Maybe the Browns spent more time studying film. Or maybe they just knew it was night.
Either way, they said the reason they made Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton look so bad last night was that they were in his head.
“We knew what was coming,” linebacker Karlos Dansby said, via Nate Ulrich of the Akron Beacon Journal. “So we were all over it.”
Typically, a short week would mean preparation is harder, and there’s less time to study an opponents’ tendencies. But that didn’t appear to be an issue for the Browns.
“We put a lot of time in,” Dansby said. “The schedule was hectic. Coach put a lot of pressure on us to handle it, to be professionals, and we handled it. We were dialed in. We knew exactly what they wanted to do, how they wanted to do it, when they wanted to do it. We’re calling out screens. We’re calling out run plays. We’re calling out everything right there on the field. . . .
“When he audibled, we knew exactly what he audibled to. We put time in. It’s preparation. We’re watching film. We’re on it. We’re dialed in. We’re studying, and we’re making sure that we’re on point.”
They were, and that helped them limit Dalton to a two-point-zero passer rating.
