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Joe Buck said it perfectly tonight when he mentioned how Case Keenum won’t win you too many games, but he also won’t lose you any either. He is smart with the ball, and will get the job done when needed. Keenum did exactly that tonight by going 19 of 31 passing, for 199 yards and tossing 1 touchdown in a 17-14 victory over the Denver Broncos. Keenum spread the ball around nicely as he hit 10 different receivers.
The real game changer tonight for the Browns was D’Ernest Johnson who ran for 146 yards, on 22 attempts while scoring once. In the absence of Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt the Browns needed a playmaker in the backfield to take the pressure off of Keenum, and Johnson did exactly that. Also, with Hunt out for a long period of time, Johnson looks like the perfect solution to step in as the second back.
Teddy Bridgewater rebounded from a slow first half to finish the night with 187 yards passing and 2 touchdowns. He went 23 of 33 passing and managed not to get sacked a single time. The Broncos seemed determined to pass on the Browns as they only called 12 designed run plays all night.
The Browns came out fast and furious as they drove down the field with little restrain to stat the game. The Browns took the opening possession of the game 75 yards in just 5 plays to score a touchdown using just 2:40 off the clock. Johnson rushed the ball 3 times for 34 yards on the drive including the 4 yard touchdown run as Cleveland looked sharp.
The real story of the first half for Cleveland however, was their defense that held the Bronco’s to under 100 total yards and also forced a rare turnover as John Johnson III picked off Teddy Bridgewater in the endzone. They also held the Bronco’s to 0-5 on third down in the half as well.
The Bronco’s also lost their best playmaker on defense in the first half as Von Miller went down towards the tail end of the opening half. The Browns managed to score on their second drive of the night as well, with a 53-yard field goal by Chase McLaughlin.
The Browns would have a chance to extend it to 13-0 late in the first half, but the 41-yard field goal attempt was blocked by Denver. It was the first miss of the year for McLaughlin.
Down 10-0 to start the second half, the Bronco’s were desperate for points and they got them with a beautiful 13 play, 79 yard touchdown drive that took 7:35 off the clock and kept the Browns offense on the sidelines. Melvin Gordon would punch it in as he took a dump off pass 8 yards across the goal line to make it 10-7.
The Browns got the ball back and immediately began a long drive of their own to answer. It would take 13 plays and 75 yards over 6:54, almost the identical number of yards, plays and time Denver took to score. The Orange and Brown got their points on a 1 yard pass to fullback Johnny Stanton IV from Keenum. The drive was kept alive on a fourth and 2 when Keenum scrambled for the first down to the goal line on the play before the touchdown. It was a risky call by Kevin Stefanski, but it paid off as the Browns went up 17-7 to close the third quarter.
In what seemed to be the trend of the second half, the Bronco’s would eventually answer with another long scoring drive themselves. This time going 17 plays for 80 yards in 6:14. They would convert a fourth and short from inside the Browns 11 at one point as well. Eventually capping it off with a touchdown as Teddy Bridgewater passed to Javonte Williams to the left for 10-yard touchdown. This cut the lead to 17-14 with 5:17 left in the game.
The Browns would hold on to win the game as Johnson couldn’t be stopped as he salted the game away.
GAME BALLS CAN BE FOUND ON PAGE TWO
