Down their franchise quarterback once again and of course, still missing their best offensive weapon, the Cleveland Browns somehow rallied for a late comeback win. Led by a superhuman performance from Myles Garrett, Cleveland improves to 4-2 with a 39-38 barnburning, wild victory against the Indianapolis Colts. This is only the third time the Cleveland Browns have started 4-2 or better since the team was revived in 1999. The last time came in 2020, which is also when the Browns last reached the playoffs.
How does a team whose quarterbacks haven’t completed 50% of their passes and thrown four interceptions against zero touchdowns manage two clutch victories in as many weeks?
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Are They the NFL’s Gutsiest Team?
Cleveland Browns fans know heartbreak. They know all about the great Bernie Kosar teams in the 1980s who were always foiled at the last second. They know about the team leaving in 1995, only to win a Super Bowl years later while the “new” Browns struggled. Just five-quarters into what was supposed to finally be “their year,” they watched Nick Chubb’s knee get destroyed. They also know that the Cleveland Browns don’t win games like this, and when they do, they don’t do it twice in a row.
A Pair of Improbable Wins
But, win them they have. Last week, the Browns improbably took down perhaps the NFL’s best team the San Francisco 49ers, handing wunderkind quarterback Brock Purdy his first-ever NFL regular season loss. Driving to take the lead, the Browns got two improbable penalties that kept their drive alive. After taking the lead, the 49ers got themselves in position to kick a short field goal… and missed.
A similar situation replayed itself in Indianapolis. Down by five with just seconds to play, Browns PJ Walker was stripped as he wound up to throw, and the Colts recovered the ball. Game over? It would’ve been if not for an illegal contact penalty on Colts DB Darrell Baker Jr. Baker got flagged for the same penalty on the very next play, putting the ball at the one-yard line. Still, it took four plays for the Browns to put the ball in the endzone.
What Cleveland Browns fans know is that, in years past, the team lost both these games. In an alternate universe, 49ers kicker Jake Moody boots it through the uprights, and the Browns drop a 20-19 heartbreaker. Today, the Baker penalty is somehow missed, or Kareem Hunt’s run is somehow stuffed, and Cleveland drops another. Such is the history of football in Cleveland for the last several decades.
These Cleveland Browns Know How to Win Ugly
But neither of those things happened. The Browns number one-rated defense gives up 38 points and lets Colts backup quarterback Gardner Minshew pass for 305 yards and two touchdowns while running for two others. One of the NFL’s best running backs, Jonathan Taylor, started to get his mojo back, rushing for 75 and a score. Cleveland counters this with PJ Walker’s anemic sub-50% completion percentage and 178 yards. They lost their top running back, Jerome Ford, early in the fourth quarter.
Somehow, though, the Browns came out with a victory. It does help when Cleveland’s defense is led by a heroic effort from Myles Garrett. Garrett sacked Minshew twice and forced two fumbles. One of those was recovered for a Browns touchdown. At one point, Minshew dropped back to throw and saw so many Browns defenders rushing at him that he simply threw the ball away before starting his progressions.
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This Browns team is built differently. They expect to win, and they play like it. The swagger Jim Schwartz has brought to the defense is bleeding over into all phases of the game. So, are the Cleveland Browns the NFL’s gutsiest team in 2023? As any Browns fan would tell you: Not yet, there’s still a lot of season to play. But they’re certainly on the shortlist.
What’s Wrong With Watson?
Cleveland Browns franchise quarterback Deshaun Watson’s shoulder is still the looming question hanging over this franchise. Watson played the first couple of drives and was one for five with an interception. Moreover, he didn’t look comfortable even running the offense. He left the game after he was slammed to the turf. He was briefly evaluated for a head injury but soon cleared.
Kevin Stefanski, the Browns head coach, would later say that Watson’s removal was purely precautionary, a curious development. Clearly, Watson’s shoulder was not ready, nor did Watson seem prepared to play.
This is another strange development in what’s already been a murky situation. Initially, Watson was hurt against the Tennessee Titans in Week 3 but played more than a quarter afterward and finished with his best statistical game in Cleveland. Diagnosed day-to-day with a shoulder bruise, Watson was a surprise late scratch during warmups against Baltimore the next week. Expected back after the bye, it was later revealed that the injury was a bruise in his rotator cuff, a much more significant injury. Watson missed the 49ers game in Week 6, and reports said he could be out “much longer.” But almost as quickly, another report conflicted that, saying Watson could be back as early as today for the Colts. Then, the injury became a micro-tear in his rotator cuff. Then it went from one micro-tear to multiple micro-tears.
In the post-game press conference, Stefanski declared Watson is “our starter in Seattle.” But will Watson actually play? And if so, how effective will he be? Stay tuned.
Dustin Hopkins for Cleveland Browns MVP?
For all the justified talk and hype surrounding the Cleveland Browns defense, the team’s best 2023 acquisition may just be kicker Dustin Hopkins. Hopkins was named the AFC’s Special Teams Player of the Week after drilling four field goals against the 49ers last week. He may well get the nod again after putting up another quartet against the Colts. That included a career-long 58-yard boot.
Hopkins came over from the Los Angeles Chargers just before the start of the regular season. He replaced 2022 fourth-round pick Cade York after York had a disastrous preseason. Cleveland fans everywhere still get a bit of anxiety every time they watch their team line up for a field goal after York’s performances during the last half of 2022 and the 2023 preseason. But Hopkins has been steady and is 16-18 on the year so far.
On the Road Again
The Cleveland Browns are on the road again next week for their first back-to-back road games in the 2023 season. They’ll take on the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field. The Seahawks lead the series 13-6 and haven’t lost to the Browns at home since 1989. Cleveland will hope to buck that trend and reach their first 5-2 start since 2020.
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