Another ugly victory

It did not have to be that difficult. It really didn't.

Perhaps it was a case of the Browns playing football Sunday down to the subterranean level of the Jacksonville Jaguars, who hauled a 1-9 record and nine-game losing streak into this one.

Then again, it more realistically was a case of the Browns shooting themselves in the foot time and again. Anyway you slice it, the 27-25 victory down in north Florida was downright ugly. It was not even remotely as close statistically as the final indicates.

Neither side of the football played like they were chasing the playoffs. This is now an 8-3 team sporting a three-game winning streak playing more like a team playing just well enough to win. A team like Jacksonville should have been put away by the third quarter. 

Instead, they propped up the Jags with mistakes and turned what should have been a laugher into high drama that stretched down to the final minutes of regulation. Failure by the Jags to convert a pair of two-point conversions, including one with 2:14 remaining, was the difference.

The performance by the defense, which really hasn't played that badly lately, was expected by the injury-riddled unit that made journeyman quarterback Mike Glennon look highly competent quarterback even though he was making his first National Football League start since 2017.

Operating without DJ Chark, his top receiver, he called on 6-6- 220-pound rookie Dillon Johnson, who  caught four balls for 99 yards and a coverage-blowing 46-yard touchdown pass that gave the Jaguars their second lead at 13-10 in the second quarter.

Time and again, another rookie, running back James Robinson, ran roughshod, gouging out 128 yards and a touchdown, Meanwhile, the Cleveland pass rush, minus Myles Garrett for a second straight game, failed to show up. 

Several times, they actually got close to Glennon. But close isn't nearly good enough in the NFL. All they got on the statue-like journeyman was a couple of hits and a late sack that was wiped out by an iffy personal foul penalty in Olivier Vernon.

But it was the Cleveland offense, which put up some impressive numbers and racked up several time-consuming possessions (they owned the football for nearly 33 minutes), that failed to make the big play when it was essential.

A look at the final stats sheet suggests the Cleveland offense had a terrific day. Jarvis Landry caught eight passes for 143 yards, scoring his -- unbelievably -- first touchdown of the season, That side of the football racked up 459 yards, 207 on the ground. 

Impressive, indeed, Unless you consider sloppy football as part of the equation,

A poorly thrown potential touchdown pass by Baker Mayfield to a wide-open Rashard Higgins in the second quarter and another poor throw to Kareem Hunt in the third quarter resulted in Cody Parkey field goals.

When the Browns grabbed a 17-13 halftime lead on touchdown passes to Landry and tight end Austin Hooper and scoring on their final three possessions of the half, it looked as though the momentum had swung.

That momentum lasted exactly one play. The first play of the second half. Sloppy football. 

Ex-Browns linebacker Joe Schobert punched the ball out of Harrison Bryant's arms after a 12-yard pass reception, opening the door for the Jags, who took their third -- and final -- lead of the afternoon at 19-17 six plays later on Glennon's second touchdown throw, but failed to convert the first of their two-point attempts.

Sloppy football on defense, too. Transition defense took the afternoon off,  too. All they needed was one big play after the fumble recovery by the Jaguars to limit the damage to a field goal. It never arrived.

The Browns immediately rebounded, though, to retake the lead on Parkey's second field goal and upped it to 27-19 on their next possession, driving 90 yards in eight plays, mostly on the ground. Nick Chubb (144 yards) and Hunt (62 yards) chewed up 72 of those yards, Chubb skirting right end for the final yard.

On the previous play, Bryant deprived Mayfield of his third scoring pass of the day. The rookie tight end never had total control of the ball as he landed in the end zone.

Failure to convert on third and fourth down and inches halted another drive in the final quarter, breathing life again back into the Jaguars, who drove 78 yards for the score, Robinson capping the drive from three yards out.

It was at that point where the defense finally made a play, free safety Andrew Sendejo knocking down a two-point pass attempt by Glennon.

Bottom line: If the Browns play a game like this one next Sunday in Nashville against the Tennessee Titans, that winning streak will come crashing down. Contending teams usually don't get away with mistakes. The Browns did Sunday.

They were extremely fortunate they were playing one of the NFL's worst teams. Assuming the COVID-19 situation league-wide does not get worse, the Cleveland coaching staff has a lot to clean up on both sides of the football this week.