Written by Thomas Moore

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It certainly wasn’t the prettiest game you’ll ever see.

It definitely was not a game you will be telling your grandkids about one day.

But when you win as infrequently as the Cleveland Browns do, every win is a good win.

On a rainy, windy and generally unpleasant day at Cleveland Browns Stadium, the Browns did just enough to win (or just enough not to lose, depending on your perspective) against the San Diego Chargers, 7-6.

The win was the second in a row for the Browns at home, giving them a home winning streak for the first time since the final two games of the 2009 season.

“That was a team victory,” Browns coach Pat Shurmur said. “If you like watching defensive football it was great. The guys battled and to keep an explosive team like (San Diego) out of the end zone is a great job by our guys. I’m happy that they got to enjoy the victory.

“It just so happens that you have to play in the rain once in a while. We had a lot of nice ideas about throwing the football that we just couldn’t get done today.”

The Browns rode running back Trent Richardson for their only score of the day, a 26-yard touchdown run with 4:17 left in the first quarter. That touchdown, which came on the Browns’ first offensive possession of the day, culminated a 12-play, 70-yard drive.

“Trent’s a competitor and he wants to be out there,” Shurmur said. “He was less than perfect but he obviously had an outstanding game. I thought our guys up front blocked most of our runs pretty well. We knew it was a game that would be played close to the vest.”

On the touchdown run, Richardson broke two tackles, bounced off right guard Shawn Lauvao – who probably had the best chance of knowing Richardson down – and then bolted into the end zone for his fifth rushing touchdown of the season.

It was a good thing the Browns scored when they did, because after Richardson’s touchdown run, the Browns went nine consecutive possessions that ended in a punt, gaining a total of 157 yards.

So, to review, the Browns had 70 yards of offense on their first drive, but only 157 more yards the rest of the game (actually 155, because they lost two yards when they were in victory formation at the end of the game).

On the day, Richardson ran for 122 yards on 24 carries against the second-ranked rush defense in the NFL. Four other players carried the ball for the Browns – Brandon Weeden, Chris Ogbonnaya, Montario Hardesty and Josh Cribbs – and they totaled 11 yards.

Good thing that Richardson’s injured ribs didn’t keep him from playing on Sunday.

The weather certainly played a role in the woeful offensive performance, as the Chargers only managed 265 yards of offense as it was a day for the defenses. San Diego had six possessions end in punts, lost a fumble and twice turned the ball over on downs.

The Chargers only scores came on a pair of Nick Novak field goals – a 43-yarder in the second quarter and a 31-yarder in the third.

Weeden had a tough day throwing the ball in the elements, finishing just 11-of-27 for 129 yards, but most importantly he did not turn the ball over.

“It was tough especially the quick stuff (because of the weather),” he said. “It was challenging, but we made plays when we needed to and obviously the numbers are not pretty, but I can 1 million percent care less (because we won).”

As the game went on and every Browns possession ended with Reggie Hodges jogging onto the field, it was easy for Browns fans to come up with scenarios where the Browns would lose the game – especially when the Browns took over in 7:37 left in the game on their own three-yard line following a San Diego punt.

The Browns were able to move the ball 48 yards, picking up three first downs in the process, and take 5:01 off the clock in an attempt to seal the win. The biggest play of the drive came on third-and-six from their own seven-yard line when Weeden hit Richardson in the flat for 12 yards and a first down.

“We liked the way we matched up (with San Diego) on that play,” Weeden said. “It was one of the biggest plays of the game as it helped eat time off the clock.”

The drive eventually stalled and the Browns punted, with San Diego taking over on their own 12-yard line with 2:36 left to play.

It only took Philip Rivers five plays to move the Chargers to the Browns’ 45-yard line, triggering flashbacks for many fans to the Week 1 loss to Philadelphia. 

But the defense finally found its footing and forced four consecutive incomplete passes to finally seal the game for the Browns.

So, for at least a week, everyone in Brownstown can take a deep breath and relax a little bit. The fact that the Browns found a way to win (or not to lose) is a good sign. As little as a few weeks ago (or even last week), the Browns would have found a way to lose this game.

And with Baltimore coming to town next week, the Browns have the opportunity to win their second division game of the year (something they have not done since 2007) and go into the bye week on an actual winning streak.

And wouldn’t that feel good for a change?

(Photo by ClevelandBrowns.com)