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Cleveland’s Defense Could Adjust Some Snap Counts After First Game

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JACKSONVILLE, FL - SEPTEMBER 13: Mason Graham #94 of the Cleveland Browns reacts after a play during the game between the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Cleveland Browns on September 13, 2026 at EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fl. (Photo by David Rosenblum/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

The Cleveland Browns’ defense looked lost to open the season, and looked like a shadow of its former self from when Jim Schwartz was the defensive coordinator. There was hardly any pressure, the tackling was poor, and the playmaking was lacking. I know Myles Garrett is gone, but one player shouldn’t turn a defense to complete trash. Looking at the snap counts, there are a couple areas where some adjustments could be coming next week.

Below, we analyze the snap counts and stats on defense for the Cleveland Browns’ Week 1 game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Defensive Line

PosPlayerPlays% SnapsStats
DLJared Verse3765%3 tackles, 1 assist (4 combined). 1 TFL.
DLIsaiah McGuire3765%2 assists (2 combined).
DLMason Graham3460%3 tackles, 2 assists (5 combined). 1 sack, 2 TFL, 1 QH.
DLAdin Huntington2951%2 assists (2 combined).
DLMike Hall2951%No stats registered.
DLSam Williams2340%1 tackle, 3 assists (4 combined).
DLMaliek Collins2239%1 QH.
DLDerek Barnett1730%No stats registered.
  • We expected a lot from Jared Verse, and we got complete mediocrity, at least for one week. Verse graded out to around a 57.2 by PFF and did not generate any pressures.
  • I thought Mason Graham made one of the bigger impacts defensively. It’s nice to see that right out of the gate after he started a bit slow as a rookie. PFF graded him as a 63.0.
  • One of the biggest surprises with snap counts was how much action Adin Huntington saw. Perhaps we will see that number go down as veteran Maliek Collins gets more acclimated to football again. For what it’s worth, Huntington, Collins, and Mike Hall all graded poorly by PFF.

Linebacker

PosPlayerPlays% SnapsStats
LBCarson Schwesinger57100%3 tackles, 7 assists (10 combined). 1 TFL, 1 QH.
LBQuincy Williams5596%3 tackles, 1 assist (4 combined).
LBEaston Mascarenas-Arnold1933%2 assists (2 combined).
LBWinston Reid12%No stats registered.
  • It was a pedestrian game for Carson Schwesinger, who was around a 52.5 with his PFF grade. Quincy Williams, the new linebacker to the group, received the worst grade on defense with a 29.7. Maybe this is one of the reasons why:

In all the years of watching football film this is a first from a LB in coverage. Zero movement for the first 2s. That's a choice from Quincy Williams (#5) pic.twitter.com/ipKErUGBDn

— Browns Film Breakdown (@BrownsFilmBDN) September 15, 2026
  • Tackling in general was an issue for Cleveland:

The Browns defense had 17 missed tackles against the Jaguars, per @NextGenStats, which only trailed the Denver Broncos for the most in the NFL in Week 1. Cleveland's missed tackle rate (21.8%) was also the third highest.

Todd Monken was asked about the tackling effort on Monday:…

— Daniel Oyefusi (@DanielOyefusi) September 15, 2026

Cornerback

PosPlayerPlays% SnapsStats
CBTyson Campbell57100%3 tackles, 4 assists (7 combined).
CBDenzel Ward57100%1 tackle, 4 assists (5 combined). 1 FF.
CBMyles Harden2544%1 tackle, 1 assist (2 combined).
  • Denzel Ward was the Browns’ top-graded player defensively, grading out to a 90.5. At least one player remained consistent on this defense.
  • Myles Harden seemed to be picked on a bit early. He was one of the Browns’ lowest-ranked defenders on the day.

Safety

PosPlayerPlays% SnapsStats
SRonnie Hickman57100%3 tackles, 5 assists (8 combined).
SGrant Delpit57100%1 tackle, 2 assists (3 combined). 1 pass defended.
SEmmanuel McNeil-Warren1425%1 tackle, 2 assists (3 combined).
  • Last, but not least, one of the surprises in terms of snap counts came at safety, where rookie Emmanuel McNeil-Warren only played 14 snaps (25%). It’s not that I expect him to be an everydown player, but I was envisioning his role being between 40-60% of the snaps each week as a big part of the defense. For the reps he did receive, he graded out to a 69.2, which was the third-highest on defense. It’ll be interesting to see if the team works him more into defensive packages moving forward.
  • Ronnie Hickman did not have a good day. It wasn’t a great day for Grant Delpit either, but he at least made a play on a couple passes.

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