How the Browns' Passing Game Has Become So Dangerous with Joe Flacco

For most of the season, we’ve been saying that the Browns would be a dangerous team in the playoffs if they could get anything out of the quarterback position. Since Joe Flacco took over in Week 13, they’ve gotten so much more than just “anything.”

In his 5 starts, Cleveland’s offense has scored an average of 27.2 points per game and the passing attack has taken off. After averaging just 181.2 total passing yards through their first 11 games, they’ve averaged 312 with Flacco. More importantly, they are 4-1 in his 5 starts.

As with anything, it’s been a combination of factors that has turned the Browns offense into a legitimate weapon over the last month.

The first is Flacco’s arm. Throws that weren’t open with previous Browns quarterbacks are open to him, particularly to the outside and downfield. If he sees a 1-on-1, he’s taking it and making the right throw to beat the coverage.

Second is Flacco’s experience. He can easily recognize what the defense is doing and react quickly. There have been multiple completions each week that are a result of Flacco dissecting the defense and understanding when a receiver is truly open based on the coverage, even if the window is small. That’s not something the Browns were getting previously.

The third factor has been Cleveland’s use of play-action. Head coach Kevin Stefanski has utilized it on 32.9% of dropbacks with Joe Flacco at quarterback according to PFF. That’s leads all QBs this season.

Because of Flacco’s arm, all areas of the field are available, and so is every type of play-action pass. That includes shot plays, boots, throwbacks, and anything that targets the intermediate level of the field. Stefanski and Flacco are stretching defenses thin by making them account for every square inch of grass in the passing game. They’ve been extremely effective in this area as Flacco has played to a 122.8 passer rating off of play-action.

I’ll break down each of these three factors below.

It Doesn’t Take Much to be Open

For Flacco, it doesn’t necessarily take brilliant scheme and wide-open receivers to make him pull the trigger. Instead, all he needs is to see a 1-on-1 that he feels comfortable attacking.

If he gets a single-high-safety look, he’s going to take his chances on the outside. Especially if Amari Cooper is out there:

If the defense wants to play cover-0 and bring the house, that’s fine too. He’ll just find the 1-on-1 and calmly hit it in the face of pressure:

If the defense is bringing simulated pressures and disguising their coverage, it doesn’t really matter. If they’re giving him a 1-on-1 on the outside, he’s going to hit it: