This article is part of our NFL Observations series.
On the bright side, Mason Rudolph's head wasn't in the helmet when Myles Garrett swung it... Obviously, Garrett will be suspended for a while -- if I had to guess most likely halfway into next season.
Not sure why people are praising Baker Mayfield for throwing him under the bus, though, as it's the most self-serving thing Mayfield could have done. I'd have had more respect if he had said, "Garrett's a great guy, so while we obviously don't ever want to see something where a player is put at serious risk, I'm sure he regrets it and feels terrible about it." So much easier to pile on the pariah of the day.
Garrett could potentially face legally liability too -- hard to argue why swinging a helmet at someone after the play is over is any different than swinging a weapon at someone on the street. And this all happened when the game was essentially over too.
• Mayfield showed more of the 2018 swagger, particularly on the tight-window TD throw to Stephen Carlson. He'll throw his share of picks, but he needs to play cocky to the edge of overconfidence. Otherwise, he's just a short quarterback with average athleticism.
• Nick Chubb saw a massive carry-load in a game the Browns were leading throughout, but got only one target to Kareem Hunt's eight. Chubb is still plenty useful, but he's more Derrick Henry (without the offensive line) than Dalvin Cook the rest of the way, capping his ceiling in PPR.
• Hunt is now the go-to on third-down, which makes sense given his superior route-running and pass-catching skills. In two games since Hunt returned, Chubb has only two catches for five yards.
• The Browns are trying to get the ball to Odell Beckham, but it hasn't been especially efficient. Keep in mind the Steelers are probably a top-five NFL defense, and Cleveland's schedule gets a lot easier.
• Mason Rudolph didn't play quite as badly as the stats showed -- he was down his top two receivers and best running back, didn't get much blocking and had to chuck it up under pressure most of the game. Garrett did him a favor though (given it was only a glancing blow) because now people are less focused on Rudolph's performance.
• The win was probably a pyrrhic one for the 4-6 Browns as they'll need to run the table, and that'll be a lot tougher without their best player.
