CLEVELAND -- The Cleveland Browns had depth at the wide receiver throughout training camp, preseason and first quarter of the 2018 season, but that surplus of talent has been depleted as the injuries continue to stack up.
Sunday’s 38-14 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers at FirstEnergy Stadium was costly, and more than just in the standings, as wide receiver Rod Streater became the latest pass catcher to get hurt, as he was lost for the balance of the year because of a neck injury.
“I’m not going to make excuses,” Browns coach Hue Jackson said. “We’ve got to coach (well). We’ve got to put them in the best situations. We’ve got to help everybody on this team, offensively, defensively and special teams to be as good as we can because nobody cares about what’s going on in Cleveland as far as what players we’re playing with, our injuries or anything like that.
“Doesn’t matter, so we’ll find a way.”
Streater was hurt on a special-teams coverage play early in the loss to the Chargers. He remained on the field for several minutes before walking off toward the sideline, and later, the Browns’ locker room for further evaluation.
After being ruled out for the game with a “stinger,” Streater underwent further tests, and it was revealed that he suffered a fracture in his neck. While a full recovery is expected, Streater will be placed on injured reserve and miss the rest of the year.
“We’ve got to take the guys that are here and put them in position to have success,” Jackson said. “We have some other guys that can contribute, and we’ve just got to use every resource we have in the building to become the best we can be.”
With Streater out of the lineup, the Browns are down to Jarvis Landry, Antonio Callaway, Damion Ratley and newly signed Breshad Perriman as the only receivers on the active roster as the team begins its preparations for this week’s game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium.
Adding a veteran like Perriman became a necessity this week when Rashard Higgins went on the shelf because of a sprained knee ligament experienced in the 12-9 win over the Baltimore Ravens at FirstEnergy Stadium on October 7, and his backup, Derrick Willies, suffered a broken collarbone in last Friday’s practice at team headquarters in Berea.
That inexperience showed up when Callaway and Ratley dropped passes in and near the end zone, respectively, against the Chargers, but that is something the Browns will continue to work through as a staff.
“Sometimes, those are the things that happen,” Jackson said. “You don’t want them to happen. You have to work through those things with them. You’ve got to get them to be a little bit more consistent.
“It’s when the drops are happening. There’s potential touchdowns and third downs and those things, so we just have to work through that the best we can. I’m not going to get down on a player. We’re just going to coach them and try to get them better and get them to respond positively when those opportunities come.”
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