Burns
Hall of Famer
Browns Survive in Season Opener
Cleveland, OH - Well that was a fun one. The Browns survived their Week 1 game against the rival Pittsburgh Steelers, coming on out on top of the shootout 42-31. Not much defense was played in this game, as both offenses moved the ball at will. There were a couple of factors that led to the Browns coming out victorious though. The first of those being turnovers. It's very hard to win football games when you turn the ball over, and the Steelers learned that lesson very well this week. Big Ben threw 4 INTs in this one, which tarnished an otherwise brilliant game from the veteran QB. Cleveland jumped out on top early, as Jabrill Peppers scored his first TD in a Browns uniform when he took a 54 yard run to the house. Peppers did almost everything in this game, as he accumulated 84 yards rushing, along with 8 tackles on defense. Peppers was known to be versatile, but Browns fans finally got to see what he could really do. The Steelers would answer that first TD with a FG, cutting the lead to 7-3. However, Cleveland would drive all the way down the field again, where starting tailback Isaiah Crowell would punch it in from 2 yards out, making it 14-3. The Browns would score again on their next drive, as Crowell again punched it in for the score, making it 21-3. Crowell was brilliant in this game, running for 169 yards on 15 carries to go along with those 2 TDs. The Steelers would find their rhythm on their next drive, cutting the lead to 21-10, but the injury to Antonio Brown (fractured arm) was definitely a huge part of the Steelers struggling early.
The Steelers started the 2nd half with the ball, but it didn't take long for Christian Kirksey to pick off Big Ben, and take it to the house. This gave the Browns a 28-10 lead early in the 3rd. The game would pretty much pivot around these 11 and 18 point leads as the teams would trade scores from here on out.
This is an excellent start from the Cleveland Browns. They have some things to shore up on defense. Giving up over 500 passing yards is obviously not ideal. However, the defense showed some promise. 4 INTs, a few sacks by Myles Garrett, and shutting down LeVeon Bell were the highlights from this defense. They made stops when the had to, and helped the Browns get the win.
As for the offense, there wasn't much to not like. Kizer managed the game well. He wasn't asked to do much, and was able to lean on the running game to help move the offense down the field. He had a huge throw late in the game to pretty much seal the deal, where he rolled to his right after being flushed out of the pocket, and finding his receiver in the end zone. The running game was very impressive. Crowell hit the holes hard, and was able to pretty much do what he wanted. Duke Johnson went down with an injury, but wasn't missed all that much. Jabrill Peppers added a spark to the offense that I'm not sure the Steelers were ready for. Corey Coleman and Justin Britt were effective, although they didn't have too many opportunities to shine.
Here are the highlights from your Browns huge win over the Steelers:
Overall, this is exactly what needed to happen for Cleveland. They've already won as many games as all of last season. The young players showed promise, and they beat the Pittsburgh Steelers for the first time since 2014. Now, it's on to Baltimore, another division rival, as the Browns look to seize control of the AFC North.
For all things Cleveland Browns, stay tuned to The Dawg Pound.
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