CLEVELAND — Home is where the wins are for the Browns this year, as they win in a big ballgame in mid-December and knock off the Jacksonville Jaguars by a score of 31-27.
They're now 6-1 at home, but more importantly, they're right up at the top of the wild card race as they go to 8-5 on the season.
Home is certainly where the Browns were more comfortable defensively. After two tough games in Denver and in LA against the Rams, the defense today looked like the defense that we've really been so proud of all season long.
Suddenly, they came up with big turnovers in the game. They picked off Trevor Lawrence three times — M.J. Emerson with two interceptions, Greg Newsome with one. And remember, they did it all in the secondary without Denzel Ward.
They also came up with a big fumble recovery at the start of the third quarter that led to a Browns touchdown. The Browns stayed ahead all game long against Jacksonville and fielded many, many Jacksonville comebacks and warded them off right to the end, when they finally recovered the onside kick to when the game.
Offensively, there were big plays, but there weren't many little plays. The Browns didn't have long drives; they came up with big plays.
Joe Flacco threw for over 300 yards — 311, to be exact — and he threw two touchdown passes to David Njoku before a thrilling touchdown pass of 41 yards to David Bell. Bell, the second-year player out of Purdue, scored his first NFL touchdown on a very, very risky fourth down-and-3.
Overall, a huge win for the Browns: Eight wins now on the season, and they now come down the stretch with four left to be played, looking like they are right on track to make it into the playoffs.
If the magic number is 10, well then they need only two. If it's 11, it could get tough, but they are certainly right in the driver's seat, because everything that needed to happen in other games with teams right on their heals in the playoff chase? It happened; it went the Browns' way.
Houston loses; Indianapolis loses; Thursday night, Pittsburgh lost, and it has the Browns breathing some clean air in the wild card race at 8-5.
The Bears are here coming up next Sunday. Now, I know you can take a look at that and say, "That's an easy win." Not so — Chicago's starting to play well, and knocked off Detroit on this day to get their fifth win of the season.
But we're ready to celebrate a Browns win and a Victory Monday coming up, as the Browns beat a very good Jacksonville Jaguars team.
Listen to Jimmy's calls from the game in the player below: