CLEVELAND — The Browns ran the ball for a season-high 201 yards last weekend in Detroit.
Coach Hue Jackson thinks they can do better.
"I expect more," he said Wednesday. "They'll be the first to tell you that. I think there's more out there for us to do and more to get. We did OK."
With snow, wind and cold temperatures in the forecast for Sunday's game against the Jaguars, Jackson and players stressed they'll need to lean on their ground game. It's also a conducive plan when facing the league's best pass defense.
"That's what it is, AFC North football. You have to be able to run the ball. It's that time of year where you start to run the football. Hopefully, we can run it well," Jackson said. "We have to run it better than what we did in Detroit. I know that. I think our players understand that. This is a good team. We have our work cut out for us."
To be certain, Cleveland's run game this past weekend looked like the one it envisioned at the start of the season. Isaiah Crowell and Duke Johnson Jr. combined for 144 yards and a touchdown while rookie quarterback DeShone Kizer added 57 yards and another score.
Kizer, who had the best game of his young career last weekend, stressed the Browns need to "make sure that our run game drives everything."
"This offense is kind of setup to where with the solid offensive line that we have and the great running backs that we have that the pass is always going to feed off of the run," he said. "We were able to do so in Detroit and look forward to building on it this week."
While Jacksonville has been downright dominant against the pass -- it leads the league in yards allowed per game and sacks (35) -- the Jaguars are 25th against the run. "Two-hundred yards in the NFL is tough to do," left guard Joel Bitonio added. "I think the thing is consistency now."
Jackson emphasized that dynamic moving forward. It's also why he believes the Browns' run game can do better.
"We're getting the chunks and we have gotten some big yards, but just churning out those 4- and 5-yard runs on a consistent basis," he said, "finishing blocks and doing those things I think is where we're headed next."
