Monos Report, Week 7: First-place Browns (and Deshaun Watson) do it again

Your weekly trip ‘round the league with former NFL scout/exec Jim Monos.

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A note for new readers: Jim Monos scouted for the Philadelphia Eagles, New Orleans Saints and served as the director of personnel for the Buffalo Bills. Today, he runs personnel for the UFL. He also co-hosts our “Real Football” podcast and riffs on all games each week with the Monos Report.

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By Jim Monos

Pittsburgh 16, New Orleans 10

Breakfast football is the best football. Steelers look like a team building the plane while flying it. Like the running game combo of Jaylen Warren and Rico Dowdle. Yes, the Saints are a poor defense but Pittsburgh does enough to be intriguing. The Saints have kind of stalled out. Was looking for more consistency from Tyler Shough. A 31-year-old Alvin Kamara should not be your top weapon. The Steelers have that feel of a team you do not want to play, but can they score enough to hang with the big boys?

Miami 28, New York Jets 25

This game screamed coin flip and lived up to the hype. Caleb Douglas looks like a nice third-round selection for the new regime in Miami as a size/speed weapon. Ollie Gordon runs with toughness, vision and has size to help Malik Willis as he continues his one-year audition. The Jets are the Jets. Geno Smith as your QB and Aaron Glenn as your head coach are not the answer. Until that gets figured out, you’re floating around as a NFL franchise.

Atlanta 29, San Francisco 20

The Bijan Robinson Show is always much-watch. He is on track to be talked about as a great combo back like LaDanian Tomlinson and Marshall Faulk. A nightmare to prepare for as a defensive coordinator. Michael Penix Jr. plays turnover-free and the fastballs were humming. The Niners and Purdy were due for a hiccup. Eventually, San Fran needs to be fully healthy. When they are, they’re as good as there is in the NFL.

Cleveland 27, Tennessee 24

Another Deshaun Watson fourth-quarter comeback and game-winning drive. The champion and athlete Watson has been entire career is finally shining through. He has shown his professionalism to operate the offense while battling through injuries and off-field distractions of his own making. The Browns have talent and have drafted well. Piling up wins is never a bad thing and that is what Cleveland is doing. The Titans win this game if Watson was their QB.

Minnesota 16, Indianapolis 10

We almost had a weekend where it looked like if the Vikings had JJ McCarthy at QB, this offense would be explosive. The Vikings rank 22^nd in points per play on offense. Work in progress with Murray as expected but it’s a rough watch in terms of efficiency and production. Colts look to be active in trade deadline talks and are primed for an offseason overhaul with GM, head coach and QB. Play Anthony Richardson for some entertainment value.

Cincinnati 35, Baltimore 13

When the Bengals offense clicks like this in the second half, it does not matter who is playing defense. Message sent by scoring on every possession. Cincy and Buffalo seem like they are on a collision course in the playoffs. Ravens are doing their best with Snoop Huntley at quarterback, but cannot win shootouts. Lamar and Zay Flowers will be fireworks but the Ravens rank 21^st in points per play on defense proving Baltimore needs to be full-go on offense to out-score teams.

New York Giants 27, Houston 21

Road win with a backup QB who has been on the team for a couple weeks is as satisfying as it gets for head coach John Harbaugh. The running game is everyone’s friend and Cam Skattebo (124 yards, TD) sets the tone. Not sure his style is sustainable but it is needed. McCarthy will need to continue to throw with tempo and accuracy to show he is improving but a great project for OC Matt Nagy to work with. The Texans do not have the stout defense of a year ago and no running game to help CJ Stroud.

Tampa Bay 43, Carolina 13

The return of Baker Mayfield brings 64 yards passing and 43 points. Not sure it mattered who played QB for Tampa. Sounds right for the NFL. Tampa gets a road division win but did it with an old-school style — a punishing running game. Bucky Irving, Kenny Gainwell, Sean Tucker and the Bucs rolled to 258 rushing yards. Strong performance. Disappointing home game for the Panthers and the turnovers were too much to overcome. Games can slip away sometimes and that is what happened in Charlotte. Good confidence-builder for the Tampa defense moving forward.

Denver 30, Arizona 16

Damn, Tre McBride is talented. He is the second-best best tight end in the NFL (Brock Bowers is one) but McBride makes the Cardinals relevant on offense. Denver still looks clunky on offense but Bo Nix showed the speed on a long run and he is doing enough. The Broncos are inconsistent with playmaking at receiver right now. Stacking wins for the Broncos as they continue to iron out the offense — always positive. Love Brissett for Arizona but it’s time to see the rookie Carson Beck.

Detroit 20, Green Bay 17

Score seems low for these two teams but division games can get wacky. Good to see Josh Jacobs back especially in the pass game. Jacobs needs to knock the rust off and he will. Jordan Love vs. Jared Goff is must-watch QB play. This division is setting up for a wild end-of-season run with high-level QB talent. I do not talk about officials, so get over it. Kickers are the same for me. They do not exist. The Lions skill-set of Gibbs, St. Brown and Williams is teach tape for scouting RBs and WRs. They possess rare talent with speed, route running and overall athletic ability.

Los Angeles Rams 35, Las Vegas 21

Ashton Jeanty had eight carries for 15 yards. For the season, the former Top 10 pick by GM John Spytek is now averaging 3.1 yards per carry. The Rams showed off both of their running backs with Kyren Williams and Blake Corum controlling the game. Matthew Stafford was sharp. The Rams are in grind mode trying to get healthy. Vegas can go ahead and start the No. 1 pick Fernando Mendoza at QB. As soon as Mendoza plays, the Raiders front office is on watch. Mendoza needs to hit to offset the Jeanty selection. Good thing is that Mendoza can force the ball to Brock Bowers and he will look just fine.

Seattle 20, Kansas City 3

The former scout in me always loves undrafted free agents. The offseason signing of running back Emmanuel Wilson proved valuable as the former UDFA out of Fort Valley State ran for 100 yards on the dot. JSN continues to prove his worth as a true No. 1 playmaker. He is unguardable with his route running. The Chiefs have lost their playmakers at receiver, and it’s showing. Patrick Mahomes is still battling back from his ACL and if the running game is not clicking who is stepping up on the outside? Sam Darnold is always one throw away from ruining a game, but the talent is real.

Dallas 38, Philadelphia 21

Dallas did what you should do against a backup quarterback. Philly’s Tanner McKee hung in for three quarters looking serviceable and then disintegrated into a backup. Philly defense was pushed around as well. The Cowboys showed off their weapons. Dak Prescott was dialed in with accuracy and the boys (Lamb and Pickens) on the outside were special. Dallas and the Giants seem to be rising in this battle for the NFC East title while Philly fades.

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