What was even more promising for the Browns other than putting a complete team effort together?
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But there’s evidence Manziel has learned from his mistakes.
Somewhat lost in the rush to praise Manziel is the role that head coach Mike Pettine, offensive coordinator John DeFilippo, quarterbacks coach Kevin O’Connell and quarterback Josh McCown have played in Manziel’s development.
Back on the field after being benched for two games, Manziel is taking full advantage of his second opportunity. With that said, one win over a shoddy 49ers team hardly means he’s no longer a risk.
If the pros and cons for that were figurative angels and devils on my shoulder, the devils’ side feels it’s lugging the 40-pound souvenir-laden computer bag I brought back from Kansas City.
It became obvious early in Sunday’s game against the Browns that the 49ers run defense was in for a tough day.
On first-and-15 at the 15, Manziel didn’t see Johnson wide open along the Browns’ sideline and took a sack for an 11-yard loss.
“I’ve only gotten to play six or seven games”, Manziel said, via Cleveland.com. To be fair, Gabbert got little help from the running game or the defense, though.
Isaiah Crowell rushed for a career-high 145 yards and had two short TD runs for Cleveland, which won its first game in December since 2012.
The 49ers were without their best defensive player in Aaron Lynch (6.5 sacks, 13.5 tackles for a loss), who sat out with a concussion; but the Browns were also without theirs again in cornerback Joe Haden (concussion).
San Francisco was outgained, outplayed and completely outmatched by a Cleveland team now reaching its third win of the season. “To go out and set an example physically and then keep pushing those guys, whether it’s in the meeting room, whether it’s in the locker room, that’s a tribute to our veteran leadership more than anything else”. Their lone touchdown drive came with under two minutes left and Cleveland leading by 21 points. He passed for 270 yards, delivering a quality performance the Browns desperately needed. Returning to the field after his latest off-field punishment ended, Manziel gave life to an offense which had looked out of sorts for most of the season.
The Cleveland running back hadn’t done much before Sunday. “Winning tends to do that”, Pettine stated, via Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Vendor. “This is a guy that’s a leader”. They’re in a three-way tie for the worst record in the National Football League with the Tennessee Titans and San Diego Chargers.
But a win in the manner that the Browns picked up Sunday is encouraging for a fanbase that’s desperate for success.
On first-and-10, Manziel rolled to his left and threw toward Hartline in the middle of the field.
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Michael Whitlow is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report.
