After a touchback, Quinn brings his near-perfect quarterback rating back out onto the field. Can he keep it going?
FIRST DRIVE (BROWNS): Quinn starts off by finding Braylon Edwards, quiet in the first half, for a quick 15 yards to the Browns 35. Nice start.
After a one-yard run by Lewis, Quinn hits Charles Ali with a flare, but that doesn’t work either, creating a third-and-eight.
This next play brought a smile to my face: facing a blitz, Quinn is pressure, and dances past a leaping tackler. He throws up a little duck to a wide-open Donte Stallworth, who grabs the pass and runs out of bounds 19 yards downfield. The Browns have it in Denver territory.
The Browns call time out as they’re unhappy with the defense at 12:30 left in the third.
After the timeout, the Browns put Cribbs in the backfield, who takes the direct snap and runs right. He makes things happen again, this time for 27 yards! Cribbs runs out at the Broncos 19. First down Browns.
Quinn scrambles on first down, and gets just three and sets up a second-and-seven. Lewis gets nothing on second down, even losing a couple, setting up a third-and-nine from the Broncos 16.
Quinn throws it to K2 before the receiver is ready, and the Browns will have to try to kick the field goal.
Dawson comes in and nails the 34-yard field goal. The Browns burned up about five minutes on that drive.
BROWNS 23 BRONCOS 10
SECOND DRIVE (BRONCOS): The Broncos start off strong, but get some more bad luck.
Cutler knows he’ll have to move the Broncos quickly, and that running won’t be the answer. He hits Eddie Royal for 16, and Scheffler for 24 around a four-yard run. That takes the Broncos to the Browns 28, but Scheffler is hurt on the play.
The Broncos try to run on first and ten, but Hillis is buried a yard deep. So Cutler goes to the air again for ten yards to the Browns 19, creating a third and short. Hillis converts it right up the middle to the 15.
Hillis runs at Rogers again and gets five to the ten. Of more concern, though, is that Rogers is down on the field holding his wrist, in obvious pain.
With Rogers out, Cutler tries to hit Brandon Marshall in the end zone on 3rd-and-ten. McDonald breaks it up very nicely.
Prater comes in to kick the field goal and nails it.
Rogers is going to the locker room. Uh-oh.
BROWNS 23, BRONCOS 13
THIRD DRIVE (BROWNS): Cribbs makes things interesting again, taking the ball halfway deep in the end zone and running all the way out to the Browns 29.
The Browns don’t start off well, with a one-yard run by Lewis and an incompletion creating a third-and-nine. But on third down, K2 comes through again as Quinn finds him for 15 yards again. Clutch.
Rogers had a stinger, and has come back out to the Browns sideline.
Quinn drops and hits Lewis again, this time for six to mid-field. Quinn’s passer rating is still high, at 117.5.
Two runs don’t to much, as runs by Lewis and Wright get three yards, to create a fourth-and-one at the Broncos 47.
With the crowd chanting for the team to go for it, the hand the ball off quickly, and Lewis squirts through the right side for the first down. It didn’t look like he was going to make it, but everything is working for the Browns tonight.
With a first down at the Broncos 47, Chud sticks with the run. Lewis gets another two running right.
Time is burning off the clock, with about a minute left in the third.
Braylon Edwards has a false start, which turns the second-and-seven to a second-and twelve.
The final play of the quarter is a short pass to Heiden to the Broncos 41, to create a third-and-six.