'He is tough to deal with': Browns face challenge of slowing down Bills QB Josh Allen

BEREA — Joe Woods has seen a lot of Josh Allen. That was even before Allen entered the NFL.

"I was at the Senior Bowl, and we had him as the quarterback when I was down there," the Browns defensive coordinator said. "You could see how big he was then."

Woods, then part of the Denver Broncos staff that was coaching in the game, was on Allen's side that day in Mobile, Alabama. On Sunday in Detroit, he won't have that advantage when he has to scheme up a way to try to slow down the Buffalo Bills superstar.

Allen's 6-foot-5, 237-pound frame is only part of what makes him a unique challenge. There's also the howitzer that is his right arm, as well as his ability to turn himself into a tank when he tucks the ball and runs.

That's the challenge facing Woods and the Browns as they prepare for a Bills offense that ranks top two in the league in points, total yards and passing yards. For all the other weapons in that offense, it all starts with the fifth-year pro taking the snaps.

“He is tough to deal with," Woods aid. "You see him on tape, you cover guys up and then he scrambles. If you bring pressure, then he is making throws. He can throw the ball I think forever and just flicking it. You have to have multiple things defensively to deal with him, but at the same time you know there are going to be a few times that he is going to get loose."

The Browns have faced Allen before, but it was before a number of the current players and coaches were with the team. His second season in the league, in 2019, they won a 19-16 game in Cleveland in which he completed 22-of-41 passes for 266 yards and rushed six times for 28 yards.

That Allen, though, was still early in his development as an NFL player. The Allen the Browns will see in Detroit on Sunday is getting close to being a fully formed perennial MVP candidate.

Allen is third in the league with 2,733 passing yards, and second with 20 touchdowns. He's also in the top 10 in the league in attempts, average gain, touchdown percentage and quarterback rating.

“Just for us on the back end, you just gotta stay in your coverage," cornerback Denzel Ward said. "He’s got a big arm where he can make all the throws on the field. So whether that’s plastering or it’s a little longer play and guys are running deep, we just gotta stay tight in our coverage and try to find a way to eliminate those extra plays in a sense.”

Therein lies the challenge that Allen presents. It's a challenge not entirely unique to him among the elite quarterbacks in the league, but it's certain one that he excels in creating for defenses.

Allen's ability to run around and keep plays alive means a play's not over for those in coverage until the play's actually over. To that end, Browns defensive end Myles Garrett, who played in that 2019 game against Allen and the Bills, sees a familiarity to another quarterback who played within a three-hour drive of Cleveland.

“I think it’s the same thing as when Big Ben was young," Garrett said, referring to former Pittsburgh Steeler Ben Roethlisberger, "having that athletic ability and refusing to go down and looking to slide, looking to find contact and get those extra yards and I think the big thing is if you can’t get him down, take the ball away. Try to rip, try to punch the ball because he’s going to fight for those extra yards. He might have it out there trying to make a play or trying to look for that late read, so just try to get the ball from him if you can’t get him down.”

The difference between Allen and Roethlisberger, though, is that the latter always had a Jerome Bettis, Willie Parker or Le'Veon Bell who was the actual center of his team's running game. Allen's 68 rushing attempts are second to running back Devin Singletary's 92, but his 476 yards and four rushing touchdowns are ahead of Singletary's 394 and two.

Still, in terms of where the focus goes when it comes to the Bills' running game, that falls on Allen. Easily, in fact.

"Yeah, you look at the numbers and the numbers kind of speak for themselves," safety Grant Delpit said, "but as you know in this league anybody could on any different week could be featured. So make sure we do our job in stopping the run game, because that’s something we’ve been struggling with."

However, there's a blueprint of sorts the Browns can draw from as they prepare for Allen. Four weeks ago, they played in Baltimore, where they found themselves matched up with another quarterback who presents his own unique set of challenges in Lamar Jackson.

Jackson was limited to 9-of-16 passing for 120 yards and another 59 rushing yards on 10 carries. While the former MVP had a couple of plays in which his elusiveness and quickness left the defenders grasping at air, those plays weren't at a crippling level.

The Browns would acknowledge the lack of a true one-to-one comparison for the top two members of the quarterback draft class of 2018. They would also say they see enough of one in the other to use them as comparisons in their preparations.

"Of course, there's differences," linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah said. "You don't necessarily just see run plays for Josh Allen, right? Most of the stuff is just scrambling. With Lamar, there's actual run plays set up for him. But, yeah, you can take little things from him. You have to be patient. You can't automatically jump when they pump-fake the ball or you can't necessarily be too quick to think or too quick to move."

If there is one Achilles heel for Allen, it's in the interceptions he throws. His 10 picks are the most by any NFL starting quarterback, and are more than 34 total quarterbacks in the league.

The last three games, in particular, have been bad for Allen. He's had three consecutive games with two picks, with Buffalo having lost the last two to the Jets and, in overtime, the Vikings.

In fact, the second interception Allen threw against Minnesota came in the end zone in overtime to seal the Bills' 33-30 loss.

“Yeah, he’s given away the ball," linebacker Sione Takitaki said. "He tries to extend a lot of plays, so he’s trying to make plays, and when our opportunity is there we just got to make them. But, yeah, it's definitely something that we’re aware of and something we want to capitalize on.”

Contact Chris at ceasterling@theabeaconjournal.com.

On Twitter: @ceasterlingABJ

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Cleveland Browns set to deal with challenge of Bills QB Josh Allen