tonytalkssports My Take on Sports, particularly the Yankees, Maple Leafs and Browns

Browns Play Is Better In 27-19 Win

The Cleveland Browns came into Indianapolis stinging from a disappointing loss in their home opener against the Cincinnati Bengals. Well, the Browns played much better and earned a 27-19 win over the Colts taking some of the sting out of that opening day loss.

Colt McCoy played very well, looking very mobile and improvising when necessary as evidenced by the touchdown pass to Evan Moore which gave the Browns a 7-6 lead. McCoy was 22-32 for 211 yards, 1 TD and no interceptions. 8 different receivers caught passes from McCoy, which is a positive sign for a team implementing the West Coast offense. The Browns were more committed to the run as Peyton Hillis carried the ball 27 times for 94 yards and 2 TDs. Hillis did lose a fumble but was his usual workhorse self. And when looking at the positives it would be hard not to talk about Josh Cribbs. A 52 yard kickoff return and a 43 yard punt return set up Cleveland scoring drives, the punt return leading to a Hillis 24 yard touchdown run in the 4th quarter that put the game away.

The defense had a very good game yesterday as the defensive line pressured Kerry Collins throughout the day. The rookie linemen, Phil Taylor and Jabaal Sheard, continue to impress. Sheard had a sack and a forced fumble which he recovered. Ahytba Rubin had another solid game with a sack and teaming up with Taylor to make a formidable middle of the defensive line. Usama Young contributed with an interception as the Browns defense prevented the Colts from scoring a touchdown until the waning seconds of the game.

There is still room for improvement. The offense needs to build on yesterday's win. It needs to incorporate Josh Cribbs more in the game plan. Yesterday, there were a couple of plays where they had Cribbs out in the flat and he made Colt defenders miss for some nice gains. There needs to be more of this. I'd also like to see more of Evan Moore particularly down in the red zone. He is a big target and it appears he and McCoy have developed a feel for each other. We also need to see more of Montario Hardesty. It was extremely puzzling as to why Hardesty was brought in on a goal line situation in the 2nd half while Hillis was on the bench. The Browns spent a high draft pick on Hardesty and he could provide a nice change of pace to the bulldozing style of Hillis. But if you are going to run down near the goal line, it needs to be Hillis.

Before we make Super Bowl reservations, we have to realize that this Colt team is reeling right now, particularly on offense. That's not to say that they didn't play well. However, it was a game that they should have won and needed to win. But there is room for improvement. The Dolphins come into Cleveland this Sunday and its a game the Browns can win. But it will not be easy. The Dolphins are winless but have had to play New England and Houston. Cleveland is not a team that can take anything for granted. Hopefully, they will be ready to take it to the Dolphins in front of their long suffering fans.