00:00AshleyBass.Cleveland.com joining us here on The Fan.
00:02Hello, Ashley.
00:03Hello, guys.
00:05All right, so give us the breakdown here.
00:07No Joey Porter Jr.
00:08This is a big deal, Ashley.
00:11Yeah, I mean, it's interesting to kind of see some of these absences
00:14for the Steelers right now
00:17and how much is that going to impact things for a Browns offense
00:21that obviously is still trying to get some things up and running a bit better.
00:28So the absence of Joey Porter Jr., I mean, is certainly, I think, a little break.
00:35Jalen Ramsey, I guess we'll see.
00:37But, you know, I think unfortunately for the Browns offense,
00:41the thing that, you know, I'm really watching in this game
00:43is how is this offensive line going to hold up against the Steelers front?
00:48And right now, those guys are all healthy.
00:50It's obviously still T.J. Watt, Alex Heismith, and Cam Hayward in the middle.
00:55So even though that secondary is a little beat up right now,
00:59up front, I'm really curious to see what this is going to look like for the Browns.
01:04Ashley, how do you think that the center position shakes out?
01:08We know Elton Jenkins is still in that concussion protocol.
01:12It feels like it's really probably going to be Luke Whipler.
01:15How much faith do you have in his ability to take over that spot?
01:19Obviously, snapping the ball to Deshaun Watson.
01:22How much faith do the Browns have in Luke if he has to go out there
01:26in the event that Jenkins can't clear here?
01:28Yeah, you know what?
01:29I think with a short week, I would be really, I think, just shocked
01:34if Elton Jenkins did clear the protocol,
01:37just because that's a lot to ask on a short week.
01:41And he didn't even technically wind up in the protocol until Monday.
01:44It's a whole process these guys have to go through.
01:47Part of the protocol is going through practice and seeing how you feel.
01:52So on a short week, it's a hard ask.
01:55I would be pretty surprised.
01:56So I definitely think it was interesting to have a head coach just come out
02:00after what we dealt with with Kevin Stefanski for five years
02:04and injuries and the intrigue around him,
02:06to just come out and say, Todd Munkin, that if Elton can't go,
02:11it's going to be Luke.
02:12I mean, it makes life a little bit easier to envision.
02:15But, you know, I think they do have a lot of faith in Luke Whipler.
02:18He started six games over his career, started five last year.
02:24And he's worked with Deshaun Watson.
02:26Like, those guys have gotten snaps together.
02:29So, I mean, obviously that exchange is going to be really important,
02:33and things are going to have to go right.
02:35What I think is unfortunate is I actually think Elton Jenkins,
02:38on that offensive line for all the issues they've had,
02:40I think Elton Jenkins has probably been your best offensive lineman for three weeks.
02:45And my thinking on it is always with the center position,
02:49you don't appreciate how important a good center is
02:52until you suddenly don't have one anymore.
02:55So Luke Whipler is going to have some big shoes to fill
02:59because I think Elton Jenkins has been playing pretty well these first few weeks.
03:03All right.
03:03What is your evaluation so far of Deshaun?
03:07Evaluation like heading into this week or just the season overall so far?
03:11Dealer's choice.
03:12You can choose whichever one you want.
03:14Okay.
03:14I mean, I think overall the thing that I was most surprised about
03:17with Deshaun Watson last week was the way he was moving his feet.
03:21I thought he made some things happen on the ground,
03:24kept some plays alive.
03:26And ultimately that's why they won the game, right?
03:28He created with his feet to find Harold Fannin Jr. for a touchdown pass.
03:33Now, what is lacking?
03:35Number one, a connection with Casey Concepcion.
03:38We know he was only two for nine on Sunday.
03:40Those two just don't have chemistry right now.
03:43They need to kind of get that, whether it's just repping it or whatever.
03:47Like I think the Browns want Casey Concepcion to be a much bigger part of this offense
03:52than he is currently.
03:54And, you know, where I think Deshaun Watson has struggled in particular
03:57is on some of that shorter game stuff, which, you know,
04:01we've wondered about coming into this season and, you know,
04:04from the shoulder injury from a couple years prior and, you know,
04:07where he would just kind of dirt these shorter throws,
04:10like how much is that being impacted by it?
04:12I still think some of that stuff is weird,
04:15but I do think like he's looking more comfortable just on the ground.
04:19And that's a good thing,
04:20but they need to diversify this offense a little bit more.
04:22Ashley, is there a shot that at some point here,
04:25Deshaun could put together a full game?
04:28Because it felt like in Tampa,
04:29maybe he had his best game in a Browns uniform,
04:33but the home opener was a pretty rocky first three quarters
04:37until he really figured things out in the fourth.
04:40It feels like it takes Deshaun a little bit in these games to get going.
04:44Is there any kind of optimism that they could try to start him up a little bit faster
04:48in these games so it doesn't require a fourth quarter improbable comeback each and every week?
04:54Yeah, I think there's some optimism.
04:56You know, we've talked about Deshaun Watson throughout his career as a player
04:59who is sort of a notoriously slow starter.
05:03I think that goes for training camp.
05:05I think it goes for the beginning of the season.
05:07I think like we kind of saw some elements of that in 2023.
05:11And I didn't think in the Tampa game,
05:13like that first half against the Bucs was not very good, right?
05:16Like I remember sitting there saying,
05:17if he comes back next week and plays like this at home,
05:21the boos are going to come essentially because it was very clunky.
05:25It was not good.
05:26So, I mean, I think there's optimism because I think everyone feels so good
05:30about the pieces around him to like maybe help lift him up a little bit
05:34once you can get those pieces going.
05:36I mean, I still think so much of what we've seen,
05:40they want this run game to be operating better than it is too.
05:43I mean, it seems like they may be figured a little bit out with that.
05:47And Quinchon Judkins, particularly early against the Panthers,
05:51but that's still leaving a lot to be desired for everyone.
05:55And, you know, I think the pass catchers, like he's great with Denzel Boston right now.
06:00Him and Harold Fannin have chemistry.
06:01And outside of those two guys, that's pretty much it.
06:04I mean, the second, I think it was leading receiver in terms of receptions
06:07was actually Rocket Sanders.
06:08The running back, which like in some respects, not surprising
06:12because he's in that third down back Dylan Sampson sort of role.
06:16But I think that's like where the optimism comes from is like the guys around him,
06:20this is not coming yet in terms of production.
06:24And I think there's still more for everyone to give there.
06:28And that's going to help Deshaun Watson's numbers too.
06:31And I think maybe help in terms of not needing to rely on, you know,
06:37weird things happening in the fourth quarter to kind of steal the win.
06:41Have the Browns given up on getting any production from Jerry Judy?
06:45That's an interesting question.
06:46Like I'm really curious to see how this is going to play out with Jerry Judy right now
06:51because, I mean, he's out there, he's running routes,
06:54but I mean it's weird to me that he's just not getting any targets.
06:58Like he didn't get any targets on Sunday.
07:01And I think, you know, I wonder about the ripple effects of that in terms of,
07:05you know, his happiness here, like how that might ultimately transpire.
07:10Just because it's hard when you're a receiver and you're not like involved in the game.
07:14I mean, Isaiah Bond too is another guy who we talked about a lot in the summer.
07:17I think he played like five snaps on Sunday and I can't remember him even really being out there.
07:23So that's concerning and I think they still want Jerry Judy definitely and I think Isaiah Bond to be involved,
07:31but we've not seen it happen.
07:33And, you know, Todd Munkin's kind of talked about it of the second those guys get more involved,
07:37people are going to be like, well, why aren't you targeting Denzel as much or Harold as much?
07:40And like we've seen a little bit of that I think already where there were some questions about,
07:45oh, Denzel Boston early in the game after week one,
07:49and then he's been getting targeted more and now people are asking about these other guys, right?
07:54So I think there's some truth to that.
07:56But, you know, I still think if like the Browns have been very vocal about wanting Jerry Judy here
08:01and to be a part of this, but I mean, it is interesting just to sort of see how these
08:07younger guys have come along
08:09and, you know, you can't help but wonder, like, is that ultimately just going to impact Jerry Judy's total numbers
08:15production-wise?
08:17Ashley, I'm really interested to see what happens tomorrow after the game
08:21as Dylan Gabriel is going to be eligible to get activated from that IR,
08:26assuming that everything's in order with the back injury that he had.
08:31That's going to put Andrew Barry back in a pretty familiar pickle with the four quarterbacks.
08:35Obviously, Todd said that four is probably too many to have on an active 53.
08:40What's your guess on what they do with that?
08:43Yeah, I don't know.
08:44I mean, I really don't know right now because we know the last time we saw Dylan Gabriel,
08:48he actually played very well in that preseason game, in that final preseason game.
08:54So I'm not sure.
08:56I mean, I think the reporting out there before was like a cut-down day.
08:59Like, if the Browns were going to decide he was the odd man out,
09:03that, like, he wouldn't want to come and, you know, be on the practice squad here essentially.
09:11So I don't know exactly what they're going to do.
09:14I mean, it's going to require some kind of roster manipulation if you do want to keep all four of
09:20them, right?
09:21And, I mean, we have seen the Browns do this before at different periods.
09:25But I'm not sure about what that would mean for, like, Kalen Green, right?
09:31That's the part of it to me that's so interesting because, I mean, it just seems like they like these
09:35guys.
09:36I don't know what they're going to do because I know my colleague, Mary Kay Cabot,
09:40also reported, like, there's no plans to trade any of these guys right now.
09:43And we've seen all these quarterback injuries across the league early on.
09:48And so, who knows?
09:50It's anyone's guess right now is honestly how I feel about it.
09:53How unpredictable is tomorrow's game?
09:55Yeah, I felt like we did this a little bit last week with the Panthers game
09:58because no one really knew what the Panthers were.
09:59No one really knows what the Browns are.
10:01Does that also apply to this game for yourself?
10:04Yeah, I feel like there's an element of unpredictability to this one for sure.
10:09And, I mean, for me, it just stems from the Browns' offensive line
10:13and overall, like, offensive questions.
10:15But, I mean, we're coming off a game in which that offensive line had, like,
10:18seven procedural penalties.
10:20The Steelers' front is the strongest part of this defense.
10:23It seems like, for whatever reason, these Steelers-Browns games that are in prime time
10:27are just weird, weird things happen.
10:30I was just talking about, you know, the Monday night game in 2023 when Nick Chubb got hurt.
10:37But, like, the other thing, I think, from that game that was super weird
10:40was Deshaun Watson throwing a pick six to Alex Highsmith, like, immediately, right?
10:45Like, these super weird things just seem to happen.
10:47And the Steelers, it just seems like, in my time covering the team,
10:51have typically just played poorly here.
10:53And I think the other element of unpredictability is for years and years and years
10:58we've been able to look at this matchup and say, like, okay,
11:00you kind of know what Mike Tomlin's going to have up his sleeve.
11:03But, you know, Mike Tomlin's not there anymore.
11:05So it makes it a little bit more unpredictable,
11:09even though a lot of your key personnel is obviously still the same.
11:13And, you know, I think, too, what adds to it is the Steelers' offense
11:16has had their own issues.
11:17That was kind of on life support up until this third week
11:21where they suddenly had 411 yards of offense against the Bengals.
11:26So I guess this is why we play the games, JP.
11:29That's kind of my read on it, right?
11:33Do we think Quinshawn Judkins is back?
11:36Ashley, they were able to run a little bit on Carolina.
11:39He ripped off that 11-yard run and then Rocket Sanders followed it up
11:43with a long run of his own.
11:44It feels like running the football is probably going to be the smart thing to do
11:49against that Steeler front tomorrow.
11:51What's our faith in Quinshawn like these days?
11:54Yeah, I mean, I think Quinshawn, like I said, to me,
11:57looked better in Week 3 against the Panthers than he had earlier.
12:02I mean, the bar for that was pretty low, though,
12:05because in the first two games Deshawn Watson had been the team's leading rusher.
12:09So, I mean, 18 carries for him for 70 yards, 3.9 average.
12:14Like, I mean, obviously I think you want that number in the 4s pretty consistently.
12:18Ideally, it's above 5.
12:20But that's a tall ask, and, you know, I think he's been adamant
12:24that none of this is related to his injury.
12:28When I watch him, I believe him.
12:30You know, he doesn't look hesitant to me.
12:32I think a lot of these run game issues stem from this interior line coming together
12:38and those guys working together.
12:41And, too, you know, I think people forget they have not only two rookies on that line,
12:46but one of those rookies in Austin Barber is playing guard,
12:49and he never played guard before this summer.
12:53He said he played, like, three snaps at Florida as a freshman in a practice,
12:57and it was so long ago he couldn't even remember if it was left guard or right guard.
13:02So I think all of these things are kind of contributing to the run game question.
13:05So I still personally have faith in Quinchon Judkins that those numbers are going to go up
13:10because I think a lot of it is not about him.
13:13I think it's about the offense as a whole and people, you know,
13:17kind of underselling how much goes into the run game
13:20and, you know, how everyone sort of has to be on point for that to work perfectly.
13:25All right, Ashley, I'm going to show you that I didn't really dox your boyfriend.
13:29Maybe I did.
13:30Maybe I didn't.
13:30I don't know.
13:31But, all right, so, Nick, tell me, do you know Ashley's boyfriend's name?
13:35I don't.
13:36See?
13:36I didn't dox anything.
13:38650 crew.
13:39They're cool.
13:40They're good about things.
13:41They keep things on the low.
13:42Yeah, they definitely do.
13:44You didn't dox him.
13:46It's great.
13:47I mean, he's going to love this.
13:48He's going to love that he plays his anonymity, I guess.
13:51Well, maybe.
13:52I don't know.
13:53Nick, what name do you think Ashley would date?
13:57That's a good question.
13:58Wow.
13:58I just, you know, Ashley, a little bit on the spot.
14:01I don't know how close you guys are, but I think you guys know each other a little bit.
14:04Could it be an Alex?
14:06Alex and Ashley?
14:07Ooh.
14:08That's kind of fun.
14:10Except you said AA, and I just thought about, like, alcohol rehab programs.
14:13So, maybe that's not.
14:14Maybe you just want to stay away from that just a little bit.
14:16I don't know.
14:17It's like, I'd be cute if they met at AA, and then there was the two of them.
14:21Maybe that's a fun story.
14:22Maybe.
14:22I don't know.
14:23Maybe.
14:24You're awful at this game.
14:25They say that there's a lid for every pot, so maybe.
14:29Stop it.
14:29You're embarrassing me in front of Ashley.
14:30All right, Ashley, thank you so much.
14:32Appreciate you.
14:33All right.
14:33Thanks, guys.
14:34All right.
14:34Thank you so much.
14:35Ashley Bastock right there.
14:36Cleveland.com.
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