CLEVELAND, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – The Browns left Baltimore with a win and a few bumps and bruises, including quarterback Deshaun Watson.
Here’s our top Brownie Bites from the sixth victory Monday of the season.
Waiting game – The Browns are waiting on MRI results for at least three players who suffered injuries in Sunday’s 33-31 win at Baltimore – quarterback Deshaun Watson, cornerback Denzel Ward and safety Juan Thornhill. Watson left M&T Bank Stadium with a walking boot on his left ankle. “I don't have those MRI results just yet on our guys, but we'll see where we're when Wednesday rolls around,” head coach Kevin Stefanski said. Watson suffered the injury late in the second quarter and went to the locker room early before returning in the second half to complete all 14 passes for 134 yards and a touchdown while rushing for 18 more yards, including a critical 16-yard scramble to the Baltimore 39 on the final drive with less than two minutes to play. “He's played in a lot of big games in his life, high school, college pros,” Stefanski said. “He knows what's required of him. So I think he looks forward to all these games on the schedule and we know what it means when you're playing an AFC North opponent. We know what that entails. We know what's required, how physical it's going to be, those type of things. I think Deshaun, like all of our players, are excited about that opportunity.” Watson also rushed in for a two-point conversion while playing through the injury. “He breaks tackles from D lineman that sometimes I'm not able to break. So, I feel like he's pretty tough,” running back Jerome Ford said. Watson missed three games due to a right rotator cuff strain suffered September 24 and was forced to leave in the first quarter on October 22 after aggravating it. Thornhill suffered a calf injury and Ward, who cleared concussion tests Sunday, was sidelined due to a neck injury. Both players did not return against the Ravens.
Keep pushing – There were about a dozen plays that were key to the Browns overcoming deficits of 14 points three times and 15 once Sunday in Baltimore, but Jerome Ford’s 12-yard run that saw everyone in orange and brown get his back and push him forward with about 90 seconds remaining stands out. “I like effort plays,” Stefanski said. “We coach effort. We talk about effort. We talked about that game was going to require a 60 minutes effort and to see all those guys, especially Elijah [Moore’ in the back. His teammates got a kick out of that one.” It also exemplifies what this Browns team is all about. “We got up to the second level and kind of got to a stalemate and all I could think was hold onto the ball and keep my feet turning,” Ford said. “And then out of nowhere I feel a push and I feel a bigger push and I'm just in the pile, the raven's in there ripping at the ball, I'm just holding onto the ball and it's like I'm holding on and I'm like, is the play going to be over? They still pushing and eventually we went down and you see it on film and it's like, man, that was a real great play.” Ford ran for 107 yards against the Ravens No. 1 run defense and that run helped set up the game-winning field goal.
Hopkins still hot – Dustin Hopkins kicked the Browns to 6-3 with a 40-yard field goal as time expired. Although he missed a PAT following Greg Newsome II’s 34-yard interception return for a touchdown that would have tied the game at 31, Hopkins continues to come up big in the biggest moments. “He's been reliable. He's a trustworthy guy. He works very hard at his craft,” Stefanski said. “Nice having a veteran that - we trust him. He knows that we trust him. So really just trustworthy guy that you know is going to do his job.” Hopkins leads the NFL with 24 field goal makes and points with 86. Hopkins is also tied with Matt Gay with seven kicks of 50 or more yards.
First pick – The injury to Ward saw cornerback Mike Ford Jr. have to step in and he stepped up in a big way. First with the Browns trailing 17-9, Ford knocked Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson out of bounds to stop him a yard shy of the first down. Baltimore wanted a flag but didn’t get one. “I felt as if he was still in bounds,” Ford said. “I feel like he didn't get a clear foot out of bounds. He had not let up yet. When I was looking at it and I was coming down to make the hit, it's kind of as if he had lowered his shoulder on me a little bit. So, it was more so, like, I just felt like were playing football.” On the next play, Ford picked Jackson off, his first career interception. “Anytime that you're out there, we want to at least try and get that ball back to our offense, take the ball away, stop them from getting points,” Ford said. “So it's no different than any other drive. It's just more so right now, it means a little bit more because they got the opportunity to double dip. So we just go out there and we're like, as every other drive, let's go make a play. And it just so happened my number was called and I was able to be there for my team.” Defensive end Za’Darius Smith quickly grabbed the ball from Ford after the turnover. “I was like, man, it's the first one. Let's celebrate a little bit,” Ford said. “Then I seen Za'Darius and he's like, give me the ball, give me the ball. I'm like, all right, hand him the ball so that I can have that in the office and then just go celebrate with my team. Bring a little energy out there for the guys.”
Bouncing back – The Browns trailed for all but 40 seconds Sunday in Baltimore, yet they found a way to win, again. “Pretty much ever since I got here, coach been preaching on playing all four quarters and being tough and resilient,” Jerome Ford said. “And we kind of fall in and rally behind that and we try to prove them right and show that we're a tough, resilient team. And like you say, if there are downs left and there's time left, you still got a chance.” The latest uphill climb started on the second play of the game when Ravens safety Kyle Hamilton batted Watson’s pass, grabbed it and ran 18 yards for a pick-6 and a quick 7-0 Ravens lead. Cleveland trailed 14-0 in the first quarter, 17-3 in the second, 24-9 in the third and then 31-17 in the fourth after James Proche muffed a punt return. Deficits, turnovers and inopportune penalties can’t stop the Browns. “I just think nobody's perfect. Guys are going to make mistakes. I know I make them,” Stefanski said. “You just can't dwell on them. You have to move on. And I think that was very early on, we had to do that. We put ourselves in a hole. Credit to them, obviously. They've started fast in a bunch of games and certainly at home they've done that. That was not our intention to get behind early, and we did. But I never sensed from our players, I never sensed from our coaches really anything where they were concerned about what was coming next. They just knew that we had to just hunker down and do our job. But that's what the team, I think that's what the leaders on the football team kind of set forth. They set that leadership example.”
Injury report – As noted above, the Browns await test results on Watson (ankle), Ward (neck) and Thornhill (calf). Stefanski also said “We’ll see” and “not sure” regarding right tackle Dawnd Jones’ health and availability this week. As for possibly bringing offensive lineman Michael Dunn back from injured reserve, “I'm not exactly sure where we'll go with the roster, but he's getting better and better,” Stefanski said.
