ABOUT THIS EPISODE
The Carolina Panthers had Cleveland beat. Twice. Up 12-10 in the fourth, then up 18-13 with 4:25 to go after Bryce Young found John Metchie III for the only touchdown of the day. Then Deshaun Watson went 65 yards in eight plays, a roughing-the-passer flag on Bobby Okereke wiped out a game-sealing interception, and the Browns walked off with a 21-18 win.
On today's Two Growls One Roar Monday breakdown, we go through the Good, the Bad and the Ugly from Week 3 in Cleveland, and it's a heavy one.
THE GOOD: Ryan Fitzgerald went 4-for-4, including a 53-yarder, and was basically the whole offense. Special teams forced the game's only turnover on the second-half kickoff. The defense held Watson to 144 passing yards for most of the afternoon without Devin Lloyd or Nick Scott. Brycen Tremayne finally got his moment with 4 catches for 83 yards. Bryce Young took a beating and never came off the field.
THE BAD: Mason Graham and Jared Verse lived in our backfield. Cleveland blitzed, played man, and dared Carolina to beat them deep, and every defense in the league was watching. Tetairoa McMillan was held to 2 catches for 17 yards and still doesn't have a touchdown this season. Two failed fourth-down tries gave Cleveland 10 points. Four field goals before the first touchdown won't beat anybody.
THE UGLY: Jaycee Horn is out indefinitely with a significant quad injury, and reports say it's torn. Mike Jackson left in the first quarter with a groin injury. By the end, our cornerbacks were rookie Will Lee III, Akayleb Evans and Chau Smith-Wade. Add Jalen Coker's quad, Damien Lewis, and Bryce's leg, and it was a brutal afternoon.
We also run through today's news from Dave Canales' Monday press conference. Bryce is getting imaging but is expected to play, Devin Lloyd looks set to return, Nick Scott is "playable," Legette is day-to-day, and Saahdiq Charles is back on the practice squad.
Then it's the big question: who does Dan Morgan call? We rank the realistic cornerback options, including Tre'Davious White, Marshon Lattimore, Mike Hilton, Adoree' Jackson, Shaq Griffin and Jeff Okudah. We also look at trade chatter around Kristian Fulton and Deonte Banks, plus the practice squad guys who could be elevated. We compare the original Week 1 depth chart to what Carolina will actually take to Detroit.
The good news: the Saints lost too, so the NFC South is a three-way tie at 1-2. Next up is the Lions on Sunday Night Football, with a rookie corner on an island in primetime.
