The Celeveland Browns rode a dominating defense and a pair of Nick Chubb touchdown runs to a 32-13 victory over the Bengals who were without injured wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase on “Monday Night Football” in Cleveland.
The Bengals entered “Monday Night Football” having scored in 41 consecutive halves. But a suddenly resurgent Browns defense snapped that streak, holding Cincinnati scoreless in the first half. The Bengals’ defense also had not allowed a touchdown in a second half all season. But Cleveland scored touchdowns on its first two drives out of halftime to put the game out of reach.
The Browns came into the week ranked 30th in defensive efficiency. But after a promising performance last weekend in the loss at Baltimore, Cleveland’s defense finally performed up to its preseason expectations. Talent has never been the issue. The Browns might have uncovered the chemistry and cohesiveness that had been missing. The way Cleveland’s offense clicked with Hunt manning a significant role in the win over the Bengals should be enough to convince the Browns to ride out the rest of the season with him.
