.
