Browns’ defensive snap counts, stats, and notes: Week 1

The Browns’ defense was on fire all game.

Below, we analyze the snap counts and stats on defense for the Cleveland Browns’ Week 1 game against the Cincinnati Bengals.

Notes

• DL: Heading into the game, one of the talking points was how the Bengals upgraded their offensive tackle situation. That was no issue for the tandem of Myles Garrett and Za’Darius Smith, who combined for 8 hits on Joe Burrow (4 a piece). Both players had tone-setting plays, with Smith knocking Burrow down on the first snap of the game, and Garrett delivering a sack when Cincinnati went for it deep in their own territory in the fourth quarter. Smith (90.5) and Garrett (89.9) received high marks from PFF. It was a pleasant surprise to see Alex Wright already playing in Week 1 after his injury, as he played 15% of the snaps. With the Browns having had a big lead, that may have allowed some of the depth players to get a few more snaps than usual.
• LB: We got our first glimpse of how Jim Schwartz would use his top linebackers in terms of snap count percentages, and Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah was the guy seeing the most action (77%), followed by Anthony Walker (59%) and Sione Takitaki (41%).
• CB: I thought it was a lockdown effort by the secondary, although Denzel Ward and M.J. Emerson weren’t among the Top 5 highest-graded defenders for the Browns by PFF. Greg Newsome did crack the Top 5, grading out to a 79.8 (fourth-best). From the eye test, all three cornerbacks challenged the Bengals’ trio of receivers and won the battle. Ward did commit one pass interference penalty on Ja’Marr Chase, but the defense still held strong to force a punt.
• S: What a game for Grant Delpit. I kept thinking to myself, “This is a fantastic game by him,” and sure enough, he was the Top-graded Browns defender by PFF, grading out to a 91.3. He finished the game with 8 tackles, and was instrumental in coming up to deny the Bengals of several third-down conversion attempts. With the instincts that Delpit showed this week and the instincts I already believe Juan Thornhill has, I’m excited to see them together.