Five things to know about the Chiefs’ next opponent: Cleveland Browns

This may not be earth-shattering news, but things aren’t going well in Cleveland.

The Browns lost 33-18 at Pittsburgh on Sunday and have dropped three straight games as their record fell to 2-5-1. Cleveland is in a familiar place: last place in the AFC North. The Browns have finished last in the division each season since 2011.

Cleveland’s young quarterback has had had an uneven start to his career and now the Browns are changing coaches.

The Chiefs’ game against Cleveland will kick off at noon Sunday and it will be broadcast on CBS (Ch. 5).

Each week, I take an early look at the Chiefs’ next opponent, and here are five things to know about the Browns:

1. A new head coach

There was a change to the Browns coaching staff on Monday, including one most people probably didn’t expect.

Former Chiefs coach Todd Haley has had a rough first season as the Browns offensive coordinator. After a loss to Tampa Bay on Oct. 21, head coach Hue Jackson said he might have to work closer with the offense, which is 24th in the NFL in scoring (21.1 points per game).

There was speculation that Haley would be fired by Jackson.

That won’t happen. The Browns fired Jackson on Monday and the interim coach could be someone with ties to KC — but not Haley. Defensive coordinator Gregg Williams reportedly could take over.

Williams is from Excelsior Springs and once coached Belton High School’s football team.

But don’t interpret this as Haley winning a power struggle, because he is out of a job, too. The Browns fired Haley as offensive coordinator as Cleveland looks to end its three-game slide.

2. Baker Mayfield

Rookie quarterback Baker Mayfield, the No. 1 overall pick in this year’s draft, has one statistic in particular that stands out: two wins.

Mayfield came on in relief on Sept. 20 when the Browns trailed the Jets and helped Cleveland get the 21-17 victory. On Oct. 7, Mayfield got the start and the Browns beat the Ravens 12-9 in Cleveland.

The Browns haven’t won two games in a season since 2015 when they were 3-13.

Mayfield has completed 130 of 223 passes this season for 1,471 yards, eight touchdowns and six interceptions. He also has shown an ability to prolong plays as he did Sunday against the Steelers:

Mayfield’s quarterback rating has bounced up and down in his five starts this season, going from 70.7 to 81.7 to 52.6 to 104.4 to 80.8 in Sunday’s loss to the Steelers.

Mayfield isn’t the only rookie who is playing a lot for the Browns. Heading into Sunday’s game, they led the NFL in snaps by rookies:

3. Good/bad on turnovers

The Browns have 22 takeaways this season, which ranks first in the NFL. That’s good, right?

Well, Cleveland has converted those turnovers into a meager 34 points, according to Cleveland.com. Also, the Browns defense has scored just two points this season.

4. Defensive woes

About that defense ... the Browns rank 28th in the NFL, giving up 414.5 yards per game.

The rushing defense, which ranks 29th, has seen opponents rush for an average of 138.9 yards per game. On Sunday, the Steelers piled up 168 rushing yards in 31 carries (5.4 yards per carry).

It will be interesting to see Kareem Hunt does in his return to Ohio. He was born and raised in the state and played high school and college ball at Toledo.

Cleveland’s pass defense is 26th in the NFL, allowing 275.6 yards per game

5. Working overtime

The Browns, 2-5-1, have already played four overtime games this season, which is one shy of the NFL record. The Green Bay Packers set the record in 1983.

Cleveland is 1-2-1 in overtime games.

“The overtime (games), I have never been through anything like this,” Jackson said on the Browns’ website. “Our team has probably played a whole other game in overtime. It has been a lot of snaps.”

This story was originally published October 29, 2018 at 9:26 AM.