Breaking News: Why the Browns defense had so much trouble with the Colts and a backup QB

CLEVELAND, Ohio — The Browns defense gave up 38 points and 456 yards to the Colts in last Sunday’s thriller, leading many to question if this is still the historically good unit it seemed to be this season.

Although Myles Garrett single-handedly kept the Browns in the game, the defense as a whole allowed the Colts offense, led by Gardner Minshew, who was coming off one of his worst career games in a blowout loss to Jacksonville, to methodically move the ball up and down the field.

So how did the Browns defense go from shutting down the 49ers’ league-leading offense to struggling against the Colts’ middling offense with a backup quarterback?

The Browns defense has been much better in man coverage than in zone coverage this season, as data from Sports Info Solutions indicates:

Man coverage

• 37.5% completion percentage allowed (1st among NFL defenses)
• 6.5 yards per play allowed (8th)
• -0.24 EPA/play allowed (5th)

Zone coverage

• 59.5% completion percentage allowed (2nd)
• 7.9 yards per play allowed (21st)
• -0.14 EPA/play allowed (7th)

(EPA, or Expected Points Added, considers down, distance and field position before and after a play to determine how successful a play was in terms of points. A 4-yard gain on first-and-10 is different than a 4-yard gain on third-and-3, something that isn’t captured in basic statistics. For offense, a positive EPA is better. For defense, a negative EPA is better.)

Against Indianapolis, the Browns played zone coverage 64% of the time, the highest rate under Jim Schwartz outside of the Baltimore game, where they played zone 68%. Coincidentally, the two worst defensive performances of the year came against the Ravens and the Colts.

The Browns were forced into playing zone against the Ravens and Colts because both teams had quarterbacks who are rushing threats. It’s difficult to play man against mobile quarterbacks because each defender is facing the receiver they’re guarding. In zone, defenders are facing the line of scrimmage and watching the quarterback’s movements, making it easier to stop them from scrambling