2024-10-07 02:45:04
LANDOVER, Md. — The Browns were at a crossroads Sunday afternoon as they stared at the 1-3 start they had gotten off to through September. A win at the red-hot Washington Commanders would’ve been the thing to at least begin the turn back down the right path.
That would’ve been nice, but it didn’t happen. Instead, the Browns continued many of the miscues and mistakes that have plagued them over the first quarter of the season in 34-13 rout by the Commanders.
Cleveland continued its losing streak, which reached three games, and fell to 1-4. On the other side, Washington extended its win streak to four games to improve to 4-1.
Quarterback Deshaun Watson continued to look pedestrian at best, completing 15 of 28 passes for 125 yards with a late touchdown and a 77.2 passer rating, as well as being sacked seven times. He was replaced by backup Jameis Winston just before the two-minute warning.
Commanders rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels wasn’t close to perfect, but he showed all the talent that made him September’s NFC Offensive Rookie of the Month. Daniels was 14-of-25 passing for 238 yards with a touchdown, an interception, an 85.1 passer rating and 82 rushing yards on 11 carries.
Follow along here as the Browns head just outside of the Beltway to battle the Commanders.
Jameis Winston replaced Deshaun Watson at quarterback for the Browns’ final drive.
The Browns pulled with 34-13 with 7:02 remaining. Deshaun Watson threw a 10-yard touchdown pass to Jordan Akins to account for the score.
Marcus Mariota came on at quarterback for the Washington Commanders with 12:50 remaining. Starter Jayden Daniels was 14 of 25 for 238 yards with a touchdown, an interception, an 85.1 passer rating and 82 rushing yards on 11 carries.
The hits continue to literally happen for quarterback Deshaun Watson. When Washington’s Dante Fowler Jr. dropped him for an 8-yard loss on third-and-14 from the Washington 43, it was the seventh time the Commanders had sacked him in the game.
The Browns trail by 25 entering the final 15 minutes.
Austin Seibert kicked a 30-yard field goal with 2:35 remaining in the third quarter to extend the Commanders lead to 34-6.
Grant Delpit and Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah both remained down after Washington plays on its eventual field goal drive. There’s been no updates given on their status.
Safety Ronnie Hickman was also questionable to return with an unspecified injury.
The Browns gave the Washington Commanders the ball back at midfield when linebacker Frankie Luvu stripped Deshaun Watson on a sack. Washington, up 25 points, takes over at the 50 with 5:48 remaining in the third quarter.
Jeremy McNichols’ 1-yard touchdown run with 7:23 remaining in the third quarter gave the Commanders a 31-6 lead over the Browns.
The Browns announced multiple injury updates after the field goal:
The Browns could only turn the fumble into three points, a 31-yard Dustin Hopkins field goal with 12:12 left in the third quarter. That’s after two passes to Amari Cooper got the Browns to the Washington 2, where it was first and goal.
The Commanders gave the Browns the break they needed on the first play of the third quarter. Terry McLaurin, running to the right after a handoff, had the ball knocked out of his hands by Cleveland’s Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah and recovered by cornerback Martin Emerson Jr. at the Washington 30.
The difference has been the quarterbacks as the Browns find themselves down 21 at halftime at Washington. The Commanders’ Jayden Daniels has been just about everything advertised in completing 11 of 21 passes for 166 yards with a touchdown, an interception, a 74.7 passer rating and 48 yards on eight rushes.
Deshaun Watson has not been sharp at all for the Browns: 8-of-18 passing for 67 yards and a 54.6 passer rating. He’s been sacked three times.
Jayden Daniels showed the accuracy that has made him a rookie sensation when he hit Dyami Brown down the right sideline for a 41-yard Washington touchdown. Brown had gotten past cornerback Martin Emerson Jr. on the route.
The touchdown gave Washington, which will get the second-half kickoff, a 24-3 lead over the Browns.
Cleveland was already down a defensive end with Alex Wright having gone on injured reserve Saturday after triceps surgery. The Browns may have lost another one as Ogbo Okoronkwo went to the locker room with medical personnel after a stint in the medical tent.
There’s been no update on Okoronkwo’s status yet.
Jayden Daniels avoided the would-be tackle in the backfield of Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah on a fourth-and-3 from the Browns 40. That gave him a clear lane to run 34 yards before safety Rodney McLeod knocked him out of bounds at the Browns 6.
Denzel Ward’s holding penalty on the play was added to the end of the run, pushing the ball to the Cleveland 2. Two plays later, Brian Robinson ran it in from a yard out for a 17-3 Commanders lead with 3:11 remaining in the first half.
Former Browns kicker Austin Seibert kicked a 27-yard field goal with 8:41 remaining in the second quarter to push the Commanders lead to 10-3. The Cleveland defense only allowed Washington to net 14 yards after Austin Ekeler’s 57-yard run to the Browns 23.
The Commanders started at their own 20-yard line after a Browns field goal. It took them just one play to get to the Browns 23, as Austin Ekeler took a handoff and ran 57 yards.
At about the Washington 40, Robinson left cornerback Martin Emerson Jr. spinning on a missed tackle attempt.
The Browns announced safety Rodney McLeod sustained a face laceration. His return is questionable.
Dustin Hopkins kicked a 51-yard field goal with 13:08 remaining in the second quarter to pull Cleveland within 7-3. That came a play after Washington’s Frankie Luvu sacked quarterback Deshaun Watson on third-and-15.
The Browns forced a three-and-out to end the first quarter, the final play being a Washington punt. James Proche II returned it to the Commanders 44, which is where Cleveland will start the second quarter.
Corey Bojorquez is pretty good at this punting job. After the Browns failed to pick up a first down on their fourth possession, Bojorquez hit a perfect punt that teammate Tony Brown II was able to down at the Commanders 2.
Austin Ekeler ran for 10 yard when the Commanders faced a fourth-and-2 from the Browns 4. The very next play, Brian Robinson bounced it outside to the left for a 4-yard touchdown run to give Washington a 7-0 lead with 2:40 remaining in the first quarter.
The Browns went three and out after intercepting Jayden Daniels. Daniels, though, got great starting field position for his third possession when Olamide Zaccheaus returned a punt 15 yards to the Browns 34.
Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah nearly had a third-down sack before Jayden Daniels got loose and found Terry McLaurin for a 66-yard gain. Three plays later, he made up for it by intercepting Daniels at the Cleveland 1 with 7:33 remaining.
The Commanders struck with the first really big play on third and 13 from their own 31. Jayden Daniels managed to avoid the rush of both Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah and Grant Delpit and hit Terry McLaurin for a 66-yard gain to the Browns 3.
Delpit appeared to almost tackle Owusu-Koramoah as Owusu-Koramoah was getting close to Daniels in the backfield. That allowed Daniels to roll out and find McLaurin.
The Browns continue to be their own worst enemy. Mike Ford Jr. was flagged for a 15-yard penalty when he hit Washington punt return man Olamide Zaccheaus after Zaccheaus called for a fair catch.
The penalty moved the ball to the Washington 34, where the Commanders start their second possession.
The Browns forced a three-and-out on Washington’s first offensive series. They capped it when Za’Darius Smith sacked quarterback Jayden Daniels for a 9-yard loss on third-and-10 from the Commanders 47.
The Browns’ first offensive possession ended with running back D’Onta Foreman failing to gain a yard on fourth-and-1 from the Washington 47. That snapped Cleveland’s streak of scoring on the opening possession, which had gone through the first four games.
Jameis Winston came in at quarterback and pitched the ball to Foreman. Foreman, running to the left, was slowed up by linebacker Frankie Luvu, who had come in and set the edge.
The Commanders won the toss and deferred to the second half. The Browns will get the ball to start.
Tight end David Njoku will be back in the starting lineup for the first time since his ankle injury in the season opener. Meanwhile, offensive tackle Jedrick Wills Jr. will start his second game this season as he returns from a right knee injury.
Offensive tackle Jack Conklin was inactive for the fifth consecutive game. He started practicing Aug. 27 as he returns from last year’s devastating left knee injury, but a hamstring injury has been the culprit the last three games.
All three players were listed as questionable coming into the game. Njoku and Wills, along with running back Pierre Strong Jr. (hamstring) and guard Michael Dunn (illness), all were active for the game.
Wills will start at left tackle in just his second appearance since Week 9 of last season, when he initially injured his right knee. He initially returned in Week 3 against the New York Giants, but reinjured the knee in the third quarter and had to leave.
Quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson will be the No. 3 quarterback for the fifth game in a row. The other Browns who are healthy scratches are cornerback Kahlef Hailassie, guard Javion Cohen and wide receiver Jamari Thrash.
Linebacker Jordan Hicks (ribs, elbow, triceps) and offensive tackles James Hudson III (shoulder) joined Conklin as injured inactive Browns. Hicks and Hudson both had been ruled out on Friday.
Here is the official inactive list for the Browns:
Kickoff is at 1 p.m.
Tickets for Sunday’s game on StubHub can be purchased on StubHub from $71 before fees.
It’s a sunny day in Landover, Md., with the temperature at kickoff expected to be near 76 degrees, according to the National Weather Service. Calm wind becoming south 5 to 7 mph in the afternoon.
Cleveland dropped to 1-3 on the season with a 20-16 loss at the Las Vegas Raiders in Las Vegas, The Browns had the ball fourth-and-3 at the Raiders 9 with 41 seconds remaining, but quarterback Deshaun Watson was sacked to end the game.
The Commanders improved to 3-1 on the season by beating the Arizona Cardinals 42-14 in Glendale, Ariz. Washington scored 20 unanswered points to open up a 27-7 third-quarter lead.
So what should we expect from the Browns this Sunday against the Commanders? Click here to see what our writers project as the score of today’s game.
Today is the 49th all-time regular-season or playoff meeting between the Browns and the Commanders, and the seventh since the rebirth of the Cleveland franchise in 1999. Here’s a look at the series between the Browns and Commanders.
Chris Easterling can be reached at ceasterling@thebeaconjournal.com. Read more about the Browns at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/browns. Follow him on X at @ceasterlingABJ
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