CLEVELAND, Ohio — When Browns defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz talks to rookie cornerback Cameron Mitchell, he usually issues him a reminder.
The same reminder
“He tells me all the time you’re not a rook no more,” Mitchell said. “Even though I am still a rookie, but the responsibility of it. I’m just glad that they trust me to make plays.”
Mitchell heeded that reminder. He was just one of a handful of unlikely Cleveland heroes on Sunday, as the Browns, a team decimated by injuries, improbably came back to beat the Chicago Bears 20-17 after trailing by as many as 10 in the second half.
All stepped up and made key plays and contributions in big moments, in a week in which the Browns lost another handful of players for the season. If you need a reminder, Jedrick Wills Jr. (knee), Dawand Jones (knee) and Maurice Hurst (pectoral) are done for the year. Grant Delpit (groin) is done for the regular season. They are still awaiting final word on Ogbo Okoronkwo (pectoral).
Mitchell’s play came at the start of the fourth quarter, with the Browns defense trying to keep the Bears from scoring off a takeaway after Joe Flacco threw his third pick of the afternoon.
With Justin Fields and Chicago facing fourth-and-1 on the Cleveland 33, Mitchell made a huge stop, sacking Fields for no gain — it was a play that really looked like a run stop, but the official stats ruled a sack. It was a big sequence for the non-rookie-rookie, who has stepped into a larger role with Denzel Ward working his way back from a shoulder injury that caused him to miss the previous three games. Mitchell has struggled with injuries himself this year and has been in and out of the lineup, and was just activated from injured reserve last week after rehabbing a hamstring injury.
“It’s just the way that we prepare everyone in the room,” Mitchell said. “When we go to practice or after the games, I’m getting the same coaching points as Denzel Ward, and we all know the kind of player he is. When you do it like that, you uphold everyone to the same standard. When I go in there we’re not changing the calls and we’re keeping everything the same. There are 10 other guys that hold me to that standard.”
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