The city of Philadelphia Every time the Browns practice against the Eagles, we usually learn something new. In 2022, Philadelphia’s journey to Cleveland was a troubling two days. The Browns found it difficult to keep up with Philadelphia’s toughness, which ultimately served as a warning.
When the Browns visited Philadelphia in 2023, they had a successful two days. The Browns arrived prepared to play, but the Eagles, who had just won the Super Bowl, returned for a strong second day. They made the playoffs and ultimately fielded one of the top football defenses that season.
We pondered two years ago whether we were witnessing two teams that could win the Super Bowl, at least in the upcoming seasons. That year, neither team was really close. Philadelphia was eliminated in the wild card stage after losing five of its last six games. Despite making an unlikely run to the postseason, the Browns lost badly to Houston in their first-round matchup.
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For Browns supporters, this year is a dose of reality. In 2024, the Eagles returned and won the Super Bowl, and they hope to do the same in 2025. The Browns are in transition after going 3–14. It would be a small miracle to have a playoff season.
But there’s still something to learn, isn’t there?
Let’s begin with the most apparent:
The Browns are who we thought they were
Both good and negative things come from this.
Let’s start with the positive: it appears that the defense can hang.
They forced turnovers, gathered sacks, and applied pressure.
Cornerback Myles Harden broke up a throw on the opening two plays of 7-on-7, and linebacker Devin Bush intercepted it.
Perhaps the most entertaining play occurred during the last team period when rookie defensive end Mason Graham recorded what would have been a sack. However, safety Ronnie Hickman intercepted Hurts as the Eagles offense continued the play.
Hurts and company found it difficult to execute their offense most of the time since the Browns spent the entire morning in the backfield.
After this initial practice, it’s easy to feel comfortable about the rearranged defensive front, even though the secondary behind Denzel Ward had some problems and there are some worries that this unit may rely too much on applying pressure.
The bad news is that the offensive had trouble.
Let’s give wide receiver Jerry Jeudy a little credit for coming back from a rough start to snag a few of passes from quarterback Joe Flacco. Even though Jeudy didn’t start Wednesday the way he had hoped, you shouldn’t be concerned about him.
However, all things considered, this day did not instill much confidence in the offensive identity of the Browns.
The Eagles defensive backs were just more physical early in practice; they repeatedly tore the ball from receivers’ hands, especially when CB Adoree Jackson pulled the ball away from Cedric Tillman during an early one-on-one time. Additionally, Tillman had another dip during one-on-ones.
The Browns’ inability to hold onto the ball was one of the more annoying aspects.
During different team periods, Jeudy, tight end Sal Cannella, running back Pierre Strong Jr., and wide receiver Jamari Thrash all had drops.
Drops are not the only issues in the passing game. An excessive dependence on relative unknowns and a general lack of explosiveness are present. Even if you exclude Tillman, who is somewhat obscure, there are still a lot of footballs aimed at players like Thrash, Diontae Johnson, Gage Larvadain, and Kaden Davis, with varying degrees of success. This summer, Larvadain has most likely been the best of that group.
Harold Fannin Jr. has been dependable, and a more active David Njoku will assist. This season, tight ends will be screened a lot, and quarterbacks will pursue their targets downfield.
However, Jeudy is the first wide receiver the Browns look to when they are looking for big plays downfield, and it’s unclear where else they will look.
So what did we learn?
We treat every practice rep as though it were a playoff game in August.
This gave the impression that one team had plans to play well into January and beyond, while another could have a general sense of who its starting quarterback will be but isn’t quite ready to commit to that idea.
That the Eagles looked better on Wednesday shouldn’t come as a surprise.
The takeaway from this practice is straightforward: The Browns will win games by playing good to outstanding defense; they just need to figure out their secondary first and have an offense that can support it.
Keep the football safe. Launch it. Make an effort to pass the ball efficiently. If the defense is able to generate turnovers, take advantage of short fields.
If you’ve been paying attention, you should know that’s how they must win, even though it’s not an easy method to win games consistently.
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