Toughness comes in many forms. Ivan Drago in Rocky IV was the stereotypical tough guy. So tall that he blocked the sun from reaching us mere mortals, a body that made both men and women soil their drawers, and a haircut that signified to the world that he DGAF. On the flip side, a tough guy can also be one that is impervious to pain. Rocky was that kind of tough guy. He was so tough that Drago whined that “he is not human, he is a piece of iron.” Which brings me to Josh McCown. Huh? Well, he does have the same haircut as Drago. But McCown is more Rocky than Drago. During his only game of the season so far, he suffered an injury in the first quarter. An injury that was later deemed a broken collarbone. He ended the game 20-of-33 for 260 yards with 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions. First quarter people! Broken collarbone! The postgame interview was legendary. That’s my quarterback! I do own him in a league, so I can say that.
Now, McCown is back at practice. He’s been medically cleared to play and, with the injuries to Cody Kessler and the suckitude of Kevin Hogan, he has a good chance of starting this week. Why should we care?
This week’s opponent is the New York Jets. They allow opposing quarterbacks to complete 68.7% of passes (2nd-worst in the league), are 5th-worst in average at 8.2 yards, allow 282.7 yards per game (5th-worst), have given up 13 touchdowns (7th-worst), have given up 9 plays of 40+ yards (worst), and allow a 3rd-worst 104.1 quarterback rating. Whew. Basically, they suck at defending the pass.
Here’s the rest of the Browns schedule:
| Team | Passing Defense |
| Cowboys | 22 |
| Ravens | 16 |
| Steelers | 29 |
| Giants | 19 |
| Bengals | 15 |
| Bills | 14 |
| Chargers | 8 |
| Steelers | 29 |
Passing Defense are from NumberFire.
The Chargers are the only team in the Top 10, and they lost both their starting cornerbacks a few weeks back. Joey Bosa is a beast, though. He really could be like a wolverine or something. I digress. The schedule looks very favorable.
How bout the Browns defense? They suck. They rank 27th, right ahead of the Jets. If you didn’t see the stats from above, I suggest you go back and look again. Just change the name to the Browns.
What makes me really bullish on the Browns offense is the leadership of Hue Jackson and the weapons that the Browns possess. Terrelle Pryor is a freak and a low-end WR 1/high WR 2. Corey Coleman is returning from his broken hand injury, Gary Barnidge is a weapon at tight end, and Isiah Crowell can keep defenses honest pounding the rock between the tackles, while Duke Johnson can abuse linebackers out of the backfield. As a Raiders fan, I saw first hand what Hue Jackson is capable of. He was always aggressive and creative as a play caller. I will always pay homage to him for guiding the Raiders to an 8-8 record in 2011 after years and years of 4-12 and 5-12 seasons. For accuracy and transparency sake, the Raiders did have an 8-8 record in 2010, but I’m trying to repress the Tom Cable-led years from my memory.
Bottom line. The game script for the Browns should call for lots of passing. There are explosive weapons in the passing game with a play caller that can take advantage. As long as McCown can stay healthy, which is a big if, this is a situation ripe for fantasy production.
As Drago said, “I win for me! FOR ME!” I think he forgot to add fantasy team as well.
VERDICT
