The Browns lead the Bears behind a late surge by Joe Flacco, inching closer to securing a playoff spot

CLEVELAND – The new guys, the old guys, the highly paid guys and the guys off the practice squad continue to perform. Even with the Cleveland Browns’ long-proven non-discriminatory welcome-all-champions policy, they forged ahead with a wild and previously unexplored chapter in their winding journey through the 2023 season on Sunday.

They were down by 10 points in the fourth quarter with a depleted offensive line battered and their oldest man, quarterback Joe Flacco, having thrown three interceptions in the first three quarters. Neither offense could do much, the Chicago Bears’ defense was playing the role of a bully and there was plenty of reason to believe the slumping Browns team might have to look to another day. In the third quarter, they managed a first down and 10 yards on five possessions. Yes, five.

But the fourth quarter was a different story. Flacco is getting hot. too hot. Amari Cooper broke free along the sideline, David Njoku continued to get open, and after the Browns went from dead in the water to the brink of an improbable victory, the Bears had their last chance a Hail Mary by Justin Fields deflected directly into the hands of wide receiver Darnell Mooney, who made it It somehow slips away and into the hands of Browns safety Dantoni Bell for the interception.

Cleveland 20, Chicago 17. The Browns are the survivors. They’re 9-5, 7-1 at home, and with one more win they’ll almost be a playoff berth.

Flacco threw for 374 yards, the most by any Cleveland quarterback since 2020. He threw for 212 yards in the fourth quarter while giving Brown back, highlighted by a 51-yard touchdown run to Cooper to tie the game and a 63-yard touchdown catch by Brown. On their final drive they located kicker Dustin Hopkins for what became a 34-yard game-winner. Flacco was still wearing his dress pants when he arrived at the podium after the game and gave what may have been the most important thank you/compliment of the day.

“You have to give a lot of credit to our defense,” Flacco said.

With multiple quarterback changes and lineup adjustments, it’s become a case of all hands (and Hopkins’ right foot), from all roster spots, pushing the Browns toward the playoffs. For two months now, the defense has seemed determined to drag Cleveland into the postseason, if that’s what it takes, and it delivered another masterpiece on Sunday. The Bears only scored because of their defense — they returned Flacco’s second interception 45 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter, and on a short field after the first pick. It took the Bears four plays to gain one yard and take a 7-0 lead.

Even when the Bears looked in complete control early in the second half, the Browns’ defense, which was without four injured players, continued to do its part. Flacco was getting hammered by Chicago’s pass rush, but Cleveland’s defense continued to give the offense opportunities. On the five possessions following the field goal that put the Bears up 17-7 midway through the third quarter, they gained just 41 yards and two first downs.

The Bears had just four plays of 15+ yards in the game. Flacco completed four times more than 30 yards in the fourth quarter alone, turning what was a miserable offensive day into more magic.

“I think (returning) tells you a lot about the type of people this organization has intentionally chosen to put on that roster and in that locker room,” Flacco said. “And I think it’s one of those things that maybe you can’t quantify. But having hard workers, strong people and all those things, if you’re put in situations where you need that flexibility, as you said, not every one of them is going to work out.”

“So there might be a little bit of luck in things like today, but I think it just speaks to the character of the guys in that room. And I think you have to give the organization credit for probably doing that on purpose.”

He’s right. The Browns are a well-coached team with an experienced and well-paid roster. But they also played most of the game with four offensive linemen who didn’t start in September, with an undrafted rookie and an undrafted sophomore starting at safety, with Flacco just four weeks away from not making anyone’s team and throwing to not just Njoku and Cooper. But to Marquise Godwin, who recently missed a month with a concussion and before Sunday had not caught a pass since Oct. 22. Bell, who made the game-sealing interception, had played just 45 defensive snaps all previous season. Sunday.

When Flacco threw for 311 yards and three touchdowns last week versus Jacksonville, the Browns became the first team in eight years and only the second this century to have four different starters win a game during a season.

“We went through four quarterbacks,” Browns defensive end Myles Garrett said. “Being 10 points down (in fourth place) is not going to shake us because we’ve been through it all through the injuries and everything else. So this is just another step in our journey, another opportunity for us to write a very strange but great legacy.

What Garrett and his defensive teammates do best — and frequently — is attack. The Browns are aggressive and willing to live with the consequences of teams that can keep quarterbacks upright and successfully run slow-developing plays. Garrett thought he nailed Fields a few times only to see Chicago’s elusive quarterback escape. Typically, the Browns would have other defenders there to shut down running lanes and shut down big play windows.

Rookie defensive tackle Siaki Ika made his NFL debut. Two-time Pro Bowl cornerback Denzel Ward returned from a three-game absence but was in limited snaps, so Cleveland had rookie cornerback Cameron Mitchell in the game mostly with Bell and Ronnie Hickman at safety. Alex Wright, who is usually the fourth pass rusher, ran into a spot in the rotation and had a sack and a forced fumble. Unofficially, the Browns had seven fielding hits, three sacks, 11 tackles for loss, and eight pass breakups.

Pro Bowl guard Joel Bitonio suffered a back injury in the first half, so Michael Dunn joined a line that included backup center Nick Harris, left tackle Jeron Christian, who signed with the practice squad on October 31, and right tackle James Hudson, who was a backup for most of Its three seasons. On the Browns’ only scoring drive of the first half, they inserted rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson into a play from fourth down. The Bears, expecting guard Thompson Robinson, were tricked by a quick pass to Jerome Ford for the conversion.

“I appreciate this locker room,” Browns coach Kevin Stefanski said. “That’s a group of fighters out there. It’s not always pretty. It wasn’t perfect, it’s never going to be perfect. But seeing these guys fight for 60 minutes, which is what we needed for 60 minutes, moving forward. Guys that are overcoming injuries, guys that are out of the lineup.” “And the players that are filling in, that’s a resilient group there. Really very proud of them. Proud to get this.”

“And then we know where we are. Another big event coming up in the AFC next week (in Houston). But really proud of the effort again. About a thousand things can be cleaned up, but to get the win like this, I’m very proud of this group.”

On the day Flacco went from fragile to excellent, the quarterback and head coach rightly acknowledged that the Browns needed everyone. And everyone should bow down after this: the assistant coaches, the people who put together the roster, whoever orchestrated and signed the deal for Hopkins, and the guys who put on heavy raincoats on a miserable weather day. The list goes on.

According to Over the Cap’s cash spending tracker, the Browns have spent roughly $294 million on this roster. They can buy game balls for everyone — and they should have another set ready, too, when the next win comes and the playoff ticket is punched.

“Who could (write) this story? I mean, not even Dr. Seuss,” Garrett said. “It doesn’t seem any more abstract than what we’ve been through, but hell, we’re making the most of it, and having fun with it. Man, you should be blessed to make (this) happen. You are on this roller coaster and we have had our ups and downs, but we are together and this is how we will get through what we have. This is how we will keep winning.”

(Photo: Kirk Irwin/Associated Press)