3 things to know about Browns: Here’s Cleveland’s clear weak point

The Raiders spent the week searching for answers after a dreadful performance in their 36-22 home loss to the Panthers on Sept. 22.

They will look to bounce back when they return to Allegiant Stadium on Sunday to face the struggling Browns.

Here are three things to know about their AFC North opponent:

1. Third-and-long

Cleveland’s offense isn’t that dissimilar from the Raiders.

The Browns have struggled to run the ball and have been inconsistent in the passing game. Quarterback Deshaun Watson has rightly shouldered a great deal of blame, but he’s certainly not alone. The offensive line has been decimated by injuries and has allowed 16 sacks, the most in the NFL. The team’s weapons have also dropped too many passes.

Still, Watson has to be better. The Browns gave up three first-round picks to land him in 2022 and then gave him the largest guaranteed contract in NFL history despite ongoing legal trouble derived from numerous sexual assault accusations.

An obvious place for Cleveland to start as it looks to improve is third downs. The team is converting just 18.6 percent of its attempts, which ranks last in the league.

One thing the Browns can do to help themselves is have more success on early downs. The average distance of their third-down attempts is 9.2 yards. That number has to shrink if they want to extend drives.

2. ‘Best player in the league’

Defensive end Myles Garrett, the reigning defensive player of the year, has been listed on Cleveland’s injury report this week with Achilles, thigh and ankle issues.

That’s not making Raiders offensive coordinator Luke Getsy breathe any easier. Garrett has made it clear he plans to play.

“Even if he’s not at full strength, he’s still the best player in the league,” Getsy said. “This guy is unbelievable.”

The Browns defense has plenty of talent, but Garrett raises the group’s ceiling. Getsy saw that first-hand as the Bears offensive coordinator last year. His team went to Cleveland and lost 20-17.

“You take (defensive coordinator Jim) Schwartz’s scheme and all that stuff, they’ve got a really good defense,” Getsy said. “It’s a good, solid group that poses a lot of challenges, but we’re excited for the challenge. I think this is going to be a really good benchmark for us going against a really good defense. And we’re excited for that opportunity. But yeah, it’s never fun going against the best in the league.”

Getsy said the Raiders offense should be somewhat prepared for Garrett given it faces edge rusher Maxx Crosby in practice every day. Still, the team will need to be aware of where Garrett is at all times Sunday.

3. Welcome, Dawg Pound

The Raiders had a loud, partisan crowd at Allegiant Stadium last week given few Panthers fans made the trip to Las Vegas. The atmosphere was wild from the opening kickoff, even if the home team didn’t given its supporters much to cheer about.

Things may be different Sunday.

The Browns have one of the most rapid fanbases in sports. There is little question the group will be out in full force for their first road game in Las Vegas.

The fanbase’s nickname is the “Dawg Pound,” which was first used to describe the the end zone section in old Cleveland Stadium. The phrase was coined in 1985 by Browns players Hanford Dixon and Frank Minnifield and quickly caught on.

So, don’t be alarmed if there are grown men and women wearing dog noses and bone hats around town this weekend.

Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AdamHillLVRJ on X.