Browns vs Redskins Week 4: Highlights, score and recap

A struggling Cleveland Browns team visits the 1-2 Washington Redskins at FedEx Field in Week 4. Can Kirk Cousins and his star receivers get a second-straight win?

On Sunday, Kirk Cousins and the Redskins continued their momentum from last week, defeating the Browns 31-20 for their second-straight victory. It was also Washington’s first win at FedEx Field in the young season, putting their record at 2-2 overall. Meanwhile, the Browns continue their inability to win a game, despite their offense showing glimpses of hope. Today’s loss came thanks in part to penalties and costly turnovers in the red zone.

The Redskins got off to a hot start in the first quarter to take a nice double-digit lead thanks to Cousins and tight end Jordan Reed. Cousins managed to guide his team down the field on two-straight scoring drives in which he hooked up with one of his favorite targets. Each of those drives also included more rushing plays than usually seen from Washington against what is a typically weak Browns defense. Ultimately, the Redskins quarterback connected on red zone plays with Reed for a 14-0 lead in the first. Prior to today, Reed had zero touchdowns, but was able to record two in just the first quarter today.

In the second quarter, the Browns were able to score a much-needed touchdown thanks to big plays from Terrell Pryor and multiple rushing plays from back Isaiah Crowell. He’d eventually cross the goal line with a short yardage play for the score. That reduced Washington’s lead to 14-7. After an interception by the Browns’ Jamar Taylor, Cody Kessler found Terrelle Pryor with an end zone score to even things up. A Dustin Hopkins field goal helped Washington reclaim the lead 17-14, but Cleveland also managed to drive down the field and nailed a field goal before halftime to tie things up.

Cleveland came out of the gates hot for the second half, with Isaiah Crowell once again helping with a key rushing play to get midfield. Penalties would come up as an issue which hurt the Browns on a potential touchdown drive. Instead of a touchdown, they settled for a 40-yard field goal from their brand new kicker Cody Parkey, giving them a 20-17 lead in the third quarter.

For the Redskins, running backs were definitely a bigger key to today’s victory than usual. In today’s contest, Matt Jones finally found a defense to break through against. Jones finished with over 100 yards on the ground and a touchdown for his efforts. For the Browns, Crowell may have looked good with his 100 yards-plus rushing, but his teammate Duke Johnson, not so much.

Johnson had several costly fumbles on back-to-back drives in scoring territory during the second half. His first fumble led to a Redskins’ scoring drive with Chris Thompson grabbing a TD pass to bring the lead back to Washington, 24-20. The next time Cleveland advanced down the field, Johnson lost the ball again.

On the Browns third-straight drive, they once again turned the ball over. This time, Josh Norman picked off Kessler’s pass attempt for his first interception of the season. Several plays later, Matt Jones continued his great day on the field, rushing in for the short touchdown to give Washington breathing room and a 31-20 lead. Norman continued to look alive on defense late, helping to stop a late Browns’ attempt at converting on fourth down.

When all was said and done, the Redskins came away with a nice 31-20 win at home to even their record at 2-2. Meanwhile Cleveland fell to 0-4 to continue their dismal start to the season with coach Hue Jackson needing to go back to the drawing board.

Highlights

Three stars

1. Matt Jones, RB, Redskins

The ground game has looked anything but suitable for the Redskins through their first three games. Today, was a different story as Jones finally managed to step up his efforts. It was his second career game with over 100 yards of rushing. He had a long run of 25 yards on one drive, and also added a short yardage touchdown late to give Washington a nice cushion in the fourth quarter. If Jones can keep this sort of momentum, it will take pressure off Cousins and the receivers to really give this team some offensive power.

2. Jordan Reed, TE, Redskins

It’s no surprise that with DeSean Jackson under constant pressure from Browns defender Joe Haden, Reed came through big early on. Cousins hooked up with Reed on back-to-back scoring drives in just the first quarter to grab the early lead. The two TD grabs gave Reed more touchdowns in today’s game than he’s scored all season, and could certainly boost the tight end’s confidence going forward. Reed was targeted 10 times throughout the game and made nine receptions for 73 yards and those two big scores early.

3. Josh Norman, CB, Redskins

Norman recorded his first interception of the season and it couldn’t have come at a better moment. During the fourth quarter, the Redskins cornerback snatched Kessler’s pass attempt intended for Pryor. That put Washington right into scoring territory. At the time, the Redskins only had a 24-20 lead with Cleveland attempting to gain some momentum down the field. The picked-off pass led to another touchdown several plays later for the Redskins and gave them a more comfortable 31-20 lead. It’s hard to ignore Norman’s contributions on the field as he certainly is a game changer when it counts.

Odds

As of this report, the Redskins were eight-point favorites at home at several sports books. The over/under points total was at 47 points for the complete game.

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Next Week

The Browns will host the New England Patriots next Sunday at 1 p.m. Eastern Time. The Redskins will visit the Baltimore Ravens for a game at the same time slot.