Browns eliminated from playoff contention with loss to Saints

Cleveland hosted New Orleans in frigid conditions on Saturday. After the Browns loss, they will officially be iced out of the playoffs for the 19th time in the past 20 seasons.

The Saints won after coming back from a 10-point second-quarter deficit. New Orleans (6-9) has a slim chance of making the postseason while Cleveland (6-9) is no longer in play for a postseason berth thanks to a stacked AFC.

Despite fielding a top-ten rushing unit and facing a unit in the bottom ten in rushing defense, Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski put the ball in QB Deshaun Watson's hands more than was to be expected in a game where the wind chill had it feeling like it was well below zero degrees on the field.

Color commentator Jay Feely questioned Stefanski's play calling, wondering during the broadcast why the Browns weren't attacking a Saints weakness with a strength of his team.

Cleveland ran the ball 34 times while Watson had 31 pass attempts and was also sacked twice. He completed less than half of his passes, finishing the day 15-of-31 for 135 yards with a rushing touchdown and an interception.

New Orleans, by comparison, had 15 pass attempts and 39 rush attempts.

Both teams gained over 100 yards rushing, with the Saints averaging 3.9 yards per carry and the Browns averaging 3.6 yards. Cleveland wasn't having as much success as anticipated against the Saints' rush defense, but Stefanski's stubborn play-calling is part of the reason the Browns are officially out of playoff contention.

The only thing more brutal than the conditions Saturday is the franchise's history since its return in 1999. The team has two playoff appearances and will have to wait for 2023 to perhaps get a third.

All Browns fans wanted this Christmas was to finish the season playing meaningful games. Instead, only reindeer games and a stocking full of coal awaits.