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Cleveland Browns vs. Philadelphia Eagles: Key matchups, numbers entering Week 6
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- Cleveland Browns vs. Philadelphia Eagles: Key matchups, numbers entering Week 6
PHILADELPHIA — Only once in Kevin Stefanski's four-plus seasons as the Browns head coach have they lost four games in a row. They're precariously close to making it a second time.
The Browns (1-4) are in Philadelphia today to play the Eagles (2-2). They come into the game in the midst of a three-game losing streak, which is tied for a stretch between Weeks 15-17 in the 2021 season for the second-longest same-season losing streak in Stefanski's tenure.
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Cleveland lost four consecutive games between Weeks 4-7 in the 2022 season. During that stretch the Browns averaged 20.8 points a game, and only once was held below 20 points in a game.
That would be an offensive explosion compared to the current stretch. The Browns are averaging 14.7 points a game during their three-game slide, which isn't much better than the 15.8 points they're averaging for the season.
And 20 points? That's yet to happen for Cleveland.
Can it happen against the Eagles, who are fresh off their bye week? Let's dive into the matchups and numbers to take a look at this afternoon's matchup.
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Cleveland Browns vs. Philadelphia Eagles offensive matchup of the game: WR Amari Cooper vs. CB Darius Slay
Oct 6, 2024; Landover, Maryland, USA; Washington Commanders cornerback Benjamin St-Juste (25) breaks up a pass intended for Cleveland Browns wide receiver Amari Cooper (2) during the second quarter at NorthWest Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter Casey-Imagn Images
There's a lot of different potential matchups to watch, from yet another interior line fight to the internal fight quarterback Deshaun Watson goes through on a play-by-play basis with himself. This one, however, should be interesting because of the importance wide receiver Amari Cooper will have on any major success the Browns offense may or may not have against the Eagles. There's a not-so-small chance that, if Cooper has success, it will come against the veteran Philadelphia cornerback Darius Slay, no stranger to matching up with the star wide receiver. If Cooper can get the best of Slay, or whomever is guarding him, to have a big day, the Browns just might fly home from Philadelphia a winner.
Cleveland Browns vs. Philadelphia Eagles defensive matchup of the game: LB Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah vs. RB Saquon Barkley
Saquon Barkley of the Philadelphia Eagles carries the ball against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the first quarter at Raymond James Stadium on September 29, 2024, in Tampa, Florida.
Much like a week ago, when linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah was mentioned as the matchup against Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels , it's certainly not all going to fall on him to slow down Eagles running back Saquon Barkley. Owusu-Koramoah feels like the natural place to start since he had his struggles with missed tackles against Daniels last week. Miss a tackle against Barkley, especially once he gets into space, and he'll torch a defense. It's just speed, though, but also strength, which is why whoever comes up on Barkley has to bring power with their tackling to slow him down.
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Cleveland Browns vs. Philadelphia Eagles numbers to watch
217 yards
Cooper's no stranger to facing the Eagles from his days with the Dallas Cowboys . One of his first games against Philadelphia as a Cowboy, on Dec. 9, 2018, saw him light up the City of Brotherly Love to the tune of 10 catches for 217 yards and three touchdowns. A game like that this time would absolutely be what this offense needed.
435 yards, 4 touchdowns, 6.0 average
How's three numbers into one, but it's really just about one player: Barkley. The running back, who signed with Philadelphia after six seasons with the New York Giants , has been worth every penny with his 435 rushing yards, four rushing touchdowns and a 6.0 yards-per-carry average. He's one of 10 running backs in NFL history to do that over his first four games of a season. The others on the list: Jim Brown, Alan Ameche, O.J. Simpson, Walter Payton, Emmitt Smith, Jamal Lewis, Arian Foster and Derrick Henry .
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3.8 yards
Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson is tackled by a host of Washington Commanders defenders during the fourth quarter Sunday, Oct. 6, 2024, in Landover, Maryland.
The Browns offense has been terrible to start the season. The number, among all of the numbers, to best summarize that is their 3.81 yards per play average, which is tied for the 58th worst for a team through their first five games since 1964. Want some perspective? The 1999 expansion team averaged 3.65 yards per play, while the winless 2017 team averaged 4.9 yards a play.
The Cleveland Browns beat the Philadelphia Eagles if …
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This sounds like a broken record each week, but Watson plays like a top half of the NFL quarterback the Browns believed they were getting when they acquired him in a trade with the Houston Texans ,
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The Browns defense cuts down on the high volume of missed tackles and other assignments,
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The Browns can win the field position battle so that they're not always having to go the long way to score, alleviating some of the pressure on the offense to need to always hit the five-run home run
The Philadelphia Eagles beat the Cleveland Browns if …
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The return of wide receivers A.J. Brown and DaVonte Smith from injuries means the Eagles offense goes back to being all-around explosive
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Barkley runs through about a dozen arm tackles on his way to a huge game rushing
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The Browns can't block the Eagles pass run, meaning they're at least pressuring, if not sacking, Watson the way teams like the Giants and Commanders have during the losing streak
Chris Easterling can be reached at ceasterling@thebeaconjournal.com. Read more about the Browns at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/browns. Follow him on X at @ceasterlingABJ
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This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Browns vs. Eagles preview: Key matchups, numbers for Week 6
