The Browns came into Week 7 against the Dolphins at a pretty low point to start the year. Despite the understanding that the opening six games were looking like a gauntlet, the lack of offense made the unsurprising one-win start feel a bit worse.
Heading into this matchup, it was clear that the weather forecast was going to play a massive role in the game. It turned into a ground-and-pound game on both sides, but the Browns were able to prevail and come away with turnovers on defense and special teams to break the 20-point drought in a 31-6 victory.
Browns have ultimate get-right performance in 31-6 rout over Dolphins
Cleveland never trailed in this one after getting on the board first, behind 84 yards and three touchdowns from rookie running back Quinshon Judkins. For his efforts while this game was still very much in the balance, the game ball might go to newly-acquired Tyson Campbell after his touchdown-saving tackle that would've put the Dolphins on top and his pick-six to open the second half.
It wasn't much of a passing day for Dillon Gabriel in the tough conditions, as he threw for 116 yards on just 18 attempts with no turnovers. It's hard to evaluate a ton about plays that could have been left on the table, but the key was protecting the football with the explosive runs and four takeaways.
All season long, the Browns have talked about playing complementary football to ensure the defense can lead the team to victory, but that has resulted in the other two phases not messing up at best. Today, both the special teams and defense had splash plays to put the offense into very easy situations to get points on the board.
It remains to be seen if there will be massive ramifications for the Dolphins after this one, but the Browns will celebrate and be off to New England to take on one of the hottest teams in the NFL in a place they have struggled. Seeing the way the defense responded to some points from the offense makes it clear what the formula will be for this team to start stacking wins.