CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Browns won their first playoff birth in 18 years last Sunday. But things pretty much got worse from there.
Coach Kevin Stefanski and left guard Joel Bitonio are among the five members of the organization who tested positive for COVID-19 this week and are expected to be out of the Sunday night playoff game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Analysts who were celebrating the Browns on Monday spent Tuesday wondering if the team still had a chance this weekend.
“Absolutely devastating,” said Marcus Spears of ESPN. “This is, for me, the equivalent of not having a star player available for this game to go out and do what Kevin Stefanski wants the attack to do.”
Analyst Dan Orlovsky agreed, even saying that the Browns have no chance if the game really takes place on Sunday.
“This game is over if they play this weekend,” said Orlovsky. “Playing to call is not science. It is not measurable. You cannot repeat. You can’t just search. Playing by calling is feeling. They are instincts. It is anticipation and reaction. “
The NFL said there was no change in the playoff schedule and the Browns-Steelers showdown is still said for Sunday Night Football.
“I think it will show more if this game happens in the second, third and fourth quarter,” continued Orlovsky. “Stefanski will be calling for the first quarter. He will make his first script of 20, 25 opening … After you get into the feeling and the pace of the game, that’s when he is at his absolute best. This is brutal for the Cleveland Browns. “
The mood was equally bleak at FS1, where the Hall of Famer and analyst Shannon Sharpe said the loss of a coach who runs the game is monumental.
“Stefanski calls the pieces,” Sharpe reiterated. “The way he can call a game as opposed to the coach of special teams or I don’t know who is going to call the game is different because they can see things differently. This is a big deal. “
Both Sharpe and “Undisputed” co-host Skip Bayless said they expect quarterback Baker Mayfield to play well this weekend. But neither gave the Browns much of a chance, given the circumstances surrounding the team’s COVID-19.