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Monday Night Observations

If the NFL insists on calling this many penalties, and teams like the Jets, Dolphins and Giants play like they're in NBA tank mode, even people in the US will top watching standalone games in real time. Truth be told, I don't know how you people do it anymore.

Keep in mind this was a game that went largely the way I needed it to go with no Jets on my rosters, shares of Baker Mayfield and Nick Chubb and a layup Super Contest pick of the Browns.

Baker Mayfield had good stats thanks to Odell Beckham's one-handed sideline catch and an 89-yard TD that was mostly yards after the catch. But Mayfield wasn't especially accurate for much of the game, missing Beckham high and throwing behind his backs on short routes. Even so, Mayfield played like star, and by that I mean, as though he were one, something that goes a long way in a world of check-downs and holding the ball too long in the face of a rush. He moved well, kept his focus down the field and was always on the attack. We saw him play better last year, but possibly his best asset, his mentality, is still the same.

Beckham is a generational receiver, the only one (well maybe DeAndre Hopkins) who makes that one-handed catch on the sideline, and Hopkins would have been caught from behind on the slant.

Jarvis Landry and Mayfield just aren't a good fit. Landry belongs in a dink and dunk offense with Ryan Tannehill, not poor man's Brett Favre.

Nick Chubb ran hard, but there weren't a lot of holes, though his involvement in the passing game was encouraging.

Trevor Siemian's play devolved below that of an invertebrate, perhaps down to the level of a single-celled organism (0.5 YPA on six passes) before he was injured. Luke Falk replaced him and looked sharp, and that includes a drive-killing drop by Josh Bellamy. Good luck next week in New England, though.

Le'Veon Bell ran well despite modest production (the whole defense keyed on him) and remains one of the league's premier workhorse backs. He had 21 carries and caught all 10 of his targets.

Myles Garrett was a monster, generating three sacks, a roughing the passer penalty and the hit that knocked Siemian out of the game.