Actually the Browns made the QB change in the 2nd quarter of the first game of the season and they have never looked back.  Derek Anderson has been incredible this season and it’s even sweeter because the Ravens cut him.  Anderson has a rifle arm and the offensive line has given him a lot of time to throw the ball as evidenced by the fact that he has only been sacked 10 times so far this season.  Anderson has completed 212 of 365 passes (58.1%) for 2,758 yards with 22 TD passes and 11 interceptions (89.5 QB Rating) so far this season.  It’s amazing how well Anderson has played this season as he has a better QB Rating right now than Peyton Manning has!

The Browns finally won a game that didn’t come down until the last play.  They did it by controlling the football (35:23) and playing good defense for once.  Derek Anderson had another solid game as he completed 24 of 35 passes for 253 yards with 2 TD passes and 1 interception.  Jamal Lewis had a great game as he carried the ball 29 times for 134 yards (4.6 ypc) with a TD run and he also caught 2 passes for 13 yards.  Jason Wright was effective in limited action as he carried the ball 3 times for 14 yards (4.7 ypc) and he also caught 3 passes for 21 yards (7.0 avg).  Kellen Winslow was outstanding against the Texans as he caught 10 passes for 107 yards (10.7 avg) with a TD grab.  Braylon Edwards (4 rec, 57 yards, TD) and Joe Jurevicius (5 rec, 55 yards).  The Browns finished up with 148 yards rushing on 33 carries (4.5 ypc) and they also completed 24 of 35 passes for 249 yards.

The defense played pretty well for the Browns and that was a nice change.  D’Qwell Jackson led the way for the Browns with 12 tackles and a interception.  CBs Leigh Bodden (7 tackles, fumble recovery) and rookie Brandon McDonald (3 tackles, interception).  The Texans finished up with 77 yards rushing on 18 carries (4.3 ypc) and they completed 22 of 36 passes for 237 yards.

What an incredible football game.  It appeared that Phil Dawson had missed a 51-yard field goal as time expired and that the Browns had lost the game.  But the referees huddled and got the call right as Dawson’s kick was indeed good and the Browns won the game in OT as the dingbat Ravens kicked the ball right to Joshua Cribbs who had a nice return to set the Browns up in good field postion.  Derek Anderson made a lot of big throws at the end of this game to help the Browns pull out a big win on the road.  Anderson completed 24 of 38 passes for 274 yards with 0 TD passes and 1 interception.  He also carried the ball 3 times for 2 yards (0.7 ypc) with a TD run.  Jamal Lewis was inspired against his old team as he carried the ball 22 times for 92 yards (4.2 ypc) with a TD run and he also caught 4 passes for 30 yards (7.5 avg).  Jason Wright also ran the ball hard as he had 4 carries for 19 yards (4.8 ypc).  Braylon Edwards (8 rec, 85 yards), Joe Jurevicius (4 rec, 82 yards) and Kellen Winslow (5 rec, 64 yards) helped the Browns pull out a big win.  KR/PR Joshua Cribbs was giving the Browns good field position all day long against the Ravens.  He returned 7 kickoffs for 245 yards (35.0 avg) and he also returned 4 punts for 61 yards (15.3 avg)!  The Browns finished up with 117 yards rushing on 34 carries (3.4 ypc) and they also completed 24 of 38 passes for 263 yards.

The Browns defense gave up a lot of yards but they also made huge game changing plays vs. the evil Ravens.  DE Robaire Smith (5 tackles, 2 sacks) and safety Sean Jones (7 tackles, interception) both had big games.  But, Brodney Pool was the player of this game for the Browns.  Pool made 3 tackles, had 1/2 a sack and he returned a interception 100 yards for a TD!  The Ravens finished up with 128 yards rushing on 25 carries (5.1 ypc) and they also completed 22 of 41 passes for 240 yards.

The Browns played outstanding on special teams and it was almost good enough to win this game.  But, Phil Dawson’s 52-yard field goal attempt just came up a couple of feet short.  Joshua Cribbs scored a TD on an incredible 100 yard kickoff return in which the ball got behind him and rolled to the goal line before he started his amazing return to give the Browns a 28-24 lead in the 4th quarter.  He also set up another Browns TD with a 90-yard kickoff return in the 2nd quarter.  Cribbs finished up with 204 yards on 4 kickoff returns (51.0 avg) and he also returned 4 punts for 19 yards (4.8 avg).  Derek Anderson had a good first half but he couldn’t finish strong in this game.  He completed 16 of 35 passes for 123 yards with 3 TD passes and 0 interceptions.  Jamal Lewis had a rough time finding any running room against the Steelers defense as he carried the ball 16 times for 35 yards (2.2 ypc) and he also caught 3 passes for 8 yards (2.7 avg).  Kellen Winslow (5 rec, 46 yards, TD) and Joe Jurevicius (5 rec, 44 yards) both played solid games on Sunday.  The Browns finished with 40 yards rushing on 18 carries (2.2 ypc) and they also completed 16 of 35 passes for 123 yards.

The defense was led by rookie CB Eric Wright (12 tackles, sack), Leon Williams (11 tackles) and Brodney Pool (5 tackles, interception).  The Steelers finished up with 159 yards rushing on 35 carries (4.5 ypc) and they also completed 23 of 35 passes for 242 yards.

The Browns have decided to place LeCharles Bentley on the Injured Reserve List as he’s still trying to recover from knee injuries.  I feel bad for Bentley who wanted to play for the Browns his whole career and jumped at the chance to sign with them as a  free agent.  Hopefully Bentley will be able to return in 2008.