Week 2 instant reactions: Browns defense saves the day in road win

It wasn't easy but the Cleveland Browns escaped Week 2 with a win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Cleveland took an early 7-0 lead thanks to a masterful opening drive from Deshaun Watson. The controversial quarterback was an impressive 7-of-8 passes for 83 yards before running in a touchdown from one yard out. He converted one third-down pass to Elijah Moore and secured another third-down conversion after a penalty for roughing the passer on Devin Lloyd.

From there, the offense slowed down. They scored six points in the second quarter, heading to the break with a 13-3 lead. However, Watson had just 25 yards passing after the first drive. They were also just 1-of-6 on third downs. Their issues continued in the second half, with just one mire field goal in the third quarter.

The good news is that the defense was up to the task. The Jags had just three points in the first half, which only happened thanks to Trevor Lawrence gaining 33 yards on a run. He went into the break with just 16 yards on 5-of-11 passing attempts.

Lawrence led a comeback, even appearing to take a late lead when he hit Christian Kirk from two yards out. That would have made it 17-16 but a penalty negated the touchdown, meaning Jacksonville settled for three, and it was a 16-13 ball game.

Cleveland nearly threw it away as they had a second-and-10 from the Jacksonville 24 with just over two minutes to play. They then had a comedy of errors that led to a third-and-36 at midfield. They gained nine yards but instead of going for a long field goal, they asked Corey Bojorquez to pin the offense deep, and he delivered.

Bojorquez sent the ball to the two-yard line and on the first snap, Alex Wright sacked Lawrence for a safety. That made it 18-13 and the Browns hung on despite the offense again giving Lawrence the ball back. They made it interesting but in the end, the Browns walked out with a close win.

Browns continue to deal with injuries

Cleveland still can't catch a break when it comes to injuries. They lost Dawand Jones during this game to cramping during the first half.

The hits kept coming as David Bell had to be carted off in the third quarter after he hauled in a six-yard reception on third-and-10.

Up next

Cleveland is back home in Week 3 and will host the New York Giants.

More Browns coverage