BALTIMORE -- The Cleveland Browns knew there would be days like this. But when they arrive, they are painful to experience.
DeShone Kizer threw three interceptions (one in the end zone), lost a fumble and missed one quarter with a migraine in Sunday's 24-10 loss to the Ravens. On the scale of rookie “just have to live with it” experiences, this one ranked about as high as possible; Kizer produced no points and had the four turnovers. The 10 points that the Browns scored came from backup QB Kevin Hogan. Baltimore’s win was a good deal more one-sided than the score would indicate.
What it means: A day that on paper looked like it would be tough turned out to be just that. The Browns were sloppy (seven first-half penalties, 11 total), turned the ball over (three times in the first half alone, five total) and defensively gave up three touchdowns in the first half to Joe Flacco, who missed the entire preseason with a back injury. Kizer missed about one quarter with a migraine, but returned in the third quarter and struggled. Chalk this one up to a painful learning experience against a Ravens team that was superior physically even though they were without their best lineman on both sides of the ball for some of the second half (Brandon Williams, who suffered a foot injury, and Marshal Yanda, who is out for the season after breaking his ankle).
What I liked: Hogan showed no fear in replacing Kizer in the second quarter. Hogan scored the first points the Ravens' defense has allowed this season on a 23-yard TD throw to David Njoku, set up by a 49-yard throw to Seth DeValve. Hogan made a bad decision throwing across his body into a trio of Ravens for an interception, but the fact that he stepped in and was not immediately overwhelmed is a good sign for the backup.
What I didn’t like: The end of the first half provided a perfect blueprint on how to botch a two-minute drill. Hogan had moved the ball to the Ravens' 40 for a first down with 41 seconds left. But instead of immediately using one of their two final timeouts, the Browns let the clock run. That led to a false start penalty with 29 seconds left, which forced the Browns to use a timeout anyway. On the next play, Hogan forced a pass that was intercepted. Baltimore scored on the ensuing possession with one second left to take a 21-10 halftime lead. Who knows what would have happened had the Browns called timeout, but the final few plays wouldn’t have been nearly as frenetic. Instead of a score to bring the game close, the Browns turned it over and saw the Ravens extend the lead. Hue Jackson's take: "We needed to take another play [after the first down at the 40], see what we've got, then take a timeout."
Fantasy fallout: Rashard Higgins came off the practice squad to have his first big day for the Browns at receiver, but this group is too thin and too undependable to rely on in any fantasy league. Higgins’ seven catches and 95 yards led the Browns, but other than that, the biggest plays came from DeValve and Njoku. The other big reception was by Duke Johnson, a running back.
Players who stepped up, players who didn’t: Jamie Collins is being paid a lot of money to make big plays, but he didn't have any Sunday and hasn’t had any in two games. Fair or not, Collins will be judged in part by his large free-agent deal worth $60 million over five years. Through two games, he has not been noticeable for impact plays, and against Baltimore he was stiff-armed by Javorius Allen for an extra 5 yards at the end of a run. ... Higgins did a nice job coming off the practice squad to lead the Browns in receptions and yards. ... Njoku’s touchdown catch was a good grab by a guy who had trouble hanging on to the ball early in the preseason. Late in the game, he had a bad drop -- as did Ricardo Louis.
Injury report: Collins was diagonsed with a concussion after leaving the game in the final minutes. He enters the NFL protocol. Wide receiver Corey Coleman had his hand checked after he fell awkwardly on an incompletion. Jackson said more will be known about Coleman on Monday.
What’s next: The Browns stay on the road, traveling to Indianapolis to play the Colts.