Browns Drop Overtime Heartbreaker to Denver 26-23

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Oct 18, 2015; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Browns tight end Gary Barnidge (82) catches a touchdown pass as Denver Broncos inside linebacker

Danny Trevathan

(59) defends in the third quarter at FirstEnergy Stadium. Mandatory Credit: James Lang-USA TODAY Sports

Rapid Reaction: Denver Broncos’ First Half

Manning may have only thrown for 70 yards, but he was 11/17 overall. Yes, he threw an interception, but he mostly kept the ball moving and allowed his team to work the ball down the field. However, it is obvious that this offense was causing him problems; be it scheme or the fact that he has not been able to drive the ball downfield.

His longest pass went 17 yards to WR Demaryius Thomas. I knew Manning had lost some zip, but this is the first time I’ve really watched close enough to see it.

The Broncos defense was missing DE/LB DeMarcus Ware and lost DE/LB Shane Ray to a knee injury during the half, but that hasn’t slowed them down. They recorded a sack, two quarterback hits, and their pressure is what forced McCown’s hideous first half stat line.

In the pregame, it was mentioned that the Broncos defense has 11 different players with at least one sack. As a reference, the Browns have only 10 sacks total on the year.

More from Factory of Sadness

RB Ronnie Hillman is just the latest back to carve right through the Cleveland running defense. He broke loose for 59 yards on 10 carries, including a 26 yarder. That’s an average of 5.9 yards per carry.

The Denver offensive line hasn’t exactly been setting the world on fire, averaging only 71.6 rushing yards per game and a full ten points less per game than 2014.

It was only a matter of time until Broncos HC Gary Kubiak got the run game going and the Browns defense has been every teams’ favorite run defense.

Next: Rapid Reaction: Cleveland Browns' Second Half

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