Cleveland Browns can sustain the success from Week 10 win

The Cleveland Browns pulled off a huge win in Week 10 over the Bills, but the better news is that their success is sustainable

For the second week in a row, the Cleveland Browns found themselves down by less than a touchdown in the final minutes of the game. Against the Denver Broncos in Week 9, they ended up failing to get the ball in the end zone and walked away with a loss. In Week 10 against the Buffalo Bills, they proved they learned for their previous mistakes.

This time, Baker Mayfield was able to spread the ball all over on the final drive and ultimately hit wide receiver Rashard Higgins for a go-ahead score. The defense allowed the Bills to move the ball into range for a long field-goal try, but it went wide-left and the Browns moved to 3-6.

Before this game, the team expressed confidence that they can turn things around despite losing their past four games. In fact, one of their biggest stars boldly claimed his team could run the table as defensive end Myles Garrett claimed they could go 10-6.

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"“I don’t see why we can’t be 10-6,’’ he said via Mary Kay Cabot, Cleveland.com. “There’s eight more games and that’s eight more opportunities. I don’t care what the previous record has shown, I don’t care what they’ve said has happened before. You go out there with the right mindset and good amount of want to, you know what the hell you’re doing, you have your fundamentals down, you can go out there and play with anybody. Those three or four plays can go either way and you get those to swing your direction, we can make a run for it.’’"

While that will be hard, there’s no reason to think this team can’t start putting some wins together and end the season with a respectable record. They were able to do this in 2018 as they were 5-2 in their final seven games, and with only one team with a winning record on the schedule, they could find similar success.

Not only that, but they seem to have found something in their offense they can work with. On Sunday, former NFL rushing leader Kareem Hunt made his Cleveland debut following an eight-game suspension. Hunt proved to be a big weapon for them, catching seven passes for 44 yards while adding another 30 yards on just four carries.

Pairing him with Nick Chubb, who had 116 yards on 20 carries, gives the Browns a dominant backfield that can carry them in the late portion of the season — as it gets colder and thus harder to throw the ball. The running backs also helped open things up as so much attention is commanded by the duo that players such as Odell Beckham, Jr. and Jarvis Landry are finding more room to work with. That was evident by the 97 yards and a touchdown Landry had in this one.

They also had this success while facing one of the better defenses in the game. An offense that has struggled mightily this year moved the ball well and had no turnovers in the game. The defense also stepped up, making things hard on the Bills while holding them to just 16 points — two of which came on a safety.

It’s just one win, but it’s something to build on. And this team has the pieces to sustain this success.