CLEVELAND — Six days ago, it seemed that Cleveland was dealt a crushing blow, as Nick Chubb suffered a season-ending injury. Flash forward to Sunday, and the only ones that were crushed was Ryan Tannehill and the Tennessee Titans.
Tannehill was sacked 3 1/2 times by Myles Garrett, as the defense limited Tennessee to a record-low 94 yards and the Browns rolled their way to a 27-3 win over the Titans on Sunday.
The Browns' offense put forth its best effort of the season, as Deshaun Watson bounced back from two subpar performances with his best day since coming to Cleveland.
Watson completed 27 of 33 passes for 289 yards and two touchdowns, and other than an ill-advised pitch while being harassed, Watson turned in a solid performance.
Jerome Ford, who moved into the number one spot at running back, had two touchdowns — a 19-yard reception from Watson in the second quarter and a 3-yard run in the third.
Watson's scoring pass to Ford came after Cleveland's quarterback took a shot to the head from linebacker Arden Key, who was called for roughing the passer on the same play the Titans were penalized for pass interference.
Watson was checked by trainers but stayed in and connected four plays later with Ford.
For Tennessee (1-2), it was an absolute nightmare for the offense.
Their total yardage was the fewest yards for a Titans team since they relocated from Houston in 1997. The previous low was 98 against Jacksonville back in 2006.
All-Pro running back Derrick Henry was limited to 20 yards on 11 carries, as the Cleveland defense forced the Titans to punt seven times in nine possessions and held them to six first downs. Tannehill was under siege all game, being sacked five times, and throwing for just 104 yards.
The Browns (2-1) defense was so dominant, that on Tennessee's lone scoring drive — capped by a 44-yard field goal from Nick Folk — the Titans lost 9 yards on the drive.
Garrett set the tone early and often throughout the first half.
With the Titans threatening to score before halftime, Garrett sacked Tannehill on the final play of the half. During the play, Garrett sped around left tackle Andre Dillard and was still managed to take down Tannehill as Dillard was still trying to block him.
Cleveland's devoured the Titans, particularly left tackle Andre Dillard. During the play, Garrett sped around left tackle Andre Dillard and was still being blocked when he grabbed and took down Tannehill.
The All-Pro end's sack not only ended the scoring threat, but effectively ended the game. But Ford helped remove any doubts with his touchdown run in the third quarter to extend the Browns lead to 20-3.
The defense put an exclamation point on the afternoon, as Alex Wright and Garrett recorded sacks on the first two plays to begin the final quarter of play.
And to finish things off, Watson threw a 43-yarder to Amari Cooper finalize the score at 27-3.
Next Sunday, the Browns will be back at home against Baltimore and the Titans host Cincinnati.
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