You play to win the game

The Browns won the game and like Herm Edwards once said that is why you play the game. The Jets came into the game with only three wins yet they out gained Browns and held a time of possession edge but in the end the Browns won the game.

The first half seemed like it was over in an instant. The Browns had a nice goal line stand to start the second quarter-- stuffing the Jets on first and second down and then Sean Jones coming up big with a pick on the goal line. Not much happened offensively until the Browns got the ball after a touchback with 6:09 left in the half. Anderson completed 5 of 7 passes culminating in a 7-yard pass to Jamal Lewis for a touchdown.

The Browns looked just as impressive on the opening drive of the second half. It took just five plays for the Browns to score on a nice Anderson pass to Braylon Edwards.

After that the game was mostly boring. Which is not a bad thing. The Browns found their running game for the most part and looked like they would ease to victory.

But nothing comes easy in this town. With 6:30 left in the game, Lewis lost a yard on first down and then two incompletes left 5:27 still on the clock and only a 17-6 lead. A penalty gave the Jets new life on a third down and the Jets scored a touchdown. The two-point attempt failed and the Browns had to survive a mess of onside kicks.

I know football logic dictates Jamal Lewis fall down after getting the needed four yards that looked to salt the game but you have to love his toughness to grind all the way to the end zone.

In the end all that matter is the Browns won a game in the rain on the road. Thanks to the Titans choke job blowing a 14-point fourth quarter lead to a Chargers team that was ready to implode-- the Browns have a game lead with three to play for the final playoff spot and a likely first round playoff game against the team we love to hate in Pukesburgh.

And yet all that can change if the Browns lose next week against the also surprising Buffalo Bills. Never has a game at Cleveland Browns stadium meant so much playoff wise to two teams. It should be a lot of fun. This week was about making next week mean something and despite a lot of ugly the Browns did what they needed to do. They won the game.