The biggest problem with the fact that the Falcons were able to shut down the Browns running game? We've got virtually nothing to fall back on failing that. 

A lot of the reason the Browns' offense was ineffective this week had nothing to do with the Falcons' defense directly. Hillis fell far short of his usual totals because he was banged up in practice earlier in the week, and much of the problem with the passing game largely resulted from ankle injuries suffered by both Wallace and Delhomme. 

However, you have to give credit to Atlanta defensive end John Abraham, who was absolutely fantastic on Sunday.

Abraham essentially had Joe Thomas for lunch. I've never seen Thomas play so terribly. Abraham had his number, and boy, did he take advantage of that. He got Thomas for two sacks, one of which resulted in the hit that took Seneca Wallace out of the game. He was also the player whose pressure forced Jake Delhomme's second interception and essentially assured the Falcons a victory. 

Abraham would say after the game that he had noted a weakness against the inside rush and the bull rush by the Browns O-line and used that to his advantage (though it should be noted that it was actually an outside rush that took Wallace out of the game).

A frustrated and slightly embarrassed Thomas gave credit where it was due after the game and implied that Abraham was maybe the second best pass rusher in the game after Dwight Freeney. I don't think the Browns quarterbacks would argue that. 

Combine a pass rush that effective with the fact that the Falcons were able to virtually completely shut down the Browns' running game, and there was just nothing left for the Cleveland offense to work with.

7. Defensive Coaching In Week Five

The biggest criticism of the Browns coaching staff was on the other side of the ball this week: why didn't anyone challenge Biermann's interception? The Browns said they were confident the call was correct, but it seems like it would have been worth a timeout under the circumstances to be sure of that. 

On the defensive side of the ball: Props to Rob Ryan for making the necessary adjustments in his defense to avoid the same pitfalls that befell the Browns D over the past few weeks. 

I still saw too much man coverage in situations where the cornerback was over matched. What was Ryan thinking sending an injured Sheldon Brown into single coverage against Roddy White? Predictably, White ended up in the end zone. The team just doesn't use enough nickel or dime coverage in situations where it seems clear that they lose in a one-on-one match-up. 

Overall though, Ryan did use his secondary much more efficiently and accurately than he had prior to this game this season, and he also finally put together an effective pressure package that allowed the pass rush to succeed significantly where it had failed so miserably in recent games. 

Give Ryan some serious credit - his defense did its job. Their efforts should have been enough for a win.

8. Game Balls On Defense: Scott Fujita, Eric Barton, and More

Big ups to Scott Fujita, who forced a fumble again this week, just as he did last week against Cincinnati. He stripped Matt Ryan on third down in Atlanta's first series of the second half (Kenyon Coleman would recover the ball),  and thus put the Browns on the 24 with the ball and a very short field for their offense. 

In addition to forcing the fumble, Fujita logged four tackles and a sack on the day, and played an instrumental part in the success of the pass rush on countless other plays. 

Other game balls this week should go to Barton for his key stop on third down of Jason Snelling for no gain on third and 1, and to TJ Ward, who blocked Matt Bryant's third field goal attempt. 

Credit should also be given to Ahtyba Rubin, who had six tackles, and Marcus Benard who had a sack and was another integral part of the success of the pass rush this week. 

9. Key Points Going Forward For The Browns Defense

While we saw a lot of improvement this week, there are still a few areas in which the Browns need to continue their efforts to get better going forward:

1. Stop trying to go with single coverage in match-ups where the defender is likely to be beat. 

This was a problem in Baltimore for Eric Wright, a problem for anyone who got stuck covering T.O. in Cincinnati, and a problem for Sheldon Brown while covering Roddy White this week. This shouldn't be this difficult to fix. If the cornerback is overmatched, go to double coverage. Rob Ryan appears to realize this only about 50% of the time. 

2. The Browns have to figure out how to stop both the pass and the run on any given Sunday.

There's always a piece that isn't working. Either the opponent's passing game is flattening the Browns' defense, as was the case in Baltimore (to name just one example), or the opponent's ground game is pounding the Browns' defense, as was a big problem this week. 

On a team with a stronger offense that puts up more points consistently each week, a defense can afford to be a bit lacking against either the pass or the run. But for a team which doesn't typically post high scores like the Browns, dependence on the defense is significant enough that it must be able to stop both the pass and the run consistently.

10. A Tough, Tough Loss

All of the Browns' losses this year have been tough to take. They've been in every game. They haven't been blown out once. They've taken a lead into the second half only to watch it melt away at the end four times now. Yet this week's loss to the Falcons may have been the most difficult one to swallow so far. 

The Browns were coming off a huge win and had momentum and confidence on their side. They were facing a team against whom they matched up well. They adjusted and improved in many areas where they needed to do so, and looked as though they might be well on their way to a win in the first half of the game. 

Like most folks, I believe that if Wallace hadn't been hurt, the Browns would have rolled to a win. There's just nothing more frustrating than playing a pretty good game only to find yourself taken down by bad luck. Okay, okay, bad luck and Jake Delhomme's apparent lack of understanding that you're supposed to throw the ball to people on YOUR team, not the other team. 

This was a tough loss for the Browns and their fans, and is particularly deflating going into Pittsburgh next week, where the Browns need all the momentum and confidence going in that they can get. 

It's tough to be happy about any element of this game since the final result was so frustrating, but we should all try to take some solace in the improvements we saw this week.