Daily Dawg Tags: On to the regular season!

Spanning the virtual globe to bring you the latest news about the Cleveland Browns and the NFL – these are your Daily Dawg Tags for Friday, Sept. 2.

It is finally over.

The Cleveland Browns finished the preseason on Thursday night with a lackluster performance against the Chicago Bears. None of the key players were injured, which is good, but there is still a lot of work to be done before the opener on Sept. 11.

“The regular season is here. We don’t blink. Obviously, we would have liked to finish a little bit better, but the thing that was fun was watching the first group go out there and get some work,” head coach Hue Jackson said after the game. “It was good to get the first group some work. We have to be a little bit more crisp than what we were, but I thought that was good and then to get them out.

“We are not blinking. I’m excited about going to Philadelphia next week. We have to put the finishing touches on this team over the weekend, and then we will get ourselves ready for Philadelphia.”

Everyone is ready to put the preseason behind them, so let’s start the process by taking a look at the latest news about the Browns and the NFL.

Cleveland Browns news:

Starters play, Browns lose preseason finale

Cleveland Browns wide receiver Josh Gordon has made it this far in his return to the team. Can he make it through one final suspension in good shape?

Browns conclude an uninspiring preseason (ESPN)

Robert Griffin III guided the Cleveland Browns’ starting offense to one touchdown in three possessions in Thursday’s 21-7 preseason finale lossto the Chicago Bears. Griffin was one of the few starting quarterbacks to play in the final exhibition game. The best that can be said about Griffin’s night is that he played and got more time with the starters. In one quarter, he had three drives, scored seven points and went 4-for-8 for 31 yards.

Browns defenders believe discouraging numbers lie (ohio.com)

Outside the team’s Berea headquarters, the Browns defense is buried in negativity. But second-year defensive end Xavier Cooper knows coach Hue Jackson and defensive coordinator Ray Horton have some new wrinkles planned for the Eagles. While everyone else is gnashing their teeth and predicting disaster for the Browns defense, Cooper remains upbeat.

Nice moments for Nassib, Schobert and Ogbah (cleveland.com)

Rookies Carl Nassib and Emmanuel Ogbah are defensive linemen with speed. That’s why there is reason for optimism about these selections. Nassib batted down a pass while Ogbah was credited with his second sack of the preseason.

NFL news:

Barkevious Mingo wreaks havoc on the NY Giants (NESN)

A week of hard work paid off in a big way Thursday for New England Patriots newcomer Barkevious Mingo. Acquired last Thursday in a trade with the Cleveland Browns, Mingo was a defensive dynamo in his Patriots debut, finishing with six tackles and generally making New York Giants quarterback Ryan Nassib’s life miserable in New England’s preseason finale at MetLife Stadium.

Jared Goff finishes preseason on a sour note (ESPN)

In case you were still unsure, the Los Angeles Rams’ final preseason game confirmed it: Jared Goff is not ready. The rookie quarterback and No. 1 overall pick led an impressive touchdown drive to open Thursday’s game against the Minnesota Vikings, but he completed only a quarter of his passes and made a couple of key turnovers through the rest of the first half in the Rams’ 27-25 loss at U.S. Bank Stadium.

Top 10 questions for 2016 NFL season (Real Clear Sports)

The 2016 NFL season kicks off shortly, and as always, there are plenty of questions that can only be answered once the season gets underway. One of the biggest storylines is Tom Brady’s four-game suspension, which might feel like deja vu except that this time Brady is actually going to sit out. Related to the Brady suspension is an overarching point of interest: the rising tension between commissioner Roger Goodell and the players, some of whom are bristling at the league’s exercises of authority. We cover all of the above and more in our Top 10 Burning Questions for the 2016 NFL Season.

10 biggest takeaways from the 2016 preseason (PFF)

With the biggest night of the preseason (in terms of number of games played) now behind us, it’s time to review what we’ve learned from four weeks of exhibition matchups. There were certainly some highs and lows, with major takeaways to keep in mind as we count down to Week 1 kickoff.