Factory Of Sadness
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Benjamin Runs Past Titans for Cleveland Browns First Win

By Joe Russo

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Sep 20, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Browns wide receiver Travis Benjamin (11) returns for a punt for a touchdown during the second quarter against the Tennessee Titans at FirstEnergy Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports

After an ugly first week, Johnny Manziel and the Browns offense made big strides against the Titans in a win. Factory of Sadness has everything you need to know about Sunday afternoon’s game, from the highlights, standout players, and numbers behind the Browns big win.

If you were to draw up the ideal start for the Browns home opener, it may have looked a little something like the actual first quarter for the Johnny Manziel led Browns. After a great three and out from the defense, Manziel hit a streaking Travis Benjamin for a 60 yard score. That set the tone for the rest of the quarter, as Manziel started 4/5 for 100 yards and the Benjamin score. Isaiah Crowell also added an 11 yard score to push the Browns to a 14-0 by the end of the first quarter.

But it wasn’t just the offense that made the home crowd excited in the first. The defense forced two turnovers themselves. Joe Haden recovered a fumble from former Brown Terrance West and Karlos Dansby recovered a Marcus Mariota fumble after John Hughes and Paul Kruger combined for a huge hit on third down.

The reminder of the first half followed much of the same script. Even with a Tramon Williams fumble recovery being wiped out by a missed delay of game penalty, the Browns controlled both side of the ball all through the second quarter. The front seven was providing consistent pressure, forcing Mariota into an 8 for 16 start for only 71 yards. The Browns also managed to sack the elusive Mariota three times and hit him another six times. In contrast, Johnny Manziel ended the first half six of eleven for 106 yards and a score. Most importantly, Manziel did not turn the ball over at all through the first two quarters of the day.

The most electric moment of the first half came from the Browns designated big playmaker, Travis Benjamin. He added a 78 yard punt return for a score. After averaging 29.8 yards per punt return and 32.5 yards per catch, Benjamin is proving that he is the most explosive player on the roster now that he is recovered from the knee issue that knocked him out of 2014. Even the most optimistic of Browns fans would not have guessed that the home team would be leading 21-0 at the half.

Mariota and the Titans offense did show some signs of life through the third quarter. Mariota threw his fifth touchdown pass of the season to Anthony Fasano with 1:36 left in the third quarter. But it was Dexter McCluster who really shined for the Titans. Despite having Bishop Sankey and Terrance West in the backfield, it was McCluster who proved to be the most effective running back for the Titans. McCluster ran for 98 yards on the day, showing that the Browns still have some work to do against the run.

Conversely, the Browns offense ground to a halt in the third frame, managing only 22 total yards and one first down after controlling the entire first half. One of the last plays of the quarter was emblematic of the entire quarter. Titans defensive lineman Al Woods pushed Alex Mack into the backfield, threw him to the ground, and drilled Isaiah Crowell for a loss. Just as the Browns ground game got going, the play calling got conservative. Too many simple zone runs and none of the aggression shown in the first half was evident in Joe DiFillipo’s playcalling. That was a major factor in the Browns MIA third quarter offense.

The defense didn’t help any at all either. Part of McCluster’s success was the Brown’s inability to set the edge and not allow runners to beat the defense to the outside. Self-inflicted wounds came back to hurt the defense again. A Jordan Poyer interception was called off after a Desmond Bryant hands to the face penalty. A few plays later, Mariota hit Dorial Green-Beckham in the endzone to bring the score to 21-14. Who was covering Gree-Beckham? None other than Joe Haden, who continues to struggle in coverage after getting torched by Brandon Marshall of the Jets in week one.

But there would be no comeback for Tennessee. Travis Benjamin struck again with just under three minutes left in the game. Johnny Manziel, who may have finally broken through as an NFL quarterback with his play Sunday, eluded pressure from Brian Orakpo to hit Benjamin for a 60-yard score to put the Browns up 28-14. That play gave Benjamin 3 catches for 115 yards and 2 touchdowns, each over 50 yards. Add to that his 78 yard punt return for a score, and Benjamin had three scores of over 50 yards. In all, Benjamin had 269 total yards on the day. With 40 seconds left, Armonty Bryant notched the Browns 7th sack of the day on a strip sack that ended any hopes the Titans had of pulling off the comeback.

Next: The Titans Win By The Numbers

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