The Cleveland Browns starters looked awful last night as they trailed 30-3 with only one minute gone in the 2nd quarter before the backups rallied and almost pulled out a win.  Derek Anderson did not play well at all as he completed 4 of 10 passes for 20 yards before leaving the game with a concussion and a bruised hand.  Brady Quinn followed Anderson in the game and he looked sharp completing 7 of 12 passes for 124 yards including a 44-yard TD pass to 2nd year receiver Syndric Steptoe.  Ken Dorsey was also outstanding for the Browns in this game as he completed 9 of 11 passes for 143 yards with a 8-yard TD pass to WR Lance Leggett.  Jerome Harrison was the Browns’ leading rusher in this game as he carried the ball 5 times for 36 yards (7.2 ypc).  Jamal Lewis had a game to forget as he carried the ball 6 times for 13 yards (2.2 ypc).  Derek Anderson and Jamal Lewis had a botched handoff that resulted in a 94-yard TD return for free safety James Butler of the Giants.  WR/KR Syndric Steptoe almost willed the Cleveland Browns to a win by himself last night.  Steptoe caught 3 passes for 80 yards (26.7 avg) with a 44-yard acrobatic TD reception in which he took the ball away from a defender.  He also caught a lateral from Brady Quinn which he turned into a 7-yard TD.  Steptoe returned 2 kickoffs for 130 yards (65.0 avg) with a 90-yarder after Josh Cribbs got banged up.  WR Lance Leggett did a solid job at the end of the game for the Browns as he caught 2 passes for 46 yards (23.0 avg) including a 8-yard TD from Ken Dorsey.  The Browns finished up with 74 yards rushing on 21 carries (3.5 ypc) and they completed 20 of 33 passes for 279 yards last night.

The Browns defense did not play well at all last night.  Linebackers Kris Griffin (7 tackles) and Andra Davis (5 tackles) led the way for the Browns last night.  CB Eric Wright had some truly awful plays last night but he also made a couple of big plays.  He finished with 4 tackles, 1 sack and a interception that he returned 15-yards for a TD.  Wright also had a huge pass interference penalty in the first quarter and then he was burned for a TD on the next play by Eli Manning and Domenik Hixon.  The Browns allowed a stunning 201 yards rushing on 36 carries (5.6 ypc) and that was the most disappointing thing about watching this game.  The Giants also completed 15 of 30 passes for 129 yards last night.

The Browns also gave up 9 points on special teams and that’s flat out unacceptable.  The Browns gave up a safety on a blocked punt and Domenik Hixon returned the free kick on the next play 82 yards for a TD.  The Browns have a lot of work to do in all three phases of the game.