During his preparation for the Cleveland Browns Week 2 tilt against the New York Jets, guard Joel Bitonio saw some things on film that indicated that the matchup might be more challenging than some would expect. In his comments to the media on Thursday, he told reporters that he has a newfound respect for New York’s front seven, and sees some parallels in how the Jets and Browns’ defenses operate.
“It is a huge challenge,” Bitonio explained of the Jets‘ dominant line. “I thought their defense besides a couple of deep passes played really well. They are active. They have a really strong front seven, and they rotate guys so they are always fresh. They have like nine or 10 guys who play on the D line. It is definitely going to be a challenge. They are kind of similar to our defense. They have similar coaches in that sense and kind of the same scheme. There are a couple of nuances that we have to be ready for. That is the key right there is that they have a great front seven so we have to bring our lunch pail and be ready to work.”
Cleveland’s performance on the offensive line will be a crucial factor in their ability to emerge from the game as victors, and New York is likely to be a tough opponent for the unit to deal with in all four quarters. It will take the full effort of every lineman on every play to keep interim starting quarterback Jacoby Brissett upright as he looks to improve his station in the passing game.
On a night where legendary tackle Joe Thomas is to be inducted into the Browns’ hall of fame, the line will be under a microscope from the team’s first snap, and expectations will be high for the unit as they look to get their first home win of the season.
