10:33 p.m.-BUFFALO BILLS TOP CLEVELAND BROWNS, 19-17, IN PRESEASON ACTION
CLEVELAND -- All good things must come to an end, and for the Cleveland Browns, that was their preseason winning streak.
Winners of five consecutive preseason games, the Browns allowed 13 straight points to the Buffalo Bills over the second and third quarters and suffered a 19-17 loss in their preseason home opener at FirstEnergy Stadium in Cleveland Friday night.
Buffalo rookie quarterback Josh Allen completed nine of his 13 attempts for 60 yards with one touchdown, and Nathan Peterman completed the comeback victory with a 35-yard scoring pass to tight end Nick O’Leary in the fourth quarter.
Quarterback play was a strength for the Browns in their win over the New York Giants last Thursday, but Tyrod Taylor and Baker Mayfield combined to complete 11 of their 20 attempts for 97 yards with no touchdowns in the loss to Buffalo.
While the passing game was inconsistent against the Bills, the rushing attack accounted for 164 yards on 32 carries after totaling just 50 yards on 33 attempts against the Giants.
Starter Carlos Hyde rushed for a game-best 64 yards and one touchdown on nine carries, while rookie Nick Chubb registered 53 yards and one score on 11 attempts.
PHOTOS: Cleveland Browns battle Buffalo Bills in preseason action
10:06 p.m.-BILLS STRIKE BACK, RETAKE LEAD OVER BROWNS
CLEVELAND -- Nathan Peterman’s 35-yard touchdown pass to tight end Nick O’Leary gave the Buffalo Bills a 19-17 lead over the Cleveland Browns with 9:02 to play in the fourth quarter of their preseason matchup at FirstEnergy Stadium in Cleveland Friday night.
Although the point-after-touchdown attempt failed, the Bills retook the lead with their seven-play, 75-yard scoring drive that they needed just 3:31 to complete with the touchdown pass.
Peterman’s 35-yard touchdown throw came on third-and-seven, as he found O’Leary open on the right side of the field, and the third-year tight end hustled his way into the end zone for the go-ahead score.
9:59 p.m.-NICK CHUBB RUSHES FOR GO-AHEAD TOUCHDOWN
CLEVELAND -- Cleveland Browns running back Nick Chubb finished off a scoring drive the only way he knew how after rushing the offense down to the Buffalo Bills’ one-yard line, and that was with a straight-ahead inside run into the end zone.
Chubb’s scoring run and the ensuing extra point gave the Browns a 17-13 lead over the Bills with 12:33 to play in regulation and punctuated a nine-play, 65-yard drive that took 2:59 off of the game clock.
Earlier in the drive, Chubb took a handoff from quarterback Baker Mayfield, hustled through a gap opened up by blocks from the offensive line and sprinted toward the pylon in the left front corner of the end zone. However, Chubb was ruled out inside the one-yard line and was stopped for no gain on the next play.
Then, after having a touchdown pass from Mayfield to wide receiver Derrick Willies overturned on replay, the Browns went back to Chubb and the first-year rusher finished what he started with the touchdown run.
9:35 p.m.-BROWNS DRAW TO WITHIN FIELD GOAL OF BILLS
CLEVELAND -- An offensive pass interference penalty took a touchdown off of the scoreboard, but the Cleveland Browns still converted a field goal attempt and drew to within three points of the Buffalo Bills with 2:16 to play in the third quarter of their preseason home opener at FirstEnergy Stadium Friday night.
A 31-yard field goal from kicker Ross Martin capped off an 11-play, 51-yard drive that took nearly six minutes off of the clock and cut Buffalo’s lead down to 13-10 late in the third quarter.
Two plays before the field goal, it appeared the Browns would attempt the go-ahead a point-after-touchdown try when rookie quarterback Baker Mayfield threw a touchdown pass to wide receiver Derrick Willies, but tight end Devon Cajuste was flagged for offensive pass interference.
Cajuste’s penalty cost the Browns the six points and 10 yards on top of it, which backed up the offense to Buffalo’s 12-yard line. Subsequently, Mayfield’s next attempt to Willies fell incomplete short of the goal line and brought on Martin for the try.
9:18 p.m.-BILLS ADD ONTO LEAD OVER BROWNS
CLEVELAND -- The Buffalo Bills began the second half in the same way they ended the first, with a field goal.
After their six-play, 21-yard drive stalled at the Cleveland 43-yard line, Bills kicker Stephen Hauschka converted a 53-yard field goal attempt, which gave Buffalo a 13-7 lead over the Browns with 10:51 remaining in the third quarter of their preseason game at FirstEnergy Stadium.
Earlier in the drive, Bills rookie quarterback Josh Allen flared a pass out to the left of the formation to former Browns wide receiver Corey Coleman, who gained seven yards on the catch just 12 days after being dealt from Cleveland to Buffalo for a seventh-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.
8:52 p.m.-BILLS TAKE LEAD ON LATE FIELD GOAL
CLEVELAND -- Buffalo Bills rookie quarterback Josh Allen executed his second consecutive scoring drive late in the first half in preseason action against the Cleveland Browns at FirstEnergy Stadium in Cleveland Friday night.
After leading a touchdown drive on his first possession of the game, Allen engineered an eight-play, 26-yard scoring drive that veteran kicker Stephen Hauschka punctuated with a 33-yard field goal, which gave Buffalo a 10-7 lead over Cleveland with three seconds remaining in the first half.
The Browns nearly forced a turnover when the Bills faced a second-and-two from the Cleveland 22-yard line, as running back Travaris Cadet fumbled the football after being hit by backup linebacker Justin Currie at the line of scrimmage. However, Buffalo guard John Miller saved the possession when he recovered the loose ball at the 21-yard line.
On the next play, Allen took the third-and-one snap out of the shotgun formation and hustled around right end for a six-yard gain and Buffalo first down from the Cleveland 15-yard line.
8:38 p.m.-BILLS DRAW EVEN WITH BROWNS
CLEVELAND -- The Buffalo Bills made the switch to the second-team offense, and that resulted in their first extended drive of the preseason home opener for the Cleveland Browns at FirstEnergy Stadium, a possession that finished in the end zone.
Despite a heavy rush on third-and-goal from inside the five-yard line, rookie quarterback Josh Allen moved around in the pocket long enough for wide receiver Rod Streater to shake loose from a Browns defensive back and haul in the touchdown pass at the back of the end zone.
The point-after-touchdown drew the Browns even with the Bills, 7-7, with 3:55 to play in the first half.
Early in the drive, it appeared the Browns had forced the Bills into a punting situation, but an illegal use of the hands penalty gave Buffalo an automatic first down from their own 40-yard line. Nine plays later, the Bills found their way into the end zone.
Prior to the scoring drive, the Bills had four straight three-and-outs against the Browns’ defense.
7:46 p.m.-BROWNS TAKE 7-0 LEAD OVER BILLS
CLEVELAND -- The Cleveland Browns wanted an improved effort from the running game against the Buffalo Bills after a lackluster level of productivity at the New York Giants, and they showed off their hard work on the first drive of the preseason opener at FirstEnergy Stadium.
Running back Carlos Hyde punctuated the nine-play, 70-yard drive with a four-yard scoring run around right end.
Kicker Zane Gonzalez added the extra point, which gave the Browns a 7-0 lead over the Bills with 9:10 to play in the first quarter.
In addition to the touchdown, Hyde rushed four other times and gained 37 yards, including a 26-yard scamper up the right sideline that took the ball from Cleveland’s 42-yard line out to Buffalo’s 32 just three plays into the drive.
Two plays later, Duke Johnson Jr. rushed for an 18-yard gain before catching a cleat in the grass and falling down while still in full stride up the field.
4:30 p.m.-CLEVELAND BROWNS WANT ‘BETTER EXECUTION, UNDERSTANDING OF SITUATIONAL FOOTBALL’ AGAINST BUFFALO BILLS
CLEVELAND -- The Cleveland Browns opened the 2018 preseason with a 20-10 victory over the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey last Thursday night, and will continue the exhibition season against the Buffalo Bills at FirstEnergy Stadium tonight.
Despite the win, the Browns admittedly have plenty to work on as the regular season approaches, and the coaches are looking for increased productivity and more efficiency against the Bills, a playoff team from a year ago.
“Let’s see what the second week brings in terms of more execution and understanding situational football,” Browns coach Hue Jackson said after a practice earlier in the week.
“We need to be better at substitutions, getting guys in and out as far as from the sideline. It is Week 2 of the staff being together and understanding what we are trying to accomplish. Those things are important. Obviously, the most important is evaluating the team still.”
PHOTOS: Cleveland Browns face New York Giants in 2018 preseason opener
Jackson feels quarterback play is and will continue to be the biggest difference between the 2018 team and the 2017 squad that finished the regular season with only the second 0-16 record in NFL history, and he got it from both Tyrod Taylor and Baker Mayfield in the win over the Giants.
Acquired in an offseason trade with the Bills and immediately named the starting quarterback, Taylor, now in his eighth NFL season, completed all five of his passes for 99 yards and one touchdown during his two series against the Giants.
In his NFL preseason debut, Mayfield found the mark with 11 of his 20 attempts, including seven of the last nine throws, for 212 yards and two touchdowns.
Taylor and the Browns’ first-team offense is expected to play more against the Bills, who helped lead to the AFC Playoffs last year.
“Obviously, I want to see them play longer than they played last week -- a quarter or whatever that is, maybe a little longer,” Jackson said of the first-team offense and defense. “It all depends on how it is going. I definitely want them out there longer than eight plays. If the results are touchdowns, we will keep going. We just need to play a little bit more.”
PHOTOS: Cleveland Browns QBs Tyrod Taylor, Baker Mayfield have solid showings in win at New York
Regardless of how many plays the Browns’ coaches give the first-team players, they are hoping to see an increased sense of urgency and more efficiency in the operation of the game because it will give Jackson and his staff a better evaluation of the talent on the roster.
“There is always urgency anytime we are playing for our players because they are putting something on tape that we get to evaluate and say a guy is not playing as well as he should or we have to do a better job of coaching the players,” Jackson said.
“I think there is urgency all throughout our football team. Obviously, there is competition at some spots, and that is going to sort itself out by the way we play. Guys will play. Next week is the dress-rehearsal game. We will continue to evaluate in that game, as well.”
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