December 12, 2010

Great Defensive Effort Propels Bills to Victory Over Browns


If you had to guess how the Bills would beat the Browns on Sunday, would you ever guess a defensive battle? Probably not. The Bills entered Sunday with the league's 26th ranked defense but put up a Baltimore Ravens type defensive effort as they defeated the Cleveland Browns 13-6.

The game started out well for the Browns as they drove down the field on their first drive. However, they were stopped on 3rd and goal on the Bills 1-yard line and were forced to kick a field goal to go ahead 3-0.

The Bills responded in great fashion with a Fitzpatrick 11-yard touchdown to David Nelson in the 2nd quarter. The touchdown capped off a 14 play, 89-yard drive that lasted 8 minutes and 14 seconds.

After those scores, the game became a defensive battle. No touchdowns were scored the remainder of the game as both teams exchanged field goals the rest of the way.

The Bills entered halftime up 10-6 after Lindell hit a 30 yard field goal with 14 seconds remaining in the 2nd quarter.

The 3rd quarter was mostly boring football as no points were scored. Neither offense could preserve a drive as both teams switched possessions repeatedly.

In the 4th quarter, the Browns made a costly blunder with 7 minutes and 14 seconds remaining. Delhomme got sacked from behind and fumbled the ball on the Browns side of the field. Buffalo recovered (play was initially an incompletion but changed to a fumble) the ball and drove to the Cleveland 1 yard line. Instead of going for the kill on 4th and goal, they went for the field goal and took a 13-6 lead.

The Bills held the lead as Leodis Mckelvin intercepted Jake Delhomme with under 4 minutes remaining.

After the interception, the Browns never got the ball back as the Bills ran out the clock. The Browns had multiple opportunities to stop the Bills and the get the ball back but never could and went on to lose 13-6.

The Bills defense had a great game only allowing 187 total yards. They easily had their best game of the season and Delhomme struggled to move the ball against them the entire day.

For the Browns, Peyton Hillis had 108 yards but struggled at times. He had a key fumble on the Bills side of the field that was recovered by Kyle Williams. He also fumbled 2 other times although Cleveland recovered the ball.

The key for the Bills was keeping Hillis in check. They gave him his yards but didn't allow him to kill them.

On the Bills side of the ball, Freddy Jackson had a good game going for 112 yards on 29 carries. He was vital down the stretch as the Bills ran the ball down the Browns throats.

With the win, the Bills move to 3-10. Next week, they play on the road against the Miami Dolphins.


Attendance: 50,861
Buffalo's Record: 3-10 (4th in the AFC East)
Interesting Note:
-Bills had their top defensive effort of the season holding the Browns down to 187 yards and 6 points
-Ryan Fitzpatrick extended his streak of games with a touchdown pass to 14
Key Facts:
-Jake Delhomme passed for under 100 yards (86 yards) on the day
-Peyton Hillis rushed for over 100 yards for the 5th time this season
-Cleveland had 5 fumbles but only lost 2 of them (Hillis had 3 fumbles)
-Fred Jackson rushed for over 100 yards for the third time this season
-Steve Johnson had 5 receptions

Bills Stats:
Ryan Fitzpatrick- 14-23, 142 yards, 1 touchdown, 93 rating
Ryan Fitzpatrick- 49 yards rushing
Freddy Jackson- 29 carries, 112 yards, 3.9 yards per carry
C.J. Spiller- 8 carries, 33 yards
Steve Johnson- 5 receptions, 42 yards
David Nelson- 1 reception, 11 yards, 1 touchdown
Jonathan Stupar- 3 receptions, 45 yards
Arthur Moats- Sack
Leodis Mckelvin- Interception
Kyle Williams & Bart Scott- fumble recoveries





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