Despite Key Injuries on Defensive Tackle, DC Mike Rutenberg Says the “Engine is Revved Up” to Go
· Yahoo Sports
BEREA, Ohio — The Cleveland Browns defense is slowly but surely climbing its way back up in the rankings after a season opening loss to the Jaguars, where the defense gave up 34 points.
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The past three games, the Browns have averaged giving up 20.3 points, and all three resulted in wins.
Overall, the Browns rank 23rd in points allowed at 23.8 per game.
The Browns finished the 2025 season ranked as the No. 4 defense in the NFL, despite finishing 5-12. However, after four games in 2026, the Browns are currently ranked No. 23, giving up 348.5 yards a game and are 3-1.
The Browns will be a bit thin at defensive tackle with Mason Graham (knee, ankle) and Mike Hall (ankle) ruled out. Both players have not practiced this week after being injured against the Steelers and were ruled out on Friday.
"It's next man up," Todd Monken said. "That's what you have the practice squad for. It happens to every team in the NFL. It's a marathon and it's going to take everybody on the roster, so when they get their number called, they are ready."
Without two of their top three interior defensive linemen, Maliek Collins and Adin Huntington will likely get the start. Both had sacks against the Steelers and Huntington had a second sack negated by a penalty.
Defensive coordinator Mike Rutenberg said he is confident in the defensive line as a group.
“Since we’ve been together as a defensive line and as a team, we go as our engine goes,” Rutenberg said. “So that engine is revved up, no matter what. And that’s the great part about Jac (Jacques Cesaire) and the D-line coaches and the men in that room.
“Like, that’s the Bugatti, man. And that thing goes and goes and goes, and there will never be an excuse or a reason for it to not go. And we feed off that. Not only the way they play, but their personality.”
Defensive tackle Kalia Davis was signed as an unrestricted free agent from the 49ers, but he suffered a quad injury early in training camp and spent the first four weeks on injured reserve. Davis was designated for return this week and practiced for the first time on Wednesday, but did not practice on Thursday or Friday and was ruled out. He would have to be activated off of injured reserve to play.
Sam Kamara, Zion Logue and Chris Williams are on the practice squad and could be elevated for the game.
Rutenberg likes the depth on the line.
“This league is so hard, right, because of the ups and downs and the lefts and rights,” he said. “It’s so cool to see when guys get opportunities to take advantage of that opportunity. And it’s a credit to them. It’s a credit to the work that Sam Kamara, Adin Huntington and Mike Hall Jr. coming back last week, what Mason was doing,
“I could keep going,” he said. “It’s just a credit to the work that they put in. Everybody sees the games and then the practices, but it’s the behind the scenes. It’s the preparation, it’s the meeting time, it’s the detail in individual and walkthrough. And those guys are built like that. And that’s why they’re having success.”
The Browns lost Graham on the first series against the Steelers and yet had five sacks in the game, by five different players.
“I had confidence in them before that game and we’re doing a great job of rushing together,” he said. “Not only the D line, but everybody who is involved in the pressures, and they work really hard at it during the week. And rushing is about coordination.
“Four equals one, or however many we’re bringing,” he said. “And that’s something those guys take pride in, in the work they put in. It’s constantly working on it. In individual, you see them when we’re in special teams working pressures in pads, and it’s just awesome to see. And when you have success, you want to continue to build on it, but you go back to the fundamentals of what’s important. Rushing is one, coordinated rushing and executing the plan.”
After the Jaguars game, the Browns have been playing more man to man coverage, which has coincided with the three game winning streak.
Monken credited Rutenberg for the adjustments made after the first game.
“He’s done a great job, and the staff has done a great job,” Monken said. “I think we learned our lesson at Jacksonville, we’re not just going to be able to be stagnant and not be aggressive.”
In the Jaguars game, the defense allowed scores on six of the first seven possessions. Trevor Lawrence passed for 245 yards and four touchdowns with a 150.6 passer rating. The Browns played zone 80 percent of the time in the secondary.
By contrast against the Steelers, the Browns played man coverage on 73 percent of Aaron Rodgers’ dropbacks, according to Next Gen Stats, which was the highest rate by a team this season.
Pro Bowl cornerback Denzel Ward said he likes to play man coverage and appreciates the trust that Rutenberg has in the secondary.
“I think that just goes to show the type of respect and trust that they got in us as players out there playing man coverage and you know that we're able to go and play that at a high level so it definitely, it's it's a good thing,” he said. “It's a good thing to do and definitely grateful every time you call in so I enjoy playing it. I joke about it, but I do enjoy playing man to man.”
Rutenberg said every week is a different game plan and the goal is to put the defense in the best position to win.
“We’re all learning and progressing through the season, it is week to week to week to week in the NFL, and you guys know that. You guys have been covering the NFL. I’ll steal Monk’s (Monken’s) line that it’s constantly under construction. And the truth is each little week is a season, right?
“Because this thing is a marathon, it’s a grind,” he said. “And every week you’re trying to find that winning edge. You’re trying to find that winning margin. You’re trying to eliminate the things that can hurt you, build on the things that can help you, and week to week finding your players’ superpowers, finding what can make your players go, what can make your coaches go, and then building on that week to week and then having the humility to say, ‘oh, that didn’t go as we thought, let’s work it back to this way.’ And it’s a credit to our players for constantly trying to find those inches in their game.”
Carson Schwesinger said the defense will continue to get better, as long as the group executes as a unit.
“I think you look at every week, it comes down a lot to execution and we play with violence and we play with a whole lot of effort and running to the ball.
“When you have that, a lot of it just comes down to execution,” he said. “Whether it's certain patterns or just your job and coverage and things like that and just hone in on the execution is where we hope to continue to.”
Jared Verse said the defense is still coming together as a unit in a new system.
“It was just kind of realizing who we are,” Verse said. “I think we got out of place that first game. We didn't do the things necessary to do that, to get that win.
“I think from then on it's just been work,” he said. “Every time we go on the practice field there's a very big intent on what we have to do.”
Extra Points
Seven Ruled Out: The Browns had seven players ruled out for Sunday’s game, besides Graham and Hall, including WR Tylan Wallace (knee), G Teven Jenkins (back). TE Carsen Ryan, QB Dillon Gabriel and DT Kalia Davis.
Gabriel and Davis have not been activated off of injured reserve, as of yet. The Browns have 21 days to activate one or both or they will remain on injured reserve for the season.
The Jets have ruled out RB Breece Hall and WR Adonai Mitchell.