BEREA — Quinshon Judkins’ eyes lit up when he saw Green Bay Packers defensive end Micah Parsons getting away from the block of guard Wyatt Teller. There was only one thing for the Browns rookie running back to do in the moment.
So Judkins did what he was trained to do. He delivered a blow to Parsons and knocked him off course as he was heading out into a pass route.
The block got the attention of Parsons, who made sure to let Judkins know he was unhappy about the hit. Judkins, meanwhile, made sure to let him know who delivered the hit.
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“Yeah, he was like, ‘I’m coming for you,'” Judkins recalled Sept. 26 “I was like, ‘Yeah, that was me. That was me.'”
There were a number of big plays Judkins made in the course of the Browns’ 13-10 win over the Packers in Week 3 that were recorded on the stat sheet. There were the 94 rushing yards on 18 carries, and, of course, the 1-yard touchdown run that helped Cleveland tie the score.
Judkins was just as proud of that moment that didn’t get recorded in the official statistics. In fact, there’s no mention of him at all in the play description, which ultimately was an incomplete pass by quarterback Joe Flacco early in the third quarter.
Still, that play showcase an area of Judkins’ game in which he takes as much pride as anything he does with the ball in his hands.
“I would say in pass blocking it’s been such a big thing, especially at my position, it’s always been how I am,” Judkins said. “It’s the mentality that I have when I step on the field. Even when I was at Ohio State, my position coach, coach Locke [Buckeyes running backs coach Carlos Locklyn], he harped and we did a lot of rev set it going one-on-ones with linebackers, so it was super important and just took it to the next level.”
The Browns’ passing game has been, at best, a work in progress through the first three games. A big part of that work in progress has been the protection issues created by a revolving door at tackle because of injuries to starters Jack Conklin and Dawand Jones.
Even had the Cleveland passing game been running at peak efficiency, though, the running backs were going to be used to complement the blocking schemes. Running backs coach Duce Staley even jokingly prayed during minicamp in June that blitz pick-up drills were going be a regular staple of training camp practices.
Judkins may have missed all of training camp because he was unsigned because of his legal issues in Florida. It didn’t prevent the message from getting to him.
“Well, you were able to go back to the college film and also look at how aggressive he was as a pass blocker, as a protector, and he takes pride in it,” Staley said Sept. 26. “So, when I had a chance to meet with him this offseason, OTAs, we were talking through protections, and talking about the mentality with protections, and the approach. And from the chip on Parsons, to the play that you’re talking about, he’s going to be aggressive.
“So, a couple things we got to continue to clean up in the protection, which you always got to clean things up. But as long as they have the mentality, you can coach them.”
That’s going to continue to be a focus as the Browns go to Detroit for a Week 4 game against the Lions. Detroit’s defense, much like both the Packers and Baltimore Ravens the previous two games, has made getting pressure on the quarterback one of its signature features.
The Lions sacked Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson seven times in a Week 3 win. With defensive ends Aidan Hutchinson and Al-Quadin Muhammad coming from both sides, Judkins is likely to find himself again matched up in a situation where he’s going to have to deliver a chip to slow down an oncoming rusher like he did with Parsons.
“We’re playing a good team, good defensive front,” Judkins said. “Those guys are aggressive. They fill gaps. They play disciplined. So that’s a challenge for us this weekend. We got to go out there and showcase and play together and try to do a good job.”
Chris Easterling can be reached at ceasterling@thebeaconjournal.com. Read more about the Browns at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/browns. Follow him on X at @ceasterlingABJ
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Quinshon Judkins calls pass blocking a ‘mentality’ as evidenced by block on Micah Parsons
Reporting by Chris Easterling, Akron Beacon Journal / Akron Beacon Journal
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