LONDON — There was a lot of ways Browns running back Quinshon Judkins could’ve taken the events at London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium against the Minnesota Vikings.
There was, on the one hand, the individual accomplishments. It was the rookie’s first 100-yard rushing performance (110 yards), he became the first Browns rookie ever to have at least 70 scrimmage yards in each of his first four games and his three runs of 30-plus yards this season are tied for second-most since 2000 by any rookie in the first five weeks of the season.
There was, on the other hand, the Browns’ 21-17 loss to the Vikings. It’s a loss that drops them to 1-4 with a game at the Pittsburgh Steelers in a week.
How does a second-round pick in just his fourth NFL game balance those emotions?
“You don’t,” Judkins said in the locker room afterwards. “Man, I’m a competitor. Regardless of what stats I have personally, it doesn’t matter to me man. I came from Ohio State. Our mentality was to win every single day. Every single day, no matter what it is, you’re competitive in everything you do. So that’s the mentality that I brought here to Cleveland. That’s just my mindset. So for us not to come out with the win today, it definitely is a frustrating feeling.”
That same balance in perspective could describe the day Judkins had against Minnesota. Not so much because of the overall performance, which is exactly what the Browns hoped for when they drafted him No, 36 overall in the second round, but in what it could’ve turned into with only a couple of slight alterations.
The most glaring of those was a 56-yard touchdown run near the end of the first quarter that was negated by not one, but two different holding calls. Both of them were by Judkins’ fellow rookies: Tight end Harold Fannin Jr., whose holding call was accepted, and wide receiver Isaiah Bond.
A lesser one was the illegal formation flag on right tackle Jack Conklin early in the third quarter that negated an 11-yard Judkins run for a first down. That one ended up hurting less because Judkins ran for 14 and 3 yards on the next two plays to pick up the first down, and the Browns ended up taking a 17-14 lead at the end of the drive.
Those flags, though, were part of the overall vibe of the day in Judkins’ mind.
“Man, I think, like I said earlier, it’s just frustrating because those are things that you can correct as a football team,” Judkins said. “But believe in your teammates, believe in everything that we have as our mindset as a whole. So it’s a next play mentality. So next play, forget about it. My teammates do a lot of great things, so I always believe in them.”
The Browns’ best path to offensive success starts with Judkins’ overall performance against the Vikings being somewhat close to the norm. That’s always been central to coach Kevin Stefanski’s offensive philosophy, in part of everything else it sets up.
Thr fact the Browns are still getting rookie quarterback Dillon Gabriel established in that role adds to the importance. While Gabriel didn’t have a spectacular game against Minnesota, he was still good enough to give them a chance to win on that specific day.
“Anytime we can establish the run, there’s confidence in that,” Gabriel said. “I’m harping on, maybe saying it maybe too much, but when you run the ball effectively it sets up a lot of things. You can kind of have everything at your disposal when you are in manageable down-and-distances. Obviously it sets a lot of things up. And he played his butt off. He’s a guy we rely on. I think the world of him. He’s a guy who is a workhorse, and I don’t see that changing.”
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