CLEVELAND: The only time the Browns showed any real fight Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals occurred when inside linebacker Chris Kirksey reprimanded Jeremy Hill for jumping into the stands at FirstEnergy Stadium after the running back scored a touchdown in the third quarter.
“I’m just trying to protect the house,” Kirksey said. “That’s it.”
Kirksey telling Hill “don’t do that” was a rare stand for the Browns, who were humiliated 37-3 in their seventh consecutive defeat, the longest active losing streak in the NFL. The 34-point loss was their most-lopsided letdown since they fell 41-0 at home to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Dec. 24, 2005. The franchise record for largest margin of defeat is 48 points. It happened three times, most recently in 2000.
“This was a bad game without a doubt,” center Alex Mack said. “It’s rough.”
How rough?
Wide receiver Brian Hartline declined to speak to reporters out of fear he would let his emotions get the best of him.
“I want to keep a job,” he said.
The Browns’ record of 2-10 is the worst in the league because the Tennessee Titans earned their third victory by edging the Jacksonville Jaguars 42-39. If the season were to end now, the Browns would have the No. 1 overall pick in next year’s draft.
Instead, four games remain, leaving the Browns in jeopardy of losing their final 11. They haven’t won since Oct. 11.
“I think a lot of guys want to come out and continue playing at least for pride,” cornerback Tramon Williams said. “It was bad. I kept saying to the guys on the sidelines, ‘Man, we’re bad. We’re bad right now. We’re not in sync right now.’ But we’ve got to keep working. That’s about all you can do.”
The persistent losing could foreshadow owner Jimmy Haslam cleaning house after this season. No one should be the least bit surprised if Haslam were to fire coach Mike Pettine and General Manager Ray Farmer because the Browns have lost 15 of their past 17 games dating to last year. Pettine acknowledged last week he and Haslam could discuss his future as the season winds down.
After the worst loss to the Bengals in team history, Pettine said he and Haslam haven’t had any discussions about whether the coaching staff is guaranteed the rest of this season.
“Jimmy and I had good conversations,” Pettine said. “We talk every week. Frankly, there is a lot of football left to be played. We are evaluated every day, whether we are evaluating ourselves or whether it is coming from him. We are just going to fall back on what we know how to do. We are going to come in every day, prepare relentlessly like we do, we are going to coach our players hard and we will see what happens.”
The outcome hasn’t been favorable for a long time. The Browns’ four most recent defeats have been against AFC North foes, and they’re 1-4 in the division. The streak started Nov. 5 with a 31-10 loss to the Bengals, who have outscored the Browns 98-13 in their last three meetings.
“That’s tough. It’s frustrating,” Pettine said. “You find out who you are. It’s a healthy dose of adversity, and guys respond to it in different ways.”
After Hill ran for a 1-yard touchdown to help the division-leading Bengals (10-2) go ahead 27-3 with 7:42 left in the third quarter, he leaped into the stands to hug some fans wearing Cincinnati gear. Kirksey then got into Hill’s face and drew a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for voicing his displeasure.
The protest, though, didn’t matter to the scoreboard.
The Bengals went ahead 34-3 the next time they got the ball with quarterback Andy Dalton throwing a 21-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Marvin Jones, who beat the coverage of rookie cornerback Charles Gaines.
They extended their lead to 37-3 with 5:45 left in the fourth quarter when Mike Nugent made a 20-yard field goal nine plays after defensive end Carlos Dunlap tipped quarterback Austin Davis’ backward pass and linebacker Rey Maualuga recovered at the Browns’ 33.
In Davis’ ninth NFL start and first for the Browns, he completed 25-of-38 passes for 230 yards with an interception. His passer rating was 71.2. Now he’s 3-6 as a starter.
Demoted starting quarterback Johnny Manziel could return to the lineup Sunday at home against the San Francisco 49ers (4-8). Last week, Pettine said the Browns wanted to see Manziel play again this season. The 22nd overall pick in last year’s draft, Manziel is 1-4 as a starter, including 1-2 this season.
Pettine said the coaching staff will decide Monday which quarterback will start next week.
The Bengals, on the other hand, are one of the best teams in the league partly because they don’t have uncertainty at the game’s most important position.
Dalton has looked like a different man than the one who posted a passer rating of 2.0 in a 24-3 loss to the Browns on Nov. 6, 2014. The Browns were 6-3 and tied for the division lead back then, but they have gone 3-16 since. On the other hand, Dalton has gone 15-4.
On Sunday, Dalton completed 14-of-19 passes for 220 yards and two touchdowns without an interception. His passer rating was 146.8.
He also scored the first touchdown when he ran into the end zone from 3 yards out with 3:45 left in the opening quarter. The Browns were totally confused before the snap because the Bengals had four receivers line up on the left side of the formation, and Dalton simply ran up the middle for the score.
“We needed to slide inside,” Pettine said. “We need to recognize that the quarterback was under center, which is a sneak indicator, and slide inside.”
The Browns avoided being shut out at when Travis Coons made a 47-yard field goal as time expired in the second quarter, snipping the Bengals’ lead to 20-3 at halftime.
Coons had a chance to make another field goal during the first series of the second half, but Dunlap blocked the 47-yard attempt.
Despite the final score, Pettine said he was “absolutely” satisfied with his players’ effort.
“It’s not easy to push through these times, but guys are still out there playing hard,” outside linebacker Paul Kruger said. “They are trying to get it done, but collectively, we aren’t there.”
Pettine also insisted the character of the players and coaches give the Browns a chance to finish strong.
“Part of being a professional is showing up to work when things are tough, and when there’s adversity, that’s when you should be working the hardest,” All-Pro left tackle Joe Thomas said. “I think it reveals a lot about character in people, so we’ll find out a lot about our teammates.”
Nate Ulrich can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the Browns blog at www.ohio.com/browns. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/NateUlrichABJ and on Facebook www.facebook.com/abj.sports.