CLEVELAND -- You knew the Browns were not exactly laser-focused on the game when they were flagged for lining up off-sides...on the opening kickoff!



The guilty party was a young man named Denzel Rice.



This is not to pick on him. So many men in orange helmets made so many ill-advised, unfocused mistakes. That's how they were embarrassed, 38-14, by the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday.

"We didn't come out and play the way we've been playing," admitted Browns coach Hue Jackson. "I take fully responsibility for that."

Now, will the Browns learn from this football spanking?



Too many with the Browns seemed far too giddy after their 12-9 overtime victory against Baltimore last Sunday.



There was talk about the playoffs. There were hosanna's for rookie quarterback Baker Mayfield.

There was fun with the "rally possum," and other gimmicks.



There even was a practice visit by rapper Snoop Dogg.



After saying it was "great" that Steelers fan Dogg stopped by, Jackson added: "There are going to be a lot of people who want to come on this wagon when the wagon gets rolling. And we're going to circle the wagons. I know that because I didn't see any of these people the last two years."



All of this "bandwagon" talk seemed rather pretentious for a team that had not won two games in a row since 2014.



Now, it sounds downright silly.

Jackson was tight-lipped. He kept saying, "We didn't play well."

OUT-PLAYED, OUT-COACHED



The Chargers not only out-played the Browns, their coaching staff came up with schemes that confused the home team.



Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield looked confused by the various Charger defensive formations. By the middle of the second quarter, Mayfield was sacked four times. He had some passes dropped. But overall, it was the first time in his fourth pro game that Mayfield seemed like a rookie.

Mayfield was 22-of-46 passing for 238 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. He was sacked five times.



Passes sailed high. He held on to the ball for too long. And he didn't get much help from his teammates.

Near the end of the game, he sat on the bench with the same distant, sad stare of many Browns past quarterbacks. He obviously was wondering how it all went wrong.



The Browns honored future Hall of Famer Joe Thomas during the game. He wore Mayfield's No. 6 jersey. Watching the game, I kept thinking how Thomas had so many dismal Sundays just like this. He blocked for a quarterback feeling overwhelmed on a team that looked severely undermanned.



NOT SAME OLD BROWNS



This is not to say the Browns in 2018 are destined to be the same old Browns.



The team has improved on so many levels. Their record is 2-3-1. This is the first time they've been blown out in a game in 2018. But the NFL is an unforgiving place, especially for teams still trying to figure out how to win.



The Browns' defense seemed a bit full of itself after shutting down Baltimore last week. Philip Rivers quickly took care of that. The veteran quarterback sliced up that defense.



So many will scream about an obvious false start on Chargers left tackle Russell Okung. I still can't understand how the officials missed a 310-pounder standing up and jumping well before the ball was snapped -- but they did.



Rivers threw a 29-yard TD pass to Tyrell Williams on that play.



But the officials had no real impact on this game, given how the Browns played with so little passion or attention to details.

The Browns' defense was nearly helpless against the run, the Chargers rushing for 246 yards -- 6.8 per carry.



Rivers seemed obsessed with beating the Browns. He still remembers the 2016 Christmas Eve loss to Cleveland on this same field. All week, Rivers told the media and his teammates how the Browns were a good, talented team.



Then he destroyed the Browns' defense, which never could figure out how to stop the run or pass.



WELCOME TO REALITY



The Browns lost middle linebacker Joe Schobert to a hamstring injury. A Pro Bowler and defensive unit captain, Schobert had played every snap since the opening day of 2017 -- until he left the game in the third quarter.



The Browns keep losing receivers to injuries. By the end of the game, the only healthy ones were Jarvis Landry, Antonio Callaway and Damion Ratley.

Mayfield kept throwing the ball to Landry and Callaway. He couldn't connect. They were targeted 19 times and combined to catch four passes for a grand total of 20 yards.



It's a safe guess that newly signed receiver Breshad Perriman will be in uniform next week.

While the media dwelled on the thin group of receivers, the defense was a disaster. That had nothing to do with injuries.



In the meantime, the Browns better study video of what the Chargers did to confuse Mayfield. And the tape will show some horrible tackling on defense, along with huge holes for running backs to exploit.

"It's disappointing," Jackson said.

If coaches consider games like this to be teaching moments, then a lot of players need to stay after school for more work.